When Brian posted Three Acronyms for Literary Analysis, I knew immediately that I would follow with Quick and Easy Ways into a Poem. This was by far one of the most popular posts on APLitHelp (#RIP) and with good reason. They’re quick, and they’re easy.

Many students approach poetry reluctantly feeling inadequate to make sense of verse or “find the meaning” of a poem. Sometimes this is due to past experiences with poetry where students have been led on a scavenger hunt for poetic devices but never taught the function of devices. Other times teachers have been to quick to analyze a poem without helping students embrace the struggle of working through it themselves. Or perhaps this standardized-test generation are fearful they will get the “wrong” answer with their interpretation. Whatever the reason, my goal is to give students lots of exposure to poetry with low-stakes opportunities to interact and begin to build an interpretation.

These quick and easy methods not only help students feel more comfortable with poems but also provide concrete ways into a poem. I like them because they are not as rigid as TP-CASTT or SOAPStone (even though there’s a place for these) and are built around what students are naturally drawn to in a poem. And the best part is they require very little prep on our end. I trade these out throughout the year so students have exposure to different questions and methods and can hopefully find a poetry trick or two to carry with them long past this class. The goal of these is not necessarily in-depth literary analysis (even though that can certainly happen with any of these methods) but breaking down barriers and getting students reading poetry with ease.

Quick and Easy Poetry Strategies Slide Deck

Finally, here are some general “rules” I have for reading poetry in my class:

I would love to hear your quick and easy ways to get students thinking about a poem.

Susan Barber teaches at Midtown High School in Atlanta, Georgia. In addition to reading, writing, and investing in the next generation, she loves watching college football with her family especially when Alabama is playing.

Feature Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash