Poetry Unit

1. Poetry Unit Mrs. Levonius : Language Arts Pagosa Springs Middle School

2. Poetry Book • Instructions • Due date • December 21, 2012 • Goal • You are creating a book, by definition that means it has a front and back cover. I have folders for you to use as your front and back cover. You still need to design and print your front cover which will be behind the clear plastic front cover of the folder.

3. Finished Book • Place blank sheet of paper immediately behind the cover. • Title page: The title of your book, your name, and a note at the bottom which reads, “Published in Mrs. Levonius’s 8th Grade Language Arts Class, ___________ (2012)” • Dedication page: This reads, “Dedicated to _______ for ____________.” • Table of Contents page: List the types of poems followed by the title of the poem. • Example: Haiku – “Blue Whale” …………….. 7

4. Order of Poems • Bio Poem • 4 Haikus • Veteran’s Day Poem • Cinquin • Diamante • Simile Poem • Metaphor Poem • Dream Poem • This is Mine • List Poem • Senses Poem • Inside this • The Important Thing • The Important Thing About Me • Personification Poem • Couplet • Stretchin’ The Truth • Memory

5. Order of Poems continued… • These poems will be followed by a biography of one of your favorite poets and at least two (2) of his or her poems including your analysis of these poems. • Any poems you are adding for extra credit should follow the above mentioned poems and should be included in your table of content under a separate heading, “Extra Credit” • As with any book, include a blank piece of paper after your last entry, before the back cover.

6. Haiku • Japanese poetry • Usually about nature • 3 lines each • Seventeen syllables • 5 syllables in the 1st line • 7 syllables in the 2nd line • 5 syllables in the 3rd line

7. Sample Haiku Blue whales, cold waters, The largest creatures on Earth, Majestic mammals. Spring on the river- The island-nest of swans Floating like flowers.

8. Cinquain • Write one subject • Use two adjectives to describe it • Write three very descriptive action words • Make a short statement • End with a synonym that has imagination in it

9. Sample Cinquain • Trumpet • Golden, gleaming • Puckering, puffing, blowing • Mean machine • Bronze flower

10. Diamante Noun Adjective, adjective Participle, participle, participle Synonym, synonym, antonym, antonym Participle, participle, participle Adjective, adjective Noun

11. Sample Diamante Bird Feathery, colorful Pecking, flying, singing Nest, prey-feline, predator Hissing, cating, stretching, Bossy, lazy Cat

12. This is Mine • Names something that is all yours • Possession is then described • Three stanzas are written • The last stanza concludes the poem with a bit of humor, a sage statement, a surprising through or something serious or sad • Rules: • 3 stanzas of 4 lines each • Lines 2 and 4 end rhyme in each stanza • The first line of each stanza is the same or similar

13. These are my sneakers I hate them, I do But in them I could Outrun you! Sample This is Mine Sneakers SNEAKERS These are my sneakers They’re both the same They are old And very lame They are my sneakers All tattered and torn When I look at them I’m forlorn

14. This is My Sister This is my sister Her favorite color is green She drinks Chai Tea But she stays lean and mean. This is my sister She reads and writes We’ll have debates But she is always right. This is my sister I love her, I do Occasionally we fight But she knows I punch hard too.

15. This is my iPod This is my ipod Silver with a pink case It plays my favorite songs That puts a smile on my face. This is my ipod It getting kind of old But it still works And I treat it like gold. This is my ipod I listen to it in the car It helps me go to sleep When we’re traveling far.

16. This is My Shirt This is my shirt, White, blue, and red, I’ve had it so long It’s so old, my mom said. This is my shirt Loved at first sight Worn every ear It fills me with delight This is my shirt It will not stretch anymore It shows my skin Is there more at that store?

17. Simile Poem _____________ is ________________ like ___________________ And also __________________ It reminds me of ______________ It makes me feel _________________

18. Sample Simile Poem Anger is sharp Like lightening streaking and smashing down Anger is red Like blood from a wound Like fire jumping from the window of my old house It reminds me of the sting of my mother’s slap across my cheek when I embarrassed her at grandmas’ It makes me feel empty like there’s a hole in my middle.

19. Inside This Inside this ______________________ Write several stanzas Can have rhyme, can be free verse, should have rhythm

20. Sample Inside This Inside every book When I finish my book there is a story to tell, I’ve made new friends, a mysterious place to go, gone new places, an adventure to begin. learned new things. Inside every book Yes, inside this book are people to meet, I’ve discovered more knowledge characters to become, shed a tear or laughed at antics. words to celebrate. Inside this book I discover a new me.

21. Alliteration • The repetition of letter sounds so that the sound of a poem reinforces its meaning • Sample: • Drop thy pipe, thy happy pipe • Sing thy songs of happy cheer! • So I sang the same again, • While he wept with joy to hear.

22. Senses Poem • A poet may evoke all five senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch, to help the reader fully appreciate an object. • Title • Sight • Sound. • Smell • Taste • Touch

23. On This Cold December Day Snow flakes drift down to lie on my white skin, Slowly dissolving away leaving a trace of moisture behind, On this cold December day. Peppermint hot cocoa sooths my throat, As it rushes down and cannon balls into my tummy On this cold December day.

24. Sample Sense Poem Blue and jade green and golden yellow sun, waves at the seashore Slap and tap and slip into the sand, Salty spray on my tongue Tingling and stinging my face, As fishy seashore smells, recalls my summers forever

25. Another Senses Poem Water Park Wet slippery rides glisten in the sun. Shimmering water flows every where at the water park. Splish! Splash! Goes the water accompanied by the screech of children’s excited screams. Sweet tart yet bitter water hits my tongue as it runs against me soft, smooth, and cool. And the smell of chlorine and food fills the air around me.

