M.

Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

Language Analysis and Critical Evaluation of

Text Structure Checklist
1. What general mode (efferent, aesthetic, critical) has the writer used and
for what purpose?
2. What is the primary genre (description narration, exposition, persuasion,
argument)?
3. Each of the following questions is closely related and can be answered together
in one paragraph to avoid repetition:
_ What is the subject of the piece?
_ Who is the intended audience?
_ What is the purpose of the writer?
_ Why has the author chosen this form of discourse?
4. Are other genres (description, narration, exposition, persuasion and argument)
used in a secondary way? Why?
5. What language variety (Standard English, Caribbean Standard English, nonstandard dialect, jargon, colloquial English, slang, patois, Creole,) has the author
used and why?
6. What is the level of formality (frozen, formal, consultative, casual, intimate) of
the language used and why?
7. Discuss the organizational features of the text?
Description: descriptive sequence, use of adjectives, sensory data.
Narration: narrative point of view, use of action verbs, dialogue.
Exposition: analysis, classification, definition, illustration, cause &
effect, comparison & contrast, analogy.
Argument: a claim/thesis/conclusion is made, evidence is
provided to justify/support that claim, repetition,
rhetorical questions, emotional appeals.
Persuasion: a claim/thesis/conclusion repetition, rhetorical questions,
emotional appeals.

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

8. Comment on the other techniques used as they relate to genre(s) used:

Word choice: abstract/concrete, general/specific,
denotative/connotative, euphemisms, allusions.
Figurative language: metaphor, simile, analogy, hyperbole, other.
Sentence structure: simple, compound, complex, compound
complex.
Tone: sarcastic, facetious, hostile, emotional, humourous,
condescending, conversational, objective, restrained.
9. How successful is the writer at achieving his purpose for this piece of writing?

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

DIAMANTE POEMS
Description: Diamond-shaped poems with 7 lines. Incorporates oral, analytical thinking,
reading and writing skills.
Sample Diamante:
Seasons
Written Collectively as a Class (AEI-Creative Writing I)
Winter
Rainy, cold
Skiing, skating, sledding
Mountains, wind, breeze, ocean
Swimming, surfing, scuba diving
Sunny, hot
Summer
WARM-UP ACTIVITIES
Link the diamante poems to events or experiences such as a nature walk just off campus,
closure for a certain class activity/unit, an end-of-term remembrance, etc.
Briefly examine structured forms of poetry as an introduction, e.g. Haiku poetry from
Japanese.
Make up your own examples, using simpler or more complex vocabulary/topics, to tailor
this activity to your particular students' level.
http://darkwing.uoregon.edu! _ leslieob/ diamantes .html
11/7/2005

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

_ INSTRUCTIONS
1. Students work in small groups of 3-5. Each group has one example
poem, and the tasks:
'
a) Identify the structure / form of the poem (what are the parts of
speech in each line); and,
.
b) Report orally and informally to the rest of the class on the feeling /
tone of the poem.
.
c) Answer the questions: What is the relationship between the first and last lines? What is
the "middle" of the poem, and how can you tell? Students can use dictionaries, as
necessary, to figure out unfamiliar words.
2. Students report on their assigned poems. (Optional: students practice with the instructor
orally beforehand and then read their assigned poem to the class.)
The structural form is then written on the board or screen and! or presented on a handout.
Example:
Line 1: Winter = 1 NOUN-A
Line 2: Rainy, cold = 2 ADJECTIVES-A
Line 3: Skiing, skating, sledding = 3 GERUNDS-A (verb + -ing) Line 4: Mountains,
wind, breeze, ocean = 2 NOUNS-A + 2 NOUNS-B
Line 5: Swimming, surfing, scuba diving = 3 GERUNDS-B (verb +ing)
Line 6: Sunny, hot = 2 ADJECTIVES-B
Line 7: Summer = 1 NOUN-B
3. Students' observations regarding synonyms, parts of speech on each
emotional tone, etc. are also discussed / outlined clearly.

