write a poem assignment

Skip to right header navigation
Skip to main content
Skip to primary sidebar

15 Fun Poetry Activities for High School

April 8, 2019 // by Lindsay Ann // 3 Comments

Sharing is caring!

High School Students + Fun Poetry Activities

If you’re an English teacher, looking for fun poetry activities for high school or middle school students, I’ve got you covered. I’m opening up my poetry toolbox and sharing some of my favorite (and most successful) poetry games and activities! Whether you’re looking for a stand-alone lesson or something more, there’s something here for everyone.

Pop Sonnets

The creation of pop sonnets is one of my favorite poetry activities to use in conjunction with the reading of a Shakespearean play, but it can be used as a stand-alone lesson. The hook is that modern-day songs have been turned into Shakespearean sonnets. You can study one of Shakespeare’s sonnets and ask students to modernize it. Then, work in reverse by re-working a modern-day song as a sonnet. Or, just use this as a “hook” to help students feel more comfortable with Shakespearean language. Take a look and thank me later.

Songs as Poetry

Studying modern-day songs is a great way to teach about figurative language and poetic devices while studying poetry. Try reading the lyrics, but omitting or re-writing the metaphors and talking about the change in message/meaning. Look for examples of imperfect rhyme in one of Eminem’s cleaner songs. Study poems as paired texts . Analyze lines from a famous soundtrack. Ask students to bring in their favorite songs and discuss. So. Many. Options!

Here are 12 great songs to analyze if you aren’t sure where to start:

“Across the Universe” by the Beatles
“Angel” by Sarah McLachlan
“Blank Space” by Taylor Swift
“Chasing Pavements” by Adele
“Infinity” by Mariah Carey
“Stereo Hearts” by Gym Class Heroes
“Counting Stars” by One Republic
“It’s Time” by Imagine Dragons
“Imagine” by John Lennon
“Mad World” by Gary Jules
“Zombie” by The Cranberries
“Letter to Me” by Brad Paisley

Slam Poetry

Students need to know that poetry is not dead. It’s living. It’s breathing. It’s storytelling. It’s cool. In April, my classes come alive with the magic of slam poetry as students become authors and performers. They re-discover wonder and learn to let down their guard. They learn that there is intersectionality between their story and the stories of others. They are appreciated. They appreciate others. When I use this fun poetry activity for high school students , my classroom really becomes a true community.

Grab my slam poetry “mini” unit to get your students started with slam poetry!

Not sure which slam poems are school-appropriate and engaging? Here are 40 of my favorite slam poems !

Paint Chip Poetry

This poetry writing activity is FREE if you’re willing to grab some paint chips from your local hardware store, preferably ones with multiple colors in one. Or, Amazon sells an awesome paint chip poetry “game.”

Have students use one of the color names as the title for a poem.
Have students write poems in stanzas, using each of the color names as inspiration.
Have students use all of the color names somewhere in a poem.
Have students choose two contrasting colors and make a poem of contrasts.
Have students choose two complimentary colors and make a poem.
Have students choose a color and write an identity poem.

Blackout Poetry

This is an oldie, but goodie poetry writing exercise for high school students. Copy a page or two from a whole class novel. Or better yet, choose a completely divergent text, maybe a science textbook or page from a dictionary. Students string together words on the page to form a poem, and black-out the rest of the words. If they want to go above and beyond, they can create an original illustration to accompany their blackout poem.

Book Spine Poetry

Take your students to the library (or have them browse a site like Goodreads) and challenge them to create poems from book titles. Each title becomes a line in the poem. An optional challenge: have students choose (or randomly draw) a theme, and their poem has to relate to their chosen theme. If you’re looking for some FREE templates, I’ve got you covered: Click Here ! I created these templates as a quick fun poetry activity for high school sophomores after my librarian told me that having my classes pull so many books would be a pain to re-shelve.

Poetry Tasting

A lot of teachers are loving my reading progressive dinner stations . Poems are short and accessible texts that always rock when used with this activity.

Here are some options for poetry stations, a fun group poetry activity:

Choose a certain kind of poem or a certain poetic movement to explore at ALL the stations, i.e. the ghazal or Imagist poetry.
Choose different kinds of poems or movements to explore at each station.
Choose poems related to ONE thematic idea.
Choose poems written by teenagers.
Choose “famous” poems.
Choose slam poems.

Poetry Transformations

If you’re studying word choice and tone in poetry, why not have students transform a poem, switching from one tone to another? Then, have students write a reflection analyzing why they made 4-5 important changes.

Found Poems

This poetry activity is exactly what it sounds like. Have students choose / cut-out words from magazines to form “found” poems. Or, have students listen to a TED talk or story, writing down a certain # of words they hear. Then, ask them to use these words + ones of their own to write an original poem.

Easter Egg Poems

If ’tis the season, you might as well use those plastic easter eggs you may have lying around. Put “poetry inspiration” in each egg. At the very least, I suggest a word or phrase. If you want to go “all-in,” create a combination of the items below:

Random household objects, i.e. a piece of string, a bead
Newspaper/magazine clippings
Words/phrases
Famous first lines
A “mentor” poem, copied and folded up

Tell students that their challenge is to write a poem inspired by these objects. Or, if you prefer, have students incorporate words / ideas from each object in their poem.

Favorite Poem Project

If you’ve never seen the site “ Favorite Poem Project ,” I suggest checking it out as a poetry unit resource. The site’s goal is to interview a variety of different people about their “favorite poems.” In each short video, an individual shares a personal connection to his/her poem and reads the poem out loud.

After being a fan of this site for some time, I decided to have my students make their own “favorite poem” videos . They explored, chose a poem that they liked “best,” and created videos on Flipgrid discussing their thoughts about the poem and reading it aloud. These videos were then viewed by classmates. Everyone enjoyed this a lot!

Metaphor Dice

Poems as Mentor Texts

Using mentor texts for writing is a powerful strategy for poetry instruction, yet one that I find myself “skipping” because there isn’t time. I have to remind myself to “make” the time because it’s important. If we’re going to spend time analyzing texts, it only makes sense to have students try to use those writing moves in their own writing. After all, students should be writing frequently, and not always for an assessment grade.

Here are 12 great mentor poems if you’re not sure where to start:

“ We Real Cool ” by Gwendolyn Brooks
“ Montauk ” by Sarah Kay
“ This is Just to Say ” by William Carlos Williams
“ Mother to Son ” by Langston Hughes
“ My Father’s Hats ” by Mark Irwin
“ Chicago ” by Carl Sandburg
“ Entrance ” by Dana Gioia
“ My Father is an Oyster ” by Clint Smith
“ If ” by Rudyard Kipling
“ Ode to a Large Tuna in the Market ” by Pablo Neruda
“ The Bean Eaters ” by Gwendolyn Brooks
“ The Summer I Was Sixteen ” by Geraldine Connolly
“ Where I’m From ” by George Ella Lyon (As a bonus, students can submit their poems to the “I am From” project. ) p.s. If you’re looking for ready-to-use templates, here you go !

Magnetic Poetry

A fun activity to fill extra class time, or just for fun: magnetic poetry . Give each student (or pairs of students) a handful of magnetic poetry pieces. See what they come up with. Take pictures and display around the room.

Interactive Poetry Bulletin Board

Sort of like magnetic poetry, but with a twist, it’s fun to set-up an interactive bulletin board as a fun poetry activity for high school students to try before or after class. You can do this in several different ways.

Poem of the day + a “feel-o-meter” for students to rate the poem on a scale from “mild sauce” to “hot sauce.” You can have students use push pins to vote.
Large scale magnetic poetry + a bulletin board becomes “push pin poetry.” You choose the words. Students move them around to form poems.

Hey, if you loved this post, I want to be sure you’ve had the chance to grab a FREE copy of my guide to stream l ined grading . I know how hard it is to do all the things as an English teacher, so I’m over the moon to be able to share with you some of my best strategies for reducing the grading overwhelm.

Click on the link above or the image below to get started!

About Lindsay Ann

Lindsay has been teaching high school English in the burbs of Chicago for 19 years. She is passionate about helping English teachers find balance in their lives and teaching practice through practical feedback strategies and student-led learning strategies. She also geeks out about literary analysis, inquiry-based learning, and classroom technology integration. When Lindsay is not teaching, she enjoys playing with her two kids, running, and getting lost in a good book.

You may be interested in these posts from the same category.

Book List: Nonfiction Texts to Engage High School Students

12 Tips for Generating Writing Prompts for Writing Using AI

31 Informational Texts for High School Students

Project Based Learning: Unlocking Creativity and Collaboration

Empathy and Understanding: How the TED Talk on the Danger of a Single Story Reshapes Perspectives

Teaching Story Elements to Improve Storytelling

Figurative Language Examples We Can All Learn From

18 Ways to Encourage Growth Mindset Versus Fixed Mindset in High School Classrooms

10 Song Analysis Lessons for Teachers

Must-Have Table Topics Conversation Starters

The Writing Process Explained: From Outline to Final Draft

The Art of Storytelling: Techniques for Writing Engaging Narratives

Reader Interactions

[…] Dice: I wrote about this game in my previous blog post about poetry fun, but couldn’t pass by another opportunity to give it a […]

[…] you wonder how to give constructive feedback on creative writing and poetry pieces created by student writers who have put their heart and soul into […]

[…] Teach your high schoolers to annotate using poetry. Have fun with magnetic poetry online! Incorporate art, theatre, or music with black-out poetry, songs as poetry, or poetry slams. Celebrate Robert Frost’s birthday […]

tell your stories, love your life

Writing Inspiration
Semi-Charmed Life
Reading & Research
Works In Progress.

20 Easy Poetry Writing Prompts and Exercises

Although I mostly write fiction now, I started out writing poems. My MFA is even in poetry. I’ve taught beginning poetry workshops at university and also in some fairly unusual settings.

I know a lot of people can use ideas for poems, poetry writing prompts, and inspiration. Even if you write poetry all the time, one of these idea starters might spark your muse or take your writing in a fresh direction. And if you’re a teacher—whether you teach creative writing, English, or grade school—you might be able to adapt one of these for your class!

My favorite thing about poetry is that there aren’t any real rules about how to write a poem. When you find your creative inspiration—whether it’s love, life, or something else—you can just let the words flow. (You can always shape it up later.)

Here are some idea starters, prompts, and exercises that have worked for me before as a poet. You might want to pin or bookmark them for future reference!

20 Easy Poetry Writing Prompts and Exercises #ideas for poems #how to write a poem #classroom #creative writing #idea starters

1. Pick a song on your iPod, phone, or a playlist at random and let it influence you as you quickly write a first draft of a poem.

2. Go to a café, library, or fast food restaurant. Sit where you can see the door. Write a poem about the next person who walks in.

3. You can also do this in a public place where there are a lot of people talking: write a poem based on an overheard conversation.

4. Write a poem about a wild animal. Mary Oliver, who passed away recently and who was such a great talent and inspiration, has written many poems like this, including “The Hermit Crab,” “ The Shark ,” and “ Wild Geese .”

5. Write a poem inspired by a piece of art. (By the way, the word for a poem or literary work inspired by visual art is ekphrasis . Pretty cool, right?)

