5th grade Poetry Unit

Created & designed by Mrs. Hunter

 Characteristics of Poetry
• Written in stanzas
• Not necessarily written in paragraphs
• Not very long
• Some rhyme, some do not
• Sometimes written in certain shapes
• Written going straight down
• Written in lines
• Can be similar to raps
 Parts of Poetry
• Let’s review our characteristics of poetry
from yesterday.
• Poetry Vocabulary
– Stanza
– Line

Label me activity
 Rhyme Schemes
• Drop and stop rhyme
• Must be labeled with letters
• Opossums
Oppossums at times take a notion to drop a
Whatever they’re doing and come to a stop. a
It’s called “playing possum,” and clearly it’s why b
They’re mostly ignored by the folks passing by. B

• Now it’s Your Turn

• When they’re playing possum, opossums appear c
And never revive til you’re on your way. d
They are aware when there’s anyone near c
When they’re playing possum, opossums don’t play.d
 Couplets & Free Verse
• Free verse is a form of poetry that can
rhyme, but doesn’t have to.
• A couplet is two lines of poetry that rhyme
 Alliteration
• Alliteration is the use of the same
consonant sounds in words that are near
each other
• When you think of alliteration, think of it as
a tongue twister.
• For example, “Sally sells seashells by the
seashore-This is an example of alliteration using the
“s” sound.
 Onomatopoeia
• Onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like
what it actually is.
• Examples
– Zip, crash, bang
 Metaphors
• A metaphor compares two things without
using the words “like” or “as

Jane is an angel.
Steve is a volcano ready to erupt.
Sarah is a bright start in the class.
Dan is a clown in class.
 Simile
• A simile compares two things USING the
words “like” or “as”
• Examples
– Mr. Walker is like a giant.
Eyes and Nose
His eyes were bright blue
like the sky's nearly night.
His nose was like a bulb
with a red shaded light.
 Metaphors & Similes
Assessment
• Butterflies are as light as feathers
They a paper bags floating in the air
And are as beautiful as dancing spirits
I think they are small stars in the sky.
Sometimes they are as blue as tear drops
I bet they love flowers swaying in the
breeze
Butterflies are so cool!
 Responding to Poetry &
Reading Fluently
• Night (poem in booklet)
• Turn and Talk
– I think this poem is about _____ because
_____”.

– How to Read a Poem Aloud (slip)

 Haiku
• A haiku is a special type of poetry that
began in Japan. It is characterized by
having 5 syllables in the 1st line, 7
syllables in the 2nd line, and 5 syllables in
the 3rd line
Memorize me to remember
I am first with five
Then seven in the middle –
Five again to end.
 Cinquain
• A cinquain is a 5-line poem that describes
a noun.
• 1-a noun
• 2-two adjectives describing the noun
• 3-three verbs or action verbs (ending in –ing)
• 4-a phrase or sentence about the noun (4 words)

• 5-one word synonym for the noun

 Cinquain Example
• Penguins
Black, white
Swimming, jumping, fishing
All the penguins jump down into the water.
Birds
 Personification
• Personification is giving human qualities to
a non-human object.

• 1. The flowers begged for water.

2. The stars winked at me.
3. Lightening danced across the sky.
4. The camera loved her.
5. The wind whispered softly in the night.
 Mood in Poetry
• Poets can create a mood in their poems,
to make you feel a certain way when you
read them.
• A poem can have a happy, upbeat mood,
or it can have a sad, slow mood,
depending on the words the poet chooses
to use
• One-Way Ticket by Langston Hughes
 Voice in Poetry
• Voice in poetry is made up of many different
ideas including tone and audience.
• Tone refers to the writer’s attitude toward the
subject and audience is the targeted reader or
listener who will be reading the writing.
• I, too sing America (Langston Hughes) mood
• Mother to Son (Langston Hughes) voice
 Point of View
• In writing, there are three different options
for point of view.
• 1st person (I)
• 2nd person (you) not often used
• 3rd person (he, she) refers to a person
other than the speaker or the reader