Choose Any Format for Poem 2

Poetry Formats

POEM 1: You must choose either the "I AM" poem or the "BioPoem"

I Am
Use the model. IF the phrase is in bold-faced print, then you should copy it into your poem. If the information is in parenthesis, you should ADD your own words to the phrase. Be sure to follow the directions indicating how many items you must share.

For this poem you have the option to choose a theme---something you are quite interested in. Examine the samples to find the author's theme.

Format Example

I am (two special characteristics you have)
I wonder (something you are actually curious about)
I hear (an imaginary sound)
I see (an imaginary sight)
I want (an actual desire)
I am (the first line of the poem repeated)
I pretend (someting you pretend to do)
I feel (a feeling about something imaginary)
I touch (an imaginary touch)
I worry ( something that really bothers you)
I cry (something that makes you sad)
I am (the first line of the poem)
I understand (something you know is true)
I say (something you believe in)
I dream (somethng you actually hope for)
I try (something you make an effort about)
I hope (something you actually hope for)
I am (the first line of the poem repeated)
adapted from various teacher resources
I am a carefree girl who loves horses.
I wonder if there ever was a horse that could fly.
I hear the stomping of a hundred mustangs on the desert in Arabia.
I see a horse with golden wings soaring into the sunset.
I want to ride swiftly over a green meadow.
I am a carefree girl who loves horses.
I pretend to be an Olympic jumper.
I feel the sky pressing down on me as I ride along a sandy shore.
I touch the clouds on a winged horse.
I worry that I'll fall off and become paralyzed.
I cry when a colt dies.
I am a carefree girl who loves horses.
I understand that I will not be able to ride every day of my life.
I say, let all horses roam free.
I dream abou tthe day when I have a horse of my own.
I try to be the best rider in the world.
I hope to ride all my life.
I am a carefree girl who loves horses.
Elly Tatum

BioPoem
Use the model. IF the phrase is in bold-faced print, then you should copy it into your poem. If the information is in parenthesis, you should ADD your own words to the phrase. Be sure to follow the directions indicating how many items you must share.

Format

(first name)
(four words that describe you--check out character trait pages)
Relative of (list close family members)
Resident of (place where you live)
Who reads (four books, magazines, and or newspapers)
Who likes (three things you like)
Who loves (three things you love)
Who fears (three things)
Who wishes (three things)
Who admires (three)
Who needs (three things you need)
Who aspires to (at least two aspirations)
(last name)

Sample

Carrie
Intelligent, caring, inquisitive, loyal.
Relative of Chris, Mary, Mike, Emily, and Debbie.
Resident of Silver Spring, Maryland.
Who reads Final Journey, The Goblet of Fire, Alicia, My Own Story, and Biography.
Who likes dining out, rainy days, and sitting by the fireplace on a cold evening.
Who loves pizza, her kitties (Marco and Maddie), and her husband Christopher.
Who fears spiders, death, betrayal.
Who wishes to win the lottery, to have wonderful students, to successfully inspire her students to read more.
Who admires Grandpa, Christopher, Marilyn Lamin, and her parents.
Who needs to read, learn, and to love.
Who aspires to complete a Masters of Science Degree at John's Hopkins University, maintian an "A" average and
---challenge her students.
Kochan

Choices For Poems.
Read any of the samples for your second poem. You may choose any poem that you wish, but the topic must be something that is part of your identity.

**Cinquain
five line, syllable count poems.
        1st line: 2 syllables
        2nd line: 4 syllables
        3rd line: 6 syllables
        4th line: 8 syllables
        5th line: 2 syllables

****Extended Metaphor Poems . . .

A metaphor is a comparison between two unlike things in which one item is used to describe another. For example in the poem "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes, Life ain't been no crystal stair is a metaphor. When it appears that Hughes is writing about a staircase he is actually talking about the hard life of a mother. For this choice, you must determine only one metaphor to describe you, but you must write of of multiple references or ways in which the item could represent you.

You must have one metaphor described in detail, which allows us to understand at least five different things abou tyour being. HINT: you may want to make a chart like this example:

The Writer The Lion

must think long and hard sleeps in a den before waking

gets an idea hears something outside a den

writes frantically roars and attacks

Examples

*Name Poem

Description	Write your name (first, middle, last) down the side of your paper, one letter per line. Each letter must be the first letter of a new word or phrase.
Minimum	You must use all of your name. Each line must show at least TWO character traits.
Challenge	Rhyme the lines use the same number of syllables in each line. ***use phrases that create a focussed meaning (instead of words with separate meanings.)

****There are more choices listed on the resource page.