Wednesday 28th April LI: To write a rhyming poem
• Success Criteria:
• Rhyming couplets – 2 rhyming lines
• Quatrains – 4 rhyming lines
Here is a poem we all know well, which uses
rhyming couplets. This means that the words
at the end of two lines rhyme. In this example,
the rhyming lines come one after the other –
‘star’ and ‘are’ and ‘sky’ and ‘high’.
The rhyming pattern for this poem is:
1,1,2,2,3,3
You will also notice the first and third pair of
lines are the same. Often poems use repetition.
Twinkle, Twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, Twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Quatrain poetry is a poem of four lines.
Usually the lines alternate in rhyme. So, the
first and third lines have a word rhyming
with each other at the end, as do the
second and fourth lines. This rhyming
pattern is 1,2,1,2.
But a quatrain poem can also be written
with a different rhythm. This rhyming
pattern is 1,1,2,2.
I lay staring up at the sky,
Not a cloud in sight,
Then a kite flew right on by,
And gave me a fright.
Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall.
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the King’s horses and all the King’s men,
Couldn’t put Humpty together again!
Here are some more good examples of rhyming poems:
Things to remember:
You don’t have to write a full sentence on each line, they
can go over onto the next one. This makes it much easier
to write.
The rhyming patterns can be:
1,1,2,2
1,2,1,2
1,2,1,3 – In this pattern, the first and third lines rhyme
but the second and forth lines don’t. That’s ok too!
Now Use What You’ve Learned
Now it’s time to try writing some rhyming poems of your own.
1. Choose a topic you are really familiar with or enthusiastic about.
2. Make a mind map of all the things you can say about that topic.
3. See if you can come up with pairs of words that rhyme.
4. Decide which rhyming pattern you would like to use.
5. Experiment! – Good Luck