26. Christmasanother senses poem Christmas is enchanting Colorful lights flickering, dragging my eyes to their brillance. Soft, fluffy snow gracefully falling dressing my hat in sparkling flakes. Bells clanging joyfully calling attention to the New Born King Sweet, creamy eggnog caresses my tongue while Succulent turkey sizzles in the pan, the wafting smell tempting and enticing me inside.

27. The Important Thing The Important Thing about a ______________ is that it__________________________________ It can also… It… It… But the important thing about a ______________ is that it (same line as line one)

28. The Important Thing About a School The important thing about a school is that it teaches kids how to learn. It also lets kids have time with peers. It gives kids safety and fun. It teaches sports and sportsmanship and how to be a responsible person. It is filled with people who care and some people who should but don’t. It’s a place you want to get finished with until you are. It pushes a mind to grow and then want to grow more. But the important thing about a school is that it teaches kids how to learn.

29. The Important Thing About Me The important thing about me is________ ____________________________________. I am________________________________. I have_____________________________ and_______________________________. I do________________________________ ___________________________________. But the important thing about me is_________________________________ .

30. Personification • Writer gives human qualities to something that is not alive. • Example: • The ocean roared as thought to keep us back from its shore. • The snow dusted our noses with soft particles of powder.

31. Personficationexample The ocean roared as though to keep us back from its shore. The snow dusted our noses with soft particles of powder.

32. Flood I wait silently high above the canyon Resting and growing as it rains Breaking the dam that holds me back with one single fierce jump Kicking down trees, sucking in boulders and rocks Rushing down Cotton Wood Canyon with a burning hatred Grabbing a tent with five young children and throwing it in to Navajo Lake Ragging and screaming, kicking and rushing I’m a flood, a freight train.

33. Autumn The Autumn days have just begun. The sun sleeps more often, While the moon watches over us when the sky is black velvet. The trees put on a costume of red, yellow, and brown. The leaves dance in the wind, as the ground rushes up to meet them.

34. Metaphor Poem • Used to paint pictures in the readers mind • Presents new view of topic • Compares 2 objects but does not use like, as or than

35. Sample Metaphor Poem Sun The sun Is leaping fire Too hot To go near. But it will still Lie down In warm yellow squares On the floor. Like a flat Quilt, where The cat can curl And purr. -Valarie Worch

36. Metaphor for a Family My family lives inside a medicine chest: 
Dad is the super-size band aid, strong and powerful but not always effective in a crisis.
 Mom is the middle-size tweezer, which picks and pokes and pinches.
 David is the single small aspirin on the third shelf, sometimes ignored.
 Muffin, the sheep dog, is a round cotton ball, stained and dirty, that pops off the shelf and bounces in my way as I open the door.
 And I am the wood and glue which hold us all together with my love. - Belinda Metaphor Poem Sample

37. Sadness Sadness is a black hole, Like locked up thoughts. Sadness is a knife, Like piercing skin. Like a gun taking away a loved one’s life. It reminds me of when I cried all the way to the airport after we left my sister at Bucknell. It makes me feel like my heart is being ripped in two and I can’t stop the murder.

38. Memory Poem • Choose a memory think of a time that was important to you • Think of an object in your memory to focus on • Choose a style (see examples next) shape poem (Christmas Tree) repeating line poem (Poor Fish) rhyming poem (Ice Cream Truck) • Write without thinking! throw out images, smells, objects, events like paint on a canvas don’t just tell a story • Rewrite! Rewrite! Rewrite!

39. Sample Memory poem(shape poem) STAR ON TOP ORNAMENTS WE MADE IN SCHOOL COOKIES, SINGING, FUDGE SO MANY HUGS IT BEGINS TO HURT GIFTS UNDERNEATH

40. Sample Memory Poem(repeating) I once had a fish who laid dead on a dish. Poor fish. Along came a cat who ate up that fish. Poor fish. That cat came back, and threw up that fish. Poor fish. I got a vacuum and sucked up that fish Poor fish.

41. Sample Memory Poem(rhyming) The ice cream truck don’t stop here anymore. Me and my brother just don’t crave it like before As children we lived by a simple code: “Give me liberty or give me rocky road.” We’d spring into the street and dance around And laugh and lick ‘till our lips were chocolate brown Then we’d giggle and google and grin a goofy grin And dream of when that truck would come again. Today the ice cream truck came whizzing past Like all those years that came and went too fast Ice cream drips and melts and soon is gone More will come to gobble with my son.

42. Stretchin’ the Truth • The object of the poem is to wildly exaggerate the truth about yourself and the world – in other words – use hyperbole! Begin the first line with I wish I were not so_________ (patient, calm, quiet, funny, beautiful) • State three (at least) specific examples that show this trait in a wildly exaggerated way. • End the poem with an “IF” section that poses a new situation that shows in the most onvincing and powerful way just how strong this trait is for you!

43. The Brotherhood of the Traveling Jacket She used us like a towel to wipe up her tears So for this jacket she gave me it will go through the years From person to person with many tears With memories abroad turning gears Its passed without fears Its just become a trail of tears  By Anonymous

44. Sample Stretchin’ the Truth poem I wish I were not so gorgeous. My amazing good looks make it difficult for me to go to the mall without salesmen fainting in delight as I approach. Covergirls from Glamour write me hate mail. Leonardo DiCaprio begs me for dates And I have to hide all the members of Boyz 2 Men. If I were to walk down the main street of Pagosa Springs on a Saturday morning, guys would desert their girlfriends’ arms to throw roses and kisses at me from across the street.