6. Write a poem with a refrain: a line or a few lines that repeat, like the chorus of a song.

7. This isn’t the easiest poetry-writing exercise…but I’ve gotten some good poems this way!

Set your alarm for two hours earlier than you usually wake up. Put a notebook and pen next to your bed. When you wake up, free-write for about fifteen minutes. (“Free-writing” means “writing down whatever pops into your head, without thinking too hard about it.”) If you woke up in the middle of a dream, use the dream as inspiration; otherwise, just write whatever comes into your head. Go back to sleep. Later, turn your free-writing into a poem.

8. Write a poem that’s an open letter to a whole group of people.

9. Write a poem that’s a set of directions or instructions.

10. Write a poem about a food. The poet Kevin Young has many examples to inspire you, including “Ode to Gumbo”:

11. Write a poem in which every line begins with the same word. You can change that in revision…or maybe you won’t want to.

12. For this one, you’ll need to either write in a notebook or journal, or on your phone. Go to a store that would be a weird place to write a poem—like a convenience store, a department store, or a drugstore—and write a quick poem.

13. Write a poem that focuses on one color. Federico García Lorca’s poem “Somnambulist Ballad,” translated from the Spanish, or Diane Wakoski’s poem “Blue Monday” might inspire you.

14. Pretend you’re a fictional character from a book, movie, or TV show. Write a poem in their voice.

15. Write an acrostic poem. The first letter of each line spells out a word vertically down the left-hand side of the page. Even for serious poets who would never try to publish an acrostic poem, this is a great exercise to get creative juices flowing.

16. lose your eyes, flip through a book, and put your finger on a page. Whatever word you’re pointing at, use it as a poem title and write that poem.

17. Write a poem late at night, by hand, by candlelight.

18. Fill a page with free-writing using your non-dominant hand. This can help you tap into less rational, more creative thought patterns.

19. Write a poem with very long lines. Walt Whitman’s collection Leaves of Grass might inspire you.

20. Write a poem saying goodbye to someone or something. It could be a happy poem, a sad poem, or both.

I hope you enjoyed this list of creative writing exercises and poetry prompts!

Would you like some more ideas? My book 5,000 Writing Prompts has 80 more poetry-writing exercises in addition to the ones on this list, plus hundreds of master plots by fiction genre, dialogue and character prompts, and much more.

[spacer height=”20px”]

Do you have a method or exercise that inspires you? Let us know in the comments! I’ve said it before, but I learn so much from the comment section, and I always appreciate it. Thanks for reading, and happy writing!

5 JOURNAL EXERCISES FOR SELF-ESTEEM #journal exercises for healing #journal prompts #journal exercises for depression #journal ideas #journal exercises for anxiety #mental health #creativity

Discover more from BRYN DONOVAN

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Type your email…

Our Mission

How to Make Poetry Writing Fun

Enjoyment opens the door to learning, and teachers can use this engaging eight-step process to encourage students’ interest in poetry.

Middle school students writing in classroom

The ode is one of the oldest poetic forms, dating back to ancient Greece, where they were used to celebrate athletic achievements, gods, emotions, or worthy people. The 19th-century British Romantic poets widened the focus, celebrating subjects as diverse as songbirds and autumn. In the 20th century, Nobel laureate Pablo Neruda famously wrote odes about everyday objects and concepts: socks, tomatoes, sadness, french fries, etc.

Students Can Write About Almost Anything, and So Can You

For my grade 6 performing arts class, I wanted to make interdisciplinary connections to the literature and language studies of Homer’s The Odyssey. As my other middle school grades were all doing poetry recitals and writing, the ode seemed to be the obvious choice. I abandoned any idea of using classical or 19th-century odes; their strict forms and archaic language would be too intimidating. Neruda was our role model.

I started the unit by having the students select a Neruda ode to learn how to recite . The absurd, emotional, entertaining, and imaginative odes captivated the students. You can write a poem about a lemon? You can celebrate “broken things”?

For the second part of the unit, the students had to write their own ode. This was the first year I’ve ever had students worry that they didn’t know how to write poems. It’s worth noting that the pandemic may have limited middle school students’ exposure to poetry, as schools have had to make choices about what to teach online.

So it’s now doubly important to model the process yourself. Teacher participation in the process will inspire your students and help you appreciate the challenges of what you are requiring. I wrote “Ode to My Water Bottle” as an example and then used the poetry-writing sequence below (which can be applied to any poetic form).

8 Steps for Writing and Sharing Poems

1. Pick a subject for your poem based on something you love. My students chose to celebrate the following subjects: high heels, bonsai trees, pork buns, pencils, books, chipmunks, cars, their bed, toasters, and the Marvel antihero Deadpool. The students loved the random, eclectic variety of each other’s choices.

2. Use an ideas-planning frame to brainstorm language and phrases. Having time to accumulate ideas is essential. As I work in an international baccalaureate school, I used the conceptual language of form (what is it?), function (how does it work?), change (how does it change you?), and perspective (think from the object’s point of view). The goal is to collect as many ideas as possible. I use the analogy of panning for gold: You have to sift through a lot of mud.

3. Build poetic sentences in a notebook. I don’t jump right into the poem. Instead, I have the students take ideas and craft rich sentences about their subject, focusing on figurative language. Students often come to the poetic writing process without an appreciation of the craft that goes into it. I teach them that the thesaurus is their new best friend . Breaking down the poetic process into manageable chunks reinforces transferable literacy skills. Once well practiced, these steps can be sped up.

It’s important to make time for your students to share their sentences, celebrate great imagery, and give each other feedback. Making this a regular event also slowly acclimates the students to the idea of sharing their own writing in a safe space for literary feedback.

4. Shape sentences into an ode form. I select my favorite poetic sentences, and I show the students how to assemble them into verses. This is where I teach the students what a line break is and why they exist. With Neruda as our ongoing model, there is no requirement for a strict form, rhyme, or particular rhythm or meter—elements that are part of the wider literature curriculum. Instead, the only requirement is that the ode truly celebrates the subject with enthusiastic statements.

5. Edit for additional inclusion of figurative language and phrases. The final writing stage is editing, which is when a poem’s potential can be truly realized. After all, poets spend a long time deliberating over word choices. So this is when I give specific feedback to every student, using the comment feature on Google Docs.

6. Practice reciting to friends, groups, or the class. Sharing the odes in pairs and small groups and finally the whole class was a great way to utilize those newly gained recital skills. Reading a poem aloud always catches little errors or changes, so it’s worth some last-minute time to make final edits.

7. Address students’ nervousness about sharing their work. While the students were confident reciting Neruda’s odes, there was a noticeable decline in recital skill when it came to their own work. The students said they were nervous because this was their work, their words, their ideas. With this in mind, we had a lesson to practice in our performance space and learn how to use the microphone properly while still wearing masks.

8. Celebrate success! We shared our work with the school community, and the parents were delighted by the range of odes, the creative use of language, and the students’ enthusiasm. Writing odes is certainly an approach I will use again and also with different grades, as odes can easily be used with much younger or older students. If you still need convincing, read “ Ode to Teachers ,” by Pat Mora.

Here's a space to search our entire website.

Try typing something like "creative blocks", "spiral", "world", "green" or "blue" and our snail will find what you're looking for.

How to write a poem

“Without poetry, we lose our way.”

— Joy Harjo, U.S. Poet Laureate & Academy of American Poets Chancellor

I’ve been writing poetry, in some capacity, since I was a little kid. I am drawn to the language of poetry as a specific way of looking at the world, and how it operates by its own sometimes inscrutable logic. It has always felt to me like the best and most natural vehicle for talking about complicated feelings and making observations, and I enjoy it because it feels weird and good and true. It might even be the one thing in my life that allows me to access something powerfully mystical. However, the things that make me love poetry are generally the very same things that make it hard to explain, seemingly impossible to teach, and more often than not, cause people’s eyes to glaze over when I mention it.

When I tell people I am a writer, it’s always interesting to see them cycle through what that means in real time. Oh, you write novels? Nope. Aww, so you’re a journalist? Yes, but… A memoirist? A technical writer? A copywriter? It’s only after every other option has fluttered across their mind that “poet” eventually becomes an option. I am no longer offended by these interactions, but I am also cognizant of how much I have internalized the weird vibes. For some reason, I would never open with “Hi, I am a poet” because it just sounds too pretentious—but why is that? If poetry is one of humankind’s oldest and most vaunted art forms, why does it currently occupy such a weird, prickly spot in our cultural consciousness? And why should anyone, myself included, ever think of it as an embarrassing pursuit? Or an impossible one?

There are arguably a million complicated answers to these questions, but in the interest of brevity and in an effort to be helpful, I’ll just say this: a lot of people have weird ideas about what poetry actually is or what it can be, and because of this, poetry has been made to feel inaccessible to them. If you don’t tend to read poetry, then why would you write it? And if the idea of writing a poem seems about as plausible as writing in a language you don’t yet speak, then I hope that this little guide can function as a gentle introduction into both the reading and writing of poems. It should be an experience that feels like slipping into a warm bath and less like, say, taking a time machine back to your high school English class and realizing you don’t understand the assignment. Poetry is the opposite of that.

— T. Cole Rachel, poet and Senior Editor of TCI

Poetry. What is it? Why do it? And who cares?

What is poetry? Like, what is it really? As someone who has read, studied, and taught poetry for the better part of their adult life, my answer to this question is a combination of “who knows?” with a healthy side dish of “it doesn’t matter.” The literal definition of poetry, at least according to Merriam-Webster, is as follows:

[Poetry is] writing that formulates a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience in language chosen and arranged to create a specific emotional response through meaning, sound, and rhythm.

While there is certainly a historical, literary precedent for what poetry is, it remains slippery in both form and function. It also generally occupies a rather amorphous space in our consciousness. As poetry has evolved into an entity that can take the shape of almost anything—from the deadpan literal to the purely abstract—it’s not surprising that we tend to project our own feelings onto it.

In his excellent book, Why Poetry , the poet Matthew Zapruder makes the case that reading poetry can help us lead more purposeful, empathetic lives. His book provides a general demystification of what it means to read and write poems, and a thoughtful way to dispel some of the inadequacy that readers often feel when confronted with poetry. Zapruder writes:

“I have a confession to make: I don’t really understand poetry.” For over twenty-five years, I have heard this said, over and over in slightly different ways, by friends, family, colleagues, strangers I met in bars and at dinner parties, on planes—so many people, practically everyone who found out I was a poet. Clearly, there is something about poetry that rattles and mystifies people, that puts them off, that makes them feel as if there is something wrong. Maybe the problem is with them as readers. Maybe they don’t enough or haven’t studied enough or weren’t paying attention in school. Or maybe the problem is with poetry itself. Why don’t poets just say what they mean? Why do they make it so hard?

What Zapruder suggests in his book is something that I’ve often experienced with my own students. People often have an aversion to poetry as a result of being made to read things they didn’t like or understand, usually at a time in their life when they were the least prepared to absorb it. Because of this, poetry itself remains fixed in their minds as some kind of inscrutable hard work—a slog, the literary equivalent of a puzzle with a thousand tiny pieces that are all essentially the same color. The experience of reading poetry, aside from the occasional New Yorker piece, remains fixed somewhere in the cobwebby backs of our brains along with memories of being forced to read The Canterbury Tales or having to produce a clunky sonnet or replicate iambic pentameter for junior high English without actually understanding what it was or why you were doing it.

