HELLO MY NAME IS - Day 11

Happy National Poetry Month!

(Feel free to search for poems in the sidebar or watch videos in the tab above.)

Hello, Poetry Friends! This month I am sharing poems written in the voice of Little Red Riding Hood, and I invite you to join me in writing in the voice of someone else too. You might choose a fairy tale character or a book character or a person from history or anyone else real or imagined. These are your poems, so you make the decisions. Each April day, I will share my poem and a little bit about writing poetry. Mostly, we’ll just be writing in short lines with good words and not worrying about rhyming. Meaning first. Our focus this month will be adopting the perspective of another…for 30 days. I invite you to join me in this project! To do so, simply:

1. Choose a character from fiction or history or somewhere else in the world of space and time, and commit to writing a daily poem in this person's voice for the 30 days of April 2025. You might even choose an animal.

2. Write a new poem for each day of April. Feel free to print and find inspiration from this idea sheet that I will be writing from all month long.

Teachers, if you wish to share any HELLO MY NAME IS... subjects or poems, please email them to me at the contact button above. I would love to read what your students write and learn from how they approach their own projects.

LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD'S POEMS SO FAR

April 1 - First Poem

April 2 - My Name

April 3 - Red

April 4 - Frank

April 5 - The Big Bad Wolf Had Been a Stray

April 6 - 8am on a Sunday

April 7 - Her Real Name is Orla Lola Bruin

April 8 - My Neighborhood

April 9 - Mushroom Hunters

April 10 - From Coat to Cloak

And now for today!

Students - Today's poem is a short list poem packed with wordplay-rhyme. A brief description of something glorious - wolf fur!

If you have ever buried your face in the fur of a well-loved pet, then you know how Lou is feeling here about her wolfdog's fur. She is so excited that she even revises her poem and keeps the revision visible. I've never done this before - crossed out a line just to keep it - but today, for me, it works. I had to think about how to read it aloud, and when it's necessary to think about something, learning happens. So, even if I change this around someday, it was still interesting and right to try something new today. I read somewhere recently that no one making art ever says, I wish I'd been less weird when I made that art, and I agree.

Writing tip for the day: try something you have never done before in your writing. Even a little something. Even if you don't keep the writing, your writing self will grow.

Today over at Robyn Hold Black's blog Artsyletters, please find a couple of poems - including mine - from Matt Forrest Esenwine's new book A UNIVERSE OF RAINBOWS: MULTICOLORED POEMS FOR A MULTICOLORED WORLD. Thank you, Robyn! 

Thank you for joining me on this eleventh day of HELLO MY NAME IS...

And many thank yous to Irene for hosting this week's Poetry Friday roundup over at Live Your Poem. Each Friday, all are invited to share poems, poem books, poetry ideas, and friendship in this open and welcoming poetry community.

To learn about more National Poetry Month projects and all kinds of April goodness, visit Jama's Alphabet Soup where Jama has generously gathered this coming month's Kidlitosphere poetry happenings. And if you are interested in learning about or writing from any of my previous 14 National Poetry Month projects, you can find them here. Happy National Poetry Month!

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.

ONE LINE CROW - Day 4

 Happy National Poetry Month!

(For new poetry writing videos, see the COAXING POEMS tab above.)

This month I am studying crows, sharing a new crow poem each day of April. The number of lines in each poem will correspond to the date, with a 1-line poem on April 1...and a 30-line poem on April 30. If you'd like to play along, simply choose a topic that you'd like to explore for 30 days. It might be a subject that you already know a lot about or perhaps you'll explore something new.

I invite you to join me in this project! 

To do so, simply:

1. Choose a subject that you would like to stick with for 30 days. You might choose something you know lots about...or like me, you might choose something you will read and learn about throughout April.

3. Write a new poem for each day of April 2024, corresponding the number of lines in your poem to the date. For example, the poem for April 1 will have 1 line. The poem for April 14 will have 14 lines. The poem for April 30 will have 30 lines. OR....invent your own idea! And if you start later in April, just play around however you wish.

4. Teachers and writers, if you wish to share any ONE MORE LINE... subjects or poems, please email them to me or tag me @amylvpoemfarm. I would love to see what your students write and to know that we are growing these lines...and our understandings of different subjects...together.

