Reading and Comprehension (Poetry) Set 6
Reading and Comprehension (Poetry) Set 6 is further 13+ Common Entrance practice at reading a short poem and answering questions on meaning, structure, form and poetic technique.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Read the poem through at least twice, first for overall meaning and then again to notice structure, form, rhyme and technique.
- Check the number of stanzas, the rhyme scheme and the rhythm, and consider what effect a regular or broken pattern might create.
- Identify techniques such as simile, metaphor, personification, sibilance and enjambment, and always explain the effect each one creates.
- Support every point with a short, embedded quotation, rather than a long section copied directly from the poem.
- For comparison questions, structure your answer around clear points of comparison rather than describing each poem separately.
- Match the depth and length of your answer to the number of marks available, particularly on longer comparison questions.
Worked example
In a poem about a fox moving through a sleeping city, the poet writes: 'It slipped between the bins like a shadow that had learned to walk.' Identify the technique used and explain its effect.
- Identify the technique: this is a simile, since the fox's movement is compared to a shadow using the word 'like'.
- Note the qualities of a shadow being transferred to the fox: quiet, dark and barely noticed.
- Link this to the fox: the simile suggests the fox moves through the city almost invisibly, unseen by the people sleeping around it.
- Comment on the effect: it creates a mysterious, slightly magical tone, making the reader see the fox as part of the city's hidden, secret life rather than an ordinary animal.
Practice questions
Type your answer and press Check to be marked straight away, or reveal the answer and mark yourself.
Q1What is the term for a poem that continues a sentence or idea from one line to the next without a pause?Show answer
Answer: Enjambment.
Q2Which two poetic techniques appear in the line 'The streetlamp's silver stare slid over its fur'?Show answer
Answer: Personification (the streetlamp 'stares') and alliteration (the repeated 's' sounds).
Q3A poem is written in a single, unbroken stanza with no rhyme. What effect might this create?Show answer
Answer: It can create a continuous, flowing or restless feeling, suggesting movement without pause or rest.
Q4Find and copy one word from 'the fox paused, listening to the city's held breath' that gives the city a human quality.Show answer
Answer: 'Breath' - personification.
Q5A poem compares the fox's eyes to 'two small, cold coins.' Name this technique.Show answer
Answer: Metaphor.
Q6Explain why a poet might choose soft, hissing sounds, sibilance, to describe a fox moving at night, rather than harsh, hard sounds.Show answer
Answer: Soft, hissing sounds can imitate the quiet, stealthy way the fox moves, making the sound of the poem match its subject.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a 13+ Common Entrance exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
'The bin lids clattered once, then silence swallowed the sound whole.' Identify the technique used and explain its effect.
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A poem about the fox is written in short, broken lines with frequent enjambment, unlike the longer, complete sentences used earlier in the same poem to describe the sleeping street. Explain the effect of this change in structure.
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Two poems both describe the same fox. Poem A is written in regular rhyming quatrains and describes it fondly as a clever survivor, while Poem B is written in free verse and describes it being startled and chased off by a car's headlights. Compare how the two poets use form and language. Refer to both poems in your answer.
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Free printable worksheet
Want more practice on paper? Download the reading and comprehension (poetry) set 6 worksheet pack - 9 pages of exam-style questions with a full mark scheme. One email opens every download in this browser for 14 days - no account, no card. Print it for personal and classroom use.
This topic is chapter 22 of 13+ English Workbook, the whole course as one free printable PDF.
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