Identify Literary Elements in "Your World" Poem

Activity Overview

When teaching poetry, it is often helpful to refresh or introduce students with technical words. Terms like metaphor, simile, stanza, alliteration, personification, rhyme scheme, and onomatopoeia are a few important terms.

In this activity, students can create a storyboard that depicts and explains the use of each literary element that they can find in the poem. You may chose to focus on one element at a time, or if the students are advanced, you can focus on many.

Here is an example of six literary elements found in “Your World”:

Alliteration

Repetition of a sound
Example: “narrowest nest”

Assonance

The repetition of a vowel sound
Example: Open "O" words ("corner", "horizon", "cordons", "soared")
These sounds create a soaring, flying effect for the reader.

Metaphor

A comparison, or association, without using 'like' or ‘as’
Example: Bird = Person
"My wings pressing close to my side."
"And cradled my wings on the breeze”

Simile

A comparison using 'like' or 'as'
Example: “Your world is as big as you make it”

Imagery

Visually descriptive or figurative language
Example: “I throbbed with a burning desire”

Apostrophe

Poet addresses an absent person, an abstract idea, or a thing
Example: “Your world is as big as you make it”

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Template and Class Instructions

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Student Instructions

Create a storyboard that shows five examples of literary elements in "Your World".

Click "Start Assignment".
Identify use of literary elements in the text.
Put the type of literary element in the title box.
Give an example from the text in the description box.
Illustrate the example using using a combination of scenes, characters, and items.

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Lesson Plan Reference

Grade Level 2-3

Difficulty Level 3 (Developing to Mastery)

Type of Assignment Individual or Partner

Type of Activity: Figurative Language

Common Core Standards

[ELA-Literacy/RL/2/10] By the end of the year, read and comprehend literature, including stories and poetry, in the grades 2-3 text complexity band proficiently, with scaffolding as needed at the high end of the range.
[ELA-Literacy/RL/3/5] Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text, using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza; describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.

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Rubric

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Literary Elements Rubric

Create a storyboard that shows different literary elements from the story.

	Proficient	Emerging	Beginning
Identification of Literary Elements	All literary elements are correctly identified.	Most literary elements are correctly identified.	Few literary elements are correctly identified.
Illustration	Illustrations show attention to the details of the story and demonstrate connection to the literary elements.	Illustrations demonstrate connection to the literary elements.	Illustrations show little connection to the literary elements.
Description of Literary Elements	Descriptions clearly explain what the literary elements do to enhance the story.	Most descriptions tell what the literary elements do to enhance the story.	Descriptions are unrelated to the literary elements.
Spelling and Grammar	Spelling and grammar is mostly accurate. Mistakes do not get in the way of understanding.	Spelling is very inaccurate and hinders full understanding.	Text is very difficult to understand.