Below you may read the first poems:

April 1 - High in a Pine

April 2 - First Baby Picture

April 3 - Nestling Crow Appreciates

And now for today!

Four Crows, Four Lines

Photo by Amy LV

Students - Well, Crow has now grown from Hatchling (newly hatched) to Nestling (staying in the nest) to Fledgling (flying learner, out of the nest). Did you know that crows do not return to the nest once they leave? Even though fledgling crows cannot fly yet, they leave the nest to be safe from predators. Yes, there are predators on the ground, but a nest is a noisy attractor of raccoons and crow-nestling-eaters such as hawks and owls. So it's a risk...but one that is wroth it.

Today's four line poem does not rhyme. It is a short story poem, almost like a small movie showing the moment when the character of Crow Fledgling makes that first jump. Here are two poetry questions to talk about:

• Can you find any repeated sounds?
• Why do you think that I wrote line three in such short sentences?

And here is one science question:

• From whom do you think Fledgling Crow will hide on the ground before he is able to fly?

Thank you for joining me for ONE LINE CROW...

To learn about more National Poetry Month projects and all kinds of April goodness, visit Jama Rattigan at Jama's Alphabet Soup where Jama has generously gathered this coming month's happenings. Happy National Poetry Month!

xo,

Amy

ps - If you are interested in learning about any of my previous 13 National Poetry Month projects, you may do so here.

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.

ONE LINE CROW - Day 3

 Happy National Poetry Month!

(For new poetry writing videos, see the COAXING POEMS tab above.)

 

This month I am studying crows, sharing a new crow poem each day of April. The number of lines in each poem will correspond to the date, with a 1-line poem on April 1...and a 30-line poem on April 30. If you'd like to play along, simply choose a topic that you'd like to explore for 30 days. It might be a subject that you already know a lot about or perhaps you'll explore something new.

I invite you to join me in this project! 

To do so, simply:

1. Choose a subject that you would like to stick with for 30 days. You might choose something you know lots about...or like me, you might choose something you will read and learn about throughout April.

3. Write a new poem for each day of April 2024, corresponding the number of lines in your poem to the date. For example, the poem for April 1 will have 1 line. The poem for April 14 will have 14 lines. The poem for April 30 will have 30 lines. OR....invent your own idea! And if you start later in April, just play around however you wish.

4. Teachers and writers, if you wish to share any ONE MORE LINE... subjects or poems, please email them to me or tag me @amylvpoemfarm. I would love to see what your students write and to know that we are growing these lines...and our understandings of different subjects...together.

Below you may read the first two poems:

April 1 - High in a Pine

April 2 - First Baby Picture

And now for today!

Three Crows, Three Lines

Photo by Amy LV

Students - Writing today's three-line poem felt like a little party with myself, and this party was about the long A sound, especially the sound - ATE. I used one of my favorite rhyming resources, RhymeZone, to find words that rhyme with regurgitate (chew and throw up food) because this is a great word, and many birds - including crows - regurgitate food into their babies' mouths. Then, I read and reread those words to find ones that made sense in the world of one Nestling (before leaving the nest) Crow. 

A nestling crow is a crow that still lives in the nest...but it is not a brand new baby, or hatchling. Such a nestling crow might stay in its nest for 30 or more days. And did you know that crows sometimes remain with their families for many years? A young crow might even stay with its family for five years, and during this time, it might help its father kill insects and other small creatures, throwing them up into their new siblings' mouths.

If you wish, try starting a poem with one word in mind. Look it up in a rhyming dictionary or at RhymeZone, and see if you find a poem idea in a rhyme or a bit of wordplay.

Thank you for joining me for ONE LINE CROW...

To learn about more National Poetry Month projects and all kinds of April goodness, visit Jama Rattigan at Jama's Alphabet Soup where Jama has generously gathered this coming month's happenings. Happy National Poetry Month!

xo,

Amy

ps - If you are interested in learning about any of my previous 13 National Poetry Month projects, you may do so here.

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.

ONE LINE CROW - Day 2

 Happy National Poetry Month!

(For new poetry writing videos, see the COAXING POEMS tab above.)

