November Assignment of The Month
The assignment of the month for November is to choose either a shape or an acrostic poetry form. The poem is to be written about Remembrance Day. For those who are unfamiliar with these poetry forms I have included a list of instructions for both styles from the workbook Writing Poetry with Children by Evan Moor publishing company. This is an excellent resource for helping students become more familiar with writing poetry.
How to Write a Shape Poem:
1) Select an object. Simple shapes work best.
2) List descriptive words and phrases about the object.
3) Select the best ones and arrange them so they have a pleasing sound.
4) Draw an outline of the object using black crayon or marker. Place a sheet of thin white paper over the drawing fasten the pages together with a paper clip.
5)Write the words or phrases following the shape of the object to create the "shape" poem. Remove the top sheet of paper to see the completed poem.
Here is an example I found online at http://www.short-story-time.com/kids-concrete-poems.html
How to Write an Acrostic Poem:
1)Choose a topic word.
2)Make a list of words or short phrases that describe or relate to the topic word. These words and phrases should start with letters in the topic word.
3)Write the topic word vertically.
4)Choose words or phrases that have a pleasing or interesting sound.
Remember:
~each word or phrase must begin with a letter in the topic word
~The acrostic should make sense.
5)Write the word or phrase after the correct letter.
Here are a few examples from the workbook:
Next to each other
Eggs wait under the hen
Soon little chicks will
Tap their way out
Curious
Always in
Trouble