Happy National Poetry Month! This month we’re going to start by offering a few suggestions for helping your students comprehend everything poetry can offer. Take a look at these six methods to look at poetry.
And if you need poem analysis examples then you can check out this article.
Step One: Read
Students should read the poem a few times in front of them and then read the poem in front of them, at least twice. You are welcome to play a video of the poem or display the video of an individual reading the poem as well. Afterward, speak to your students about their initial impressions and their immediate reactions to the poem, both positive and negative. Discuss the structure and rhythm of the poem. In particular Are the lines long and intended to be read slowly? Or do the lines move quickly, and if it does then why?
Step Two: Title
Consider the title and consider how it is connected to your poem. Titles are often a good indicator of the core of a poem. A title can also serve as a counterpoint or irony to poems. The most important things to discuss and think about include:
- Does the title immediately alter the way you view it?
- Does the title of the poem paint an image that reveals to the reader a particular time period set-up, action, or setting?
- Does it suggest that there are multiple possibilities?
Step Three: Speaker
The understanding of the speaker at the heart of a poem could make the poem appear more real to students as they can imagine that the person who wrote the poem is actual. The most important questions to ask yourself include:
- What “tells” the poem?
- Does the poem offer clues to the character of the speaker or perspective, gender, or age?
- What is it that the speaker speaking to?
- Does the speaker appear to be attached to the content?
Step Four: Mood and Tone
When discussing the person who wrote the poem, it’s vital to talk about the mood or mood the poem trying to convey. Some poems may be gloomy or grieving; other poems may be a song-like rhythm and rhyme. Consider the mood that the speaker or character conveys. Also, discuss whether there are places where the tone of the poem could change and the reasons. It is also a great opportunity to discuss the syntax and what effect certain words can have on us.
Step Five: Paraphrase
Since you’ve discussed the figurative language, mood setting, and the speaker–there’s never a better time to implement the lessons you’ve learned line-byline. The process of paraphrasing might seem straightforward enough. But remember, it’s not about slicing lines or condensing. Instead, you should guide students line-by-line and translate unclear or figurative phrases into phrases that won’t hinder analyzing the poem later.
Step Six: Theme
Not least is getting close to what the poem’s subject matter is by determining its subject. The topic of a poem refers to an issue, universal truth, or conflict. To identify the theme, examine all of your research and make connections:
- What’s the matter?
- What is your speaker?
- What are their circumstances?
- What do they think about this matter?
- What’s the state of mind?
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