Free Verse Poetry

Free Verse Poetry

No rules, just realness.

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By Cheyenne Kuyper

Free Verse is...

​Free verse is the name given to poetry that doesn’t use any strict meter or rhyme scheme. Because it has no set meter, poems written in free verse can have lines of any length, from a single word to much longer.

William Carlos Williams’s short poem “The Red Wheelbarrow” is written in free verse.

It reads: “so much depends / upon / a red wheel / barrow / glazed with rain / water / beside the white / chickens.”

For this assignment, we will...

Watch a video of a recited poem.

Read several poems and analyze the author's tone, figurative language, and theme.

​Video: "If I Should Have A Daughter" by Sarah Kay

• Watch the video on the board.

• As you watch, listen closely and make note of what the speaker is trying to convey.

• Think to yourself: What is this poem about? What Point of View does the author use? Is it entertaining? Does it rhyme? What kind of poem is it? What is the author trying to teach us?

Multiple Choice

PART A: Which of the following identifies a main theme of the text?

• All living things need support from others in order to grow.

• We must learn and grow from our failures.

• People can overcome difficulties and succeed.

• Nature can overcome problems better than people.

Multiple Choice

PART B: : Which detail from the poem best supports the answer to Part A?

• "Did u hear about the rose that grew" (Lines 1)

• "learned 2 walk without having feet" (Lines 3-4)

• "Long live the rose that grew from concrete" (Line 7)

• when no one else even cared!" (Line 8)

Multiple Choice

How does the speaker's point of view influence how the rose is described?

• Curious about the rose, the speaker asks several questions about it.

• Believing that the rose is not real, the speaker exaggerates its qualities.

• Feeling pity for the rose, the speaker lists all of the hardships it has faced.

• Impressed by the rose, the speaker explains what makes it so admirable.

Open Ended

Discussion question: In the poem, only the children "know" the place where the sidewalk ends. What do you think Shel Silverstein meant in these lines?

Open Ended

Discussion question: Do you think that adults are as imaginative as children? Why or why not?

Multiple Choice

PART A: Which statement best describes the meaning of the phrase "peppermint wind", as it is used in line 6?

• The wind smells like sweet candy.

• The wind is energizing and refreshing.

• The wind is blue-green in color.

• The wind is red-and-white in color.

Multiple Choice

PART B: Which detail from the text best supports the answer to part A?

• "Soft and white" (line 3)

• "crimson bright" (line 4)

• "to cool" (line 6)

• "smoke blows black" (line 7)

Multiple Choice

PART A: According to the narrator's descriptions, how does "a place where the sidewalk ends" and "this place" differ?

• "The place where the sidewalk ends" is scary and unknown, while "this place" is familiar and comfortable.

• "The place where the sidewalk ends" is dangerous because it is new, while "this place" is dangerous because it is old.

• "The place where the sidewalk ends" requires accompaniment by children, while "this place" does not require accompaniment of any kind.

• "The place where the sidewalk ends" is unknown and inviting, while "this place" is dirty and unwelcoming.

Multiple Select

PART B: Which TWO details from the poem best support the answer to Part A?

• "before the street begins" (Line 2)

• "grass grows soft and white" (Line 3)

• "Let us leave" (Line 7)

• "measured and slow" (Line 10)

• "chalk-white arrows" (Line 11)

Multiple Choice

How does the alliteration in line 9 contribute to the description of "this place"?

• "Past the pits" sounds harsh, hissing, and unfriendly.

• "[A]sphalt flowers" bring to mind a harsh and industrial place. "

• "Past the pits" sounds bouncy and playful.

• [A]sphalt flowers" would never grow in pits.

Multiple Choice

How does the point of view differ between the speaker and the person he is speaking to?

• The speaker doesn't know where the end of the sidewalk is, but the person he is speaking to does.

• The speaker knows about the end of the sidewalk, and wants to make sure the person he is speaking to doesn't find it.

• The speaker has heard of the end of the sidewalk, and is asking the person he is speaking to for help finding it.

• The speaker knows about the end of the sidewalk, and wants to show it to the person he is talking to.