So what is the cure for this? Re-wiring the way we think about poetry and the way we read it, and understanding that it’s an art form that contains infinite multitudes. For a lot of people, their misunderstanding of poetry is akin to hating ice cream your whole life because you only tasted one bad flavor as a teenager and you thought it was hard to eat. Awakening your sensibilities as a reader and writer of poetry is really all about finding the right kind of poetry for you, and knowing that whatever your personal tastes happen to be, and whatever your needs happen to be as a reader and a creature with lots of feelings, there is a particular flavor of poetry in existence that will speak directly to you.

Don’t try and learn. Just read.

When I made the decision in the mid ‘90s to forego any kind of practical future and, instead, go get an MFA in poetry, I have the distinct memory of my grandmother asking, “Why are you doing this?” which was followed by, “Can you even teach someone to write poetry? Isn’t that something you either know how to do or you don’t?” In some ways, she was right—poetry is a weird, complicated thing to try and teach another person how to make. Poetry has many forms and many rules, all of which are changeable, mutable, and often meaningless. Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, Hanif Abdurraqib , John Keats, Claudia Rankine, Wallace Stevens, Elizabeth Bishop, Nikki Giovanni , John Ashberry, Sylvia Plath, Morgan Parker , Ada Limon —all poets who sound so different in tone and voice and style that it seems crazy to lump them all together.

And as for poetry itself? This compact little narrative? A poem. This haiku about grass? A poem, obviously. This scrabble of nonsense words on a page? Also poetry. This smear of ink? Poetry. This feeling, this idea, this gesture, this mood? Yes. All poetry. The idea of teaching someone how to make a thing whose very nature continues to evolve, change, and grow increasingly slippery within the cultural lexicon seems impossible… and yet, why not try? Why not write some poems?

The best way to try and understand poetry—and ultimately to write it—is simply by reading it and letting the form and logic of it gradually seep into your animal brain. Every reader is, of course, different, and you can’t always predict what kind of poems are going to be speaking your language. That’s why it’s important to peruse lots of different kinds of poems, which makes it easy to find things that are not only accessible, but also speak to your own experience as a human. Unless perhaps you are a fledgling English major or a writer of poetry just entering an MFA program (in which case, I feel for you), approaching poetry from a serious literary angle might largely be a waste of time and energy. Instead, why not approach poetry like a hungry person walking through a grocery store, throwing anything and everything into your cart that looks like it might taste good?

To that end, here are a few spots to gently lower yourself down into a poetry pool and help you find something that keeps you afloat:

Poets.org // One of the best resources for poetry and poets on the internet, this is the official site of the Academy of American Poets. In addition to being able to browse different types of poetry and search for individual poets, this is a great place to find out about poetry-related events in your area. Here you can also sign up for “Poem-A-Day,” which will email you a poem, along with links to that poet’s work, every day. I’ve subscribed to it for years and it’s the easiest way to discover new poets and poems.

Poetry Foundation // This site is particularly useful if you are in the mood to dive headfirst into a poetry hole. The site offers a “Poem of the Day” but also has lots of nicely curated sections where you can browse poems by theme, style, and subject. This is also the place to subscribe to Poetry magazine, which has been publishing some of the best and most diverse poetry in the world since it was founded back in 1912. The magazine is not only a fertile discovery zone, you can also get it delivered in a variety digital formats, which means you can even read it on your stupid phone.

Poetry anthologies // Anthology books can be one of the best places to turn on and tune in to exactly what sorts of poetry speaks to you. There are, of course, a million “classic” anthologies of poetry that showcase all the literary legends and luminaries, but if those feel too much like just revisiting the stuff you read in high school or college, then perhaps go a little more niche. Most good bookstores still have a poetry section (though they seem to be shrinking) and within those you can find an abundance of poetry anthologies specifically curated to speak to and for a variety of voices. If you are looking for something a little more general and panoramic, I always recommend the “ Best American Poetry ” series, which is guest edited by a different poet every year and always provides a nice lay of the land in terms of what is happening across the world of poetry (American poetry, at least).

Live readings // One of the best ways to really experience poetry is to go hear people read it. The kinds of poetry events happening at any given time in any given city are typically as varied as poetry itself tends to be. While I myself have definitely sat through some clunker poetry readings in my time, I’ve also experienced poetry in its most transcendent form when going to hear it read aloud by the poets themselves. I also like to periodically search out my favorite poets on YouTube to try and find footage of them reading their own work, an exercise that can lead you to wild gems like this one— Anne Sexton reading “Her Kind” back in 1966 .

Get started.

Once you’ve spent a little time perusing some poems and getting a sense of what you like and what speaks to you, the best way to start writing poems is to simply…write a poem. If this seems easier said than done, or if the horror of the blank page feels too overwhelming, just give yourself a little nudge. Write about where you are and how you feel at this very moment and look at the size and shape of poems that you love, considering— How can I do this too? How can I make this about me?

For the past five years I’ve been teaching a recurring poetry workshop here in New York City called “Poetry & Photography.” The class originated via the Camera Club of NY and was first created as an offering for photographers who wanted to experiment with writing poetry as a way to respond and reflect on their own visual work. Eventually the class opened up to non-photographers as well, but I found that the concept of the class—and the exercises—still rang very true for everyone. We all have complicated relationships with images. And since we all carry around a smartphone that we use almost incessantly to document ourselves and our surroundings, it’s easy to use existing images as a jumping-off point for writing poems.

As I mentioned before, I’m not sure you can really teach someone how to write a good poem, but my technique has always been to simply give my students a variety of poems to look at every week and then to set them loose with a prompt. I’ve always found that when people are writing about the reality of their own lives and filling their poems with lots of specific sensory details—as opposed to, say, writing about abstract ideas like “love”—the work tends to be vivid and interesting. With that in mind, here are three photo-related prompts to get you going…

Prompt 1: “RESPONSE”

Write a poem that begins with a description of a photograph you have in your possession. Delve into the memories evoked by the photograph, or reveal what personal significance the photograph has for you.

For inspiration, read Natasha Trethewey’s “ History Lesson .”

Prompt 2: “MOMENT”

Using one of your own photographs, go back and try to describe what is happening with you, the photographer, at the moment the image was taken. What possessed you to take the photo? What was it about that moment specifically that needed to be documented, and why was that moment so telling? The poem should be a companion to the photo itself—a kind of poetic explanation of the photo’s creation.

For inspiration, read:

“ A Tenth Anniversary Photograph, 1952 ” by Miller Williams
“ Photograph from September 11 ” by Wisława Szymborska
“ Photograph of a Gathering of People Waving ” by Clarence Major
“ Photo of a Man on Sunset Drive: 1914, 2008 ” by Richard Blanco

Prompt 3: “LANDSCAPE”

Using one of your own photographs, write a poem in which you explore a particular landscape. Focus on the description of the place. Rather than adding a lot of commentary on the subject, focus solely on the physical details of the environment and create an apt description of the image for someone who hasn’t actually seen your photo.

“ Still Life in Landscape ” by Sharon Olds
“ What It Looks Like To Us and the Words We Use ” by Ada Limón
“ Landscape, Dense with Trees ” by Ellen Bryant Voigt
“ Bird ” by Dorianne Laux

Don’t be afraid to experiment with forms.

Sonnets, Haikus, Sestinas, Odes, Elegies—these are all poetic forms that are beautiful and important and that, to be honest, you never need to think about (unless you want to!). So many of my poetry students come to class thinking that they’ll be expected to write in one of these forms, or that the only “real” poems exist in some kind of culturally calcified shape. It’s always a relief for them to understand that, as with any art form, at the end of the day there are no rules and you can do whatever you want.

While you should never be beholden to some dusty old rules, I will say that for a lot of people experimenting with and working within forms can actually be a great entry point for understanding poems. Arguably the best way to understand how a sonnet works from the inside-out is by writing one. Some people find that having a framework to work within is actually easier and less scary than simply freestyling on their own. My advice is to simply try out some forms—try writing a little haiku or two, for example—and also don’t be afraid to emulate the shape and style of poems that you happen to love. Once your poetry practice becomes more habitual, the mimicry eventually fades away and your own style emerges, usually sooner than you expect.

One of the assignments my students have had the most fun with lately has to do with writing their own contemporary version of an ode, which is “a lyric poem in the form of an address to a particular subject.” Based on the poet Sharon Olds ’ 2016 Odes , I ask people to simply write a poem in celebration of something.

Prompt 4: “ODE”

Because sometimes we can all get sick of looking at ourselves, I’ve found that working with found images —images for which we have no history and no context—can actually be a pretty profound way to reflect back on our own lives in ways we don’t expect. Found images can spark an unexpected memory and draw out associations we can rarely predict, which is great fodder for poetry. Using a found photograph as a prompt, write an ode to a person, place, thing, or idea.

“ Ode to My Sister ” by Sharon Olds
“ Ode to a Large Tuna in the Market ” by Pablo Neruda
“ Ode to Black Skin ” by Ashanti Anderson
“ Ode to My Toyota ” by Kelle Groom

There is no wrong answer here.

One of the great/weird things about poetry is that historically it’s an art form bound up in all kinds of rules and conventions that, at the end of the day, are also simultaneously meaningless. Often my students will turn up to our workshop and say things like, “I don’t know if I’m doing this right” or—my favorite—”I wrote something but I’m not sure if it’s actually a poem.” My response to these statements is always the same. There is no wrong way to do this, and if you wrote something and you say it’s a poem—it’s a poem. In my experience, the true sign of success for any poem is not so much how it looks, but what it does—how it makes you feel. Of course it’s nice to see interesting wordplay and inventive metaphors and dazzling feats of lyricism, all the things that poetry is known for, but if these things aren’t in service of a good idea and don’t hint at some kind of truth or ineffable feeling, then so what?

One of the best pieces of advice for writing, especially with making poems, is to just write them as if no one is ever going to see them. Not your mom, not your boyfriend, not anyone. Whether or not you choose to share your work is a concern for later. What matters is how the actual poetry practice works for you—as a kind of meditation, as a way of making sense of the world, as a kind of sounding board to measure what’s going on in your own mind and heart. For me poetry has, at some point, served all of these purposes. The trick with any kind of creative writing is always a matter of getting out of your own way, silencing all the negative internal voices that tell us our stories and ideas aren’t important or meaningful, tuning out arbitrary rules, and really listening to our own voice. Poetry, perhaps more than any other literary art, is uniquely suited for giving voice to the deepest parts of ourselves. There is no reason that everyone shouldn’t have access to that experience.

T. Cole Rachel

T. Cole Rachel is a writer, editor, and teacher based in New York City. His work has appeared in Interview, The FADER, The New York Times Magazine, OUT , and Stereogum . He is a regular contributor to Pitchfork and has served as a Contributing Editor at both V Magazine and Interview . He teaches a recurring poetry workshop, Poetry & Photography , at SSHH in New York City. His books include Surviving the Moment of Impact and Bend Don’t Shatter . He is currently Senior Editor at The Creative Independent.

school Campus Bookshelves
menu_book Bookshelves
perm_media Learning Objects
login Login
how_to_reg Request Instructor Account
hub Instructor Commons
Download Page (PDF)
Download Full Book (PDF)
Periodic Table
Physics Constants
Scientific Calculator
Reference & Cite
Tools expand_more
Readability

selected template will load here

This action is not available.

