How the shape of a poem adds to its meaning

Grade 8 Reading Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Three School Limericks (original poem)

   Stanza 1
   [1] A sleepy old pencil named Jim
   [2] wrote sentences slender and slim,
   [3] but his letters would sway
   [4] and then slide away,
   [5] so his homework looked ready to swim.

   Stanza 2
   [6] A backpack so crammed it could burst
   [7] met a staircase that did its worst:
   [8] books sailed off in pairs,
   [9] pens rolled down the stairs,
   [10] and the math quiz it hid landed first.

   Stanza 3
   [11] A sneaker went squeak, squeak, squeak
   [12] down the hall every day of the week,
   [13] till the principal said,
   [14] “Please tiptoe ahead,”
   [15] and it tiptoed, but added a creak.
   Annotations: each stanza is a five-line joke; look at the line endings and at the last line.

2. 1.

   Bo circles sentences, slender and slim in line 2. Which choice names the device in those words and what it adds?

   • Alliteration: the s sounds repeat, which makes the pencil's writing seem thin and slippery.
   • Alliteration: the words start with the same sound, and three of them appear in line 2.
   • Alliteration: the s sounds repeat, which makes the pencil's writing seem thick and heavy.
   • Onomatopoeia: the words sound like what they name, which makes the pencil seem noisy and loud.
3. 2.

   Esme notices that the last line of each stanza is a surprise. What does that last-line twist add?

   • It ends each stanza on a calm, expected note, so the reader sees no surprise coming.
   • It is the last line of each stanza, and it rhymes with the first two lines of that stanza.
   • It makes the poem serious, so the reader feels sorry for the pencil, the backpack and the sneaker.
   • It ends each joke with a surprise, so the rhyme in the last line pays off the setup.
4. 3.

   Kira circles squeak, squeak, squeak in line 11. Which choice names the devices in those words and what they add?

   • Onomatopoeia and repetition: the sound word repeats, which lets the reader hear a sneaker that keeps squeaking.
   • Onomatopoeia and repetition: the sound word repeats, which makes the hallway seem hushed and the sneaker silent.
   • Onomatopoeia and repetition: squeak is a sound word, and it appears three times in line 11.
   • Alliteration: the words start with the same sound, which makes the sneaker seem to slide quietly.
5. 4.

   Luz notices lines 3 and 4 of each stanza are shorter. What do the shorter lines add?

   • They speed up the beat before the last line, so the final joke arrives with a bounce.
   • They slow the poem into a sad pause, so the reader feels sorry before the final joke.
   • They stretch the beat out before the last line, so the final joke arrives slowly and quietly.
   • They have fewer words than lines 1, 2 and 5, and they rhyme with each other.

6. Class Photo (original poem)

   Stanza 1
   [1] We pour onto the risers in a clatter of sneakers and elbows and “Move over!”
   [2] and somebody's backpack knocks a water bottle rolling off the stage,
   [3] and the photographer calls, “Closer, closer,” and we squeeze into one shuffling, giggling shape.

   Stanza 2
   [4] “Ready?”
   [5] Hush.
   [6] Smile.
   [7] Hold.

   Stanza 3
   [8] The whole room waits inside one breath of thirty people holding still.

   Stanza 4
   [9] Click.

   Stanza 5
   [10] Then everything we were holding lets go at once, and the stage is a rattle of laughter again,
   [11] and the faces in the picture stay behind, perfectly quiet, perfectly smiling,
   [12] while the real ones run for the doors.
   Annotations: stanza 1 = the crowd; stanza 2 = the commands; stanza 3 = the wait; stanza 4 = the click; stanza 5 = the release.

7. 5.

   Milo looks at the line lengths and the lack of end rhymes. Which choice names the form and the clue that shows it?

   • Free verse: the poem repeats one rhyming word at the end of each stanza to hold it together.
   • Free verse: the poem is about a class photo and ends with students running for the doors.
   • Free verse: the lines have no rhyme pattern, and their lengths change to match what is happening.
   • Limerick: five-line stanzas that rhyme AABBA, with a silly twist at the end of each stanza.
8. 6.

   Noah circles the word Circle in line 9. Which choice names the device and what it adds?

   • Onomatopoeia: the word sounds like what it names, which makes the camera's shot feel sharp and sudden.
   • Onomatopoeia: the word sounds like what it names, which makes the moment feel long and drawn out.
   • Onomatopoeia: Click sounds like the sound it names, and it stands alone in its own stanza.
   • Alliteration: the word repeats a starting sound, which makes the moment seem smooth and slow.
9. 7.

   Pia compares stanza 1 with stanza 2. What do the one-word lines in stanza 2 add?

   • They speed the poem up, so the reader feels the students hurry into place.
   • They make the poem louder, so the reader feels the crowd getting more excited.
   • They are single words, such as Ready, Hush, Smile and Hold, and each sits on its own line.
   • They slow and quiet the poem, so the reader feels the room go still.
10. 8.

    Ren wants one clue that shows this poem is free verse. All four statements are true. Which clue proves the form best?

    • The poem uses sound words such as clatter, Click and rattle, along with repeated words.
    • Line 9 is one word long and stands alone as its own stanza in the middle of the poem.
    • The poem is about a class photo, so it tells a story with a clear start, a middle and an end.
    • The lines have no end rhymes and no regular pattern of length, from one word to a full sentence.
11. 9.

    Tala circles perfectly quiet and perfectly smiling in line 11. Which choice names the device and what it adds?

    • Repetition: the word perfectly appears twice in the line, once before quiet and once before smiling.
    • Repetition: the word perfectly returns, which shows that the students are angry at having to pose.
    • Repetition: the word perfectly returns, which stresses how still and posed the faces in the picture look.
    • Onomatopoeia: the words sound like what they name, which makes the faces in the picture sound noisy.
12. 10.

    Zee compares the long lines of stanza 5 with the one-word lines of stanza 2. What do the long lines in stanza 5 add?

    • They make the poem solemn, so the reader feels the end of the photo as a sad goodbye.
    • They are longer than lines 4 to 9, and together they make one long sentence.
    • They slow the poem to a stop, so the reader feels the students still holding their pose.
    • They tumble forward in one breath, so the noise and motion rush back after the hush.