STEPS FOR INTERPRETING POEMS English 8
STEP 1 Read the poem through What is your first impression? (Do you like it? How do you feel?) What do you think the title means?
STEP 2 Reread the poem and underline things that you think are important to the meaning What is the tone? (dreary, serious, funny, etc.)
STEP 3 Star (*) any literary devices you see Circle any words you don’t know Make a guess at what the devices and words mean
STEP 4 Look for rhyme scheme Look for a format Type of poem (limerick, haiku, sonnet, etc.)
STEP 5 Who is the speaker? (1 st, 2 nd, 3 rd person?)
STEP 6 What is the theme or message of the poem?
STEP 7 Once you have gone through all of the steps, take a guess at what the poem means