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KS3 English · Year 7Chapter 3 · Reading poetry: form, imagery and sound
Year 7 · Chapter 3

Reading poetry: form, imagery and sound

By the end of this chapter you will be able to

  • Name the form of a poem, and say how its stanzas and lines are organised
  • Identify a rhyme scheme and explain what it does
  • Name a figure of speech in a poem and explain its effect
  • Identify a sound pattern, such as alliteration or sibilance, and its effect
  • Explain the persona and tone, and the effect of enjambment or a pause

You should already know

  • Simile, metaphor and personification (Year 6, Chapter 11)
  • Learning and performing poems (Year 6, Chapter 11)

Where this leads

  • Reading drama and plays (Chapter 4 of this book)
  • Comparing texts (Chapter 6 of this book)

National Curriculum for England, Key Stage 3 English, Year 7. Content: Read poetry from different forms, including free verse, sonnets and narrative poems (KS3 reading, R1), Analyse poetic form, stanza, rhythm, rhyme, imagery and sound patterns, and their effect (KS3 reading, R8), Identify persona, tone and the effect of enjambment and punctuation within a poem (KS3 reading, R8).

Exercise P  Do you remember?

1
FWrite the word for a group of lines in a poem, set apart from the others by a gap. Write the word only.
2
FTwo lines that end with the same sound are a rhyme. What is the name for the same sound at the start of several words? Write one word.
3
FHow many lines does a couplet have? Write a number.
4
FWhich figure of speech compares two things using like or as? Write one word.
5
FWrite one word for a poem that does not follow a regular rhyme or beat.
3.1

Form, stanzas and lines

Year 7
Read poetry from different forms, including free verse, sonnets and narrative poems (KS3 reading, R1), Analyse poetic form and stanza structure (KS3 reading, R8)
Video lesson: Form, stanzas and linesComing soon
Story. Three poems are printed side by side in a school anthology. Each one has a different form, and the class must say how the form shapes what the reader notices.

The form of a poem is its shape and pattern on the page. A stanza is a group of lines. A sonnet has 14 lines, usually in three quatrains (four-line stanzas) and a final couplet (two lines). A narrative poem tells a story. Free verse has no regular rhyme or beat, but it still uses line breaks to shape the reader's pace.

Poem 1: Night bus (original, free verse)

The bus is almost empty.
A woman sleeps with her bag
held tight against her chest.
Outside, the city hums its tune
of brake lights and wet pavements,
and every window is a small lit room
where someone is still awake.

The driver does not look up.
He waits at each stop
as if the street might still change its mind,
then pulls away again,
the engine humming under us like a held breath.

Poem 2: Allotment in March (original, sonnet)

The frost has left the furrows, cold and grey,
and I kneel down to loosen the hard ground;
a robin watches from the fence all day,
then hops in close and turns its head around.

I push the fork in, and the earth gives way,
its smell of turned soil rising, sharp and clean;
a worm slides back into the dark, as if to say
that winter's over, and the hedge is green.

I sit back on my heels and close my eyes,
and hear the church bell, faint across the town;
the pale sun lifts its head above the rise,
and I sit awhile before the seeds go down.

Tomorrow I will sow the peas and beans,
and learn again what patience means.

Poem 3: Kite on the hill (original, narrative ballad)

Ravi climbed the hill at dawn,
his red kite tugging on its string;
the wind was high, the grass was wet,
then the cord slipped free and the kite took wing.

It drifted over fields of hay,
past chimneys, churches and the river's bend;
Ravi ran until his breath was gone,
and watched it fade toward the valley's end.

He sat down on a cold, flat stone,
and wondered where the red kite flew,
past crooked lanes and sleepy farms
and out to where the sea lay blue.

That evening, down the crooked lane,
a girl came walking, kite in hand.
"I found it caught beyond the weir,"
she said, "it came to rest on our land."

Key ideas

  • A stanza is a group of lines; a sonnet has 14 lines.
  • Free verse has no regular rhyme or beat; line breaks control the pace.
  • A narrative poem tells a story, often in regular stanzas.
Worked example 3.1.1
How many stanzas does the sonnet, Allotment in March, have?

Method. Count the groups of lines, separated by gaps.

