Practice Fluency Through Poems

Reading a poem is different from reading a story. A poem has a special music built into it — a beat called rhythm and repeating sounds called rhyme. When you read a poem well, it sounds almost like a song.

What is rhythm?

• Rhythm is the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables — the natural beat of the words.
• Clap along as you read: da-DUM da-DUM da-DUM. That regular beat is the rhythm.
• Example: "The CAT sat ON the MAT." — stressed syllables are in capitals.

What is rhyme?

• Rhyme is when the ending sounds of two or more words match: cat / mat, day / play, sky / fly.
• In many poems, the last words of certain lines rhyme. The most common pattern is AABB (line 1 rhymes with line 2, line 3 with line 4).

How to read a poem aloud

• Read at a steady pace that follows the natural beat — not too fast, or the rhythm disappears.
• Take a brief pause at the end of each line, even if there is no punctuation mark there.
• At a period or comma, follow the usual punctuation rules from the last lesson.
• Let your voice rise slightly on stressed syllables to bring out the rhythm.
• Match your tone to the mood — joyful, peaceful, or playful.

Stanzas

• A poem is often divided into stanzas — groups of lines separated by a blank line, like paragraphs in a story.
• Pause a little longer between stanzas before continuing.