4th Grade Language Arts

Poetry, Drama, & Prose

Unit 3


Unit 3: Poetry, Drama & Prose

Poetry

Poetry is a written form that expresses emotions, observations and feelings through rhythmic cadence. Poetry creates word pictures, describes moments, objects or ideas and expresses feelings. Free verse poems do not rhyme. Lyrical poems use imagery to express feeling and use rhythm, regular meter and rhyme.

Elements Of Poetry

  • Rhyme – Two or more words which match in the same last sound (bat, cat, sat).

  • Rhythm – The beat or cadence of poetry. A fast rhythm indicates action, excitement, tension, or suspense. A slow rhythm suggests peacefulness, fullness, harmony, and comfort. Often, a change in rhythm signals a change in action or a change in meaning.

  • Rhyme Scheme – The pattern of rhymes at the end of each line of a poem or song.

  • Mood – The feeling the author is trying to convey

  • Meter – A rhythmic pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables.

  • Verse – A line of poetry

  • Stanza – A stanza is to a poem what a paragraph is to prose. In poetry, each line of words is placed within a stanza. A stanza is group of lines that convey an idea.

  • Theme – The message or the lesson the author is trying to convey

Drama

A unique tool to explore and express human feeling. It is a story acted out in front of people or an audience. A drama can be a play, a puppet show, a reader's theatre that can be performed. Dramas are written in the form of a script.

Characteristics Of A Drama

  • Has a cast of characters that includes a narrator.

  • Is written in scenes and acts.

  • The script includes stage directions as well as suggestions for the actors on how to speak or show emotions.

Prose

Prose is the normal style of most literature (sentences and paragraphs) that people use when writing and speaking.The elements of prose include characters, setting, plot, point of view, mood, and theme.

Elements Or Structure Of Prose

  • Written using paragraphs

  • May contain dialogue

  • Can be either fiction or nonfiction

  • Can have headings and/or subheadings

  • Can be accompanied by graphics (illustrations, charts, or photos)

Prose Can Take Several Forms:

  • Biographies

  • Autobiographies

  • Essays

  • Novels

  • Short Stories

  • Articles

  • Magazines

  • Fables

  • Folktales

Check Out This Video!

Think you got down the basics? Let's try comparing the three. Though poetry and drama are more commonly discussed in the classroom, most stories and books you have read are proses! So it is very important to be able to tell all three of them apart.