Teaching Literary Elements Using Poetry

Poetry is a perfect avenue for teaching literary elements. They are typically short, allowing you to focus on particular elements without losing sight of the poem as a whole. This book has 12 reproducible lessons, each following the same format. First comes a definition of the literary element and suggestions for introducing it and the poem to your students, a vocabulary box, reading the poem aloud, discussion and activity suggestions, a writing activity and some ideas to extend the lesson. In the back of the book is a glossary of key terms and reproducible activity pages (graphic organizers) to help students understand the literary elements. Terms learned are plot, setting, character, theme, symbolism, metaphor, simile, personification, alliteration, onomatopoeia, mood and poetic patterns. The poems themselves are as varied as the literary elements. Some are quite short, only a couple are longer, but still not more than a page. The subjects have broad appeal and are very well chosen to demonstrate the elements. A ballad called "The Golden Vanity teaches plot and a short one called "Quilt demonstrate symbolism, for example. If you are wanting to add poetry and are not sure how, this book walks you through the process in a very user-friendly presentation. 96pp, pb. ~ Sara