4.20: Writing Assignment: Figure of Speech Poem

Last updated
Save as PDF
Page ID 87405

Write a poem that incorporates a figure of speech: simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, or understatement. You may write it in first-person point of view (I, me, my, we, us, etc.) or third-person point of view (he, she, it, they, etc.) Here is a list of poem suggestions:

Write a nature poem using a simile like Carl Sandburg did in “Fog.” Be sure to use the word like or as .
Choose an abstract noun (peace, hate, joy, etc.) and write a poem using an extended metaphor like Emily Dickinson did in “Hope is the Thing with Feathers.” Be sure the abstract noun is compared to a concrete noun (something the reader can visualize) by using the word is.
Choose an inanimate object and personify it like Robert Frost did in “Storm Fear.”
Create an original hyperbole and use the line in a poem like Robert Frost did in “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.”
Write a narrative poem that shows understatement like Mary Howitt’s poem “The Spider and the Fly.”

You get the idea, right? Brainstorm a list of your own ideas, avariation of one of the above, or use one of the above ideas.

Show Don’t Tell

Remember to use specific nouns and strong action verbs. Remember to use your senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, smell. Of course, poets use less words than fictional writers, too.

Line Breaks

Follow the traditional line breaks and format that most free-verse poets use. Make the line breaks where there is punctuation, an end of a phrase, or the end of a sentence.

Final Draft Instructions

Follow these instructions for typing the final draft:

The poem must be typed in a Microsoft Word file (.docx).
It must have one-inch margins, be single-spaced, and typed in a 12 pt. readable font like Times New Roman, Calibri, or Arial.
Don’t allow the auto-correct in Microsoft Word to capitalize the first line of each poem. Use conventional English rules to write your lines.
In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example:

Jane Doe ENGL 1465–Creative Writing Due Date: Writing Assignment: Figure of Speech Poem

Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title. Capitalize the first word and each important word in the title.
Writing Assignment: Figure of Speech Poem. Authored by : Linda Frances Lein, M.F.A. License : CC BY: Attribution

A Full Guide to Writing a Perfect Poem Analysis Essay

01 October, 2020

14 minutes read

Author: Elizabeth Brown

Poem analysis is one of the most complicated essay types. It requires the utmost creativity and dedication. Even those who regularly attend a literary class and have enough experience in poem analysis essay elaboration may face considerable difficulties while dealing with the particular poem. The given article aims to provide the detailed guidelines on how to write a poem analysis, elucidate the main principles of writing the essay of the given type, and share with you the handy tips that will help you get the highest score for your poetry analysis. In addition to developing analysis skills, you would be able to take advantage of the poetry analysis essay example to base your poetry analysis essay on, as well as learn how to find a way out in case you have no motivation and your creative assignment must be presented on time.

What Is a Poetry Analysis Essay?

A poetry analysis essay is a type of creative write-up that implies reviewing a poem from different perspectives by dealing with its structural, artistic, and functional pieces. Since the poetry expresses very complicated feelings that may have different meanings depending on the backgrounds of both author and reader, it would not be enough just to focus on the text of the poem you are going to analyze. Poetry has a lot more complex structure and cannot be considered without its special rhythm, images, as well as implied and obvious sense.

While analyzing the poem, the students need to do in-depth research as to its content, taking into account the effect the poetry has or may have on the readers.

Preparing for the Poetry Analysis Writing

The process of preparation for the poem analysis essay writing is almost as important as writing itself. Without completing these stages, you may be at risk of failing your creative assignment. Learn them carefully to remember once and for good.

Thoroughly read the poem several times

The rereading of the poem assigned for analysis will help to catch its concepts and ideas. You will have a possibility to define the rhythm of the poem, its type, and list the techniques applied by the author.

While identifying the type of the poem, you need to define whether you are dealing with:

Lyric poem – the one that elucidates feelings, experiences, and the emotional state of the author. It is usually short and doesn’t contain any narration;
Limerick – consists of 5 lines, the first, second, and fifth of which rhyme with one another;
Sonnet – a poem consisting of 14 lines characterized by an iambic pentameter. William Shakespeare wrote sonnets which have made him famous;
Ode – 10-line poem aimed at praising someone or something;
Haiku – a short 3-line poem originated from Japan. It reflects the deep sense hidden behind the ordinary phenomena and events of the physical world;
Free-verse – poetry with no rhyme.

The type of the poem usually affects its structure and content, so it is important to be aware of all the recognized kinds to set a proper beginning to your poetry analysis.

Find out more about the poem background

Find as much information as possible about the author of the poem, the cultural background of the period it was written in, preludes to its creation, etc. All these data will help you get a better understanding of the poem’s sense and explain much to you in terms of the concepts the poem contains.

Define a subject matter of the poem

This is one of the most challenging tasks since as a rule, the subject matter of the poem isn’t clearly stated by the poets. They don’t want the readers to know immediately what their piece of writing is about and suggest everyone find something different between the lines.

What is the subject matter? In a nutshell, it is the main idea of the poem. Usually, a poem may have a couple of subjects, that is why it is important to list each of them.

In order to correctly identify the goals of a definite poem, you would need to dive into the in-depth research.

Check the historical background of the poetry. The author might have been inspired to write a poem based on some events that occurred in those times or people he met. The lines you analyze may be generated by his reaction to some epoch events. All this information can be easily found online.

Choose poem theories you will support

In the variety of ideas the poem may convey, it is important to stick to only several most important messages you think the author wanted to share with the readers. Each of the listed ideas must be supported by the corresponding evidence as proof of your opinion.

The poetry analysis essay format allows elaborating on several theses that have the most value and weight. Try to build your writing not only on the pure facts that are obvious from the context but also your emotions and feelings the analyzed lines provoke in you.

How to Choose a Poem to Analyze?

If you are free to choose the piece of writing you will base your poem analysis essay on, it is better to select the one you are already familiar with. This may be your favorite poem or one that you have read and analyzed before. In case you face difficulties choosing the subject area of a particular poem, then the best way will be to focus on the idea you feel most confident about. In such a way, you would be able to elaborate on the topic and describe it more precisely.

Now, when you are familiar with the notion of the poetry analysis essay, it’s high time to proceed to poem analysis essay outline. Follow the steps mentioned below to ensure a brilliant structure to your creative assignment.

Best Poem Analysis Essay Topics

Mother To Son Poem Analysis
We Real Cool Poem Analysis
Invictus Poem Analysis
Richard Cory Poem Analysis
Ozymandias Poem Analysis
Barbie Doll Poem Analysis
Caged Bird Poem Analysis
Ulysses Poem Analysis
Dover Beach Poem Analysis
Annabelle Lee Poem Analysis
Daddy Poem Analysis
The Raven Poem Analysis
The Second Coming Poem Analysis
Still I Rise Poem Analysis
If Poem Analysis
Fire And Ice Poem Analysis
My Papa’S Waltz Poem Analysis
Harlem Poem Analysis
Kubla Khan Poem Analysis
I Too Poem Analysis
The Juggler Poem Analysis
The Fish Poem Analysis
Jabberwocky Poem Analysis
Charge Of The Light Brigade Poem Analysis
The Road Not Taken Poem Analysis
Landscape With The Fall Of Icarus Poem Analysis
The History Teacher Poem Analysis
One Art Poem Analysis
The Wanderer Poem Analysis
We Wear The Mask Poem Analysis
There Will Come Soft Rains Poem Analysis
Digging Poem Analysis
The Highwayman Poem Analysis
The Tyger Poem Analysis
London Poem Analysis
Sympathy Poem Analysis
I Am Joaquin Poem Analysis
This Is Just To Say Poem Analysis
Sex Without Love Poem Analysis
Strange Fruit Poem Analysis
Dulce Et Decorum Est Poem Analysis
Emily Dickinson Poem Analysis
The Flea Poem Analysis
The Lamb Poem Analysis
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night Poem Analysis
My Last Duchess Poetry Analysis

Poem Analysis Essay Outline

As has already been stated, a poetry analysis essay is considered one of the most challenging tasks for the students. Despite the difficulties you may face while dealing with it, the structure of the given type of essay is quite simple. It consists of the introduction, body paragraphs, and the conclusion. In order to get a better understanding of the poem analysis essay structure, check the brief guidelines below.

Introduction

This will be the first section of your essay. The main purpose of the introductory paragraph is to give a reader an idea of what the essay is about and what theses it conveys. The introduction should start with the title of the essay and end with the thesis statement.

The main goal of the introduction is to make readers feel intrigued about the whole concept of the essay and serve as a hook to grab their attention. Include some interesting information about the author, the historical background of the poem, some poem trivia, etc. There is no need to make the introduction too extensive. On the contrary, it should be brief and logical.

Body Paragraphs

The body section should form the main part of poetry analysis. Make sure you have determined a clear focus for your analysis and are ready to elaborate on the main message and meaning of the poem. Mention the tone of the poetry, its speaker, try to describe the recipient of the poem’s idea. Don’t forget to identify the poetic devices and language the author uses to reach the main goals. Describe the imagery and symbolism of the poem, its sound and rhythm.

Try not to stick to too many ideas in your body section, since it may make your essay difficult to understand and too chaotic to perceive. Generalization, however, is also not welcomed. Try to be specific in the description of your perspective.

Make sure the transitions between your paragraphs are smooth and logical to make your essay flow coherent and easy to catch.

In a nutshell, the essay conclusion is a paraphrased thesis statement. Mention it again but in different words to remind the readers of the main purpose of your essay. Sum up the key claims and stress the most important information. The conclusion cannot contain any new ideas and should be used to create a strong impact on the reader. This is your last chance to share your opinion with the audience and convince them your essay is worth readers’ attention.

Problems with writing Your Poem Analysis Essay? Try our Essay Writer Service!

Poem Analysis Essay Examples

A good poem analysis essay example may serve as a real magic wand to your creative assignment. You may take a look at the structure the other essay authors have used, follow their tone, and get a great share of inspiration and motivation.

Check several poetry analysis essay examples that may be of great assistance:

https://study.com/academy/lesson/poetry-analysis-essay-example-for-english-literature.html
https://www.slideshare.net/mariefincher/poetry-analysis-essay

Writing Tips for a Poetry Analysis Essay

If you read carefully all the instructions on how to write a poetry analysis essay provided above, you have probably realized that this is not the easiest assignment on Earth. However, you cannot fail and should try your best to present a brilliant essay to get the highest score. To make your life even easier, check these handy tips on how to analysis poetry with a few little steps.

In case you have a chance to choose a poem for analysis by yourself, try to focus on one you are familiar with, you are interested in, or your favorite one. The writing process will be smooth and easy in case you are working on the task you truly enjoy.
Before you proceed to the analysis itself, read the poem out loud to your colleague or just to yourself. It will help you find out some hidden details and senses that may result in new ideas.
Always check the meaning of words you don’t know. Poetry is quite a tricky phenomenon where a single word or phrase can completely change the meaning of the whole piece.
Bother to double check if the conclusion of your essay is based on a single idea and is logically linked to the main body. Such an approach will demonstrate your certain focus and clearly elucidate your views.
Read between the lines. Poetry is about senses and emotions – it rarely contains one clearly stated subject matter. Describe the hidden meanings and mention the feelings this has provoked in you. Try to elaborate a full picture that would be based on what is said and what is meant.

