Poetry Unit Study

Unit Safari Poetry Unit was originally compiled September 15, 2002

Learn to write your own poem.
Learn about homophones, antonyms, synonyms.
Learn rhyming words.
Learn about poets.

For older students:
Exposure to and familiarization with poetic terminology and devices.
Development of the skills necessary to engage with a poem’s components and thus come to an initial and then refined understanding of that piece’s meaning.

Vocabulary

ALLEGORY	ALLITERATION	ALLUSION	BALLAD	BLANK VERSE
CHIASMUS	CHORUS	CONSONANCE	COUPLET	ELEGY
EPIC	EPIGRAM	EPISTROPHE	EXPLICATION	FOOT
FORCED RHYME	FREE VERSE	HAIKU	HYPERBOLE	IAMBIC FOOT
IMPERFECT RHYME	LYRIC	METAPHOR	METER	METRIC LINE
ONOMATOPOEIA	PERFECT	RHYME	QUATRAIN	STANZA
SYMBOL

Poetry Word Scramble
Poetry Word Search

Book Resources:

Anything by Shel Silverstein
Charlie Parker Played Bebop by Chris Raschka
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault
A Child’s Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Children’s Book of Virtues by William J. Bennett
Favorite Poems Old and New by Helen Ferris
Anything by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Honey, I Love by Eloise Greenfield
How to Write Poetry by Paul B Janeczko
Langston Hughes works
The Mouse of Amhurst by Elizabeth Spires
Anything by Ogden Nash
Poem Stew by William Cole
Poetry for Young People: Edgar Allan Poe Edited by Brod Bagert.
Poetry for Young People: Emily Dickinson Edited by Frances Schoonmaker Bolin
Poetry for Young People: Lewis Carroll Edited by Edward Mendelson
Poetry for Young People: Robert Frost Edited by Gary D Schmidt
The Poetry of Robert Frost collection
The Real Mother Goose by Blanche Fisher Wright
The Best of Robert Service by Robert Service these are great for older students
Sing a Song of Popcorn by Marcia Brown
Dr. Seuss books

Here is an interesting book that is good for high school age (some mature subject matter). Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters.  The book is basically a bunch of epitaphs/poems that were written about real people, giving out their “secrets” before they died. The original Unit-Safari Compiler used to live in the area that this book is from and it is interesting to say the least.
Spoon River Anthology https://www.bartleby.com/lit-hub/spoon-river-anthology/

Where do you get ideas? How do you find the right word? Let an award winning poet show you how it’s done. https://poetry4kids.com/

Edgar Guest’s poetry – Poetry Writing with Famous Poets: Learn how to write poetry by writing step-by-step with your favorite poets. Listen to Jack Prelutsky read one of his poems. Karla Kuskin demonstrates how to use descriptive words to create powerful poems. A teachers guide is on the site.
https://teacher.scholastic.com/writewit/poetry/index.htm

Rebus Poems
The Boy in the Barn https://www.enchantedlearning.com/rhymes/Boyinthebarn.shtml

Synonym Rummy games
Go Fish Homonyms game

A cute stitches activity for a poetry unit pdf file: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Unit-safari/message/10084

Music:

Poems set to music
Folksongs, such as Skip to My Lou
Ballads; Ballads are narrative poetry [tells a story] set to music.

Poetry Lapbook Ideas:

A lapbook on poetry.  Study poets and put them on a timeline.  Make minit book for each with a drawing, a bio, and a favorite poem.  Make a vocabulary flip book.  Include a set of poetry magnets to play with. Make the magnets to by purchasing magnets sheets and print words using your computer or just hand print them with permanent markers.  Write and illustrate your own poetry.  Minit books on different types of poetry.  Minit books of rhyming words.  For the younger student, choose a favorite book of poetry, Mother Goose for example, and make minit books based on the rhymes.

