Page 38 - SpringBoard_CloseReading_Workshop_Grade7_Flipbook

Check your Understanding
1. Pair with another student and, using context clues and reference resources,
determine the meaning of any new words you need to define. Then choose five words from those that have been underlined, bolded, and/or that you have circled and discuss how the definitions help you understand the meaning of the poem.
2. Choose two or three of the words you have examined that you think are
important to your understanding of the poem. Use the words in sentences as
part of a summary explaining the central ideas in the poem and how these
words contribute to your understanding of the poem. words or images.
3. This poem uses an extended metaphor in which the railway train is compared to an animal. Use the first column of the graphic organizer below to find textual evidence of how the poet uses this extended metaphor. In the second column, analyze the connotations suggested by these words and images, and interpret what they suggest about the train. Two examples have been done for you.
Textual Evidence (Line Number)
“lap the miles” (1) and “lick the valleys up” (2)
“stop to feed itself at tanks” (3)
The words “lap” and “lick” both have animal-like connotations that make the train appear to eagerly consume the land.
This image seems specific to an animal that would feed from a trough, such as a horse or sheep.
Connotation and Interpretation
aCademiC VoCabulaRy
A metaphor is a comparison between two unlike things in which one thing is said to
be another.
An extended metaphor is a metaphor extended over several lines
or throughout an
entire poem.
Connotation refers to the emotions or ideas that are suggested by or associated with specific
Close Reading Workshop 3 • Close Reading of Poetry 37
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