Write a Poetry Analysis Essay with HandmadeWriting

You may have hundreds of reasons why you can’t write a brilliant poem analysis essay. In addition to the fact that it is one of the most complicated creative assignments, you can have some personal issues. It can be anything from lots of homework, a part-time job, personal problems, lack of time, or just the absence of motivation. In any case, your main task is not to let all these factors influence your reputation and grades. A perfect way out may be asking the real pros of essay writing for professional help.

There are a lot of benefits why you should refer to the professional writing agencies in case you are not in the mood for elaborating your poetry analysis essay. We will only state the most important ones:

You can be 100% sure your poem analysis essay will be completed brilliantly. All the research processes, outlines, structuring, editing, and proofreading will be performed instead of you.
You will get an absolutely unique plagiarism-free piece of writing that deserves the highest score.
All the authors are extremely creative, talented, and simply in love with poetry. Just tell them what poetry you would like to build your analysis on and enjoy a smooth essay with the logical structure and amazing content.
Formatting will be done professionally and without any effort from your side. No need to waste your time on such a boring activity.

As you see, there are a lot of advantages to ordering your poetry analysis essay from HandmadeWriting . Having such a perfect essay example now will contribute to your inspiration and professional growth in future.

A life lesson in Romeo and Juliet taught by death

Due to human nature, we draw conclusions only when life gives us a lesson since the experience of others is not so effective and powerful. Therefore, when analyzing and sorting out common problems we face, we may trace a parallel with well-known book characters or real historical figures. Moreover, we often compare our situations with […]

Ethical Research Paper Topics

Writing a research paper on ethics is not an easy task, especially if you do not possess excellent writing skills and do not like to contemplate controversial questions. But an ethics course is obligatory in all higher education institutions, and students have to look for a way out and be creative. When you find an […]

Art Research Paper Topics

Students obtaining degrees in fine art and art & design programs most commonly need to write a paper on art topics. However, this subject is becoming more popular in educational institutions for expanding students’ horizons. Thus, both groups of receivers of education: those who are into arts and those who only get acquainted with art […]

Lesson Plans
Teacher's Guides
Media Resources

The Poet's Voice: Langston Hughes and You

Portrait of Langston Hughes.

Library of Congress

When the Academy of American Poets , an EDSITEment-reviewed website, asked the public to vote on their favorite American poet, the verdict was decisive: Langston Hughes. The Academy then sent a petition to the U.S. Postal service urging the adoption of a stamp commemorating this most popular of American poets, and on February 1 (the poet's birthday), 2002, the U.S. Postal Service did just that, issuing the stamp pictured in the left-hand corner above.

Poets achieve this kind of popular acclaim only when they express clear and widely shared emotions with a forceful, distinctive, and memorable voice. But what is meant by voice in poetry, and what qualities have made the voice of Langston Hughes a favorite for so many people? Helping students to answer this question is the primary purpose of this lesson. Five journal entries and accompanying class discussions guide students in developing a general definition of voice in poetry, and in analyzing and appreciating the poetic voice of Langston Hughes in particular. These writing and discussion activities culminate in a writing assignment (Activity 7, below), in which students either write a poem expressing their own voice (as developed in their journals), or write about one of the qualities of Langston Hughes's poetic voice (as explored in class discussion).

Guiding Questions

What qualities make a writer's voice forceful, distinctive, and memorable?

Learning Objectives

Develop a definition of what is meant by voice in poetry

Learn about the qualities that make Langston Hughes's voice distinctive, forceful, and memorable

Write journal entries to develop their own voices as writers

Learn how images convey strong emotions in poetry

Learn how poetry gives shape, direction, and meaning to strong emotions

Lesson Plan Details

Before teaching this lesson, read through the poems and accompanying exercises below. The five journal entries give students practice in expressing their own voice by asking them to respond to five questions:
What do you see?
Who are you?

Where do you come from?

What obstacles have you overcome in life?

What do you feel strongly about?

Each journal exercise is accompanied by the reading and discussion of one poem by Langston Hughes. Although Activities 2 through 6 are designed to be presented as a sequence, beginning with a definition exercise (Activity 1) and culminating in a final writing assignment (Activity 7), each of them can also be adapted as a stand-alone lesson for a single class period.

You can find biographical background in the special feature on Langston Hughes created by the EDSITEment-reviewed Academy of American Poets ; additional biographical as well as critical materials on Hughes are available from the EDSITEment-reviewed Modern American Poetry .

Activity 1. Defining Voice

On the board, write a working definition of voice that is appropriate for your students' level of preparation and that reflects what they already know. The simplest definition is that a writer's voice reveals his or her personality. A strong contrast might help to make the point: read a passage from an encyclopedia (or perhaps your tax form) and read a passage from one of the poems by Langston Hughes (Activity 2).

As you and your students work through the activities of this lesson, create a list, just below the working definition of voice that you wrote on the board earlier, consisting of additional items and qualities that contribute to a distinctive poetic voice. Use the Guiding Question to help your students make choices about which qualities might belong in a more comprehensive definition of poetic voice. For now it is enough just to list the possibilities; as a culminating activity, students will develop a revised definition of poetic voice that incorporates the discoveries your class made while reading the poetry of Langston Hughes (Activity 7).

Here is a little more background on the subject of voice. Unlike, say, iambic pentameter, which has a fairly constrained meaning, voice has been extended metaphorically far beyond its original sense of the vocal qualities of a particular speaker. According to one dictionary of critical terms, to speak of voice in a poem is to

"...characterize the tonal qualities, attitudes, or even the entire personality of this speaker as it reveals itself directly or indirectly (through sound, choice of diction, and other stylistic devices)…[voice] reminds us that a human being is behind the words of a poem, that he is revealing his individuality by means of the poem, and that this revelation may be the most significant part of what we receive from the poem." -- Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics. Ed. Alex Preminger. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1965.

While you will not want to begin with the definition above, you may find that, having worked through the activities below, your students will be able to come up with an essentially equivalent formulation, for by this stage they will have learned to identify a wide variety of qualities in Hughes's poetry that have made his voice a forceful, distinctive, and memorable one for so many readers.

Activity 2. Variations on a Dream

What do you see? What do you tend to notice in others and in the world around you? What do you tend to remember? When you think of the past, what images stay with you?

Pass out copies of these three poems by Langston Hughes to your students

"Dreams": The text of " Dreams " is available from the EDSITEment-reviewed Academy of American Poets . "Harlem (2)" ("Dream Deferred"): Although not available on an EDSITEment-reviewed source, this short poem is widely anthologized; you can find a copy on the Internet by doing a search for the words of the title plus "Langston Hughes" (or do a search for the first line "What happens to a dream deferred?"). "Dream Variations": the text of " Dream Variations " is also available at the Academy of American Poets .

Ask students to take notes on any interesting images they notice as the poems are read. Then read all of the poems aloud. Before discussing them, give your students some silent time to read through the poems again on their own, making notes on any interesting images they find in each poem. As a class, discuss the imagery and the emotions expressed in each poem. You might wish to take each of the poems in turn, for each has something new to reveal about how vivid images may be yoked with strong emotions to create memorable poetry. With the first poem, for example, you could begin by having students identify the poem's two most prominent images: the broken-winged bird and the barren field. Then have students brainstorm all the feelings they associate with these images (for now, just "free associate" and do not censor any possibilities). Discuss how these feelings are linked with the concept and word to which the two images are metaphorically linked: "life." One of the reasons for Hughes's broad appeal is his ability to pack a great deal of meaning in a small space by creating metaphors linking images that suggest a range of widely shared feelings with general concepts such as "life" that might otherwise strike us as vague or abstract. The result is a general idea we can all grasp enlivened by vivid images whose associations we can all share. You can apply the same approach to your discussion of "Dream Deferred," which links images that elicit feelings of strong physical revulsion (the festering, running sore, for instance) to an otherwise hazy and ephemeral idea (a "dream"). Notice that this poem does not tell you what a "dream deferred" is or what it must become; Hughes merely poses the question, leaves the answer open, although he does so with the unforgettable force that has made his poetic voice so distinctive and memorable.

For journal entry #1, students will respond to the question: What do you see? (What do you tend to notice in others and in the world around you? What do you tend to remember? When you think of the past, what images stay with you?)

All of us notice different sorts of things in the world around us. Some people are quick to notice the clothes others wear and to remember the details for days; other people do not notice and would not remember such details to save their lives. What we see and hear and touch and smell around us--the sensual "pictures" that remain in our memories--are for poets and writers the raw stuff of memorable images and metaphors . This journal assignment has two parts. First, students should write about a memorable event that happened more than one year ago. In their journal entries, they should emphasize two things: 1) as many physical details they can remember--clothes people wore, the weather, sounds, etc. and 2) their feelings at the time, their emotional responses to the remembered event. Next, ask students to take an analytical step back from their writing and try to come up with one or two metaphors that might make this event memorable to readers. The metaphors should match one or more details with one or more of the feelings they experienced at the time. Ask students to share one of their metaphors with the rest of class and, if it's necessary for understanding the metaphor, ask them to briefly summarize their memorable event. (This discussion of emotion and metaphor will be picked up in subsequent discussions in the activities below.)

Return briefly to your working definition of voice in poetry. Review the Guiding Question. In your class discussions of imagery, metaphor, and emotion, or in your students' journal exercises, has anyone discovered any qualities that help to make a poet's voice forceful, distinctive, and memorable? Make a list on the board below your original working definition.
Before moving on to additional poems, you may wish to share with your students Winhold Reiss's portrait of Langston Hughes as a young man; you can find this portrait by doing a search on the EDSITEment-reviewed National Portrait Gallery website. What qualities in the young Hughes has this painter tried to capture? Do these qualities fit with those reflected in the voice that you heard in the three "Dream" poems?

Activity 3. "Theme for English B"

Who are you? (How do others see you? How do you see yourself? How would you like others to see you?)

Before reading and discussing the poem, ask your students to warm up their minds with journal entry #2. The question is essentially the same one that Hughes describes in his poem, " Theme for English B ": say something about yourself; answer the deceptively simple question, who are you? . Reassure students that you know this is an extremely open-ended question. If you like, you can qualify this question a bit: How do others see you? How do you see yourself? How would you like others to see you? But the open-endedness of the question is part of the point here, for the purpose of this exercise is to parallel the situation described at the beginning of Hughes's poem, "Theme for English B."
Now share with your students a copy of "Theme for English B," available from the Academy of American Poets . Give them time to read the poem to themselves before reading the poem aloud in class--they will easily recognize the parallel with the journal exercise they have just completed. After reading the poem aloud, ask students to identify which section of the poem is part of the "page" that Hughes writes for his instructor, and which section represents the thoughts in his mind just before he begins to write. What are the differences between that first stanza, representing the poet's thoughts to himself as he contemplates the assignment, and the subsequent stanzas, which express how he presents himself to an audience, in this case his instructor? List some of things that Hughes includes in his self-presentation. The poem is straightforward and speaks for itself, but reveals a more subtle and sly speaker the more you reread it and think about how Hughes has turned the instructor's question on its head. What does he mean when he says, "I hear you: / hear you, hear me--we two--you, me, talk on this page"? Who is "talking" here? How can Hughes say to his instructor that they are a part of each other? Do we as readers have a part in this conversation?
Your students should readily identify the central theme of this poem: the role that race plays in self-identity and in our relations with others. In Hughes's poem, the relationship of "you" and "me" is charged with race. The speaker in the poem is black, the instructor is white. But think about Hughes's relationship with that unseen audience: readers of his poem. The reader of Hughes's poem may, of course, be of any race, so the relationship between poet and reader--between "me" and "you"--is always shifting with each new reader. Ask your students about their own relationship as readers to Hughes's poem. How does their own race matter in how they read this poem? Do they think it matters at all? Do they think these shifting relationships between reader and poet, between "you" and "me," are intentional? Is this perhaps part of the meaning that Hughes intends?
What new lesson does this poem have to teach us about the poet's voice? Ask students if Hughes's "Theme for English B" gives them any ideas about how they might add to or modify your working definition of voice in poetry. For example, Hughes says that "I guess I'm what / I feel and see and hear": a poet's voice, then, includes aspects of his or her everyday experience; he also says that he "hears" Harlem and New York, indicating that the places where a poet lives or has lived become of who he or she is, part of what makes his or her voice a distinctive one.
This may be a good time to share with your students a little background on Hughes and on the Harlem Renaissance. There is a student-oriented biography of the poet available at America's Story , from the Library of Congress. For additional background see the Preparing to Teach this Lesson section. For background on the Harlem Rennaissance, see the Library of Congress, A Guide to Harlem Renaissance Materials , including a list of exhibitions and links to "Today in History" featuring African Americans.

