4.5 More Rhyming Poems

Learning Targets

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to say YES to the following questions.

• Can I use language in creative and playful ways to develop style?
• Can I use writing and design processes to plan, develop, and create texts for a variety of purposes and audiences?
• Can I read poetry as a source of creativity and joy?

Rhythm, Rhyme, and Stanzas...

We’ve all done it. Our favourite song comes on and we start tapping our foot, moving our bodies, or drumming the tabletop. We respond to the rhythm, or beat, of the music.

Both of the poems you've studied so far have rhthym and rhyme. To understand these elements think of music. Rhyme is like the lyrics (words of a song) and rhythm is like the beat.

No doubt you can tell when two words rhyme—for example, bear and care; silly and chili; wheel and feel. The end sound in each word is the same, but the beginning is different.

You have also learned what a stanza is - basically, a verse of a poem.

In this lesson, you will enjoy a few less serious rhyming poems before trying to write one of your own.

Rhyming Couplets

Look at some of the rhyming couplets from Casey at the Bat (shown below in red and blue).

The outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day:
The score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play,
And then when Cooney died at first, and Barrows did the same,
A pall-like silence fell upon the patrons of the game.

They help to make the poem easy to read with rhythm and beat.

Look at the poem below, Wayne the Stegosaurus. How many stanzas does it have? Answer 6

Read it over one time (with rhythm if you can). To help you to find the beat, you can clap, tap your foot, or snap your fingers. In the first stanza, the places you should clap on each line are underlined.

Wayne the Stegosaurus
by Kenn Nesbitt

Meet the stegosaurus, Wayne.
He doesn't have the biggest brain.
He's long and heavy, wide and tall,
but has a brain that's extra small.

He's not the brightest dinosaur.
He thinks that one plus one is four.
He can't remember up from down.
He thinks the sky is chocolate brown.

He wears his bow tie on his tail
and likes to eat the daily mail.
When playing hide-and-seek he tries
to hide by covering his eyes.

He thinks that black is really white.
He's sure the sun comes out at night.
He thinks that water grows on trees
and when it's hot he starts to freeze.

He's happy when he's feeling ill.
He likes to dance by standing still.
And when it's time to go to bed,
he puts bananas on his head.

He thinks his name is Bob, not Wayne,
but that's what happens when your brain
(although you're big and brave and spiny)
is very, very, very tiny.

Copyright © 2013 Kenn Nesbitt
All Rights Reserved
From www.poetry4kids.com

Video

This video has a recording of the poem. While it is not read in perfect rhythm, it has amazing expression!

Another Rhyming Pattern

Read and enjoy!

Xbox, Xbox
A Love Poem
by Kenn Nesbitt

Xbox, Xbox,
you're the one for me.
I also love my 3DS
and my Nintendo Wii.

GameCube, GameBoy,
Apple iPod Touch.
I never thought that I would ever
be in love this much.

Pac-Man, Sonic,
Mario, and Link.
Your names are etched inside my mind
in everlasting ink.

Run, jump, flip, hang,
double-jump, and climb.
That's all I want to do
with every second of my time.

This is true love.
Yes, it's plain to see.
Xbox, Xbox,
will you marry me?

Copyright © 2013 Kenn Nesbitt
All Rights Reserved
From www.poetry4kids.com

What is the rhyming pattern in the Xbox poem?

Answer The second and fourth line of each stanza rhyme.

How many stanzas does the Xbox poem have?

Answer 5

I Tried To Take A Selfie

It used to be that, if someone didn't like you, they might say that your face could "crack a mirror." We know that wouldn't actually happen and we still have mirrors, of course, but these days, people often use cell phones as mirrors. This happens when they take selfies.

From the author of the poem below, Kenn Nesbitt (poetryforkids.com):
But what would happen if your face could crack a mirror, and you tried to take a selfie? Would it break the camera? The phone? The computer? The whole Internet? Might it bring down all electronics around the world. I don't know, but I always enjoy exploring ideas like this in a poem.

How many stanzas are in the poem below?  Answer 4

Read and enjoy:

I Tried to Take a Selfie
A Funny Technology Poem for Kids
by Kenn Nesbitt

I tried to take a selfie
when I was all alone.
I never should have done it.
It broke my mobile phone.

I guess I'm not so pretty.
I thought that I was cuter.
I snapped one with my laptop
and busted the computer.

I cracked my father's camera.
My mother's iPad too.
This shouldn't be so difficult.
I don't know what to do.

At last I got a selfie;
perhaps the worst one yet.
I posted it online today.
It broke the Internet.

Copyright © 2015 Kenn Nesbitt
All Rights Reserved
From www.poetry4kids.com

What is the rhyming pattern?  Answer Lines 2 and 4 in each stanza rhyme.

Which Was Your Favourite?

You've just read and viewed three poems:

• Wayne the Stegosaurus
• XBox, Xbox
• I Tried To Take a Selfie

Which was your favourite?

What do you enjoy most about Kenn Nesbitt's poems?

You can go to your Learning Guide to answer these questions, but don't close this online book. You can use it to look at the poems and to continue the lesson when you have completed the questions above.

Read Aloud

Choose your favourite poem from this lesson and practise reading it well. Here are some tips:

• • • • Expression and volume: Adjust your volume and tone of voice to show emotion and/or mood.
      • Clarity and Enunciation - Speak (articulate) clearly, with good pronunciation so each word can be understood.
      • Pace / Fluency – Speak smoothly and fluently, with few hesitations.

When you are feeling confident, read it aloud to your home facilitator. Talk together about what you did well and what you could improve upon.

Reminder

Read some poems independently. Then, add to your poetry reading journal to show your independent reading reflections.