Poetry
A type of literature in which words are
carefully chosen and arranged to
create certain effects, thoughts, or
feelings.
The structure = rhyme,
rhythm, meter, line, and
stanza
SPEAKER VS POET
The voice that “talks” to the reader, similar
to the narrator in fiction.
The speaker is not necessarily the poet.
To understand a poem, you must learn who
the speaker is and how he/she feels.
If the poem mentions certain experiences
that had happened doesn’t mean that it
happened to the poet personally.
ELEMENTS OF POETRY

GRAPHIC ELEMENTS (capitalization,
punctuation, line breaks, white spaces)

SENSORY DETAILS (5 senses)

RHYTHM-Word Choice and Pacing

SOUND PATTERNS-(rhyme, onomatopoeia,
alliteration, assonance, consonance)

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
Capitalization/Punctuation

Is used to show the reader how to read the poem
 A poem may not have any punctuation; sometimes a comma
is left off because a line break signals a PAUSE, and a
comma isn’t necessary
Monsters under
my bed
never speak
never move
but they are
there.
There could have been a comma after speak, but it’s not
necessary.
Capitalization/Punctuation
Continued


Poems may have commas, semi-colons, periods, question marks,
and exclamation points
In classic poems, the first word in each line is capitalized. Now,
when you see more modern poetry, capitalizing the first letter
creates an effect (formality, strength, or emphasis); Read the
poem again-creates a sense of fright.
Monsters under
My bed
Never speak
Never move
But they are
There.

Needs to be consistent
Line
Breaks
Where the line of poetry ceases to end
and a new line begins. How the poem is
divided.
 Some poems have a natural rhythm like a
song. It’s easy to know where to break
the line.

The school is closed and dark,
and the teachers are at home.
The kids are all asleep,
but I’m writing this little poem.

Sometimes the line breaks where the
thought ends, or where the reader or the
poet naturally pauses.
When summer is departing
and fall is arriving,
the wind whips through the trees
and spooks the cat.

Sometimes the line breaks are in unexpected
places. A poet can break a line in the middle of
a poem to tease you into going to the next line.
A thought can go from one verse, or stanza, to
another.
(enjambment or run-on)
Home is where you
It depends how you
want to place the line
break. It will affect
the way the poem
reads, its meaning,
and its appearance!
can shrug off your
backpack and your
worries, sling around
your complaints about
impossible questions on the science
test, and supposedly
best…
WHITE SPACE
Lines are usually short enough that white space appears to
the right or left of the poem, or both if the poem is in the
center of the page.
 Text can be anywhere on the page.
 Words can be separated. The words can look like what
they are saying.
rain

wh te
dripped
sn wflakes
and
f lling
drop-
ped
The girls threw the ball
down
back
my
and forth
neck

Indentions is another way to play with white space. In
the poem about a walk, the poet might indent as she’s
going around a bend.
I tiptoed down the path
and around the bend
to find my sister hiding
under
the willow tree


Indentions can
signal opposites or
two voices
speaking.
Indentions can
place emphasis
on a part of a
poem.
My shadow copied me as I
hopped
skipped
and boogied.
I looked inside
and outside
but she was nowhere.
SENSORY DETAILS

CREATES STRONG IMAGES OR MENTAL
PICTURES FOR THE READER

THESE PICTURES FORMED IN YOUR MIND ARE
CALLED IMAGERY

USES THE 5 SENSES: SIGHT, SMELL, TOUCH,
TASTE, HEARING

THE USE OF PERSONIFICATION, SIMILE, AND
METAPHOR CAN PAINT A VIVID PICTURE
RHYTHM AND REPETITIONWord Choice and Pacing

Poets can control the pace, or how quickly
you read a poem. Some words are sharp
and short. The thorns jab my arm,
my leg, my cheek.

Other words roll off your tongue and you
delay, reading more slowly.
The sunlight meandered over to my hammock
and filled the afternoon with laziness.
Rhythm-The pattern of stressed/unstressed
syllables in a line of poetry. It’s the meter (rhythm
that’s organized into specific patterns) of the poem.
(brings out musical quality of lang.,
emphasizes ideas, creates mood)

A fast rhythm indicates ACTION,
EXCITEMENT, TENSION or SUSPENSE.
A slow rhythm suggests peacefulness,
fullness, harmony, and comfort.
In a poem, the rhymes form a pattern called RHYME
SCHEME. The letters of the alphabet are used to show
the rhyme scheme. Each set of rhyming words is given
the same letter.
Under my hat is my hair
A
Under my hair is my head
B
Under my head is a seven-year beard
C
And a tie that is yellow and red
D
…coat
E
…vest
F
…bump G
…chest
F
Sound Devices

Alliteration-The repetition of consonant
sounds at the beginning of words. (Peter Piper picked
a peck of pickled peppers.) and it must show an image.

Assonance-Repetition of vowel sounds within
a line of poetry. power hour
mild child

Consonance-When words share an ending
consonant sound, but their vowels are different
live leave
crib nab
give move

Onomatopoeia-When words sound like
what they mean
chirp, slash, dart, crush, dash, creak
Skiing
Down the mountain
Gliding, sliding
Swish, swoosh
Almost down
Turning right, turning left
Really close
Swish, swoosh
At
the
bottom.
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
SIMILE
 METAPHOR
 PERSONIFICATION

SIMILE
A simile uses the words like or as to compare
two unlike things.
I feel public, like a frog.
I am as lonely as the last leaf on a tree.
METAPHOR
A metaphor also compares two unlike things,
but do not use the words like or as.
She is a thin sparrow.
A web of snow engulfed me.
PERSONIFICATION
Sometimes poets use words that make things
and animals seem human.
The trees whispered among themselves.