  1. Find the gaps. Gaps separate the lines into groups.
    gaps
  2. Count the groups. Three groups of four lines, then one of two.
    three of four, one of two
  3. Write the number. The sonnet has four stanzas.
    4
  4. Write the answer.
    4

Check. Three quatrains and a couplet make four stanzas. ✓

Worked example 3.1.2
Is Night bus written with a regular rhyme scheme?

Method. Look at the end of each line for a pattern.

  1. Check the ends. The lines end with brake lights, chest, awake, and so on.
    no pattern
  2. Check the beat. The lines vary in length, with no steady beat.
    vary in length
  3. Name the form. A poem with no regular pattern is free verse.
    free verse
  4. Write the answer.
    no, it is free verse

Check. The poem has no regular pattern. ✓

Worked example 3.1.3
What kind of poem is Kite on the hill?

Method. Decide what the poem does, then look at its stanzas.

  1. What does it do? It tells the story of Ravi and his kite.
    tells a story
  2. How is it shaped? It has four stanzas of four lines each.
    four lines each
  3. Name the form. It is a narrative poem in regular stanzas.
    narrative poem
  4. Write the answer.
    a narrative poem, in regular stanzas of four lines

Check. The poem tells a story in regular stanzas. ✓

Watch out

Watch out: "free" does not mean "random". A free verse poem still makes choices about line breaks and stanzas, which affect the pace.

Exam tip

Exam tip. Name the form first, then say how its shape (stanzas, lines, length) supports the poem's meaning.

Exercise 3A  Practice: form, stanzas and lines

1
FHow many stanzas does Allotment in March have? Write a number.
2
FHow many lines does a sonnet have? Write a number.
3
FHow many lines are in each stanza of Kite on the hill? Write a number.
4
FWhich poem is written in free verse? Choose one: Night bus, Allotment in March or Kite on the hill.
5
FWhich poem tells a story from beginning to end? Choose one: Night bus, Allotment in March or Kite on the hill.
6
FIs Night bus divided into stanzas? Answer yes or no.
7
FCopy the first line of Night bus, as it is written.
8
FHow many stanzas does Night bus have? Write a number.
9
FWhat does free verse not have? Choose one: a regular rhyme scheme, a title or a speaker.
10
RWhy might a poet choose free verse for a bus journey? Give one reason.
11
RExplain why a sonnet's fixed form suits a calm, careful observation, such as the garden in Allotment in March.
3.2

Rhyme, rhythm and stanza patterns

Year 7
Analyse rhyme and rhythm in poetic form and its effect (KS3 reading, R8)
Video lesson: Rhyme, rhythm and stanza patternsComing soon
Story. The gardener in the sonnet works in a steady rhythm. Her lines rhyme in a pattern, and the reader can feel the pattern build.

A rhyme scheme is the pattern of end sounds, shown with letters: lines that rhyme share a letter. So ABAB means that lines 1 and 3 rhyme, and lines 2 and 4 rhyme. A rhythm is the beat of the line. Many sonnets use iambic pentameter: ten syllables, with an unstressed-stressed beat in each pair, such as the FROST.

Key ideas

  • A rhyme scheme is shown with letters: the same letter means the lines rhyme.
  • A sonnet's usual scheme is ABAB CDCD EFEF GG, ending with a couplet.
  • Rhythm is the beat of a line; count syllables to check it.
Worked example 3.2.1
What is the rhyme scheme of the first four lines of the sonnet?

Method. Find the end word of each line, then check which lines rhyme.

  1. Line 1 and 3. Grey and day rhyme.
    grey, day
  2. Line 2 and 4. Ground and around rhyme.
    ground, around
  3. Write the scheme. Lines 1 and 3 share A; lines 2 and 4 share B.
    ABAB
  4. Write the answer.
    ABAB

Check. Two pairs of rhyming lines make ABAB. ✓

Worked example 3.2.2
What is the rhyme scheme of the first stanza of Kite on the hill?

Method. Check each pair of lines.

