Kid’s Corner

Fun Butterfly Activities (for kids of all ages)

Poetry for Kids

By Mary Eileen Rufkahr

Poetry is a great way to express your thoughts, ideas, hopes, and dreams!

Poems are also fun to write … you can have them rhyme or be free verse … use punctuation or not … be serious or silly! The important thing to remember is to let the words convey your feelings and emotions!

Once you’ve written your poems, “publish” them into your very own book, create original greeting cards, or share them aloud with family and friends at a poetry reading!

There are several forms of poetry. Here are three types you may want to try.

Acrostic poems

When you write an acrostic poem think of the topic you want to write about. Write the word down the side of the page. Next think of a word or a phrase that begins with each letter of your topic word. Acrostic poems can rhyme, but they do not have to either. Here is an example of an acrostic poem using the topic word of butterfly:

  • Beautiful
  • Useful
  • Treat for the eyes
  • Tree tops
  • Exciting
  • Rainbow colored
  • Flower lover
  • Lofty flyer
  • Yellow sun

Here is an acrostic poem about a caterpillar:

  • Cute
  • Awesome
  • Tiny
  • Eats
  • Roams
  • Promise of things to come
  • Important
  • Lunching
  • Leggy
  • Adult-in-the-making
  • Ravenous

Haiku Poems

Haiku poems originated in Japan and often revolve around nature. Some Haikus are written as riddles, expecting the reader to guess what the poet is writing about. Haikus are written according to a pattern of syllables. The first line has five syllables; the second line seven syllables; and the third line has five syllables as well.

Here are two examples of Haiku:

Is the butterfly
Really a living, flying
Sparkling bright jewel?

Flying in the sky,
On flower nectar I feast.
Enjoy my beauty!

Diamante Poems

A diamante poem is in the shape of a diamond. It does not have to rhyme, but each line uses specific types of words. You can “build” from one topic or choose a beginning topic and make the end topic its opposite.

First, choose your title.

  1. Line #1 is the beginning topic word of the poem.
  2. In line #2, think of two adjectives about the beginning topic.
  3. For line #3, use three -ing words about the beginning topic.
  4. Next, in line #4, use four nouns or a short phrase linking your beginning topic to your ending topic.
  5. Now, use three -ing words about the ending topic for line #5.
  6. Then think of two adjectives about the ending topic for line #6.
  7. Your last line is your ending topic word.

A Butterfly’s World

Nature
Free, Open
Amazing, Dazzling, Interesting,
Colorful flowers, sunny days and warm breezes
Energizing, Promising, Ongoing,
Magnificent, Awesome
Life

Now that you have been introduced to a few of the many different forms of poetry, get busy and begin to create some poems to enjoy yourself and, hopefully, to also share with others!