Chapter 9: Reading poetry and plays aloud

By the end of this chapter you will be able to

• Work out the rhyme scheme of a stanza from the spelling of its line endings
• Count the strong beats in a line, and see how a steady rhythm is built
• Name a simile, a metaphor or personification, and explain its effect on the reader
• Name a form of poetry (free verse, narrative, limerick or haiku) from its features
• Read a poem aloud with expression, using its punctuation
• Read a play script with its speakers and stage directions, and perform a short part in role

You should already know

• Fronted adverbials and conjunctions (Chapter 6 of this book)
• Noun phrases and Standard English verb forms (Chapter 7 of this book)
• Retrieving facts and predicting from a text (Chapter 8 of this book)
• Punctuation for direct speech (Chapter 5 of this book)

Where this leads

• Reading non-fiction and recording information (Chapter 10 of this book)
• Using figurative language and structure in your own writing (Chapter 11 of this book)