  1. Lines 1 and 3. Dawn and wet do not rhyme.
    no rhyme
  2. Lines 2 and 4. String and wing rhyme.
    string, wing
  3. Write the scheme. Only lines 2 and 4 rhyme, so the scheme is ABCB.
    ABCB
  4. Write the answer.
    ABCB

Check. Only lines 2 and 4 rhyme. ✓

Worked example 3.2.3
What rhythm is most often used in the lines of the sonnet? Choose one: iambic pentameter, free verse or a steady two-beat rhythm.

Method. Test each choice against the sentence or the text.

  1. Read what the question asks for. Decide what the sentence or the text needs.
  2. Test the choice. Each line has ten syllables, with a beat on every second syllable.
    iambic pentameter fits
  3. Reject the other choices. Free verse has no steady beat, and a two-beat line has only two stresses.
    free verse and a steady two-beat rhythm do not fit
  4. Write the answer.
    iambic pentameter

Check. The choice fits the sentence or the text. ✓

Watch out

Watch out: rhyme is about the sound of the end of the line, not the spelling. Check the sound, then name the letter.

Exam tip

Exam tip. When you name a rhyme scheme, write the letters for the whole stanza, such as ABAB, and say which lines rhyme.

Exercise 3B  Practice: rhyme and rhythm

1
FWhich word in the sonnet rhymes with grey?
2
FWhich word in the sonnet rhymes with ground?
3
FWhich word in Kite on the hill rhymes with string?
4
FWhat is the name of the last two lines of a sonnet? Write one word.
5
FWhich poem uses a regular rhyme scheme in every stanza? Choose one: Night bus, Allotment in March or none of these.
6
PSWhat is the rhyme scheme of stanza 2 of Kite on the hill? Write the letters.
7
PSHow many syllables are in the first line of the sonnet? The frost has left the furrows, cold and grey, Write a number.
8
PSHow many syllables are in the line I push the fork in, and the earth gives way,? Write a number.
9
FWhich pair of lines rhymes in the first stanza of Kite on the hill? Choose one: lines 1 and 3, lines 2 and 4 or lines 1 and 2.
10
FWhat is the rhyme scheme of the first stanza of Allotment in March? Write the letters.
11
RWhy might a poet use a regular rhyme in a story poem? Give one reason.
12
RThe final couplet of the sonnet says: learn again what patience means. What does this suggest about the speaker?
3.3

Imagery and figurative language

Year 7
Analyse imagery and figurative language in poetry, and its effect (KS3 reading, R8)
Video lesson: Imagery and figurative languageComing soon
Story. On the night bus, the passenger watches the city. Each lit window shows another life, and the engine breathes beneath the seats. The poet chooses images that make the reader see, hear and feel the journey.

Imagery is the picture a poem creates. Poets use figures of speech: a simile compares with like or as; a metaphor says one thing is another; personification gives human actions to something that is not human. The effect is the feeling or picture the reader is left with.

Key ideas

  • Imagery makes the reader see, hear, smell, taste or feel the poem.
  • A metaphor is one thing called another, without like or as.
  • Always say what the image makes the reader picture or feel.
Worked example 3.3.1
Name the device in every window is a small lit room.

Method. Look for like or as, then check whether one thing is called another.

  1. Check for like or as. There is no like or as.
    no like or as
  2. Check the comparison. A window is called a room.
    a window is a room
  3. Name the device. Calling one thing another is a metaphor.
    metaphor
  4. Write the answer.
    metaphor

Check. A window is called a room. ✓

Worked example 3.3.2
What is the effect of the pale sun lifts its head above the rise?

Method. Name the device, then say what it makes the reader picture.

  1. Name the device. Giving the sun a head and an action is personification.
    personification
  2. Picture it. The sun is shown rising, as a person would lift their head.
    lift their head
  3. Explain the effect. The image makes the dawn seem alive and hopeful.
    alive and hopeful
  4. Write the answer.
    the sun seems alive and lifting, like a person waking

Check. The sun is given a human action. ✓

Worked example 3.3.3
What is the effect of the engine humming under us like a held breath?

Method. Name the device, then the picture it creates.

  1. Name the device. Like a held breath is a simile.
    simile
  2. Picture the comparison. The engine is compared to someone holding their breath.
    holding their breath
  3. Explain the effect. The bus seems tense, as if it is waiting.
    tense
  4. Write the answer.
    the bus seems tense and waiting

Check. The simile creates a tense picture. ✓

Watch out

Watch out: "the engine is like a held breath" is a simile; "the engine is a held breath" would be a metaphor. Check the words.

