Poetry Part Two A Unit on Types of Poetry and Literary Terms

The flowers danced in the wind. The Earth coughed and choked in all of the pollution. The friendly gates welcomed us.

Personification 1.The fog crept silently into the valley. 2.The tree fought the wind with its branches 3.The computer devoured information all day long. 4.The hikers left the meadow and were swallowed by the forest.

The sailboat danced gracefully past us. The flames ate hungrily at the burning house. The once-proud trees bent meekly before the storm. The broad, flat rock lay sunning itself by the stream. Read“Gumball Eye” (page 68 in A Light in the Attic) as an example. Then have students find another example of personification in one of his collections.

Personification Worksheet On your own paper, write the object being personified and the meaning of the personification. 1. The wind sang her mournful song through the falling leaves. 2. The microwave timer told me it was time to turn my TV dinner. 3. The video camera observed the whole scene. 4. The strawberries seemed to sing, "Eat me first!" 5. The rain kissed my cheeks as it fell. 6. The daffodils nodded their yellow heads at the walkers. 7. The water beckoned invitingly to the hot swimmers. 8. The snow whispered as it fell to the ground during the early morning hours. 9. The china danced on the shelves during the earthquake. 10. The car engine coughed and sputtered when it started during the blizzard.

“The Pencil Eating Sharpener” by Chelsea Osterman, age 9 The pencil-eating sharpener loves to chew up lead. It sharpens your whole pencil until he knows it’s dead. It gobbles your eraser and leaves a metal stump. It mangles up the middle, the tip just a lump The pencil-eating sharpener has no brain or skin But you will find it painful if you stick your finger in!

The Car Monster It lives in a place with no windows Darkness and junk surrounds it It sleeps, making no sound But waits patiently for its owner Then she arrives, daylight fills the room The beast lies there, still, coat gleaming It tempts its owner with what lies inside Cosy, dry and comfy In she sits, and the magic key wakes up the monster A quick cough, a splurt, clearing its throat It growls with huge lungs, louder and louder Till it settles down to a constant purr. Then its begins to move, eyes wide open Its dark outside and needs to see clearly It turns without effort, hugging the pavement Looking straight ahead. The rain starts again and she wipes his brow It doesn’t mind getting wet, as long as his owner is dry Another beast comes beside him and it gets angry Growling again and then off it shoots into the darkness.

Assignment: Write: A Personifcation Poem OR An Acrostic Poem

A poem using personification: You could write about: a pencil case, a washing machine, an item of clothing, a clock, a bus, an aeroplane, a school a classroom In fact, anything that isn’t alive, and that has enough to write about. Choose carefully because you won’t be able to change your mind half way through your poem.

An Acrostic Poem Garbage Grounds (coffee) Apple (core) Rinds (mellon) Banana (peel) Anchovies (from a pizza I wouldn't eat) Grapes (too ripe to eat) Emptying the stinking bag (my job) Bruce Lansky © 2002 Candy Charleston Chew Almond Roca Nestle's Crunch Dots from Mason Yummy Bruce Lansky © 2002