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A POEM A TERM

Writing Poems
& 
The National Literacy Strategy

a guide for teachers:  Year Six

by Roger Stevens

""Poetry should be approached with a sense of fun, 
excitement and discovery."
- Roger Stevens

KEY STAGE TWO

Year Six, Term Three

3. Haiku Sequence
(Term Three)

By this stage of the pupil's school life, he or she should be familiar with the haiku. It is a poem that originated in Japan consisting of seventeen syllables, arranged in three lines of 5, 7 and 5.

In its original form, a haiku would always allude to the season in which it was written and so it makes a good choice for a poem based on the seasons.

But because, in my experience, children seem to enjoy the process of counting syllables and because it is a non-threatening poetic form (being short), I find it lends itself very well as the vehicle for a story.

Ask the children to write down a story as a series of events; something that happened to them or to someone that they know well, a friend or a family member. Write this as a list, numbering key points.
1. My sister was going to the shops
2. She was supposed to meet Mum there in her lunch hour
3. She was going to buy a new skirt
4. She got on the bus but forgot where she was going
5. She got off at the school bus stop
6. When she got to the school gate she remembered it was Saturday

Now write the story as a haiku. Simply take each point and say it out loud. Say it in different ways, counting on the fingers to find the right length.

Jodi left the house
She walked fast to the bus stop
But on board she dreamt

With a jolt she woke
And alighted at the school
She walked to the gate

Suddenly she knew
She was not where she should be
She was still dreaming

This was the weekend
She should be meeting her Mum
In the town centre

Mum would be waiting
To buy Jodi a new skirt
She would not be pleased

When the first draft is finished it is likely to be very basic and not very 'poetic' so it must then be worked on. With a haiku more is less - so encourage simplicity. Look for the exact word.

The Last Day Of My Holiday
(a Haiku poem)
by Roger Stevens

When we left Grove Park
My best mate went to one school
I went somewhere else

We arranged to meet
To play tennis in the park
I was kitted out

He lived across town
It was a long, hot bike ride
It would be worth it

I knocked on his door
He's at school, his mum told me
They went back today

As I cycled home
My head buzzed like a bees' nest
My eyes were stinging

He was my best friend
How could he do that to me?
Just a joke, he said

[end]

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