line,

4. Individual groups then "brainstorm" as many possible pairs of synonyms as they can
create. The teacher puts the pairs up on the board / overhead screen as suggestions (e.g.
school days-holidays, woman-man, student-teacher, love-hatred, peace-war, divorce
marriage) Students can use a dictionary and/or thesaurus.
5. Students arid the instructor choose one of the brainstormed topics and

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

Write a cinquain poem together on the board.. - Optional: copy it down and add it to the
class collection if a class - anthology is in the works.
6. Working individually with a template (see sample below), students write one or more
cinquaines on the subject(s) of their choice. (Poems can also be written or transferred
onto a computer VIA a teacher prepared template.)
SAMPLE POEMS
A pair of poems submitted by Edit Gonczy in Hungary:
Man-Woman #1 by Lukacs (male)
Man
Brilliant, perfect
Working, learning, earning
Beer, car, mirror, make-up
Speaking, speaking, speaking
Furious, exhausted
Woman
Man-Woman #2
by Bogi and Eszter (female)
Stupid, rude
Sleeping, eating
Trousers, underpants, knickers, skirts
Working, sporting
Clever, beautiful
Woman
Take your Time... by Rosana Tellini
Vacation
Happy, fun
5

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

Sleeping, dancing, traveling

Liberty, car, beach, night
Exciting, interesting, moving
Unhappy, boring
Work

Studies by Soo Young

Studies
Unhappy, difficult
Boring, succeeding, sleeping
Library, pencil, card, outside
Interesting, exciting, failing
Happy, easy
Play
Emotions by Mooil
Love
Wonderful, beautiful
Caring, liking, thinking
Innocence, smile, tear, guilt
Fighting, violating, disgusting
Terrible, worst
Hatred
The Earth by Ivan
Mountain
High, rocky
Flying, looking, killing
Eagle, power, fear, rabbit
Living, moving, making noise
Deep, beautiful
Valley

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

Ages by Masato

Teenager
Powerful, noisy
Dancing, dating, consuming
Explosion, energetic, maturity, senility
Working, earning, saving
Quiet, peaceful Ty-ager*
(* As in seventy, eighty)
Make up your own examples, using simpler or more complex vocabulary/topics, to tailor
this activity to our particular students' level.
TEMPLA TE
Title of Poem
Author's Name
-----------------------------------,-------------------------------------,-------------------,----------------------------------,------------------------,------------------------------------------------------------, ----------------------, ----------------------------------------------------, --------------------------

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

--------------------------AMERICAN TANKA
What is Tanka?
Tanka is the name of an ancient form of Japanese poetry .
Tanka are 31-syllable poems that have been the most popular form of poetry in Japan for
at least 1300 years. As a form of poetry, tanka is older than haiku, and tanka poems evoke
a moment, or mark an occasion with concision and musicality.
During Japan's Heian period (794-1185 A.D.) it was considered essential for a woman or
man of culture to be able to both compose beautiful poetry and to choose the most
aesthetically pleasing and appropriate paper, ink, and symbolic attachment--such as a
branch, a flower---to go with it.
Tanka were often composed as a kind of finale to every sort of occasion; no experience
was quite complete until a tanka had been written about it.
"Tanka have changed and evolved over the centuries, but the form of five syllabic units
containing 31 syllables has remained the same. Topics have expanded from the traditional
expressions of passion and heartache, and styles have changed to include modern
language and even colloquialisms.
In Japanese, tanka is often written in one straight line, but in English and other languages,
we usually divide the lines into the five syllabic units: 5-7-5-7-7.
Usually, each line consists of one image or idea; unlike English poetry, one does not seek
to "wrap" lines in tanka, though in the best tanka the five lines often flow seamlessly into
one thought.
English is very different from Japanese, and the
first-time writer of English-language tanka may find that his or her tanka are more
cumbersome and contain more images than we find in translated Japanese tanka. With
practice, though, you will find the form strangely su!table to our relatively nonsyllabic
language.

