ENG3C Poetry Unit • Name: _________________________
Poetry Unit
Poetry
Term
Glossary
Definition
Acrostic
A poem, word puzzle, or other composition in which certain letters in each line form a word or words.
Ballad
A poem that can be sung or recited, telling a story in a simple but dramatic way. In the past, ballads were
passed from generation to generation orally, helping people to remember their history. Since then, poets
and singers have used the traditional ballad form to create “literary” ballads.
Blank Verse
Verse without rhyme, especially that which uses iambic pentameter.
Caesura
(in Greek and Latin verse) A break between words within a metrical foot. (in modern verse) A pause near the
middle of a line.
Concrete
Poetry in which the meaning or effect is conveyed partly or wholly by visual means, using patterns of words
or letters and other typographical devices.
Elegy
A poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.
Enjambment
(in verse) The continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza.
Epic
A long and highly stylized narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject, celebrating the heroic
achievements of its hero and events significant to a culture or nation. Homer's Iliad and Odyssey are usually
regarded as the first important epic poems, and much later, Paradise Lost by John Milton, and are
considered to define the form.
Found
Does not originate as poetry. The poet finds an interesting selection or excerpt and arranges the words or
sentences into poetic form.
Free Verse
Poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular meter. Also called vers libre.
Haiku
A Japanese poem of seventeen syllables, in three lines of five, seven, and five, traditionally evoking images
of the natural world. Formal Japanese haiku are based on three unrhymed lines of five, seven, and five
syllables respectively Using the senses, the poet observes and records his or her experiences in exact
language.
Kinetic
Poetry that presents the words of a poem in motion. The graphic representation must give the reader the
sound, the shape, and the meaning. The print determines how the poem should be read aloud.
Limerick
A poem of five lines. A humorous, frequently bawdy, verse of three long and two short lines rhyming aabba,
popularized by Edward Lear.
Lyric
Is a song-like work, often with the theme of nature’s beauty, expressing the writer's emotions, usually briefly
and in stanzas or recognized forms.
Narrative
Tells a story. The story can be presented from the viewpoint of a character in the poem or of a narrator.
Ode
A lyric poem in honour of a particular person, object, or subject, often elevated in style or manner to be
dignified and sincere, and written in varied or irregular meter.
Parallel
A poem that is a series of comparisons. The poem has one theme, and each of the lines describes a new
aspect of the subject.
Parody
An imitation of the style of a particular writer, artist, or genre with deliberate exaggeration for comic effect.
Rhyming Couplet
A unit of verse consisting of two successive lines, usually rhyming and having the same meter and often
forming a complete thought or syntactic unit.
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Term
Definition
Rondeau
A thirteen-line poem, divided into three stanzas of 5, 3, and 5 lines, with only two rhymes throughout and
with the opening words of the first line used as a refrain at the end of the second and third stanzas.
Scansion
The action of scanning a line of verse to determine its rhythm.
Sonnet
A lyric poem of fourteen lines that follow a definite rhyming scheme. There are two types of sonnets: the
Italian (with end rhymes abba abba cde cde) and the English (with end rhymes abab cdcd efef gg). The first
eight lines describe the poet’s feelings, and the last six lines comment on those feelings.
Verse
Writing arranged with a metrical rhythm, typically having a rhyme. A group of lines that form a unit in a poem
or song; a stanza.
Definitions from ABC’s of Creative Writing by David W. Booth/Stanley Skinner and Oxford American Dictionaries
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Poetry
Puzzle Poetry Activity
In this activity, you are to break into 7 groups of approximately 4 people each. Designate one person in the group as the
secretary, who will be writing for the group.
I will give each group an envelope. In that envelope will be a poem cut into its individual lines. Each group’s task is to
arrange the lines in the order they believe the poem should be. The secretary’s job is to write this below, in the space
provided, when the group comes to consensus about the order of the lines. When that has all been decided and transcribed,
your group will decide on a title for the poem, then write the poem on the chart paper, and tape it to the wall or chalkboard.
