If you were away today, we studied three poems in detail. Be sure to get the notes. We reviewed the following terms:
simile, imagery, personification, metaphor, hyperbole, enjambement, juxtaposition
and sound devices:
rhythm, repetition, alliteration, onomatopoeia, assonance and dissonance
Be sure to complete the detailed chart on Crozier's poem, "The
Child Who Walks Backwards". The focus today was on creating theme statements and being able to explain how you arrived at that theme. Most poems, and good writing in other genres, show through detail and writing style, their attitude toward the topic. They do not overtly state a theme. A poem may have many themes but generally one key theme will include most of the poem's details.
We looked carefully today at why an author would choose certain details:
Why does Crozier place the burns on the back of the knees?
Why does she describe the sparks as burn[ing] stars in his skin?
Why does the child rise in sleep?
Why does she begin the poem in the kitchen? Why not the yard or the basement?
Good readers pick up on these details and use them to contemplate meaning.
You did this task really well on your short story test. You made inferences about the father/daughter relationship based on the description of the climbing experience the pair shared.
Good readers constantly infer.
You are doing well. Keep practicing.
You have chosen 5 poems from pertinent sources: the books and official websites from your anthology criteria list. Do an excellent job of comprehending them.
