6.3.5 Creative writing of poetry

Edwards (1985) believes that writing poetry is "one of the best language experiences there is" (p.36) and her chapter in Word Magic (Ed. Walter McVitty) gives many ideas for encouraging children to write their own poetry. These include playing with words and experimenting with onomatopoea and alliteration, as well as different verse forms.

She also points out the need for a thoughtful response from the teacher and suggests the following questions for the writer:

For children to be able to experiment with different verse forms, they need to be exposed to a range of poetry. However MacLeod (1985) warns against teachers showing their students models and expecting them to be able to write something similar. He says that "when children try to mimic tightly constructed verse`, the result is often dull." (p.22).

While many teachers may feel that acrostics, haiku and cinquains can be over done, these short forms do give children the chance to succeed and develop their confidence in writing, particularly those whose mother tongue is another language.

Ron Thomas' P-Plate Poets (1999) mentioned before (6.3.4) has examples of these and other poetic forms for students to practise. Similarly, the Southern Cross University website has ideas for even the youngest children to begin writing their own verse. (www.scu.edu.au/schools/edu/student_pages/2001/jkelly)

Writing a lyric poem

The following is a suggestion for writing a lyric poem which could be done at Stages 2 and 3.

After they have heard a number of different lyric poems, the class can then attempt to write one, based on their own experience. The teacher can lead the students to see that a poem grows out of what the poet perceives through the five senses.

The class needs to be taken out into a particular environment or asked to imagine a particular setting. They will be directed to record what they see, taste, touch, smell, hear.

The students can start, for example, by describing the playground, saying they:

See trees
Smell the gum resin
Feel the heat of the sun
Hear the crickets

(They may not taste anything in this experience)

Next they find a describing word(s) for each thing they are sensing:

Tall, straight trees
Sharp smell of the gum resin
Burning heat of the sun
Noisy crickets

They can then be asked if they can create a simile for one or two or all of the things they are sensing:

They can then be asked if they can create a simile for one or two or all of the things they are sensing:

Trees tall and straight like telegraph poles
Sharp smell of the gum resin like cut grass
Burning heat of the sun like a furnace
Noisy crickets like children chattering

Now they can attempt, with the help of the teacher, to make a poem. It may read like this:

In our playground there are tall, straight trees
Like telegraph poles.
Their sharp resin smells like cut grass
In the furnace-like heat of the burning sun,
And the noisy crickets are like children chattering among the leaves.

The teacher can point out to the class how a simile can sometimes be reversed, such as in line four where "like a furnace" becomes "furnace-like".

At the end of the exercise the teacher could ask some students to share their poem with the class.