Continuing from last week’s post about acrostics, this week I’m looking at another poetry form my students and I explored during my time as tween writing workshop leader.
The moment I uttered the word “haiku”, eyes began to roll, and the sound of barely-contained groans filled the air. I wasn’t surprised. I remember being required to write haiku in school, and intensely disliking the experience. Being forced to do something, and then being graded on the results, has a funny way of taking the joy right out of an experience!
I’ve probably mentioned this before, but as an educator I strongly believe in the importance of why. Students of all ages are more likely to want to take part in an activity when they feel that there’s a purpose to it, a reason for it. No one wants to feel like they’re doing something simply because they have to! In this instance, I made sure to explain to my students why I felt it was so important that they give the deceptively simple haiku a second chance, even if they didn’t consider themselves poets or have any interest in continuing with poetry.
With its rigid structure and strict syllable count, haiku are an exercise in discipline and restraint. Every word matters – this is a valuable lesson for all writers, whatever their genre. So much of writing is cutting, removing, culling, removing all unnecessary words, distilling a story right down to its very essence. I write picture books, and I can absolutely assure you that you cannot waste a single word when you have a 500-word limit within which to tell your story!
After reading some haiku from different poets and periods, I provided the group with some photographs, and invited them to write their own haiku inspired by the different settings, recognizing the important role nature often plays in haiku. Because I never ask students to do something I wouldn’t do myself, I started them off with a few haiku of my own.
THE CITY
Between tall buildings,
Busy ants hurry, scurry
On their way to work.
This second one is a bit grim, but it certainly impressed my tweens, who all had a bit of a flair for the dramatic themselves.
BLUE WATERS
Azure waters, still
Unsuspecting tourists swim.
Soon the sharks will come.
The woodland scene and the bustling city proved the most popular settings, inspiring some very dramatic tales of Bigfoot and Godzilla and other strange creatures of mystery and imagination.
And so, dear friends, what do you think of haiku? Are you inspired by the challenge of the limited syllables, or chafe at the rigid restrictions? If you feel so inclined, I’d love to welcome your haiku in the comments below!
Susan at Chicken Spaghetti is hosting Poetry Friday this week!
Oh, I can completely see how the kiddos would like the shark poem. Ha! These days I am inspired by something like writing a haiku, but as a kid, challenges like that intimidated me. Funny how these things change over time.
I was thinking the same thing! As a student I despised being told what to do, but now I see the rules and requirements of poetic forms as exciting challenges, even comforting guide rails.
I like that you gave the students lots of support, Jane, and wrote with them! I always enjoyed the time seeing students find ways “in” to the writing and you gave lots of choices, too, and wrote two different poems that bring a point, a connection to all.
I like to lead by example. It’s especially helpful when I do art workshops, because I am no artist, so students learn pretty quickly that we’re all in it for the fun, not the result.
Thanks for sharing your process and examples. I’m sure they inspired your students to try writing haiku on their own. My favorite is the city with the busy ants on their way to work.
It definitely feels like we’re all busy little ants sometimes!
Hi Jane, I love haiku! I especially love haiku that has even less syllables than the traditionally-taught 5-7-5.
“Soon the sharks will come” is ominous… we recently welcomed a teen girl home in our community who lost a leg and hand to a shark earlier this year. She sported a t-shirt: “before you ask…it was a shark.” She’s got a great attitude! xo
Oh my goodness, what a hero that young woman is! And to keep her sense of humour through it all! Young people never cease to amaze and inspire me.
Sometimes I like the constraints of form, and other times I like to push back a little. I always started my students’ poetry writing with short, non-rhyming forms (16 words or less, haiku, acrostics that SAY something) that focus their attention on vivid word-choice rather than goofy rhymes and cantering rhythms.
Yes! So many students associate poetry with rhyme, it can be challenging, and exciting, to free them from that constraint – it opens up a huge new poetic world!
Jane, I am a firm believer in your statement: as an educator I strongly believe in the importance of why. I also feel that it is important for students to create with prompts. I have shared photos to teachers so they could engage children in writing poems. I ejoyed reading your haikus. On my blog today, I created image/ekphrastic poems.
Prompts are so helpful! Sometimes that blank page can just be overwhelming, and having that visual aid or a written prompt is just what you need to kickstart the inspiration.
Jane, I completely agree with your statement, “as an educator I strongly believe in the importance of why”. I also shared photos in teacher presentations that would make interesting prompts for children. I can see why your city photo and haiku were popular prompts. Thanks for sharing. My image/ekphrastic poems are at my blog post today. https://beyondliteracylink.blogspot.com/2024/08/slowdown-summer-overflows-with-poetry.html
I agree about the shark poem–maybe dark. But, kids love dark! For myself, I enjoy those busy, hurry scurry ants. I love walking in a city. Linda Mitchell
Oh yes, the kids all love things spooky and creepy! I get it – I adored Roald Dahl as a kid, and oh boy, do his baddies meet some dark ends!
I love to write haiku and thinking about words and using them wisely. I have one my son wrote in third grade:
Trees dance in the wind
Tremble in the soft breeze
As the sun dies down
I found it sweet the read something he wrote when he was so little.
That’s so wonderful!! I can’t wait to read my own kiddo’s creations one day.
Jane,
I was inspired by your tweens, Bigfoot, Godzilla, sharks and one of the photos above. I have seen people write haiku without counting syllables, but I don’t know how they decide how to guide their writing, so I tend to keep counting syllables. Also, have you heard of the lune poetry form, the American haiku form. You can read about it here: https://www.ethicalela.com/faring-monday-blues-with-a-lune/
skeletal remains
bake in the desert sunshine–
bony tree debris
My tweens are such a delight – goofy, wild, sensitive and creative. I’m with you – I like using the syllables to guide me, I find that bit of structure very comforting. I’ll have to include the lune in a future workshop!
Haiku has always been a favorite to teach and share. I used to have students take photos or draw a moment on an index card then write the haiku. So fun!
Oh – that inspires me! I like the idea of having the kids draw a picture, then randomly give it to another student to write about – wouldn’t that be fun! Thanks for the inspiration!!
I love the haiku form and it’s fun to play with adhering to a syllable count, although I sometimes ignore it. I was inspired by your top right photo.
sunbeams light the way
railroad ties lead us onward
forest bathing beckons
I shared that with my students, too – if you’re entering a competition or publishing a poem, you might have to adhere strictly to the rules of syllables, but when you’re writing for the simple joy of writing, you can let your words run free.
following sunlight
trust the green -trees know the way
find the path forward
(thanks for the prompts!)
Oh, I love it! I actually wrote a picture book called ONLY THE TREES KNOW, so this speak to my heart. <3
My comment disappeared! I’ll try to reconstruct my haiku and be sure to copy it before I hit comment this time. I love writing haiku, but sometimes I ignore the strict rules when I find the perfect line.
sunbeams light the way
railroad ties urge me forward
forest bathing beckons
I’ve tried twice to leave a comment. We’ll see if the third time is the charm!
I wrote a haiku which I can’t quite remember. It went something like this:
sunbeams light the path
railroad ties tug us forward
forest bathing beckons
Sometimes I have to fudge on those strict syllable counts. I love the why you provided for your students.
I have moderator approval turned on for my comments that aren’t from WordPress accounts – I was getting so many strange SPAM comments trying to sell “genuine” Nike shoes or designer handbags! Still, lucky me, I get three comments from you.