April 11 - Riddle Rhymes

Read the information below from poet Charles Ghigna about writing Riddle Rhymes. 

(underdown.org)

Riddle rhymes are poems that have a riddle. The answer to the riddle is at the end of the poem. These riddle poems are created by using the ballad stanza. Here are three of my riddle rhymes.

High Flyer
I fly above the tallest trees.
I'm not a bird or plane.
I have no wings or feathered things.
I do not like the rain.
I play among the passing clouds.
I like to rise and sail.
I am a friend who loves the wind.
I'm big and have a tail.
I like the gusty month of March.
I soar way out of sight.
My shape is like a diamond.
I am a brand-new kite.

The Everlasting Light
I shine forever free.
I do not cost a cent.
I need no bulb or battery.
My light is permanent.
You'll find me way up in the sky,
When each new day's begun,
But do not look me in the eye --
I am the shining sun.

Your Highness
I am a free and open field
That's never out of bounds,
Where kites and planes and boomerangs
Can do their ups and downs.
I am the biggest yard of all,
Where birds begin their play
Of hide-n-seek among the clouds
At each new break of day.
I am the place called outer space,
Where nothing is too high.
I am the home of all the stars --
I am the endless sky.

by Charles Ghigna ("Father Goose") author of more than thirty books of poetry for children and adults, and an all-around good guy. 

Check out these rhyming dictionaries if you need help finding a rhyming word:
- http://www.rhymer.com/
- http://www.rhymezone.com/
- http://www.writeexpress.com/online2.html


Try writing your own Riddle Rhyme. Here is my first attempt:

Canadian Pastime

by Kelly Flasha

The air is cool
and smells of popcorn.
Blade meets ice
and sounds a horn.

Crack, smash, swish, roar!
Across glass they soar.
I am hockey. 

Happy Riddling,
Mrs. F.

April 10 - The Ballad Stanza

Another form of poetry is called the ballad stanza. Below is information from underdown.org about the ballad stanza. 

The ballad stanza is also one of the most popular forms of poetry for children. A ballad stanza is a group of four lines. That group is called a stanza. The ballad stanza has a rhyme at the end of line number two and line number four. Here are three poems that have ballad stanzas. The first poem has three ballad stanzas. The last two poems have two. The first two poems are from Tickle Day, the last poem is from Halloween Night.

The Bee Poem
A poem is a busy bee
Buzzing in your head.
His hive is full of hidden thoughts
Waiting to be said.

His honey comes from your ideas
That he makes into rhyme.
He flies around looking for
What goes on in your mind.

When it's time to let him out
To make some poetry,
He gathers up your secret thoughts
And then he sets them free.

A Poem Is a Little Path
A poem is a little path
That leads you through the trees.
It takes you to the cliffs and shores,
To anywhere you please.

Follow it and trust your way
With mind and heart as one,
And when the journey's over,
You'll find you've just begun.

Happy Halloween!
I'd rather be foolish than ghoulish,
I'd rather dress up as a clown;
I'd rather wear clothes with polka dot bows,
I'd much rather smile than frown.

I'd rather be kooky than spooky,
I'd rather be friendly than mean;
I'd rather go greeting than tricking and treating,
I'd rather have fun Halloween!

By Charles Ghingna

Now try writing your own ballad stanza. Your ballad can be short or long. The choice is up to you. Here is my first attempt:

Writer's Block
by Kelly Flasha

I'm sitting quietly
What will I write?
Maybe my pen and I
will get in a fight!

Happy Rhyming,
Mrs. F.

April 9 - The Rhyming Couplet: The One-Two Punch of Poetry

The Rhyming Couplet

Below are definitions and examples of couplet poems from underdown.org and Funny Poems for Free. 

Patterns of rhythm, meter and rhyme are essential ingredients in children's favorite poems. One of the most popular patterns is the couplet. Couplets have two lines that rhyme. Here are five couplets from poems in Tickle Day: Poems from Father Gooseby Charles Ghigna. (underdown.org)

from Little Daddy Longlegs
Little Daddy Longlegs played in the sun,
Climbing up the front steps just for fun.

from Turtle Trouble
Tell me if you think you know
How to make a turtle go.

from Tomorrow's My Birthday
Tomorrow's my birthday and I'll be four
And I won't have to stay home anymore.

from Nature's Shows
Nature puts on little shows
Every time it rains or snows.

from It's Snow Wonder
It's snow wonder that we cheer
Snowflakes when they fall each year.

Couplet poems, or couplet poetry, are poems comprised of two rhyming lines of verse. They can be as short as one couplet (two lines), or as long as it takes to tell the poem. While it might sound easier to write just two-line poems, this is not always the case. The shorter the poem, the more impact there must be on every word used. (Funny Poems for Free)

Check out these rhyming dictionaries if you need help finding a rhyming word:
- http://www.rhymer.com/
- http://www.rhymezone.com/
- http://www.writeexpress.com/online2.html

Go to the Giggle Poetry site to read about rhyming couplets, then try writing your own rhyming couplet to add to the poem Sick by Shel Silverstein.

Here is my first attempt:

My nose is dripping everywhere.
I think I've got snot in my hair!

You can write any kind of couplet poem you like - long or short!

Also, check out how to write a Backwards Poem like Bruce Lansky. 

Have fun,
Mrs. F.

April 8 - Haiku

"Haiku" is a traditional form of Japanese poetry.  Haiku poems consist of 3 lines.  The first and last lines of a Haiku have 5 syllables and the middle line has 7 syllables.  The lines rarely rhyme. (KidZone Poetry)

Here's a Haiku to help you remember:

     I am first with five
     Then seven in the middle --
     Five again to end.

Go to the Giggle Poetry website to find out more about writing Haiku poems. Click here for a Haiku worksheet. 

Also, follow the links below to read examples of Haiku:

- Children's Haiku Garden

- Haiku Poems by a class

- Haiku Examples

I am taking the challenge too so...

Spring

by Kelly Flasha

Waiting patiently

Sunlight warms snowy branches

Drips then freezes again

Enjoy,
Mrs. F.

P.S.

Our favourite Haiku as a class is this:

Haikus are easy
Sometimes they don't make sense
Refrigerator

- Author unknown

April 7 - Acrostic Poems

Let's start with an easy style of poem... the Acrostic!

Acrostic poems are simple to write. Check out the KidZone website for information on how to write an Acrostic poem. Below is an example of an acrostic poem by Kaitlyn Guenther. 

PUMPKINby Kaitlyn Guenther

	P	iles of candy
	U	nder the bed
	M	ake for a delicious snack
	P	eople
	K	now
	I	t’s been Halloween because
	N	o one is without candy

It may help to make a list or mind web of your ideas on a topic before writing your poem.  You may want to check out the online Acrostic Poem Creator. 

I am taking up the Poem a Day challenge too. Here is my attempt at a quick Acrostic poem.

The Dog Park

by Kelly Flasha

Dogs everywhere

Outside in the sun

Go, run, have fun!

Prance through the trees

And feel the cool breeze

Romp through the leaves

Keep me here forever please!

Happy Writing,

Mrs. F.