Exam tip

Exam tip. Quote the image, name the device, then write one sentence on what the picture adds.

Exercise 3C  Practice: imagery and effect

1
FName the device in a small lit room.
2
FName the device in like a held breath.
3
FName the device in the pale sun lifts its head above the rise.
4
PSWhat is the effect of where someone is still awake? Explain in one sentence.
5
PSWhat is the effect of its smell of turned soil rising, sharp and clean? Explain in one sentence.
6
FWhich of these is a simile? Choose one: every window is a small lit room, like a held breath or the pale sun lifts its head.
7
RIs a worm slides back into the dark an example of personification? Answer yes or no.
8
FCopy the words that describe the church bell.
9
PSWhat is the effect of then hops in close and turns its head around? Explain in one sentence.
10
FWhich word in its smell of turned soil rising, sharp and clean names a sense? Write the word.
11
RWhich image in Night bus is the most vivid? Explain your choice, with a reason.
12
RCompare the metaphor in Night bus with the personification in Allotment in March. Which creates a more personal picture?
13
PSWhat is the effect of the city hums its tune? Explain in one sentence.
14
PSName the device in the city hums its tune.
3.4

Sound patterns: alliteration, sibilance and repetition

Year 7
Identify sound patterns in poetry, such as alliteration, sibilance and repetition, and their effect (KS3 reading, R8)
Video lesson: Sound patterns: alliteration, sibilance and repetitionComing soon
Story. A poet listens to a garden in early spring. The sounds of the words, and the way they repeat, matter as much as the pictures.

Poets use sound patterns. Alliteration repeats the same starting sound in words close together, such as frost and furrows. Sibilance repeats the soft s sound, as in smell, soil and sharp. Repetition repeats a word or a root word, to build a pattern or a feeling.

Key ideas

  • Alliteration: the same starting sound in neighbouring words.
  • Sibilance: the soft s sound, repeated.
  • Repetition: a word or root repeated for effect; say what the repetition builds.
Worked example 3.4.1
Which two words in line 1 of the sonnet show alliteration?

Method. Look at the first letters of the words.

  1. Look at the first letters. Frost and furrows both begin with f.
    f
  2. Check they are close. They are in the same line, close together.
    same line
  3. Name the pattern. The same starting sound is alliteration.
    alliteration
  4. Write the answer.
    frost and furrows

Check. frost and furrows both start with f. ✓

Worked example 3.4.2
Which words show sibilance in its smell of turned soil rising, sharp and clean?

Method. Look for the soft s sound at the start or middle of words.

  1. Find the s sounds. Smell, soil and sharp each contain an s sound.
    smell, soil, sharp
  2. Check they repeat. The s sound is repeated across the line.
    repeated
  3. Name the pattern. Repeated s sounds are sibilance.
    sibilance
  4. Write the answer.
    smell, soil and sharp

Check. The s sounds are repeated. ✓

Worked example 3.4.3
Which device is the repeated hum in Night bus, which appears in hums its tune and humming under us? Choose one: alliteration, repetition or onomatopoeia.

Method. Test each choice against the sentence or the text.

  1. Read what the question asks for. Decide what the sentence or the text needs.
  2. Test the choice. The root hum is repeated in two places, to build a steady pattern.
    repetition fits
  3. Reject the other choices. Alliteration is repeated starting sounds, not a repeated root word.
    alliteration and onomatopoeia do not fit
  4. Write the answer.
    repetition

Check. The choice fits the sentence or the text. ✓

Watch out

Watch out: alliteration needs the same starting sound in close words. "Frost" and "furrows" both start with f; "frost" and "left" do not.

Exam tip

Exam tip. Quote the words, name the sound pattern, then say what it adds, such as a crisp feeling or a steady pace.

