Coaxing Poems 9: Time for Rhyme

Well...hello there Poem Friends! Welcome to the ninth of ten poetry video visits here at The Poem Farm. In each of these short clips, I will share a small something about poetry, and you will always be able to find the poem(s) I read below the video. If you wish, you may watch the earlier videos linked below:

COAXING POEMS VISITS:

Visit 1: We Are Libraries

Visit 2: Eat the World

Visit 3: Make & Break a Pattern

Visit 4: Abacadabra!

Visit 5: Tell Us a Story

Visit 6: Give it Space

Visit 7: Choose a View

Visit 8: Tap it Out

And here is Visit 9: Time for Rhyme:

Students - Today we think about rhyme. Rhyme gives poetry a special sound, and many poets enjoy rhyming to create a mood or a feeling of repetition, song, or comfort for readers. I like to rhyme, and when I do, I like to be sure that my rhymes make sense. I do not want anyone to really notice the rhymes at all, actually. If a rhyme doesn't make sense, fit together, or seem to mean anything, like the one below, a reader might shake their head and think, "Well, that's weird." If I tried to write something for the purpose of weirdness, that's good, but otherwise, such weird head shaking is usually not a good sign.

I like eating sweet cupcakes.

I do not ride bikes in lakes.

In an earthquake, the earth shakes.

Morning Tea

Photo by Amy LV

I do use a few techniques to help me with rhymes:

• Jot the alphabet and make lists of rhyming words from the alphabet (see below).
• Use Rhymezone or a paper rhyming dictionary. Make lists of the sense-making rhymes.
• If I cannot find a strong rhyme for the word I wish to rhyme with, try changing that word to a different word that may have more rhymes. (But don't choose a not-so-good substitute!)
• Read each pair or set of rhymes in my poem to be sure they make sense. I do not want rhymes to draw attention to themselves.
• Ask someone to read my poem aloud and not comment. Listen and see if it needs changes.
• Ask someone to read my poem to see "Am I forcing the rhyme?" 

Below you can see where I have jotted the alphabet and made lists of rhyming words from it. You may also notice that the poem below is written in quatrains (four line stanzas) but that I chose to change to couplets (two line stanzas) when I typed it up. Line breaks (remember Coaxing Poems Visit 6: Give it Space) matter.

When you make your own poems, you will make many decisions and ask yourself many questions. One of these questions may be, "Do I wish to rhyme...or not?" And only you know the answer.

Thank you for joining me for Visit 9 of Coaxing Poems. May your days ahead be full of fine rhyme...

xo,

Amy

Please share a comment below if you wish.

Know that your comment will only appear after I approve it.

If you are under 13 years old, please only comment 

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Coaxing Poems 8: Tap it Out

Sweet greetings to you, my Poem Friends! Welcome to the eighth of ten poetry video visits here at The Poem Farm. In each of these short clips, I will share a small something about poetry, and you will always be able to find the poem(s) I read below the video. If you wish, you may watch the earlier videos linked below:

COAXING POEMS VISITS:

Visit 1: We Are Libraries

Visit 2: Eat the World

Visit 3: Make & Break a Pattern

Visit 4: Abacadabra!

Visit 5: Tell Us a Story

Visit 6: Give it Space

Visit 7: Choose a View

And now I am pleased to share Visit 8: Tap it Out:

Students - While most of this series has focused on meaning making in our poems, today's visit centers on sound. The sound of a beat, the tapping, the rhythm in our blood as we read and dance and move to a poem or song.

Spring Lions

by Amy LV

I love playing with meter, rhythm, and beat. One way I do this is by borrowing the meter of another poem or song and bringing my own ideas to it. Sometimes, when my writing is finished, I'll sing it...and sometimes I will just leave my lines as a poem, and no one will ever know that it is singable.

When I do this, I usually write out the poem or song that I am using as my "meter model," and count the syllables for each line, noting the number at the beginning or ending of each line. Then, this guides me in the writing of my own verse. Sometimes I copy the numbers down on a new blank page, right at the ends of where my own lines will go to help me write each line in the same rhythm as my model.

Then, as I write, line-by-line, I tap my fingers on the table or my shoulder and if my model is a song, I sing my poem to see if my words and syllables (and stresses, or the stronger or emphasized syllables) sound right.

On my notebook pages below, you can see where I have writen out a few little well-known tunes and their syllable counts.

Counting Song Syllables

Photo by Amy LV

You can try this same thing. It helps to start with a simple tune, matching each line of what you write to the sound of the tune you choose. It may even help to write your first meter-model poem together with a class, clapping and tapping syllables together. It can take a little while to get used to doing this, but once you start, you will find yourself tapping everywhere!

I often think about how wonderful it would be to be a musician and to invent new song rhythms, singing them along with new words, and I have been fortunate to have some friends who do this. Some of you have heard songs by my friends Barry Lane and Gart Westerhouse. These musicians write their own material and sometimes set the words of others to music too. It is an honor for me when they write music to my words, and in a way, it's the inside out process of what I do when I set poems to others' music. Here are a couple of pieces for you to enjoy by these friends. I share them with my gratitude to Gart and Barry:

Barry Lane sings THE SOUND OF KINDNESS, my latest book.

