Forms of Poetry

1. The Limerick

A limerick is a five-line poem written with one couplet and one triplet. If a couplet is a
two-line rhymed poem, then a triplet would be a three-line rhymed poem. The rhyme
pattern is a a b b a with lines 1, 2 and 5 containing 3 beats and rhyming, and lines 3 and 4
having two beats and rhyming. Some people say that the limerick was invented by
soldiers returning from France to the Irish town of Limerick in the 1700's.

Limericks are meant to be funny. They often contain hyperbole, onomatopoeia, idioms,
puns, and other figurative devices. The last line of a good limerick contains the PUNCH
LINE or "heart of the joke." As you work with limericks, remember to have pun, I mean
FUN! Say the following limericks out loud and clap to the rhythm.

A flea and a fly in a flue

Were caught, so what could they do?
Said the fly, "Let us flee."
"Let us fly," said the flea.
So they flew through a flaw in the flue.

There once was an old man of Esser,

Whose knowledge grew lesser and lesser,
It at last grew so small
He knew nothing at all,
And now he's a college professor.

A mouse in her room woke Miss Doud

Who was frightened and screamed very loud
Then a happy thought hit her
To scare off the critter
She sat up in bed and just meowed

You will soon hear the distinctive beat pattern of all limericks. The rhythm is just as
important in a limerick as the rhyme. Try completing this limerick.

There once was a pauper named Meg

Who accidentally broke her _______.
She slipped on the ______.
Not once, but thrice
Take no pity on her, I __________.

Lyrical Lesson: Limericks

1. Practice the rhythm of limericks by clapping you hands or snapping your fingers.
2. Think of some funny names, places, or situations.
3. Using the a a b b a 5-line form, write an original limerick.
4. How would you illustrate the page if your poem was published in a book
of limericks? What types of art would you use?

2. The Acrostic

Acrostic Poems: All About Me and My Favorite Things

The students

• find words that begin with the letters in their own names, using a variety of
sources including word banks and online dictionaries.
• create two acrostic poems.
• revise poems as needed, for meaning and conventions.
• share their poems with classmates.

Students could write free-verse acrostic poems about themselves using the letters of their
names to begin each line. They then write an additional poem about something that is
important to them, also using the letters of that word for the beginning of each line. After
proofreading, both poems are recopied or typed and illustrated and then mounted on
construction paper for display. The activity addresses personal reflection and creative
writing along with spelling and phonemic awareness.

The use of children’s names in reading and writing activities can bring personal meaning
to literacy work. Any good writing program gives students the opportunity to write in
many genres, including poetry, and also includes making time for sharing and response.
By using their own names as a starting point for writing free-verse poems, children are
using words that are important to them while learning and reinforcing initial letter
sounds. Sharing their finished work gives value to the communication part of the writing
process.

3. Cinquain Poem

A cinquain is a five line poem. Cinquain ("cin-kain") is a five-line form that uses a
syllable count of two-four-six-eight-two. A "cinquain" (from cinq the French word for
five) usually follows this organization:

Line 1: a one-word line, a noun, that gives the poem its title

Line 2: two adjectives that describes what the poem is about

Line 3: three action -ing verbs that describe something the subject of the poem does

Line 4: a phrase that indicates a feeling related to the subject of the poem

Line 5: a one-word line, noun, that sums about the poem is about, essentially renaming it

Triangles

Triangles
Pointy edges
Revolving, rotating, angling
Triangles are all different.
180o

Tree
Green tall
Reaching, bending, fluttering
Leaves and twigs in the wind
Chestnut

Through reading cinquain and then writing their own, students move from simply reading
the poems to analyzing the poems and, ultimately, composing poems that match the
format.

Students will

• describe the basic conventions of cinquain.

• interpret examples of cinquain.
• characterise the relationship between structure and meaning in cinquain.
• compose a cinquain that describes a familiar person, place, or thing

Learning about Cinquain

1. Share examples of cinquain with your students. You might compose your own
examples or compose examples with your students, before students write
individually or in small groups. Hundreds of samples available on the internet.
2. You or the students might read the poems aloud. Try reading some of the cinquain
more than once to show how different words can be emphasized and to talk about
line breaks.
3. Invite them to look for similarities and patterns among the cinquain that you read
as a group. To help students notice the patterns, write several of the poems on the
board or on a handout with similar lines parallel (all first lines parallel, all second
lines parallel, and so on).
 4. Students should be able to extract the basic elements of these poems. You might
lead students through the exploration process by asking them to think aloud about
these questions:
• How many lines do these poems have?
• What do you notice about the words on the first line? (second, third,
etc.)
• Which words seem most important to each poem, and why?
• How do the lines relate to each other?
• How does the structure (the organization of the lines) relate to the
meaning? If you rearrange the words, how does the meaning change?

Cinquain Reflections Worksheet

1. What do you like most about your poem?

2. If you could change something about the poem, what would you change?
3. Of the poems that you heard when we shared our cinquain, which poems did
you like best and why?
4. What will you do differently the next time you write a poem?