Exercise 3D  Practice: sound patterns

1
FWhich two words in line 1 of the sonnet show alliteration? Write the two words.
2
FWhich sound pattern is smell, soil and sharp? Write one word.
3
FWhich pattern is the repeated hum in Night bus? Choose one: alliteration, repetition or rhyme.
4
PSExplain the effect of the repeated hum in Night bus. Write one sentence.
5
PSWhat is the effect of the alliteration in frost has left the furrows? Explain in one sentence.
6
FWhich word in sharp and clean begins with a sibilant s sound? Write the word.
7
RExplain the effect of the soft s sounds in its smell of turned soil rising, sharp and clean. Write one sentence.
8
FAnswer both parts about the sound patterns of the sonnet.
(a)What starting sound do frost and furrows share? Write one letter.
(b)What starting sound do smell, soil and sharp share? Write one letter.
9
RWhy might a poet use alliteration in a poem about cold weather? Explain in one sentence.
10
RExplain how the repetition of hum links the city and the engine in Night bus.
11
FWhich word in the wind was high, the grass was wet starts with the same sound as wet? Write the word.
3.5

Persona, tone and enjambment

Year 7
Identify persona and tone, and explain the effect of enjambment and punctuation (KS3 reading, R8)
Video lesson: Persona, tone and enjambmentComing soon
Story. The poems speak in different voices. A passenger watches the bus; a gardener works in the cold, then waits for spring; a narrator follows a kite across the hills.

The persona is the voice the poem speaks in. It may be the poet, or a character. The tone is the mood of that voice. Enjambment is when a sentence runs over the end of a line, so the reader moves on without a stop. A pause inside a line, marked by punctuation, is a caesura.

Key ideas

  • The persona is the voice of the poem; the tone is its mood.
  • Enjambment carries the sentence over the line end, with no full stop.
  • Punctuation inside a line creates a pause, which changes the pace.
Worked example 3.5.1
Who is the speaker of Allotment in March?

Method. Look for the pronouns and the activity.

  1. Find the pronoun. The poem uses I, as in I push the fork in.
    I push the fork in
  2. Find the activity. The speaker kneels, digs and sows seeds.
    kneels and digs
  3. Name the persona. The speaker is a gardener, using the first person.
    a gardener
  4. Write the answer.
    a gardener, speaking in the first person

Check. The speaker works in the garden. ✓

Worked example 3.5.2
What is the tone of the final couplet of the sonnet?

Method. Look at the words of the last two lines.

  1. Look at the words. Tomorrow I will sow the peas and beans.
    Tomorrow
  2. Look at the meaning. The speaker plans, and accepts that patience takes time.
    accepts that patience takes time
  3. Name the tone. The tone is hopeful and patient.
    hopeful and patient
  4. Write the answer.
    hopeful and patient

Check. The planning and patience show hope. ✓

Worked example 3.5.3
What is the effect of enjambment between lines 9 and 10 of the sonnet?

Method. Look at where the sentence ends.

  1. Find the line end. Line 9 ends with eyes, with a comma, and the sentence runs on.
    eyes,
  2. Check the next line. Line 10 continues: and hear the church bell.
    and hear the church bell
  3. Explain the effect. The reader moves on smoothly, as the speaker listens.
    moves on smoothly
  4. Write the answer.
    it moves the reader smoothly from the eyes to the bell

Check. The sentence runs over the line end. ✓

Watch out

Watch out: the speaker is not always the poet. Name the persona by its pronouns and its situation.

Exam tip

Exam tip. Say who the speaker is, then what the tone is, then give one quotation as evidence.

Exercise 3E  Practice: persona, tone and enjambment

1
FWho is the speaker of Night bus? Choose one: a passenger, the driver or a woman asleep.
2
FWhich pronoun shows the speaker of Allotment in March? Write the word.
3
PSDescribe the tone of Night bus, in one or two words, with a quotation.
4
PSWrite one word for the tone of the final two lines of the sonnet.
5
FIn lines 9 and 10 of the sonnet, does a sentence run over the line end? Choose one: yes or no.
6
FWhich line of the first stanza of the sonnet ends with a full stop? Write the line number.
7
FWhat punctuation mark creates a pause in the middle of line 7 of the sonnet? Write the name of the mark.
8
RWhat is the effect of where someone is still awake at the end of the first stanza? Explain in one sentence.
9
RWhy might the speaker of Night bus use the word us? Explain in one sentence.
10
FCopy the words that show Ravi cannot keep up with the kite.
11
RCompare the persona in Allotment in March with the persona in Night bus. Which feels closer to nature? Explain.
12
RExplain how the final stanza of Kite on the hill changes the mood.

