1. STAAR STRATEGIES for Poetry Analysis
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

2. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Elements of Poetry
Sound Devices
Figurative Language
Imagery
Structure
Rhyme
Rhythm and Meter
The art of poetry makes use of the following devices within its genre.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

3. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Sound Devices
Sound devices are a method of adding music and mood to writing. They are very common in poetry, but can be found in prose writing also. The sounds are meant to sound pleasant or unpleasant to the ear, depending on the mood the writer wants to create.
Certain sounds will add a percussive effect to the poetic line, while others are meant to soothe the ear of the listener. The subject matter of the poem most often influences the kinds of sounds the author employs.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

4. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Alliteration
repetition of beginning consonant sounds
examples: ten tiny tin men tumbled from
the shelf
a mighty man managed to mend the sail
You can see in these examples that the “t” sound provides the percussive effect that I mentioned. Why would it be appropriate to have a percussive sound paired with this line? This is the kind of question you must ask your students. Not only if the device is there and they recognize it. . . But also WHY is it there? WHY did the author WANT it there?
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

5. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Consonance
repetition of consonant sounds anywhere within the words
examples: the silky sounds of silence
*(“ce” makes the “s” sound, too)
the bombs blasted and bombarded the buildings
Here is another example of how sound can mirror the content of the line. Silence is peaceful and calm, and the soft “s” consonant offers a soothing sound. Other letters that do this are l’s, m’s, n’s. To pronounce several of these letter choices in a row, one must slow down and that also adds to the soothing effect.
Examples: The lovely lady languished away while longing for her love.
My sweet mother made muffins and mulberry pie.
Know that now you need to name your nicest knick-knack.
And you see the percussive element again with the ‘B’ in the second example. Any other hard consonant sound repeating will offer the same effect.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

6. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Assonance
repetition of vowel sounds within words
examples: jingle bells tinkle and clink as we sing (short i vowel)
ease into sleep and enjoy the sweet peace (long e vowel)
Vowels add to the music as well. The repetition of short vowels will have a more percussive effect and the long vowels will have the soothing effect again as you are forced to slow down.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

7. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Onomatopoeia
words that are spelled so as to imitate noises and sounds we hear.
Examples: The old rusty truck clanked and
chugged down the road.
The lonely owl hooted from his perch in the tree.
All the dishes fell to the floor with a loud clatter.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

8. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Figurative Language
Figurative language achieves a level of creativity not possible with literal language. Students must go beyond recognizing that the figurative language is there to what the figurative language achieves in the written work.
Here is a quick review of figurative language as well as the rigor expected in analyzing it.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

9. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Figurative Language
Simile: a comparison between two seemingly unlike things using like or as
Metaphor: a comparison of two unlike things without the use of like or as. The statement will say something IS the other thing rather than saying it is LIKE it.
Personification: giving human qualities or abilities to nonhuman things
Remember: We must teach students to understand and recognize figurative language, and if we want them to achieve on STAAR they must go beyond that and ask WHY is this used? WHY did the author use THIS device HERE? What does the use of the device achieve?
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

10. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Figurative Language
Hyperbole: exaggeration for the purpose of impact or emphasis
Oxymoron: word pair or combination that expresses a contradiction
Paradox: a statement that expresses a contradiction
Example: Don't go near water until you've learned to swim.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

11. Imagery or Sensory Language
TYPE: SENSE:
visual imagery sight The horizon glowed a deep red orange.
auditory imagery hearing A cat screeched and wailed in the alley.
tactile imagery touch Grandpa’s beard was scratchy on my cheek.
Imagery or Sensory Language is what provides the vividness to writing. This is what makes writing “imaginable” and allows readers to connect to it. Even though it may not have been their personal experience. . . They can imagine that it was. . .
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

12. Imagery or Sensory Language
TYPE: SENSE:
olfactory imagery smell
I smell fresh baked buttery bread!
gustatory imagery taste
The creamy vanilla ice cream melted.
To help students remember these strange names, I give them a memory cue for the weirder ones. . . Visual and auditory have roots that give hints to their meaning. Tactile starts with “t” and so does “Touch.” Olfactory is the name of the gland in your nose that perceives smell, and I teach them to say “old factory” and take out the “d.” Gustatory is fun because I tell them what do we say in Spanish when something tastes good? “Me gusta!”
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

13. Imagery or Sensory Language
There are two more types of imagery that deal with movement that we can perceive. Here are their types and examples.
Kinetic imagery: This is movement of objects through another force like gravity, being thrown, pushed, moved by electrical or engine power, etc.
example: The loosened boulder tumbled
down the hillside.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

14. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Kinesthetic imagery: This is movement of living things. They choose when and how to move, and under their own power examples: The gymnast ran down the mat, flipping and twirling as she went A panther leaped from the cavern edge and pounced on the deer.
Kids always ask me what about people or things that are NOT moving under their own power. . . Like someone throwing a person’s body out of the car. . . Yeah, in that case it is kinetic rather than kinesthetic imagery.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

15. The Structure of Poetry
Lines of poetry can be any length. . . one word or all the way across the page.
Line breaks occur when a line of poetry does not extend into remaining space on the page but instead begins again on the line beneath.
Enjambment occurs when one line and its meaning flow into another with no stopping punctuation.
A Stanza is a group of poetic lines much like a paragraph is a group of prose sentences.
These terms have to do with how the poem is PUT DOWN ON THE PAGE. (Tell them about publishing poetry and the editing process Cipher in the Snow)
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

