Brian Cibelli
Writing Assignment
Larger Context
This assignment is the introduction to a genre study on poetry in a 10th grade classroom.
A genre study immerses students, helping them to grapple with and identify
characteristics of the specific genre. In this case, the specific genre is poetry. Upon
identifying and becoming familiar with poetry’s characteristics and techniques, students
will be able to explain, in their own words, how poets use those characteristics and
techniques in their writing. This permits students to practice NYS ELA Standards 1
(Information and Understanding) and 3 (Critical Analysis and Evaluation). After the
students have developed their skills in poetry, the students will finish the genre study by
producing their own poems, which they will share for peer-response (NYS Standard 4 –
Speak for Social Interaction).
Before examining poems concerning other topics, we will first examine two poems
written about reading poetry. In examining poems written about reading poetry, students
will not only be introduced to and gain a better understanding of poetry’s characteristics
and techniques, they will simultaneously gain a deeper understanding of the purpose of
poetry and how it is intended, and not intended, to be read. For this assignment, students
will write a unified essay in which they identify a controlling idea about reading poetry
based on the two poems we read. After this assignment, students will continue to develop
their analytical skills towards poetry by reading and examining several more examples.
All the while, students will be doing brainstorming activities in their writer’s notebooks
in preparation for writing their own work eventually. Before producing their own work,
students will be introduced to poems about writing poetry that will help them understand
the poetic mind while further developing their analytical skills. Equipped with a welldeveloped understanding of poetic techniques and an understanding of the poetic mind,
students will pull from their writer’s notebooks to begin writing their own poems.
Immediate Context
The class will begin by free-writing in their writer’s notebooks about their previous
experiences with reading poetry. I will provide prompts such as “I enjoy reading poetry
because…”, “I don’t enjoy reading poetry because…”, “What I don’t understand about
poetry is…”, etc. These will serve to get students thinking about poetry and their personal
feelings toward it.
Following this exercise, the class will read two examples of poems written on the topic of
how to read poetry. I have selected “Introduction to Poetry” by Billy Collins and “How to
Eat a Poem” by Eve Merriam. I will read the Collins poem aloud first. After hearing it,
students will take a few minutes to record their initial responses in their writer’s
notebooks. The prompts I would provide would be “What do you notice?”, “What do you
feel?” (basic prompts), and “What do you feel is the most important word or line in the
poem? Copy it and explain why it is important” (specific). I would then read the poem
aloud a second time. This time I would perform guided reading, where I would
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essentially think aloud and stop at the key points in the poem to model what goes on in
my mind as I read. During this reading, I would be sure to stop at and explain words or
phrases students might not understand. Both poems use fairly simple vocabulary but
words such as “rind” from the Merriam poem, might be unfamiliar. Following this
reading, I would share my own responses and take student responses from volunteers.
Because the assignment will ask for support based on literary elements and techniques, I
would then concentrate on the author’s use of them. For “Introduction to Poetry” I would
concentrate on Collins’ use of simile (“and hold it up to the light/like a color slide”),
metaphor (most of the poem) and stanza/line structure. We would then repeat the entire
process with the next poem, “How to Eat a Poem” by Eve Merriam. In addition to
recording their responses, I would have students compare and contrast the two poems
according to the initial responses they recorded. The literary elements and techniques I
would concentrate on for this poem would be extended metaphor (the entire poem) and
stanza/line structure.
Students will need to be very familiar and comfortable with the aforementioned literary
elements and techniques so I would then perform mini-lessons on similes, metaphors,
extended metaphor, and stanza/line structure. For the mini-lesson on extended metaphor,
I would first ask the students to define the word “extended.” They should be able to
define it as “to make longer” or something similar. Having already performed a minilesson on metaphor, I can comfortably define an extended metaphor as “a metaphor that
has been extended, or made longer, throughout a piece of literature.” The example I
would provide is the common metaphor “life is like a roller coaster.” I would ask the
students to extend it for me. They should provide examples such as “it has its ups and
downs”, “it’s exciting and scary at times”, “it has its twists and turns,” etc. This same
exercise can be transferred to the poem “How to Eat a Poem”. The central metaphor that
gets extended throughout is “poetry is like a piece of fruit” and the rest of the poem
“extends” it. These mini-lessons will not only help students write their essays but it will
also help develop their skill with these devices for when they sit down to write their own
poems.
This assignment will require students to analyze the two poems in order to establish a
controlling idea about reading poetry. They will need to support their formulated idea by
referencing at least two literary elements or techniques pulled directly from the text.
Students have written essays similar to this throughout the course of the year and are very
familiar with this form of writing. On the other hand, students have not worked at any
length with reading and analyzing poetry so this assignment addresses new territory.
The Assignment
Task: After reading the two poems “Introduction to Poetry” by Billy Collins and “How to
Eat a Poem” by Eve Merriam, write a unified essay about reading poetry as revealed in
both poems. In your essay, use ideas from both passages to establish a controlling idea
about reading poetry. Using evidence from each poem, develop your controlling idea and
show how the author uses specific literary elements or techniques to convey that idea.
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Purpose and Audience: Imagine that this essay will be read by a friend of yours who
would like to understand what the poems mean and the literary techniques the authors
use.
Format: Your paper will need to be at least two pages long. It should be typed, doublespaced, 12-point Times New Roman font, with one-inch margins all around.
Checklist: Before you turn in your paper, be sure to do a self-check. Your essay’s grade
will depend on your ability to address all of the requirements of the essay in a clear and
organized manner.

I used ideas from both poems to establish a controlling idea about reading poetry.

I used specific and relevant evidence from each poem to support my controlling
idea.

I showed how each author uses specific literary elements or techniques to convey
the controlling idea.

I clearly stated my controlling idea in my introductory paragraph.

I appropriately punctuated the title of the poems by using quotation marks.

I specifically refer to the text using direct quotations.

I integrated the quotes and examples I chose smoothly.

My analyses of the two poems are kept in separate paragraphs.

I used a high level of vocabulary.

I met the format requirements.

I checked my papers for typos, missing words and spelling errors.
Schedule: Your first draft is due on Thursday. You will peer review your essays in class
on Thursday so make sure you have something to share. You will receive a grade for both
the completeness of your first draft and your peer-edit. You should use the above
checklist as a guideline for the peer edit. Your revised essays will be turned in on Friday.
On Monday, I will return your first drafts and hold a brief, one-on-one meeting with each
of you to ensure you understand my comments. Your final draft will be due Friday.
Monitoring Progress
Once the assignment has been distributed, students will be provided with a planning page
that utilizes a four-square writing method. An example can be found in Appendix A. This
will serve to organize student’s thoughts for when they sit down to write their first drafts.
Before the students will be allowed to begin writing their first drafts, they will be
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required to have their planning pages approved by me. This way, I can monitor and
ensure they are prepared to write the essay from an early stage. Once the students have
written the first draft, students will peer edit each other’s papers using the checklist
above. During these peer edits, students will use color-coding tests to differentiate
between summary and commentary in their papers. Students are often under the
impression that the purpose of essays such as this one is to prove that they have
understood what they have read. Typically, this type of summary response gets a 2 out of
6 on state tests. To begin this lesson, students will be given two essays, one marginal and
one strong. They will examine the papers and decide on which is stronger. Having
decided on the stronger paper, the students will generate a rubric based on the
characteristics of it. This rubric will then be compared to the state/official rubric to show
them how well their understanding of what makes an effective essay matches the state’s.
We will then discuss the problems in the marginal essay. Next I will train the students
how to differentiate commentary from summary. Students will be given three different
colored pencils, one color each to mark summary, commentary and supporting detail. I
will guide them through the process of coding the marginal paper before they code the
stronger paper on their own. Once they have enough practice, they will code their own
essays with an eye towards revision. After the second draft, I will make extensive
comments and briefly meet with each student individually to make sure everyone is on
the right path. Before they are released to begin work on their final draft, I will have a
mini-lesson on transitions to improve the flow in their essays.
Eventually, students will utilize what they have learned about simile, metaphor, extended
metaphor and structure as they write their own poems.
In terms of the NYS English Language Arts Standards, this assignment mainly addresses
Standards 2 (Literary Response and Expression), 3 (Critical Analysis and Evaluation) and
4 (Speak for Social Interaction).
Literary Response and Expression: Listening to and reading the poems, after which they
respond in their writer’s notebooks. They also share and listen to other share those
responses.
Critical Analysis and Evaluation: This is inherent in writing the essay but, specifically,
the formulation of the controlling idea. They evaluate the use of literary techniques used
in the poems after being trained through mini-lessons.
Speak for Social Interaction: The peer-editing piece covers this.
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Meaning
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5
4
3
2
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Has a thoughtful controlling
idea based on thorough analysis
of both poems; shows in depth
understanding of the poems by
connecting them to the
controlling idea
Has a solid controlling
idea based on analysis of
both poems; clearly
shows connections
between the poems and
the controlling idea
Has a controlling idea;
connects the poems to
the controlling idea
Has a controlling idea,
but it does not show
understanding of the
poems; connects the
poems to the
controlling idea, but
the connection may be
unclear
Does not have a
controlling idea; shows
limited understanding
of the poems in
general; weakly
attempts to connect the
poems
Does not establish a
controlling idea; makes
no connection between
the texts; does not
demonstrate
understanding of the
poems
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Development
Extensively develops the
connection between the poems
and the controlling idea using
textual evidence related to wellchosen literary elements or
techniques from both poems
Thoroughly develops the
connections between the
poems and the controlling
idea using textual
evidence related to
appropriate literary
elements or techniques
from both poems
Solidly develops the
connections between
the poems and the
controlling idea using
some textual evidence
related to literary
elements or techniques
from both poems
Organization
Stays focused on the
controlling idea; expertly uses
transitions to construct a logical
progression of ideas and
connections
Language Use
Shows awareness of audience
by thoroughly explaining the
poems and their message about
reading poetry; uses high level
vocabulary and varied sentence