M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

Many writers of English-language tanka use less than 31 syllables to achieve the form in
English. American Tanka publishes tanka of five lines that are concise and evocative, are
true to the purpose and spirit of tanka, and echo the original Japanese rhythm and
structure.
http://www.americantanka.com/about.html 11/7/2005
CINQUAIN
The traditional cinquain is based on a syllable count.
line 1 - 2 syllables
line 2 - 4 syllables
line 3 - 6 syllables
line 4 - 8 syllables
line 5 - 2 syllables
The modern cinquain is based on a word count of words of a certain type.
line 1 - one word (noun) a title or name of the subject
line 2 - two words (adjectives) describing the title
line 3 - three words (verbs) describing an action related to the title
line 4 - four words describing a feeling about the title, a complete sentence
line 5 - one word referring back to the title of the poem
Lovesong
Treefrogs
in my drainpipe
seranading their lovers
delight in keeping me awake
at night.
http://members.optushome.com.au/kazoom/poetry 1 cinquain.html
11/7/2005
A Threat
Stormclouds,
casting shadows
over weary soldiers,
threaten to cry heavy buckets
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M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

of tears.

'

Oshun Annik
Oceans
hidden secrets
are a living wonder
for those who take time to open
their eyes.

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M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

Repose
Woodlands
shelter the sprites,
providing a safe place
to rest, after a big day of
magic.
Shining Secret
Moonbeams
Lighting the sea
On a still cloudless night
Illuminate the seaponies
At play
I Know
Don't lie
I look though you
To the depths of your soul
I can see your innermost thought
I know
Waiting
Empty
Old rocking chairs
Once creaking back and forth
Now sit motionless on the porch
Waiting
Sharing
Yesterday's dream
Is just a memory
They used to sit in unison
Rocking
Drought came
The lovers left
leaving the chairs behind
They will rock again with new life
One day
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M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

http://members. optushome.com.au/kazoom/poetry/cinquain.html

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M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

11/7/2005
EXTENDED METAPHOR POEM
1. Select a topic or subject of interest to you (dancing, a basketball player, music, an
exciting English teacher, etc.) and poetically describe that topic/subject using an extended
metaphor -or.
Using an extended metaphor, write a poem about poetry, a poem, or a poet.
2. Before you start, decide what the poem, poet, poetry, or subject is like using a simile. (For
example, the poet might be thought of as like an archaeologist or like a private
investigator. Throughout the poem, one would refer to the poet as one or the other,
making sure to consider how an archaeologist or private investigator would work, think,
feel, etc.)
3. Be sure that your poem is lined and formed to create clear and focused meaning.
4. Use words that have strong emotive qualities and clear images such as "the archeologist
meticulously resurrects buried words," or "the private investigator stalks the wild words
hidden deep within."
5. Use simile, metaphor, and personification throughout the writing of your poem to create
clear, striking, and appropriate figurative images. A minimum of three examples are
required.
6. Fully develop your poem by including the many ways in which your subject is like the
thing, or person you have chosen to compare it with.
7. Your poem must be at least 15 lines long. Avoid using single word lines.
Extended Metaphor Poem Scoring Rubric
The poem effectively centers around a metaphor which is developed throughout the text.
/3
Lining works to enhance and focus meaning.
/2
The poem includes words with strong emotive qualities and clear images.
/2
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M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

The poem includes at least three vivid, striking

figurative images. (Use of simile, metaphor, personification)
/2
The poem is at least 15 words long.
/1
TOTAL
/10

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M. Lashley Communication Studies 2012-2013

Bio Poem
First name
----------------------------------------------------------------Four traits
----------------------------------------------------------------Related to
----------------------------------------------------------------Cares deeply for
----------------------------------------------------------------Who feels
----------------------------------------------------------------Who needs
----------------------------------------------------------------Who gives
----------------------------------------------------------------Who would like to see
----------------------------------------------------------------Resident of
----------------------------------------------------------------Example of a bio poem
Snow White,
Beautiful, giving, loving, unhappy
The Queen, her wicked stepmother
The seven dwarfs
Safe in the forest
The love of a Prince
Love to the seven dwarfs
Goodness throughout the kingdom
The forest.

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