Activity Web Resources:

Enhancing a Poetry Unit with American Memory https://www.loc.gov/collections/archive-of-recorded-poetry-and-literature/about-this-collection/
PBS Newshour Poetry topics and lessons
https://pages.uoregon.edu/leslieob/pizzaz.html
Poetry Lesson Plans https://lesson-plans.theteacherscorner.net/writing/poetry/
PBS Kids Nature Poetry Builder
Learn about writing poetry and write a Free Verse from Teacher Created
Using Onomatopoeia or words that sound like the objects or actions which they are describing.
Outta Ray’s Head Poetry Lesson Plans many lessons to choose from

Poetry Activities Directory http://sunniebunniezz.com/poetry/poetryactivities/poem_activities_directory.htm

Complete Unit Web Resources:

https://www.poetry.com/

Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes Activities, Printables, Lessons, and Teaching Ideas http://themes.atozteacherstuff.com/960/mother-goose-nursery-rhymes-activities-printables-lessons-and-teaching-ideas/

Information Web Resources:

The Academy of American Poets https://poets.org/
Rhyming dictionary https://www.rhymezone.com/
War Poetry https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_poetry
Reliability of war poems

Ambleside (the CM curr) Poetry 6 list https://www.amblesideonline.org/poems-year6

Types and Forms

Concrete Poetry – Words and phrases are arranged on paper to capture and extend the meaning. Each line should be a complete unit of thought.

Couplet – A pair of lines of poetry that are usually rhymed. of poetry

Renga
https://www.ahapoetry.com/RENGA.HTM

Tanka
https://www.ahapoetry.com/TANKA.HTM

Free Verse – Lacks rhyme and has less predictable rhythm.
Example: Adoff. Black Is Brown Is Tan

Mother Goose Rhymes

Many different forms of verse are included in traditional nursery rhymes, as stories and riddles. Examples are:
Story, as Hark! Hark! The dogs do bark!
Games & verses, as Pease Porridge Hot
Counting rhymes, as One, Two, Buckle My Shoe
Lullabies & Prayers, as Hush, Little Baby
Riddle & Tongue Twisters, as Peter Piper Picked a Peck.

Limericks

Highly controlled. Lines 1, 2 and 5 rhyme.; Lines 3 and 4 rhyme.

For primary students:
The Golden Book of Fun and Nonsense Compiled by by Louis Untermeyer
The Book of Nonsense by Edward Lear
The Book of Pigericks by Arnold Lobel

Cinquain

Syllabic verse form. Gradually increasing number of syllables in each line until the last line, which returns to two syllables.
About Cinquain https://www.ahapoetry.com/CINQHMPG.HTM

Form for younger students:
First Line: 2 syllables One word, giving title
Second Line: 4 syllables Two words, describing title
Third Line: 6 syllables Three words, expressing action
Fourth Line: 8 syllables Four words, expressing a feeling
Fifth Line: 2 syllables Another word for the title.

Haiku

How to Haiku https://www.ahapoetry.com/all%20haiku%20info.html
10 haikuists and their works http://www.big.or.jp/~loupe/links/ehisto/ehisinx.shtml
Japanese form of poetry. Form is 17 syllables in three lines with pattern: first line, 5 syllables; second line 7 syllables; third line, 5 syllables. Usually has nature themes.
Teacher Created Resources has a different take on a book report. Book Report Haiku
Haiku Books:
Black Swan White Crow by J. Patrick Lewis

Introduction to Haiku by Harold Gould Henderson

Haiku: The Mood of Earth by Ann Atwood
My Own Rhythm; An Approach to Haiku by Ann Atwood

Activities:

Recycled Poetry write “found” poetry https://www.teachervision.com/poetry/recycled-poetry
Write a poem. Pick a shape and write your poem on the page. Print and cut out or decorate the page. https://www.teachervision.com/poetry/a-collection-of-poetry-activities

Mother goose poems and Rhyming worksheets https://www.enchantedlearning.com/rhymes/matching/

Rubric (score card for grading) for poetry https://highland.hitcho.com.au/poetrycritique.pdf

Affiliate Links

Amazon	NotebookingPages.com
Edgar Allen Poet Magnetic Poetry	Famous Poets Notebooking Pages
Shakespeare Magnetic Poetry	Basic Lined Notebooking Pages