structure and length
Has no spelling, grammar or
punctuation errors
Stays focused on the
controlling idea;
successfully uses
transitions to construct a
logical progression of
ideas and connections
Shows awareness of
audience by adequately
explaining the poems and
their message about
reading poetry; uses good
vocabulary
Has no more than two
spelling, grammar or
punctuation errors
Stays focused on the
controlling idea;
constructs a mostly
logical progression of
ideas; may have some
inconsistent structure
Shows awareness of
audience by explaining
the poems and their
message about reading
poetry
Conventions
Has no more than four
spelling, grammar or
punctuation errors
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Mentions, but does not
develop connections
between the poems and
the controlling idea;
does not accurately
mention literary
elements or techniques;
does not incorporate
textual evidence
Establishes a
controlling idea, but
does not maintain
focus; structure is
vaguely consistent
Shows minimal
awareness of audience;
does not vary sentence
structure or length or
uses simple vocabulary
Has spelling, grammar
or punctuation errors
which occasionally
make it difficult to
understand
Does not develop
connections between
the poems and the
controlling idea; barely
or inaccurately
mentions literary
elements or techniques;
does not incorporate
textual evidence
Either does not have a
controlling idea or
does not logically
connect to the
established controlling
idea
Barely explains poems
at all; mostly
inappropriate
vocabulary and
sentence structure
Makes no connections
between the poems ad
the controlling idea;
does not refer to the
texts directly; does not
mention literary
elements or techniques
Has spelling, grammar
or punctuation errors
which make it difficult
to understand
Has spelling, grammar
or punctuation errors
which make the essay
virtually impossible to
understand
Incoherent; no logical
progression of ideas;
no controlling idea; no
connections
Does not explain
poems at all;
inappropriate sentence
structure and
vocabulary
Poems:
1) “Introduction to Poetry” by Billy Collins
I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide
or press an ear against its hive
I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,
or walk inside the poem's room
and feel the walls for a light switch.
I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author's name on the shore.
But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with a rope
and torture a confession out of it.
They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.
“How to Eat a Poem” by Eve Merriam
Don't be polite.
Bite in.
Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that
may run down your chin.
It is ready and ripe now, whenever you are.
You do not need a knife or fork or spoon
or plate or napkin or tablecloth.
For there is no core
or stem
or rind
or pit
or seed
or skin
to throw away.
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Brian Cibelli
SAMPLE ESSAY
The poems “Introduction to Poetry” by Billy Collins and “How to Eat a Poem” by
Eve Merriam both address the topic of how poetry is meant to be read. According to
these two poems, readers should not search for one particular meaning in a poem but use
their imaginations to interpret it themselves. Both poets use literary elements and
techniques to get across their message.
Billy Collins’ poem “Introduction to Poetry” is written from a teacher’s
perspective about how his/her students treat reading poetry. The teacher dislikes how
students treat reading poetry as a search for its underlying meaning rather than
interpreting it themselves. Collins uses similes and metaphors to convey his message. In
the first stanza, Collins writes “I ask them to take a poem/and hold it up to the light/like a
color slide.” This is an example of a simile where he compares two unlike things using
“like” or “as.” In this case, he compares a poem to a color slide. This example shows how
he wishes his students treated poetry. Following this simile, Collins uses several
metaphors in the same way. For example, in the fifth stanza Collins writes “I want them
to waterski/across the surface of a poem/waving at the author’s name on the shore.” This
further shows how he wants his students to read poetry by using their imaginations.
Collins also uses a metaphor in the next stanza to explain how he does not want his
students to read poetry. “But all they want to do/is tie the poem to a chair with a rope/and
torture a confession out of it.” Collins does not want students to look for strict
interpretations. He wants them to use their imaginations.
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Eve Merriam’s “How to Eat a Poem” has a very similar message. Like Collins,
Merriam uses literary techniques to get across her message about reading poetry. She
uses an extended metaphor throughout “How to Eat a Poem.” An extended metaphor is
when an author lengthens or extends a central metaphor throughout a literary work. The
central metaphor in this poem is “Poetry is a piece of fruit.” The act of eating the poem is
the same act as reading it. Her advice for reading a poem in the first two lines is “Don’t
be polite/Bite in.” She wants readers not to think too much about reading poetry and just
to do the act. She wants them to “Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that/may
run down your chin./It is ready and ripe now, whenever you are.” This shows her
extending the metaphor. Her advice for how not to read a poem comes in the next stanza:
“You do not need a knife or fork or spoon/or plate or napkin or tablecloth.” This extends
the metaphor and explains that you do not need tools to break apart and enjoy a poem.
In conclusion, both “Introduction to Poetry” by Billy Collins and “How to Eat a
Poem” by Eve Merriam have important messages about reading poetry. They use similes,
metaphors and an extended metaphor to convey the message that poetry should be read
and interpreted for enjoyment, not to uncover its hidden meaning.
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