Poetry Booklet Guidelines for Writing Limericks, Concrete Poems, and Personification Poems

Limericks Limericks are a form of light verse, usually composed of five lines arranged in a specific rhyming pattern.

Limerick Pattern Line 1…. a (8 syllables) Line 2…. a (8 syllables) Line 3…. b (5 syllables) Line 4…. b (5 syllables) Line 5…. a (8 syllables)

Limericks are… Humorous, witty, ironic, and sometimes nonsensical Used to ridicule politics, convention, human mannerisms, or people of importance

There was an old man of Blackheath, Who sat on his set of false teeth. Said he, with a start, “O Lord, bless my heart! I’ve bitten myself underneath !”

Getting Started Brainstorm 5-6 two syllable places—cities, states, countries, streets, etc. ▫Peru, a zoo, tree, Rochester, Minnesota, Iowa Choose the 2 places that are easy to rhyme and brainstorm a list of rhyming words. ▫Tree knee, bee, see, three, free Using one of the following templates, write a limerick by filling in the blanks with your own rhyming words. Use the past tense.

Template A TemplateExample There once was a ___ from ___. All the while s/he hoped ___. So s/he___, And ___, That ___ from ___. There once was a man in a tree. All the while he hoped to be free. So he tried to fly, And really did try, That bird-brained man hurt his left knee.

Template B TemplateExample I once met a ___ from ___. Every day s/he __. But whenever s/he___, The ___, That strange ___ from ___. I once met a girl from my street. Every day she really could eat Five burgers, five fries, And, yes, “supersize.” That girl was surprisingly sweet.

Concrete Poems A concrete poem’s appearance is intertwined with its meaning. It may rhyme or be written in free verse.

Getting Started Pick a theme or topic. Think of a shape that would represent that theme or topic. Sketch the shape of the object you chose. Brainstorm a list of words that fit your message or that describe your shape. Consider words that appeal to the senses. Using words from your list, begin writing your poem in or around your chosen shape.

Tips for Writing Concrete Poetry The shape and the poem should work together. Removing either one would lessen the impact of the poem. The shape of the poem itself fills in the gaps in the reader’s mind. Use white space thoughtfully.

Personification Poem Making animals, objects, or ideas do what people do is personifying them.

The birches stood up to their knees in grass. A siren bit into the midnight quiet. The caution signal winked at the traffic.

… make an engine purr or snarl …make a star or leaf dance …make an old elevator wheeze or an old engine sneeze

Try These The antique chair ________when the fat man sat in it. The farm house _____________in the chilling wind. The line drive ______________ past the shortstop’s head. The Corvette __________________to a stop.

Write your own poem that personifies and object. Your poem may rhyme or be written in free verse.