Activity 4. "The Negro Speaks of Rivers"

Along with "Mother to Son" and "A Dream Deferred," Hughes's "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" is among his most-frequently anthologized and taught poems. Also his first published poem, it is a small masterpiece of rhythm (another quality you will want to add to your working definition of voice ). The best way to appreciate the rhythm of the poem is to hear it read by Hughes himself. If you have access to RealPlayer on the computer, you and your students can listen to the poet reading " The Negro Speaks of Rivers "; both the text and of the poem and the audio clip are available on the EDSITEment resource Academy of American Poets . (There is also a wonderful recording of Hughes reading this and other poems on the cd/book collection, Poetry Speaks . Ed. Elise Paschen and Rebekah Presson Mosby. Narrated by Charles Osgood. Source books Mediafusion, 2001.)
Begin by talking about the rhythm of this poem. What words and phrases are repeated? What phrases use different words but repeat the same grammatical or syntactical pattern? Ask students to think about why a poet would repeat words and phrases in this way: why not just say something once and be done with it? (Students will find this easier to answer if they have heard Langston Hughes reading his poetry.)
Discuss the perspective of the speaker in the poem. The previous poem we looked at, "Theme for English B," spoke to us as one person, a very specific person at a very specific time--how is " The Negro Speaks of Rivers " different? Does he seem to be speaking as one person or as many? How can you tell? If he is speaking for many people, why would he choose to say "I" instead of "we"? What themes connect the two poems? (A hint: in "Theme for English B," Hughes says, "Harlem, I hear you"). How can you tell that, different as they are, the two poems are expressions of the same distinctive and memorable poetic voice? Go back to some of the "Dream" poems you read earlier. Where do they fit in this pattern: are they words spoken by a single person or are they spoken by many people? Is it possible speak for both at the same time?
For journal entry #3, ask students to write in their journals a response to the question "where do you come from?" One approach would be to write from the perspective of a group of their ancestors; if their family came from Ireland, for instance, they could speak from the perspective of people who have left their home and sailed across the Atlantic for America. What do they find in this new world? What have they left behind? They can use Hughes's poem as a model of a voice which, while personal and written from the first-person perspective (he uses "I," not "we"), seems to speak for many people.
You may wish to extend this portion of the lesson by sharing with your students Langston Hughes's interest in and debt to jazz and blues music. For more resources, see the Extending the Lesson section.
At the EDSITEment-reviewed Modern American Poetry , you can find a sampling of critical commentary on the poem, "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" ; the excerpts here demonstrate the wide range of meanings that readers have found in Hughes's first published poem. The point in sharing these comments by critics is not so much to uncover the "deep meaning" of the poem, but to ask the question: what qualities in this poem, in the voice that we hear in this poem, have encouraged readers to look for and find so much meaning in so few lines? Add these qualities to your list of qualities that make a voice distinctive and memorable.

Activity 5. "Mother to Son"

Share with your students the text of " Mother to Son ," available from the the Poetry Foundation . The Academy of American Poets has a short essay, " Poems about Sons ," which explore the voices of male speakers in reference to their sons. The speaker in Hughes's poem, however, is female. You might wish to address how a mother's view might (or might not) differ from a father's in preparation for students' writing about their own experience in the journal exercise described below.
As you begin your discussion of the poem, remind students of your earlier discussion of imagery and metaphor in the three "Dream" poems. The first poem they looked at compared life to a barren field and a bird with a broken wing. This poem tells us what life is not--it is not a "crystal stair." Let's think about this image a moment. Is this likely one of the things that Hughes saw on a daily basis? Do most people have a crystal stair in their house? Now we know what life is not--what then does the poem tell us that it is? Unlike the first poem we read, "Dream," this poem gives us not one or two images, but a whole set of related images for "life." How are they related? What feelings do students associate with these images? What emotions color the mother's speech to her son? What feelings are conveyed in the contrast between the crystal stair and the set of other images that, as the mother tell us, really characterize life? As you discuss the poem, record any additional items on the board for your definition of voice in poetry.
You may wish to make the distinction between voice and speaker (or "persona"). Compare the speaker in this poem to that in " Theme for English B " and " The Negro Speaks of Rivers ." In the first, the speaker seems to be the poet himself, in the second, speaker seems to be a whole people, or perhaps a whole people as they dwell inside a single man. Here the speaker, or persona, is a literary character--obviously not Hughes himself. How does Hughes create a voice for this character, the "Mother" of the title? In terms of words or phrases, how does the poem reflect the speech of this character? Do you think the mother in the title is necessarily Hughes's mother, or someone else's mother, or perhaps even more than one mother?
For journal entry #4, ask students to respond to the question What obstacles have you overcome in life? What struggles have you faced? As they write about these obstacles, they can also give some thought to what they have learned from their struggles.
As a class, discuss how the difficulties and struggles we face in life can help to shape who we are and how we look at the world. Does anyone have an example of how their perspective was shaped by their struggles? Now return to the poem. Do the mother's words suggest that her perspective on trouble and struggle may differ from her son's? What lines suggest that her own perspective has been directly altered by struggle?

Activity 6. "Merry-Go-Round"

We are taught that anger is a bad thing, and certainly there are times when anger is inappropriate. But there are a few things about which we should be angry. Langston Hughes was angry about the racism of his time, institutionalized in the notorious Jim Crow laws that are the subject of his poem, " Merry-Go-Round ." Share with your students the text of this poem, available together with an audio/video version of the poem read aloud, on the Favorite Poem Project .
For background material on the Jim Crow laws, see the Library of Congress online exhibit, African American Odyssey: A Quest for Full Citizenship ; given its relevance to the time period in which Hughes was writing, see especially the section, Depression, New Deal, and World War II .
With the guiding question (above) as your focus, discuss the speaker/persona that Hughes develops in this poem; compare the speaker that Hughes develops in this poem, and compare it to the previous poem, "Mother to Son."
In journal entry #5, students respond to the question, What do you feel strongly about? After they have completed this exercise, discuss the uses and abuses of strong feelings. If they were angry, how did students respond? What actions did they take? For the question is always: what shall we do with our anger? Where shall we channel our strongest emotions? What does this poem tell us? (If students are having difficulty, you might want to remind them of "Theme for English B." In that poem, the speaker turns a class assignment on its head, redirecting the question back to the instructor: what of me is part of you? There is a similar intellectual maneuver in "Merry-Go-Around": instead of directly protesting the laws that say black people should ride in the back of trains (a serious matter), Hughes chooses to write about a merry-go-round—which has no back. Why does he make this choice? Notice also that this poem, like "Dream Deferred" and "Theme for English B" poses a question , but does give any definitive answers.

Activity 7. Final Writing Assignment

There are several possibilities for a culminating writing assignment related to Langston Hughes:

Write a short poem that expresses your personal voice . The poem can build upon ideas, images, and themes you explored in your journal, and you can use one or more of Hughes's poems as a model. When you have completed the poem, write out a definition of voice that uses some of the qualities of voice you discussed in class. Be prepared to talk in class about the ways in which your poem expresses qualities of your own voice as a writer.
Write a persuasive essay that includes, perhaps in its introductory paragraph, a short definition of voice in poetry. Write this definition as a statement responding to the guiding question: What qualities make a writer's voice forceful, distinctive, and memorable? Now use this definition as the main point in a persuasive essay about the poetry of Langston Hughes. Use examples from Langston Hughes's poetry to illustrate and support the qualities that you believe create a voice that is forceful, distinctive, and memorable.
You and your students may also wish to explore Hughes's response to jazz and blues music. "Hughes said that jazz and blues expressed the wide range of black America's experience, from grief and sadness to hope and determination": this quote comes from the student-oriented biography of Hughes available from America's Story (a student-oriented feature on the EDSITEment-reviewed American Memory collection), which introduces students to Hughes's interest in jazz and blues, including, for example, his 1958 collaboration with the Henry "Red" Allen Band in a recording of his poetry. For an EDSITEment lesson plan that will connect you to a wealth of resources related to blues music as well as the African American experience, see " Learning the Blues ." The influence of jazz and blues was pervasive in Hughes's first two books, The Weary Blues (1926) and Fine Clothes to the Jew (1927), and is apparent in the poem, " The Weary Blues ," available on Academy of American Poets ; there is also an online version of " The Weary Blues " at the University of Toronto electronic collection, a link from the EDSITEment-reviewed Internet Public Library.

Selected EDSITEment Websites

Academy of American Poets
American Memory Project
America's Story
Modern American Poetry
National Portrait Gallery

Lyman Grant

Teacher and writer.

Poetry Assignments

Here are the assignments for poems and revision that we will follow this semester. A guideline or two: let’s start out this semester by producing new work. Please do not send in an old poem–one that you wrote last month, last year, etc. Let’s start out with new poems, poems that grow from the prompts, or poems that you develop because of other events in your life. Next, let’s not rhyme in obvious ways. Why? because rhyming is distracting for the beginning writer. For the most part, let’s try to avoid song lyric type poetry. Why? again, it is a distraction from the skills of writing poetry. Historically, song and poetry have a close relationship, but in the last hundred years that relationship has grown tenuous. Besides, most song lyrics do not stand up as spoken (and read) poetry. Think of it this way, this is a class based on the tradition of the American free verse poem. If you want to write other kinds of poetry, I applaud you, but let’s begin focusing on building skills in writing poetry. We can do that with American free verse. Then later in the semester we will get to rhyme and set forms.

I Am/List Poem

A list poem is exactly what it sounds like, a poem that is made as if it were just a list. You can start it off, “I am . . . “ and keep repeating the first two words for 10 or 20 lines, or find ways to vary the beginning. Try to keep from one and two word, factual answers: “I am a student. I am nineteen years old. I am waitress.” Make it a poem, not a questionnaire. “I am a pack mule for overpriced books./ a wild dancer in the disco of joy / a cart carrying delicious ginger bread pancakes.” Enjoy this. Include at least 20 different references.

Landscape Poem

Select a significant, specific landscape to you or that you know about, either natural or urban. This could be an exterior landscape, an interior landscape, or some of both. Try to make the reader feel what you feel when you are there or imagine you are there.

