When students swear at each other, brandish swords, or shoot pistols into the air, stop the argument and let them know theyвЂ™re both right. I recommend, after doing a few easy ones, putting an ambiguously metered line of poetry on the board and letting students argue over it. Determining the scansion of poems, however, is not an exact science. It may change your life!ДЄn excellent method for identifying meter in poetry is determining the scansion of poems. I have provided a near brilliant list of common feet and line lengths in the rhythm and meter in poetry study guide.

It helps to know the different types of meter. Any student who can do this should be given an вЂAвЂ™. Students should be able to apply their knowledge of meter and use it with purpose in their own writing.Students should be able to analyze how meter and rhythm affect a poemвЂ™s theme.If that doesnвЂ™t suffice, just tell them it will be on the test. If they want to be masters of words, they should study how masters of words do this. Masters of words pay attention to the rhythm and flow of writing and speaking. It would be nice if they could do it without whining and asking that traditional teenager entitlement question, вЂњWhy do I gots to do this?вЂќ but they wonвЂ™t. Students should figure out the scansion of poems and be proficient at identifying meter in poetry.If poems were basketball teams, the fast break style of offense would be the meter and me dunking the ball in your face would be the rhythm (I can dream, canвЂ™t I?). Rhythm is the combination of adherence to and deviation from the standard meter. A foot is two or more syllables that make up the smallest unit of meter in a poem. Meter is the basic scheme of stressed and unstressed syllables. Students should be able to define rhythm, meter, and foot.

Have the following objectives in mind when teaching poetry meter:

Scansion practice