A “little song” written in a strict format: lines 2. Rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG 3. Meter: Iambic Pentameter 4. Volta: A turn in the poem where the poem shifts gears (around line 8)

Not all rhymes have to perfect (like cat and hat ). Keep in mind that there’s a general category of rhyme called Slant Rhyme that includes words that “almost rhyme” … these will include those fancy terms you already know like: alliteration, assonance, and consonance.Slant Rhyme Think “hip-hop rhymes.”

 Poetry is measured in “feet”  One foot = two syllables  Iamb = one unstressed syllable + one stressed syllable  Pentameter = 5 feet (or 10 syllables).

1. Read the poem silently. 2. Read the poem aloud. Twice. Yes, two times. 3. Cross out thee/thou and and write “you” 4. Cross out thine/thy and write “your” 5. Do the same for any other “olde” words littering the poem 6. Look up words in the dictionary if you don’t know them. Yes. Open a book. 7. Mark rhyme scheme. Number the lines. Look at meter. Determine structure of the poem. Is it a sonnet? 8. Locate the turn. It should be somewhere around line 8 for a Shakespearean Sonnet. 9. Paraphrase the poem line-by-line (or by sentence, whichever makes most sense). 10. Note any poetic techniques … things like metaphors, similes, etc.