Gart Westerhouse plays piano and sings "In the Dark of Morning," a free verse poem shared here at The Poem Farm.

For those of you who are interested in music, you may wish to do this yourself - find some words (by you or another) and make a tune to go with them. If you play an instrument, experiment with bringing your instrument into the party too.

Thank you to Truman Elementary in Lackawanna, NY and Lindbergh Elementary in Kenmore, NY for the lovely visits this month. I am smiling away over here remembering our time together.

The final two Coaxing Poems videos will be up by month's end as once April begins, I will begin my (as yet unchosen) National Poetry Month Project.

Rose is hosting this week's Poetry Friday over at Imagine the Possibilities with a joyful nod to spring and its birds. Each Friday, all are invited to share poems, poem books, poetry ideas, and friendship in this open and welcoming poetry community.

May you tap your way through the week ahead!

xo,

Amy

Please share a comment below if you wish.

Know that your comment will only appear after I approve it.

If you are under 13 years old, please only comment 

with a parent or as part of a group with your teacher.

12 - Poems Can Be Songs

Welcome to my 2020 National Poetry Month Project
See My Last 10 Poetry Projects HERE

Each day of April 2020, I will share three things:

• A dice roll of three word dice
• A video explaining one poetic technique titled POEMS CAN... You can also find these at Sharing Our Notebooks as part of my ongoing Keeping a Notebook project
• A poem inspired by one or more of the dice words and the technique

Here are All of This Month's Poems:

10 Years of National Poetry Month History at The Poem Farm

April 1 - Poems Can Go Down the Page

April 2 - Poems Can Play With Space
April 3 - Poems Can Tell a Story
April 4 - Poems Can Compare Two Things

April 5 - Poems Can Borrow a Pattern from the World
April 6 - Poems Can Define a Word
April 7 - Poems Can Rhyme
April 8 - Poems Can Not Rhyme
April 9 - Poems Can be Written in Stanzas
April 10 - Poems Can Ask Questions
April 11 - Poems Can Be Circles

And now, for today's words! 

Day 12 Words

Photo by Amy LV

Thank you to Heinemann for giving away a copy of my book POEMS ARE TEACHERS: HOW STUDYING POETRY STRENGTHENS WRITING IN ALL GENRES each week of April. I will draw names from the previous week each Thursday evening at 11:59pm, and I will announce a winner each Friday. Please leave a way to contact you in your comment as if I cannot contact you easily, I will choose a different name. This week's winner is named atop the post.

If you would like to learn more about other National Poetry Month projects happening throughout the Kidlitosphere, Jama has rounded up many NPM happenings over at Jama's Alphabet Soup.  Happy National Poetry Month 2020.

xo,
Amy

Little Mouse is a Dancer

Photo by Amy LV

Please share a comment below if you wish.day 

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.

10 - Poems Can Ask Questions

Last week's winner of  my book POEMS ARE TEACHERS is....Janet F.!

(Please send me an e-mail to amy at amylv dot com with your snail mail address.)

Thank you, Heinemann!

Happy National Poetry Month, and welcome to Poetry Friday, our little community's way of sharing poetry. Anyone may join this little community at any time. At the bottom of this post, you can learn more...and you can find the roundup with all kinds of links to poetry, poem ideas, books, and more.

Welcome to my 2020 National Poetry Month Project
See My Last 10 Poetry Projects HERE

Each day of April 2020, I will share three things:

• A dice roll of three word dice
• A video explaining one poetic technique titled POEMS CAN... You can also find these at Sharing Our Notebooks as part of my ongoing Keeping a Notebook project
• A poem inspired by one or more of the dice words and the technique

Here are All of This Month's Poems:

10 Years of National Poetry Month History at The Poem Farm

April 1 - Poems Can Go Down the Page

April 2 - Poems Can Play With Space
April 3 - Poems Can Tell a Story
April 4 - Poems Can Compare Two Things

April 5 - Poems Can Borrow a Pattern from the World
April 6 - Poems Can Define a Word
April 7 - Poems Can Rhyme
April 8 - Poems Can Not Rhyme
April 9 - Poems Can be Written in Stanzas

And now, for today's words! 

Day 10 Words

Photo by Amy LV

Thank you to Heinemann for giving away a copy of my book POEMS ARE TEACHERS: HOW STUDYING POETRY STRENGTHENS WRITING IN ALL GENRES each week of April. I will draw names from the previous week each Thursday evening at 11:59pm, and I will announce a winner each Friday. Please leave a way to contact you in your comment as if I cannot contact you easily, I will choose a different name. This week's winner is named atop the post.

If you would like to learn more about other National Poetry Month projects happening throughout the Kidlitosphere, Jama has rounded up many NPM happenings over at Jama's Alphabet Soup.  Happy National Poetry Month 2020.

I am hosting Poetry Friday today. If you have a link to leave...please do. If you are new here, please check out all of the wonderful offerings of so many poetry lovers by clicking the blue button below.

xo,
Amy

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Little Mouse is a Wonderer

Photo by Amy LV

Please share a comment below if you wish.day 

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.