1. Rhyme Scheme Rhyme scheme is the pattern of END RHYME in a poem.

2. How to determine rhyme scheme: 1.Underline the LAST WORD ONLY in each line of the poem: MY PAPA’S WALTZ The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy; But I hung on like death: Such waltzing was not easy. We romped until the pans Slid from the kitchen shelf; My mother's countenance Could not unfrown itself. The hand that held my wrist Was battered on one knuckle; At every step you missed My right ear scraped a buckle. You beat time on my head With a palm caked hard by dirt, Then waltzed me off to bed Still clinging to your shirt.

3. Beginning with line one (1), you will label each line with a lower-case letter. 2.Label the first line with the letter “a”. Every underlined word that rhymes with that line should also be labeled with the letter “a”. 3.Move to the next UNLABELED line. That line becomes “b”. Every underlined word that rhymes with that line is also labeled “b” MY PAPA’S WALTZ The whiskey on your breath a Could make a small boy dizzy; b But I hung on like death: a Such waltzing was not easy. b

4. Continue with this process until you have labeled ALL of the end rhyme in the lines: MY PAPA’S WALTZ The whiskey on your breath a Could make a small boy dizzy; b But I hung on like death: a Such waltzing was not easy. b We romped until the pans c Slid from the kitchen shelf; d My mother's countenance c Could not unfrown itself. d The hand that held my wrist e Was battered on one knuckle; f At every step you missed e My right ear scraped a buckle. f You beat time on my head g With a palm caked hard by dirt, h Then waltzed me off to bed g Still clinging to your shirt. h

5. 6.If any lines are remaining that don’t use end rhyme, write an “x” at the back of those lines. 7.In the rare cases that you run out of letters, begin again with double letters (aa, bb, cc, dd, etc.).

6. Repetition Sometimes, an ENTIRE line will repeat throughout the poem. In this case, you follow the same rules, but… – You turn the lower-case letter into an upper-case. – You label it with a special number called a “superscript.”

7. First, determine rhyme scheme: My house is warm,a My love is strongb I’ll survive the storm.a My house is warm,a The night is long;b I’ll survive the storm.a

8. Second, identify the repeating lines and number each one in order: My house is warm,First line that repeats = A¹ My love is strongb I’ll survive the storm.Second line that repeats = A² My house is warm,First line that repeats = A¹ The night is long;b I’ll survive the storm.Second line that repeats = A²

9. This is what it should look like: My house is warm,A¹ My love is strongb I’ll survive the storm.A² My house is warm,A¹ The night is long;b I’ll survive the storm.A²

10. If another letter repeats, the number starts over at “1”. See the example: My house is warm,A¹ My love is strongB¹ I’ll survive the storm.A² Through pounding rain,c My love is strong;B¹ I’ll survive the pain.c My house is warm, A¹ The night is long;b I’ll survive the storm.A²