Each group will then orally explain why they made the choices they made in arranging the poem. What clues helped you
make your decisions, etc? What have you learned about the organization and structure of language?
Group Members: __________________________________________________________________________
Poem Title: ____________________________________________________________
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Poetry
ENG3C Personal Reflection /25
Name: __________________________________________________________________
1. Why did you choose this topic for your poem? What interested or appealed to you?
/1
2. What did you want to communicate about your topic?
/2
3. What is the theme or message that you wished to express?
/3
4. What form did you choose (blank or free verse), and why?
/2
5
5. Identify two literary devices that you used. Explain the rationale for your decision. What was the
intended effect?
/6
6. What did you learn from this process? Be specific.
/2
7. What were your strengths? Justify your answer.
/3
8. What two skills or talents do you wish to improve? Why? What would you do to improve?
/6
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Poetry
ENG3C Poem Writing /16
For your Poetry Assignment, you will independently write a poem using both figures of speech and some
of the structural techniques learned in class. This poem will be in free verse. Poems must be at least six
(6) lines in length, and obviously cannot be acrostic.
In the Personal Reflection, you will explain the choices you made in your poem, the devices used, and
what you hope to communicate to the reader with each choice.
On the date it is due, you will read your poem in our Poetry Café, then submit the rubric below, the
typed poem, and Personal Reflection, in that order.
Name: __________________________________________________________________
**Staple and submit this sheet with your completed assignment.**
1
Poem Development
2
Form
3
Literary Devices
4
Mechanics
Overall effect of poem.
Arrangement and style of
composition.
Literary Device Usage.
Use/misuse of grammar and
punctuation, and use of line
breaks for poetic effect.
4
Thoroughly developed structure and
voice.
Communicates ideas and themes with
a high degree of clarity.
Arrangement and style are used with a
high degree of effectiveness.
Conventions of form are used
correctly.
Rich use of a variety of literary
devices.
Virtually all devices properly used.
Complex use/misuse of grammar and
punctuation.
Strategic use of line breaks to convey
meaning.
3
Clear, well-developed structure and
voice.
Communicates ideas and themes with
clarity.
Arrangement and style are used with
considerable effectiveness.
Conventions of form are mostly used
correctly.
Effective usage of literary devices.
Few errors in usage that do not
interfere with meaning.
Effective use/misuse of grammar and
punctuation.
Use of line breaks to convey meaning.
2
Some development of structure and
voice.
Communicates some ideas and
themes with clarity.
Arrangement and style are used with
some effectiveness.
Conventions of form are followed
correctly to some degree.
Acceptable usage of devices.
Some errors that interfere with
meaning.
Some use/misuse of grammar and
punctuation.
Attempts to use line breaks with
varying degrees of success.
1
Structure and voice are basic and
undeveloped.
Communication of ideas and themes
lack clarity.
Arrangement and style are used with
little effectiveness.
Conventions of form are not followed
correctly.
Simplistic usage of literary devices.
Erroneous usage that seriously
interfere with meaning.
Little or no use/misuse of grammar
and punctuation.
Use of line breaks is disruptive or
confusing.
P=
F=
D=
M=
Total
/4
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/4
/4
Overall Expectations: Understanding Form and Style: recognize a variety of text forms, text features, and stylistic elements and demonstrate understanding of how
they help communicate meaning. Developing and Organizing Content: generate, gather, and organize ideas and information to write for an intended purpose and audience.
Using Knowledge of Form and Style: draft and revise their writing, using a variety of literary, informational, and graphic forms and stylistic elements appropriate for the
purpose and audience. Applying Knowledge of Conventions: use editing, proofreading, and publishing skills and strategies, and knowledge of language conventions, to
correct errors, refine expression, and present their work effectively. Reflecting on Skills and Strategies: reflect on and identify their strengths as writers, areas for
improvement, and the strategies they found most helpful at different stages in the writing process.
Comments:
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