Unit 4: Poetry

Composition Assignment #2:My Favorite Poet

Composition Guide

1) What do you think makes a good poet? If you were to select a poet that you liked from English literature, who would you choose?

2) What qualities does he or she seem to have that you admire? What is it about him or her that you like?

Composition Guide

3) Of the poet's poems that you have read, which would you consider your favorite? Why? 4) Select a stanza from the poem and copy it. Describe how it makes you feel. How can you relate to the poet through this poem? What do you think he or she was trying to express?

Composition Guide

5) If you had the opportunity to meet him or her, what would you say? What questions would you ask? 6) What would you like to know about his or her childhood? Based on what you found out, what events from his or her childhood do you think might have influenced his or her literary work?

Composition Guide

7) Some poems have been made into novels and films. Could the poem you chose be the basis of a story or movie? Explain. What details would you emphasize? Which would you leave out? 8) Some poets may have lived exciting lives. If you had the chance to live the life of this poet, would you? Which parts do you think were the most memorable? Why?

Composition Process

Conventions• Is the spelling correct, even on more difficult

words?• Is the punctuation correct and does it guide the

reader through the entire composition?• Is capitalization consistently correct?• Is grammar/usage correct and does it contribute

to clarity and style?• Is the composition ready for publishing?

Composition Process

Sentence Fluency• Is the sentence structure strong? Does it enhance

meaning while engaging and moving the reader from beginning to end in a fluid manner?

• If there is dialogue, does it sound natural?• Are the beginning of the sentences varied? Do

they add interest?• Are connectives used correctly? (Connectives are

words like and, or, however, but, etc.)

Composition Process

Word Choice• Are the words precise and accurate?• Does vocabulary catch the reader's eye and

linger in the mind?• Is the word choice natural yet original? Are

both words and phrases unique and effective?• Do parts of speech convey the message well?

Are verbs, nouns, modifiers used in such a way as to portray an accurate description?