You may choose any topic for your original poem, as long as it is appropriate for school.
Focus on a theme that is important to you. Your poem may be organized as rhyme or free verse.
Either way, you MUST follow the following guidelines:
 Your poem must be at least 21 lines long.
 Every 5 th line should be numbered.
 Each line must start with a capital letter, and there should be end punctuation where appropriate (at least at the very end of the poem).
 Line 3 must contain a simile.
 Line 5 must contain onomatopoeia.
 Line 7 must contain a metaphor.
 Line 9 must contain an allusion to some other area of literature, culture, or music that many people could relate to (use a footnote to explain the allusion).
 Line 11 must contain assonance.
 Line 13 must exhibit symbolism.
 Line 15 must contain alliteration.
 Line 17 must contain personification.
 Line 19 must contain hyperbole.
 Line 21 must contain a rhetorical question.
Your poem should look like a poem, not a paragraph! The final draft should be neatly typed or neatly hand-written in black or blue ink, with no cross-outs or mistakes.
Rubric
Length
Numbered
Conventions
Line 3
Line 5
Line 7
Line 9
Line 11
Line 13
Line 15
Line 17
Line 19
Line 21
Focus &
Organization
5 points
More than 20 lines long
Lines are numbered
Few distracting errors within,
End punctuation at the very end, arranged like a poem.
Contains a simile used correctly
Contains onomatopoeia used correctly
Contains a metaphor used correctly
Contains an appropriate allusion
Contains assonance used correctly
Contains meaningful symbolism
Contains alliteration used correctly
Contains personification used correctly.
Contains hyperbole used correctly
Contains a rhetorical question used correctly
Poem is both focused and organized; shows poetic style
4 points
Exactly 20 lines long
X
Some distracting errors within,
End punctuation at the very end, arrangement inconsistent.
Contains an unclear simile
Contains questionable onomatopoeia
Contains an unclear metaphor
Contains an unclear allusion
Contains an attempt at assonance
Contains vague symbolism
Contains a weak example of alliteration
Contains personification, but it doesn’t “fit”
Contains a weak example of hyperbole
Contains a question that is not rhetorical in nature
Poem lacking in focus, organization, OR style
Total Points Earned: _________/Total Possible Points: 70
3 points
Less than 20 lines long
Lines are not numbered correctly
Many distracting errors within, OR
Missing punctuation at the end, OR
Not arranged like a poem.
No simile
No onomatopoeia
No metaphor
No allusion
No assonance
No symbolism
No alliteration
No personification
No hyperbole
No question
Poem lacking in all aspects: focus, organization,
AND style
GRADE: _________%

What is poetry?
Poetry is writing that formulates a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience in language chosen and arranged to create a specific emotional response through meaning, sound, and rhythm.
What are some of the literary devices commonly used in poetry? o Alliteration : The repetition of the same consonant sounds at the beginning of words or stressed syllables. o Allusion: A reference to a well-known person, myth, historical event, story, etc. o Assonance: The repetition of vowel sounds, but not consonant sounds. o Consonance: The repetition of consonant sounds within a word. o Couplet: A rhymed pair of lines in a poem. o Free Verse: Poetry without regular patterns of rhyme and rhythm. o Hyperbole: Figure of speech that uses exaggeration for emphasis or humorous effect. o Idiom: Phrase or expression that has a meaning that differs from its literal meaning (sometimes called a figure of speech ). o Imagery: Refers to words and phrases that appeal to one or more of the five senses. o Metaphor: A comparison between two seemingly unlike objects made by calling one item another item. Metaphors DO NOT use the words like or as. o Onomatopoeia: The use of words that sound like what they mean. o Personification: Describing an animal or object as if it were human or has human qualities. o Repetition (Pattern): Repeating the same sounds, words, phrases, or lines for the purpose of making a deeper impression on the audience. o Rhetorical Question: Question that is asked for the purpose of reflection, or to make a point—an answer is not expected. o Rhyme: A repetition of sounds at the ends of words.
o Rhyme Scheme: The pattern of end rhyme in a poem.
(Example: a, b, a, b OR a, a, b, b) o Rhythm: The pattern or flow of sound created by the arrangement of stressed and unstressed syllables in a line of poetry. o Simile: A comparison between two seemingly unlike objects using the words like or as . o Stanza: A grouping of two or more lines of poetry. Stanzas in poetry are comparable to paragraphs. o Symbolism: A symbol is a person, place, object, or action that stands for something beyond itself.