Write A Poem

Before starting your poem, please review "narrative poetry" on the link right here: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Write-a-Narrative-Poem

Now you are close to the end of the Alaska/Iditarod/Call of the Wild Web Quest. You have researched, you have read, you have seen visual images, you have learned a lot. One of the ways your teacher would like you to show what you have learned is by writing a narrative poem.

Note: A narrative poem tells a story; it has all the literary elements of a short story including: character and setting description, conflict, climax, resolution and dialogue.

A traditional narrative poem will also have rhythm and rhyme. Try to have a consistent rhyme pattern throughout your poem. It is best to write your first draft of the poem without concentrating on the rhyme. When you come back to revise your poem, that is a good time to work with the rhyme pattern

The poem must reflect information about any of the elements you have researched and read. Think back over the last few weeks. What impressed you the most? What was the most shocking? What was the most exciting? What burned its way into your mind and heart? Write about that.

A. For prewriting, in the space below, brainstorm images that appeal to your senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, smell) about your topic. Also write words and phrases about your emotions, your thoughts and your opinions. (The box will scroll, so you may add as many items as you wish.) You may visit some of the links at the bottom of this page to refresh your memory and get ideas for your poem, if you would like to.

1. Enter your name, date and period number in the first box.

2. Brainstorm ideas for your poem here (shoot for 25-30 sensory words, images, descriptions, thoughts, feelings...).

3. In the next box, now begin a rough draft of your narrative poem. Choose words and phrases from your brainstorming above as needed. Your poem should be at least four stanzas long, with a minimum of 20 lines. The text box will scroll as you continue adding lines. When you are finished with this draft, click the "submit" button below.

Chilcoot Pass

Yukon Gold Rush 1897

B. Copy and paste your rough draft onto a new MSWord document, edit/revise and finish.

Final draft needs an illustration to go along with your poem. Remember the Iditarod PowerPoints -- you could use a picture from there if you want (I think).

When you finish the final draft of your poem, copy and paste it to your Personal Magazine (your electronic portfolio). Print a copy for a grade, staple it to the copy of your brainstorming and rough draft, and turn it in to your teacher.

C. Next, please begin the "Literature Terms" assignment (it is linked from Baker's Home Page).

melissa.baker@lposd.org

04/11/2011