16. The Structure of Poetry
The use of the above devices, their placement, their number, etc., is entirely decided by the author or it can be dictated by the form of the poetry. Below are some common poetry types.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

17. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Poems
Haiku: a three line poem with a 5, 7, 5 syllable pattern usually written on a subject from nature.
Cinquain: a five line poem where Line 1 is one word (the title), Line 2 is two words that describe the title, Line 3 is three words that tell the action, Line 4 is four words that express the feeling, Line 5 is one word that recalls the title.
I am sure these are very familiar to you. . .
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

18. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Poems
Limmerick: is a kind of humorous, or nonsense poem especially one in five-line structure , including a specific rhythm and a strict rhyme scheme (aabba).
Narrative poetry: A narrative poem tells a story and may be long or brief. They usually have a tight structure of stanzas and a rhyme pattern that is determined by the author. Two common types are epics and ballads.
Can anyone name an example of narrative poetry that your kids have seen/heard?
Paul Revere. . . Casey at the Bat. . . Poe’s Poems
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

19. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Poems
Ballads are narrative poems that are usually not very long. They have a strict rhyme scheme and often have a refrain or repeated line that may occur at the end or the beginning of each stanza. Ballads originated as songs with the lines of the poem put to music.
MANY of today’s country hits are ballads. . . And if you take the lyrics and put them down on paper, you can see the rhyme pattern and hear the rhythm. It is a great project to let kids find a song, write out the lyrics and then analyze it for poetry elements AND narrative elements because it tells a story too!
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

20. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Poems
Epic poems are long, formal narrative poems that can be the length of a short novel. They are usually written about the deeds of a hero. The rhyme and meter differs depending on the author. This form of poetry dates back to the origins of poetry when the form was only spoken and passed down from generation to generation by retelling and memorization. Two very famous epic poems are the Iliad and the Odyssey by the Greek poet Homer.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

21. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Poems
Lyric poems are poems that express personal emotions on a subject. They are structured with meter and rhyme, but no set type is required, nor is there any specific length. It is determined by the author. This form of poem is quite open in the sense that it is suited to any emotional or reflective topic.
This is the most common form of poetry. There is more freedom in its form and since people often release feelings through writing, it is common poetic expression.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

22. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Poems
Sonnets are lyric poems exactly 14 lines long with a strict rhyme scheme and rhythm pattern. Sonnet means little song, and they were often written to express love or admiration for another.
Free Verse This is a modern form of poetry where anything goes. There is no pattern in rhyme, rhythm, or line length. There is the use of poetic elements and poetic lines of varying lengths, but there is no pattern, allowing for an open expression.
Sonnets are tough to write. . . And since they are an older form of Poetry, they give kids trouble as the vocabulary used is not familiar to them.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

23. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Rhyme in Poetry
Rhyme occurs when the ends of lines have the same sound in the ending vowels or in the ending vowel /consonant combination usually found at the ends of poetic lines where a rhyme pattern occurs. Below are some types of rhyme that are used in poetry
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

24. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Rhyme
End Rhyme: rhyming words found at the ends of poetic lines
example:
“You used to think monsters hid under your bed,
Now we think so too, but it smells like they’re dead.”
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

25. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Rhyme
Alternating Rhyme: rhyming words that occur every other line, like they are taking turns (a,b,a,b, c,d,c,d, etc.)
example: “All I have I give to you (a) you mean the world to me (b) and everything I say or do (a) I do so willingly” (b)
Can you hear the rhythm of these lines? What is it?
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

26. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Rhyme
Eye Rhyme: This occurs when words have same spelling but not the same sound. Poets will use this as a LAST resort when they cannot find a match. The ends of lines will have matching letters but not matching sound. The lines will match to our EYES but not our ears.
example:
“The end of my love
you shall never prove.”
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

27. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Rhyme
Internal Rhyme: This occurs when words within a line of poetry rhyme.
example:
I stepped in blue goo
and it made me so sick,
What else could I do
But turn a mean green?
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

28. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Rhyme
Near Rhyme: This occurs when there is a pair of words that nearly, or almost rhyme. The author cannot always find a perfect rhyme to grammatically fit into the grammar and meaning of the line, so sometimes they have to work with something close instead.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

29. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Types of Rhyme
examples:
1. We said, “We can’t , we can’t!”
So he turned and away he went!
2. My eyes, my ears, they cannot tell,
The sights and sounds beyond the wall.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

30. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Rhyme Scheme
In order to analyze a pattern of rhyme, one needs a way to mark the pattern. By assigning letters of the alphabet to each pair of rhyming words and any that rhyme with them following, one can see the pattern of the rhyme.
Each unique sound gets its own letter.
Some poems follow a very specific, predetermined rhyme scheme, like sonnets.
Tell them the pattern of the English Sonnet. ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

31. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Rhyme Scheme
Other rhyme schemes are created by the authors when they create the poem with their own pattern of rhyme.
Poems like free verse, do not have a pattern of rhyme.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

32. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Rhyme Scheme Example
I wandered lonely as a cloud a That floats on high o'er vales and hills, b When all at once I saw a crowd, a A host, of golden daffodils; b Beside the lake, beneath the trees, c Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. c
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

33. “How to Eat a Poem” ~Eve Merriam
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

34. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
Don't be polite. Bite in.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

35. Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that may run down your chin.

36. You do not need a knife or fork or spoon or plate or napkin or tablecloth.

37. For there is no core

38. or stem

39. or rind

40. or pit

41. or seed

42. or skin

43. Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD
to throw away.
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD

44. Go Forth and Eat Hardily!!!
Created by Catherine Canning, ELA Specialist, BISD