The task
Students were invited to write a poem for the school literary magazine.

Circumstances of performance This sample of student work was produced under the following conditions: alone in a group in class as homework with teacher feedback with peer feedback timed opportunity for revision

What the work shows
b Literature: The student produces work in at least one literary genre that follows the conventions of the genre.

This poem incorporates many of the elements that distinguish poetry from prose, such as precise word choice, condensed form, and the use of sensory imagery, figurative language, and white space.

This work sample illustrates a standard-setting performance for the following part of the standards: b Literature: Produce work in at least one literary genre that follows the conventions of the genre.

This poem is an extended metaphor implicitly comparing Vivaldi’s music with a raindrop. The poem demonstrates the student’s understanding of the uses of figurative language and sensory imagery as conventions of the genre. The brevity and original imagery are reminiscent of the Japanese forms of haiku (seventeen syllables) and tanka (35 syllables).

The student used sensory images to appeal to the senses of:

hearing;
sight; and
touch.

The line breaks not only impart rhythm to the poem but also give the poem a sense of movement, e.g., “bigger and bigger.”

The alliterative use of sibilants (e.g., “splashes into thousands of silver violins”) acts as onomatopoeia reinforcing the musical metaphor.

The student’s use of personification gives the image of the rain drop falling to the ground a graceful, poised air. Again, the choice of metaphor echoes the musical theme.