POETRY
PLAYING WITH LANGUAGE
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.
Poetry is a type of literature that
expresses ideas, feelings, or tells a
story in a specific form (usually
using lines and stanzas)
The poet is the author of the
poem.
What do you think about when you
hear the word POETRY?
There are many kinds of poems:
Some poems make us LAUGH.
Some poems make us THINK.
Some poems are SHORT & FUNNY.
Some poems are LONG & SERIOUS.
Some poems RHYME.
Some poems DO NOT RHYME.
Couplets
Couplets have two lines that rhyme.

Little Daddy Longlegs played in the sun,
Climbing up the front steps just for fun.

Tell me if you think you know
How to make a turtle go.

Tomorrow's my birthday and I'll be four
And I won't have to stay home anymore.
Here is a poem that has four couplets:
PUMPKINS ON GUARD
Look at all the pumpkin faces
Lighting up so many places.
On the porch and in the yard,
Pumpkin faces standing guard.
Looking friendly, looking mean,
With a smile or with a scream.
Orange faces burning bright
In the cool October night.
Stanzas
A STANZA is a group of lines in a
poem with a set pattern of rhyme.
For example:
abab / cdcd / efef etc.
aabb / ccdd / eeff etc.
"I'm Late For School"
I got up late for school today,
And nearly missed the bus!
I hurried down the stairs,
Wolfed my toast, and caused a fuss!
I quickly threw books in my bag,
My pens, my lunch and shorts.
Grabbed my coat from out the cupboard,
Took my bat and ball for sports.
I slid across the kitchen floor,
And hopped around the cat!
Then expertly rolled over,
Jumped back up and grabbed my hat!
I belted out of our front door,
Spun round and swung it shut.
Saw the bus was waiting for me,
I felt I had time to strut!
I climbed aboard and then froze still,
And knew that things weren't right!
My friends fell down in fits of fun,
And pointed with delight!
My face went red, I couldn't breathe,
For in my haste I knew!
I'd forgotten to wear trousers,
Jumper, shirt, my socks and shoes!
©2003 Gareth Lancaster
Limericks
A limerick is a silly poem with five lines. They are often funny or
nonsensical.
How to write a limerick:
The first, second and fifth lines rhyme with each other and have
the same number of syllables (typically 8 or 9).
The third and fourth lines rhyme with each other and have the
same number of syllables (typically 5 or 6)
Limericks often start with the line "There once was a..." or
"There was a..."
Example of an 8,8,5,5,8 syllable limerick:
STAR
There once was a wonderful star
Who thought she would go very far
Until she fell down
And looked like a clown
She knew she would never go far.
Cinquain
A cinquain is a poem with 5 lines:
Line 1 one word
Line 2 two words
Line 3 three words
Line 4 four words
Line 5 one word
Apples
Juicy, sweet
Red, yellow, green
Yummy, delicious, fantastic, healthy
Apples
Five W'S Poems
Each line in this type of poem answers
one of the 5 W's:
who? what? when? where? why?
I
Love eating apples
In the morning
In my kitchen
‘Cause they are so good for me
Acrostic Poems
An acrostic poem is one in which certain
letters, often the first letter of every line,
form a name or a theme.
Apples are yummy.
Pretty and juicy.
Please pick only when ripe.
Licking jelly apples are fun.
Eat them day and night.
In poems you often find:
alliteration
Consonant sounds repeated at the
beginnings of words
If Peter Piper picked a peck of
pickled peppers, how many pickled
peppers did Peter Piper pick?
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsQ2
6GF5L24
Simili
A comparison of two things using
“like, as than,” or “resembles.”
“She is as beautiful as a sunrise.”
Metaphor
A direct comparison of two unlike
things
“All the world’s a stage, and we are
merely players.”
- William Shakespeare