Narrative Poetry



A poem that tells a story is called a narrative poem. A narrative is a story. A narrative is just like any other story; it has character, plot, setting, and dialogue. But poetry adds other elemenst to storytelling--especially sounds and images. To create musical sounds, poets use rhythm, rhyme, and repeated sounds. Poets also create word pictures with words that appeal to the senses. We call it imagery.


Thinking It Over

Who are the characters in this poem?
What can you tell me about them?
Gardens are usually peaceful. Is that true about this garden?
How many conflicts do you see in the poem? Explain.
How would you describe the beat of this poem?
What examples of sounds and images do you hear and see?

Writing a Narrative Poem

Apply what you already know about writing stories to writing a narrative poem. Try starting with a character or situation. After you've jotted down some ideas, share them with a few classmates. Then choose an idea that you really like.

Whether you rhyme the ends of the lines is up to you. Experimant with a few lines to decide. Listen for rhythm. Notice where the beats, or stresses, are. The rhythm should sound pleasing, not annoying. Break your poem into lines and stanzas that seem natural. Also, don't forget other tools of the poet--repeated sounds and sensory images. After you have finished writing, read your poem aloud to hear how it sounds.

Make a clean copy of your poem, and proofread it carefully. Your class might create a poem clothesline to hang your finished poems on, or you might perform some of your poems in class.
To add the poem to your portfolio, date the poem and include a written response to this question: In what ways is writing a poem different from writing a story?


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

"Scout's Honor" by Avi

Image
I've created a learning resource to go along with the short story that you can find in my shop. My students have been telling me that it's quite difficult. We've done two pages per day as part of our reading workshop minilessons. They're writing the notes and responses in their journals. The grammar connection on infinitives really threw them for a loop~it was the first time that they've encountered this verbal. Melissa
Read more

Back to School Bumper Sticker Activity and Printable

Image
Here in Middle Tennessee, we go back to school in two weeks, so it's the perfect time to begin thinking about icebreaker activities.  My Back to school Bumper Sticker Printable and Activity includes 20 different bumper stickers, 10 color and 10 black and white. There are 2 bumper stickers per page. Use this as an icebreaker in the following way: Students brainstorm some bumper stickers that they've seen and what those bumper stickers say about the person driving the car. Then, the students will write down several bumper sticker sayings that represent them and their ideas or beliefs. Show students some examples of completed bumper stickers. Afterwards, give each student a copy of the bumper sticker template. Each student designs and creates a bumper sticker that represents him or her. After students have created their bumper stickers, they walk around the room reading each other's bumper stickers. This activity is a fun and creati...
Read more

Heinrich Schliemann

Image
Heinrich Schliemann loved stories aobut ancient Greece. He dreamed of finding Troy, an ancient city destroyed during the Trojan War. In 1871, Schliemann began to dig through a human-made mound in Hissarlik, Turkey. Two years later, he uncovered the remains of a mysterious ancient city in the area where Troy stood. Some archaeologists believe that Schliemann actually found Troy. Others are unsure. Nevertheless, his work led to the discovery of many ancient Greek treasures. Because of his work, Schliemann is considered the founder of prehistoric Greek archaeology. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons Human history has become too much a matter of dogma taught by professionals in ivory towers as though it's all fact. Actually, much of human history is up for grabs. The further back you go, the more that the history that's taught in the schools and universities begins to look like some kind of faerie story.
Read more