Family Poem

Select a family member or situation in your family. It can be a scene in a holiday, a moment of joy or sorrow, an appreciation, a warning. Try to stay objective in the presentation, focusing on telling others about the person or situation, rather than talking directly to the family member or members. Let your word choices and images convey the emotion that you feel and what to communicate.

Letter Poem

This is sort of like the family poem, but the idea is to write directly someone. So the poem is directed at a family member, a friend, a significant other, or even a famous person. Again, focus on images and concrete details. You will use the word “you” and perhaps even “I.” There may be a story, a narrative, that finds its way into this poem.

This week, you will revise one or more of the first four poems. Revision should concentrate on imagery, figures of speech, and point of view. Of course, you are free to work on other matters as well. You will be provided with other suggestions for re-visioning the poem.

Ekphrastic Poem

An ekphrastic poem is a work that is a response to another work of art. After reading the poems for this week several times, select an artist/video to write about and respond to. The idea is to create a new work of art with your poem—not to write a review or critique. Use your creative mind, not your analytical mind. Talk to the painter (musician, etc) or to a character in the work. This week we begin workshopping, so you will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

Write a poem that is based somehow on a myth or fairy tale. The poem might be personal–such as how the Cinderella myth has affected you or friends–or political–such has how you are fighting the giant–or a meditation on the story–what the prodigal son might feel. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

History Poem

We all live in Time and we live in Community. With this poem, I want you to think about yourself as a human living a life as history is occurring. How do these event affect you? How are they changing you? What are they making you feel? Are you glad about that or not. The event you chose does not have to be one that you experienced. For instance, you could write about visiting a Civil War Battlefield. Or it could be an event from recent history: 911, the election of Obama, the passing of the guns on campus law by the Texas legislature. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

This week, you will revise one or more of the most recent three poems (ekphrastic, myth, history). As before, I will make suggestions about re-visioning the poem, and you will look as such matters as image and figures of speech. But you will also consider enjambment, line length, meter, rhythms, repetition. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

After reading the poems for this week several times, select a topic to write a ghazal about; think about a subject lending itself to repetition. Please write at least ten couplets. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

For your this poem, try your hand at writing a sonnet or another fixed form, such as sestina or villanelle. Remember there are different kinds of sonnets to choose from. And remember to try slant rhymes and connotation to avoid the sing-songy effect of exact rhymes. Even though many of the sonnets or fixed form poems we read are older and have a more formal sounding vocabulary, try to make your language contemporary. Write the poem with your language. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

Open Choice

I know you have been waiting for this. Write any kind of poem you want in any kind of way you want. Maybe you have a poem in your workbook that you really like or some ideas there that you want to develop. This is your freebie. Enjoy. Experiment. Return to your favorite topics and approaches. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

Response to Mentor Poem

For this last poem, think about what sets apart the poet you’re reading about for your presentation, whether it is use of language, rhythm, content, or punctuation. Write a poem either borrowing from this poet’s style, while also referencing the poem, OR you can write a poem dealing with the poet’s history/themes. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

This week, you will revise one or more of the most recent four poems (ghazal, sonnet, open choice, or response to mentor). Remember that you need to revise at least five poems during the semester. As before, I will make suggestions about re-visioning the poem, and you will look as such matters as image and figures of speech, enjambment, line length, meter, rhythms, repetition. And you will consider rhyme, sound effects, etc. etc. You will also select three class members’ poems to respond to as comments on their threads on the discussion board.

Easy Peasy All-in-One High School

An extension of the easy peasy all-in-one homeschool, poem assignment.

Now it is time to turn your descriptive paragraph into a poem. Using the same picture and details from your descriptive writing, compose a poem describing your picture. You must include at least THREE examples of figurative language in your poem. These can be similar examples. You can use the same terms, but you should try to vary the way you use them. So, you might use alliteration again, but you would use different words to do this.

Your poem should be at least TEN lines long. They can rhyme, but they do not have to rhyme. They can be short fragments, or full sentences. To view samples of different forms of poetry use the link below.

Remember that both your descriptive paragraph and your poem should be bursting with descriptive detail. Your goal is to paint a picture using words. An artist would not just use “red”. He or she might use burnt sienna, coral red, brick red, etc., in order to show the various elements of the work. Likewise, a writer would not use “pretty” to describe something. He or she might use words like radiant, luminous, breathtaking, etc. Do the same in your writing. Show us; don’t tell us!

From Georgia Virtual Learning

http://cms.gavirtualschool.org/Shared/Language%20Arts/10thLitComp/09_PoetryTwo/index.html

Want to adapt books like this? Learn more about how Pressbooks supports open practices.

Write a poem that has rhythm or musicality in it. You may write it in first-person point of view (I, me, my, we us, etc.) or third-person point of view (he, she, it, they, etc.). Here is a list of poem suggestions:

Write about a wild animal in nature like Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s poem “The Eagle.”
Write about an accident or event like Robert Frost’s poem “Out, Out–.”
Write a poem that has a specific beat like William Blake’s poem “The Lamb.”
Write a poem that uses enjambment like John Keats’ poem “Endymion.”
Write a poem that rhymes. However, be careful. You don’t want it sound forced or poor in quality.

You get the idea, right? Brainstorm a list of your own ideas, a variation of one of the above, or use one of the above ideas.

Show Don’t Tell

Remember to use specific nouns and strong action verbs. Remember to use your senses: sight, sound, taste, touch, and smell. Remember to include literary devices like assonance, consonance, alliteration, onomatopoeia, rhythm, meter, end-line stop, enjambment, caesura. Of course, poets use less words than fiction writers, too.

Line Breaks

Follow the traditional line breaks and format that most free-verse poets use. Make the line breaks where there is punctuation, an end of a phrase, or the end of a sentence unless you are deliberately using enjambment.

Final Draft Instructions

Follow these instructions for typing the final draft:

The poem must be typed in a Microsoft Word file (.docx).
It must have one-inch margins, be single-spaced, and typed in a 12 pt. readable font like Times New Roman, Calibri, or Arial.
Don’t allow the auto-correct in Microsoft Word to capitalize the first line of each poem. Use conventional English rules to write your lines.
In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example:

Jane Doe ENGL 1465–Creative Writing Due Date Writing Assignment: Sound Poem

Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title. Capitalize the first word and each important word in the title.

Introduction to Creative Writing by Lumen Learning is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

All's fair in love and poetry? How to write a poem (with a little help from Taylor Swift)

Will Taylor Swift’s 11th studio album “The Tortured Poets Department” usher in a new era of poetry appreciation ?

Delaney Atkins, a part-time instructor at Austin Peay State University who teaches a class exploring Swift’s music's connection to Romanticism , hopes this album will help people realize the power of poetry as “one of the purest forms of human expression.”

“Poetry is not a scary thing,” she says. “If it’s something that (Swift) reads and leans into , I’m hopeful that other people will take it as an opportunity to do the same and not be afraid of feeling like they aren’t smart enough or it’s not accessible enough.”

How to write a poem

Ever heard the saying “the best writers are readers”? The first step to writing a poem is figuring out what you like about poetry.

Check out: USA TODAY's weekly Best-selling Booklist

Is it imagery? Format? Rhyme? Start by sampling a few poets. Maya Angelou, William Wordsworth, Frank O’Hara, Sylvia Plath and Amanda Gorman are among the greats. Look to your favorite songwriters and ask yourself, "What do I admire about their craft?" Atkins also recommends looking for a poem about a subject you're passionate about.

“I promise you, there’s a poem for everyone,” she says.

Next, decide what you want to write about. Simple as it sounds, this can often be the hardest step for writers. What do you want to say?

Finally, decide how you’re going to write it.

Atkins recommends starting with metaphors and similes , which Swift often employs. Some metaphors are more obvious, like in “Red,” when she sings “Losing him was blue, like I’d never known/Missing him was dark gray, all alone.” She uses a simile when she says “Loving him was like driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street.”

If you’re writing about a relationship, ask yourself what it felt like. “This relationship feels like … a burning bridge,” is Atkins's example. You can stick to a single line or make it an extended metaphor with an entire poem about that bridge.

Use imagery, or visually descriptive language, to help tell the story. Look around the room and describe the setting using lofty prose or personify the objects around you. Or create a character and tell their story – think of Swift’s love triangle in the “Betty,” “Cardigan” and “August” trilogy or “No Body, No Crime,” in which she slips into the skin of a vengeance-seeking best friend.

Do poems have to rhyme?

While many of Swift's songs rhyme, it’s not required in poetry.

“There are no rules and that’s a good thing, it’s a freeing thing,” Atkins says. “Take that and run with it – be as creative as possible.”

Review: Taylor Swift's 'Tortured Poets' is hauntingly brilliant

Taylor Swift has always been a member of 'The Tortured Poets Department'

In Atkins’ class, Swift's 10 previous albums are on the syllabus. Some connections to poetry are more overt, like Swift’s reference to English poet William Wordsworth in “The Lakes.”

But Atkins also teaches the motifs and literary devices that Swift uses throughout her discography, like the repetition of rain . In “Fearless” Swift alludes to naively running and dancing in the rain. Later in “Clean” from “1989,” rain is a baptismal metaphor for washing away the addiction of a past relationship. On “Peace,” off of “Folklore,” Swift sings about rain as a manifestation of her anxieties.

She uses the extended metaphor of death and dying in several songs. Atkins points to “dying in secret” in 2009’s “Cold As You” as representative of shame (“And I know you wouldn’t have told nobody if I died, died for you”). In 2020’s “peace” death is a symbol of unconditional love (“All these people think love’s for show/But I would die for you in secret”). She also repeatedly references her death throughout “My Tears Ricochet” – “And if I’m dead to you, why are you at the wake?”

Poem ideas inspired by Taylor Swift

Want to become a “Tortured Poet” yourself? Here are some prompts to kickstart your poetry era.

Use a five-dollar word: Who else could fit “clandestine” and “mercurial” in a song? Use an unexpected word from Swift's work, like “elegies,” “unmoored,” “calamitous,” “ingenue” or “gauche” as a jumping-off point.
Write a poem based on one of the “eras” : Tell a girl-next-door love story based on “Taylor Swift,” a bitter heartbreak for “Red” or the tale of your slandered character for “Reputation.”
Write about your “invisible strings”: The “invisible string theory” hypothesizes that there’s some larger force at work laying the groundwork to lead us to our destinies. In “invisible string,” Swift writes about the path that led her to a romantic partner. Write about your own.
Paint the image of a season: It's tempting to break out your flannels and drive to go leaf-peeping after listening to "All Too Well." In literature, fall often represents change. Pick a season and describe it using imagery – how does that season represent what your poem is about?
Use rain as a metaphor: Take inspiration from Swift's many uses of rain, which sometimes symbolizes losing yourself in a passionate moment but other times indicates a cleansing or sadness.
Take a spin on a classic: Swift invokes classic literature in “Love Story” when she sings “You were Romeo I was a scarlet letter.” How can you put a modern take on classic tropes ?
Retell history: This is precisely what Swift does in “The Last Great American Dynasty” when she tells the story of Rebekah Harkness , a socialite who lived in the Rhode Island house Swift bought in 2013. Who can you use as a muse?
Play with color: A whole essay could be written about Swift's use of the color “blue.” Try out a common color symbol (like blue for sadness, red for passion, green for envy) or flip it on its head entirely and have it represent a new emotion.
Use the year you were born: Swift's “1989” symbolizes her artistic rebirth . Title your poem the year you were born. How can you emerge as a poet reborn?
Random lyric generator: Still stumped? Use this random lyric generator and use that phrase as the theme or first line of your poem. Just make sure to credit Swift if you post it anywhere online.
Write about “The Tortured Poets Department”: What would it look like if it was a real place? Assume the role of Chairman of the Tortured Poets Department and craft your world of punished poets.