 

This month I am studying crows, sharing a new crow poem each day of April. The number of lines in each poem will correspond to the date, with a 1-line poem on April 1...and a 30-line poem on April 30. If you'd like to play along, simply choose a topic that you'd like to explore for 30 days. It might be a subject that you already know a lot about or perhaps you'll explore something new.

I invite you to join me in this project! 

To do so, simply:

1. Choose a subject that you would like to stick with for 30 days. You might choose something you know lots about...or like me, you might choose something you will read and learn about throughout April.

3. Write a new poem for each day of April 2024, corresponding the number of lines in your poem to the date. For example, the poem for April 1 will have 1 line. The poem for April 14 will have 14 lines. The poem for April 30 will have 30 lines. OR....invent your own idea! And if you start later in April, just play around however you wish.

4. Teachers and writers, if you wish to share any ONE MORE LINE... subjects or poems, please email them to me or tag me @amylvpoemfarm. I would love to see what your students write and to know that we are growing these lines...and our understandings of different subjects...together.

Below you may read the first poem in this project:

April 1 - High in a Pine

And now for today!

Two Crows, Two Lines

Photo by Amy LV

Students - This small two line poem does no more than describe what a baby crow looks like when it is born. I did some research, and used the words that I found in scientific descriptions of hatchling (just hatched) crows. 

You might notice:

1. I created a big new word by joining the words feather-and-power-less with hyphens

2. Again, the title adds more to the poem which helps when writing such a brief poem. (I love the pretend idea of a new little crow having a baby picture taken.)

3. This poem is a couplet. You may read the definition of a couplet below:.

From the Cambridge Dictionary

Perhaps you will wish to try one of the writing moves that I tried here today. Or perhaps you will rely on some of your own favorite dance steps. Your poem is your poem.

Thank you for joining me for ONE LINE CROW...

To learn about more National Poetry Month projects and all kinds of April goodness, visit Jama Rattigan at Jama's Alphabet Soup where Jama has generously gathered this coming month's happenings. Happy National Poetry Month!

xo,

Amy

ps - If you are interested in learning about any of my previous 13 National Poetry Month projects, you may do so here.

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.

Words Live Inside of Words

 

Make Your Own License

Photo by Amy LV

Students - Every piece of writing has a story, and I love finding out why you write about what you write about and why you write about it in a certain way. The journeys are often surprising and roundabout, and these stories show how we each approach ideas in our own way. This is what makes the world neat!

Today's poem has a story too. Yesterday, I visited the blog Dare to Care, and in her post, Denise explained a new-to-me type of poem called an In One Word poem. Denise shared her own poem, and she referred readers to a blog post by April Halprin Wayland over at Teaching Authors.

Here is how April explains this form, in her May 22, 2020 post:

By April Halprin Wayland

Teaching Authors Blog, May 22, 2020

I wanted to try this out myself. What fun, to find words in words and then just play with them like piles of stones! So I chose the word SILENCE and entered it into Word Maker. This website will show you all of the words that can be made with the letters in the word you choose. It looks like this:

Word Maker - Website Currently Down

(I will correct when it is back.)

I looked at the many words that can be made from SILENCE, and I copied the ones that interested me into my notebook.

Drafting from Words in SILENCE

Photo by Amy LV

Then, from those words...I just played around and finally decided on the arrangement of words above to be the poem.

Here you can see the SILENCE words that chose to include:

Circled Words from SILENCE

Photo by Amy LV

I was most fascinated by the fact that LICENSE is an anagram (word made by rearranging the letters of another word) for SILENCE. That fascination formed the basis of today's whole poem. I mean, I really DO want a Silence License. 

Wordmaker is a very interesting site, and once it's back up again, I look forward to visiting it again. But of course, as April said, we can find words within words ourselves as well.

If you do not yet keep a collection of favorite words in your notebook, you might wish to start. Then, one day when you're not sure what to write about, you can choose one and see what grows from it.

Denise is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup at Dare to Care with her post-inspiring In One Word poem inspired by the word TESTITUDINATE and also by April Halprind Wayland. Please know that all are welcome each Friday as folks share poems, poem books, poetry ideas, and friendship.

xo,

Amy

Please share a comment below if you wish. 

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

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