5 forms of poetry to write with children

I love to write poems. Children do too.

Giving young children a simple structure or a repetitive pattern to start from gets them thinking about words, how they sound, what they mean, the number of syllables and letters. All the while they are having fun, playing with words and sounds, and learning about language.

Five easy poems to write with children are:

• Acrostic poems
• Sound poems
• Haiku
• “I love” poems, and
• Shape poems

Acrostic poems are one of the easiest. They don’t need to rhyme or follow a set rhythmic pattern.

To write an acrostic poem:

1. Choose a one-word topic; for example, summer.

2. Write the word vertically, with each letter of the word beneath the preceding one; for example:

S

U

M

M

E

R

3. Write a word, phrase or short sentence beginning with each letter; for example:

Sizzling heat

Umbrellas dot the beach

Mums applying sunscreen

Merry children jumping waves

Everyone is happy

Relaxing at the beach!

While any time is a great time for writing poems, Christmas provides an additional purpose and incentive for writing: the poems can be “published” inside a card, on a calendar, presented on a scroll, or framed as a poster. These make lovely personalized gifts for parents, grandparents, other relatives, and friends.

Examples of each of the five poetic forms listed above are available in readilearn resources. Templates which can be used for writing collaborative class poems, or on which children can write their own poems, are also included.

The resource Writing Christmas poems describes the structure of the poems and suggests topics for writing. While the document does make suggestions specific to Christmas, poems can be written about any topic. (Look for poems related to other topics to be uploaded in 2017.)

The poems are available in three formats, all of which can be found in the resources section Cultural Studies/Christmas.

Alternatively, use the search tool to find a particular poetic form; for example, haiku.

Choose the format that suits your needs best:

• Individual documents

Each poem and template is available for individual download.

Choose just the poems you wish to use. Print them on A3 or larger, laminate, and display in the classroom to read and use as models for children’s writing.

Print the templates on A3 or larger to use for collaborative writing of class poems, or print on A4 for children’s individual writing.

• A collection

In response to feedback, I gathered all poems and templates into one zip folder Christmas Poetry – writing with children, which gives you the option of downloading them all in one action.

• Interactive resource for the whiteboard

All Christmas poems and templates are available in a resource ready for display on the interactive whiteboard.

From the menu, choose the poetic form to present to the children. Read and discuss the poem. Explain its structure. Write a collaborative class poem on the template using the keyboard to enter text, or writing with the appropriate interactive tool.

Both collections, downloadable and interactive, are new this week. I would be interested to know which format suits your needs best.

I hope you and your children enjoy writing Christmas poems. I’ll see you next week with some suggestions for celebrating friendship. In the meantime, enjoy the weekend.

Remember, if you haven’t yet subscribed, an introductory discount of 20% is available to all who subscribe this year. Just use the coupon code welcome at the checkout to receive your discount.

Thank you for reading. I appreciate your feedback. Please share you thoughts.

Happy teaching and learning,

Norah

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