Haiku –

Looking in detail at a poetry writing lesson that is well planned and rich in both language
and detail

In this three-part lesson, students write and illustrate haiku depicting seasonal images.
First they use their observation skills, real-world knowledge, and knowledge of parts of
speech to help them create seasonal word charts. They then listen to and read samples of
haiku to identify haiku criteria, followed by a writing session where they create haiku that
depict seasonal images. Finally, they publish their poetry mounted on colorful
backgrounds that illustrate the images in their poems.

Haiku usually depict an image from nature rather than an action and facilitate the reader’s
reflection on nature. Traditionally, they follow a three line, 5-7-5 syllable format,
although that restriction has been altered in recent years. Today, one may find haiku that
are only one line, or in which the syllable pattern has been shortened or lengthened. For
this lesson, using syllabication is an objective, so adhering to the 5-7-5 pattern is
necessary.

This lesson inherently involves restrictions of convention that could hinder some
students’ creative use of descriptive language. For that reason, it may be best to introduce
haiku-writing to students after they have had other experiences in using creative, sensory
language in various ways.

Students will
 • identify subject matter and format criteria of traditional haiku.
• use traditional criteria to write haiku.
• use descriptive words to create visual images in writing.
• use visual art to interpret their own written images.

Resources
• chart paper
• markers
• scratch paper
• pencils
• blank white or parchment paper (8x11)
• fine-tipped black markers
• construction paper (9x12 plus assorted colors in smaller pieces) or other desired
art materials for illustrations
• a book of haiku for reading aloud – or search on the internet

Preparation
• Select several haiku to read aloud. Make sure the poems that you choose use the
5-7-5 pattern.
• Transcribe two or three onto chart paper for student reference and syllabication
review.

Instruction and Activities

Session One
1. Arrange students into three heterogeneous groups, with reading, writing, and
speaking ability balanced among the groups. Each group will need table space.
Tell students that each group will create a word chart. Give each group one piece
of chart paper and two markers.
2. Ask one group of students to think about the current season, and write a list of
words or phrases that depict things (nouns) that are indicative of it. For example,
during winter, responses might include snow, ice, thunder, bare tree branches, and
pine trees. During spring, responses might include flowers, buds, new leaves, and
ducklings.
3. Ask another group of students to chart words that will describe the season
(adjectives). For example, during summer, responses might include hot, boiling,
sizzling, and bright. During autumn, responses might include crunchy, brown, and
dying.
4. The third group will write words that are actions for the season (verbs). Examples
might be swim for summer, skate for winter, bloom for spring, or fall for autumn.
5. Give students time to generate as many words as they can on one piece of chart
paper. When the three word charts are complete, post them so that all students can
review all charts and give input. Some words may be added to (or deleted from)
each chart as students discover that they are categorized by parts of speech.
 6. Tell students that the next day, they will use the word charts in a poetry-writing
activity.
7.
Session Two
1. Read aloud two or three haiku, one at a time, with time for student reaction after
each one. Ask students to respond with their feelings or impressions about what
they hear.
2. Post the previously transcribed haiku where all students can see them. Have
students observe and read the poems to themselves; then, ask if anyone has
noticed anything similar about all three poems. Point out in the poems any
observations that are mentioned. When students have finished responding, choose
one of the poems and have students read it aloud together. Then read the poem
one line at a time, having students count the syllables in each line. Write the
number of syllables in the margin next to each line.
3. Move to the second poem and repeat the process of counting syllables. Ask
students to make an observation about the line and syllable pattern of the poems.
4. Make a reference chart for haiku for students to use as they write. Ask students
questions about the poems to help them identify the criteria for the poems. Some
examples might be
• Do you see any similarities about these poems?
• What kinds of things do they make you think about?
• What kinds of things are happening?
•
You will want students to recognize that the poems depict images, and that they follow a
pattern of three lines and the 5-7-5 syllable pattern.

5. Students will work independently to write their own haiku, using words from the
charts to help them generate ideas. Make sure that students understand that the
word lists are for reference and ideas; encourage them to use their own words if
they think of something that is not on the charts.
6. Circulate among students to answer and ask questions, and have students check
their syllable patterns. As students write particularly interesting phrases, share
them with the class to help those who are having difficulty with ideas.
7. As students complete their haiku, have them rewrite them in the center of 8x11
white or parchment paper. Remind them that they are publishing, so they need to
be using their best printing. Have students trace over their pencil writing with a
fine-tipped black marker and save their work for the illustration activity.

Session Three

1. Students will mount their final copy of their haiku in the center of 9x12
construction paper, then use torn paper designs to illustrate the feeling or image of
the poem. Have available for students a selection of 9x12 sheets of construction
paper for backgrounds, and smaller pieces of a larger variety of colors to use for
the torn paper designs.
2. Have students refer to one of the haiku that was transcribed on chart paper. Ask
them to talk about the image depicted in the haiku, and the feelings it evokes.
Have them talk about colors and/or shapes that would help illustrate these things.
3. Give students directions for affixing their poems to construction paper
backgrounds. Tell them they will be using torn paper to make designed borders
that illustrate the images or feelings in their poems. Show students how to tear
construction paper to create a shape or design, if they need an example. Show
how even straight lines should have torn edges.
4. Students will work independently to create torn paper designs for their poem
backgrounds. As they finish, display their work.