Academic Vocabulary
Poetry
Poems
Guess Who?
Four Skinny Trees Comprehension questions
100

The main idea or message that is woven throughout a story, and is often about important topics like life, society, or human nature.

Theme

100
The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.
"the alliteration of “sweet birds sang”"


Alliteration

100

Fourth Grade Rockstar, Is a what type of Poem?

Rhymed verse

100

Name this Poem

Four Skinny Trees

100

Four Skinny Trees 

What are some big ideas that the poet is trying to convey?  

  • The speaker thinks that she and the trees understand each other.

  • The trees are violent and tough because they live in the city.

  • The speaker is sad sometimes, but she feels better when she looks at the trees.

  • The poet is trying to convey how the trees work hard to survive in the city.


200

 The way an author organizes information in a text

Text structure

200

“Dude, I'm drowning in work,”  and "He's a couch potato"

metaphor

200

Fourth Grade Rockstar is a rhyme verse poem. How does the rhyme scheme create meaning? (R.1.4)

Ⓐ The consistent rhyme scheme creates a sing-song rhythm that sounds like music.

Ⓑ The inconsistent rhyme scheme shows the speaker’s rebellious attitude.

Ⓒ The inconsistent rhyme scheme shows the speaker's uncertainty and anxiety about going to school.

Ⓓ The consistent rhyme scheme emphasizes the speaker's confidence and excitement about starting fourth grade.

A

200

Sandra Cisneros

Author of "Four Skinny Trees" Poem 

200

In the word "planted", The suffix is?

ED

300

 A line of dialogue in a story that explicitly states the story's theme. I

Stated Theme

300

“kill two birds with one stone”

Idiom

300

What does the author mean by the metaphor, “With a notebook guitar” (line 3)?

The fourth grade student uses his imagination to make his school supplies seem like his instruments. 

300

He sang of homework woes and cafeteria blues, Of teachers and tests, and dodgeball cues. 

Fourth Grade Rockstar

300

“Four skinny trees with skinny necks and pointy elbows like mine.” (line 3)

D

400

A theme in a story or piece of literature that is not directly stated, but rather implied for the reader to identify

Implied Theme

400

 “as quiet as a mouse,” and  “as strong as an ox,”

Simile

400

"So let’s hear it for the boy with the rock and roll soul”

What is the meaning of the word rock as used in line 13?

  • A type of music

400


Spelling Bee

400

Reread stanzas 2 and 7. How do these stanzas add to the meaning of the poem?

  • Stanza two describes how pitiful the trees are, but stanza seven shows how strong the trees really are. It reflects how the speaker feels throughout the poem

500

A hint or piece of information that helps a reader understand the meaning of an unfamiliar word in a sentence, paragraph, or passage.

Context Clue

500

"The flowers danced to the wind"

Personification

500

Fourth Grade Rockstar

What message do you think the poet is trying to give you?

We all have goals don't be afraid to try, Pursue your dreams, reach for the stars

500

They send ferocious roots beneath the ground. 

They grow up and they grow down and grab the earth between their hairy toes.

Four Skinny Trees

500

What types of figurative language does the poet use?

  • Simile: “skinny necks and pointy elbows like mine” describes the speaker  

  • Personification: “they bite the sky with violent teeth describes how the trees reach for the sun