Tortured poets: Is Taylor Swift related to Emily Dickinson?

Just Curious for more? We've got you covered.

USA TODAY is exploring the questions you and others ask every day. From "How to get on BookTok" to "What does 'era' mean?" to "Where to buy cheap books?" – we're striving to find answers to the most common questions you ask every day. Head to our Just Curious section to see what else we can answer for you.

Finished Papers

Final Paper

You may be worried that your teacher will know that you took an expert's assistance to write my essay for me, but we assure you that nothing like that will happen with our write essay service. Taking assistance to write from PenMyPaper is both safe and private. We respect your privacy and thus do not ask for credentials like your name, college, location, or your phone number. To pay for the essay writing, you can either use your debit or credit cards to pay via PayPal or use your wallet balance from our website. All we would need is your card details and your email-id. This is our responsibility that your information will be kept all safe. This is what makes our service the best essay writing service to write with.

My Custom Write-ups

Testimonials.

IMAGES

How to Write a Poem: In 7 Practical Steps with Examples
The List Poem assignment with mentor text: an easy high school poetry
How to Write a Poem (with 3 Sample Poems)
️Write Your Own Poem Worksheet Free Download| Gambr.co
Lesson 5 Poem Assignment Sheet
Lesson Five Assignment 1 Write a Poem

VIDEO

Poem Assignment- Titled Rules
How to write poem in board exam#shorttrick#shortsviral
1.10 Narrative Poetry Requirements and Example Poem
poem assignment ciara
learn how to write poem and story...🙊✍️👉😍 #bengolivlog#writingskills
1.11 Narrative Poem Assignment & Example Poem by Nesbitt

COMMENTS

15 Fun Poetry Activities for High School
Here are 12 great songs to analyze if you aren't sure where to start: "Across the Universe" by the Beatles. "Angel" by Sarah McLachlan. "Blank Space" by Taylor Swift. "Chasing Pavements" by Adele. "Infinity" by Mariah Carey. "Stereo Hearts" by Gym Class Heroes. "Counting Stars" by One Republic.
20 Easy Poetry Writing Prompts and Exercises
Whatever word you're pointing at, use it as a poem title and write that poem. 17. Write a poem late at night, by hand, by candlelight. 18. Fill a page with free-writing using your non-dominant hand. This can help you tap into less rational, more creative thought patterns. 19.
7 Poetry Activities Students Love
5. PICTURE-INSPIRED POETRY. My students always produce their best work when they use images to energize their writing. In this post, you can read about thirteen different ways to use pictures to inspire students to write poetry.. Wordless picture books, old family photographs, political cartoons, famous paintings, and even hashtags can scaffold the poetry writing process by appealing to ...
5 Poetry Activities for Students in Grades 3 to 12
Blackout Poetry. Start with a page from any text and ask students to choose words from that text to create a poem. They black out any words they don't want in their poem with a marker. They then rewrite all the remaining words into a poem. Ask students to plan what they want to black out by lightly underlining in pencil before they begin ...
How to Make Poetry Writing Fun
8 Steps for Writing and Sharing Poems. 1. Pick a subject for your poem based on something you love. My students chose to celebrate the following subjects: high heels, bonsai trees, pork buns, pencils, books, chipmunks, cars, their bed, toasters, and the Marvel antihero Deadpool.
How to write a poem
Prompt 1: "RESPONSE". Write a poem that begins with a description of a photograph you have in your possession. Delve into the memories evoked by the photograph, or reveal what personal significance the photograph has for you. For inspiration, read Natasha Trethewey's " History Lesson .". Prompt 2: "MOMENT".
Writing Assignment: Form Poem
Use conventional English rules to write your lines. In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example: Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title. Capitalize the first word and each important word in ...
4.33: Writing Assignment: Form Poem
Use conventional English rules to write your lines. In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example: Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title.
Writing Assignment: Form Poem
55 Writing Assignment: Form Poem Directions. Writie a poem that follows a specific form. You may write it in first-person point of view (I, me, my, we, us, etc.) or third-person point of view (he, she, it, they, etc.) Here is a list of poem suggestions:
4.20: Writing Assignment: Figure of Speech Poem
Use conventional English rules to write your lines. In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example: Jane Doe. ENGL 1465-Creative Writing. Due Date: Writing Assignment: Figure of Speech Poem. Be sure to give your poem a title.
A Full Guide to Writing a Perfect Poem Analysis Essay
Preparing for the Poetry Analysis Writing. The process of preparation for the poem analysis essay writing is almost as important as writing itself. Without completing these stages, you may be at risk of failing your creative assignment. Learn them carefully to remember once and for good. Thoroughly read the poem several times
The Poet's Voice: Langston Hughes and You
Activity 7. Final Writing Assignment. There are several possibilities for a culminating writing assignment related to Langston Hughes: Write a short poem that expresses your personal voice. The poem can build upon ideas, images, and themes you explored in your journal, and you can use one or more of Hughes's poems as a model.
Introduction to Creative Writing
In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example: Jane Doe ENGL 1465-Creative Writing Due Date Writing Assignment: Sound Poem. Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title.
Writing about Writing: An Extended Metaphor Assignment
"The Writer" by Richard Wilbur: Analysis of this poem sets the stage for students' work with extended metaphor.. Writing Habits Journal Questions: Use these questions to help students reflect on their own habits as writers.. Writing Metaphor Assignment: This assignment offers several projects that students can choose to extend a metaphor describing themselves as writers, including creating a ...
Poetry Assignments
Here are the assignments for poems and revision that we will follow this semester. A guideline or two: let's start out this semester by producing new work. Please do not send in an old poem-one that you wrote last month, last year, etc. Let's start out with new poems, poems that grow from the prompts, or poems that you develop because of ...
Poem Assignment
Remember that both your descriptive paragraph and your poem should be bursting with descriptive detail. Your goal is to paint a picture using words. An artist would not just use "red". He or she might use burnt sienna, coral red, brick red, etc., in order to show the various elements of the work. Likewise, a writer would not use "pretty ...
PDF How to Write a Biopoem
Biopoem Sample. Rosa. Determined, brave, strong, loving. Wife of Raymond Parks, mother of all children. Who loved equality, freedom, and the benefits of a good education. Who hated discrimination, loved to stand up for her beliefs, and loved to help others. Who feared that racism would continue, feared losing the opportunity to make a ...
Writing Assignment: Sound Poem
Use conventional English rules to write your lines. In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example: Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title. Capitalize the first word and each important word in ...
PDF NARRATIVE POEM ASSIGNMENT
NAME: ELA/ Flanagan NARRATIVE POEM ASSIGNMENT NARRATIVE POEM REQUIREMENTS Your poem must be at least four stanza of four-eight lines in length Your poem must include characters, setting, and a clear plot Your poem must have a clear rhyme pattern. Your poem must include poetic devices as we have discussed in class. Your poem must include two examples of figurative language BESIDES the poetic
Introduction to Creative Writing
In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name. Example: Jane Doe. ENGL 1465-Creative Writing. Due Date. Writing Assignment: Form Poem. Be sure to give your poem a title.
How to write a poem: Join Taylor Swift's 'Tortured Poets Department'
Learn how to write a poem and use these 11 poetry prompts to share your voice. Best movies of 2023 🍿 How he writes From 'Beef' to 'The Bear' Our free games U.S. Elections Sports Entertainment ...
Write A Poem Assignment
Write A Poem Assignment, Custom Thesis Proposal Ghostwriter Website Us, How Many Ways Are There To Write A 3 Digit Positive, How To Write Goals And Objectives Examples, Esl Assignment Writing Websites Ca, Professional Resume Volunteer, Custom Phd Essay Writing Sites Us 4.9/5
Introduction to Creative Writing
In the upper left-hand corner of page 1, type your first and last name, the name of the class, the date the assignment is due, and the assignment name: Jane Doe ENGL 1465-Creative Writing Due Date Writing Assignment: Last Poem. Be sure to give your poem a title. Do not bold, enlarge, or punctuate the title.

15 Fun Poetry Activities for High School

High School Students + Fun Poetry Activities

Pop Sonnets

Songs as Poetry

Here are 12 great songs to analyze if you aren’t sure where to start:

Slam Poetry

Paint Chip Poetry

Blackout Poetry

Book Spine Poetry

Poetry Tasting

Poetry Transformations

Found Poems

Easter Egg Poems

Favorite Poem Project

Metaphor Dice

Poems as Mentor Texts

Here are 12 great mentor poems if you’re not sure where to start:

Magnetic Poetry

Interactive Poetry Bulletin Board

About Lindsay Ann

Related Posts

Book List: Nonfiction Texts to Engage High School Students

12 Tips for Generating Writing Prompts for Writing Using AI

31 Informational Texts for High School Students

Project Based Learning: Unlocking Creativity and Collaboration

Empathy and Understanding: How the TED Talk on the Danger of a Single Story Reshapes Perspectives

Teaching Story Elements to Improve Storytelling

Figurative Language Examples We Can All Learn From

18 Ways to Encourage Growth Mindset Versus Fixed Mindset in High School Classrooms

10 Song Analysis Lessons for Teachers

Must-Have Table Topics Conversation Starters

The Writing Process Explained: From Outline to Final Draft

The Art of Storytelling: Techniques for Writing Engaging Narratives

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

tell your stories, love your life

Related Posts

Share this:

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Discover more from BRYN DONOVAN

How to Make Poetry Writing Fun

Students Can Write About Almost Anything, and So Can You

8 Steps for Writing and Sharing Poems

How to write a poem

Poetry. What is it? Why do it? And who cares?

Don’t try and learn. Just read.

Get started.

Don’t be afraid to experiment with forms.

There is no wrong answer here.

T. Cole Rachel

4.20: Writing Assignment: Figure of Speech Poem

A Full Guide to Writing a Perfect Poem Analysis Essay

What Is a Poetry Analysis Essay?

Preparing for the Poetry Analysis Writing

Thoroughly read the poem several times

Find out more about the poem background

Define a subject matter of the poem

Choose poem theories you will support

How to Choose a Poem to Analyze?

Best Poem Analysis Essay Topics

Poem Analysis Essay Outline

Introduction

Body Paragraphs

Poem Analysis Essay Examples

Writing Tips for a Poetry Analysis Essay

Write a Poetry Analysis Essay with HandmadeWriting

A life lesson in Romeo and Juliet taught by death

Ethical Research Paper Topics

Art Research Paper Topics

The Poet's Voice: Langston Hughes and You

Guiding Questions

Learning Objectives

Lesson Plan Details

Activity 1. Defining Voice

Activity 2. Variations on a Dream

Activity 3. "Theme for English B"

Activity 4. "The Negro Speaks of Rivers"

Activity 5. "Mother to Son"

Activity 6. "Merry-Go-Round"

Activity 7. Final Writing Assignment