Chapter summary

SkillMethod
FormName the form (free verse, sonnet, ballad) and say how stanzas and lines shape the poem.
Rhyme schemeWrite the letters for the rhyming lines, such as ABAB, ABCB or AABB.
RhythmCount syllables to check the beat; iambic pentameter has ten syllables per line.
ImageryName the simile, metaphor or personification, and say what it makes the reader picture.
Sound patternsAlliteration (starting sounds), sibilance (soft s) and repetition: say what each adds.
Persona, tone and enjambmentName the speaker, the tone, and the effect of a sentence running over a line end or a pause.

Can you…?

  • I can name a poetic form and explain how its stanzas and lines are shaped
  • I can identify a rhyme scheme, and count syllables to check rhythm
  • I can name a figure of speech in a poem and explain its effect
  • I can identify alliteration, sibilance and repetition and their effect
  • I can explain the persona, the tone, and the effect of enjambment

Key terms

stanza
a group of lines in a poem, separated from others by a gap
sonnet
a poem of fourteen lines, often in three quatrains and a couplet
couplet
two lines that rhyme, often at the end of a sonnet
free verse
poetry with no regular rhyme or beat
rhyme scheme
the pattern of end sounds in a poem, shown with letters
iambic pentameter
a line of ten syllables, with a beat on every second syllable
alliteration
the repetition of the same starting sound in close words
sibilance
the repetition of soft s sounds
persona
the voice or character who speaks in a poem
enjambment
a sentence that runs over the end of a line without a full stop

Exercise 3Z  Check-up

1
How many stanzas does Night bus have? Write a number.
2
What is the rhyme scheme of the first stanza of Kite on the hill? Write the letters.
3
Name the device in a small lit room.
4
What is the effect of the pale sun lifts its head above the rise? Explain in one sentence.
5
Which poem is written in free verse? Choose one: Night bus, Allotment in March or Kite on the hill.
6
Which word in frost has left the furrows begins with the same sound as frost? Write the word.
7
What is the rhyme scheme of the first four lines of the sonnet? Write the letters.
8
Who is the speaker of Allotment in March, and how do you know?
9
Explain the effect of enjambment between lines 9 and 10 of the sonnet.
10
Name one sound pattern in Night bus, and explain its effect in one sentence.

Total 17 marks. Allow about 17 minutes.

Exercise 3X  Practice test questions

1
FRead this sentence from a poem: "the engine humming under us like a held breath." Name the device.[1 mark]
2
FRead these words from a poem: "its smell of turned soil rising, sharp and clean". Name the sound pattern in the words smell, soil and sharp.[1 mark]
3
RRead this line from a poem: "the pale sun lifts its head above the rise." Name the device and explain its effect in one sentence.[2 marks]
4
FRead these four lines: "The frost has left the furrows, cold and grey, / and I kneel down to loosen the hard ground; / a robin watches from the fence all day, / then hops in close and turns its head around." What is the rhyme scheme? Write the letters.[1 mark]
5
FRead this stanza: "Ravi climbed the hill at dawn, his red kite tugging on its string; the wind was high, the grass was wet, then the cord slipped free and the kite took wing." Which two lines rhyme?[1 mark]
6
RRead this line from a poem: "a worm slides back into the dark, as if to say." Name the punctuation mark that creates a pause, and say what it does.[2 marks]
7
RRead this line from a poem: "every window is a small lit room where someone is still awake." Name the device, and explain its effect in one sentence.[3 marks]
8
RRead this couplet from a poem: "Tomorrow I will sow the peas and beans, and learn again what patience means." What does the speaker suggest?[2 marks]
9
RRead this line from a poem: "I sit back on my heels and close my eyes, and hear the church bell." Explain the effect of the sentence running over the line end.[2 marks]
10
PSRead this stanza: "It drifted over fields of hay, past chimneys, churches and the river's bend; Ravi ran until his breath was gone, and watched it fade toward the valley's end." Name the rhyme scheme of the stanza.[2 marks]
← Chapter 2: Analysing language, structure and effectChapter 4: Reading drama and plays →

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