Haiku, by Lee Bennett Hopkins

This centuries-old form of poetry can encourage your students to revel in the world around them

Originating in Japan centuries ago, haiku consists of three unrhymed lines containing 17 syllables, 5-7-5 respectively. It's a poetic form in which people all over the world write, many on a daily basis. Type "haiku for children" into any search engine and you'll find a multitude of sites.

Traditional haiku relate to nature and/or the seasons of the year. Rather than mentioning a particular season, most haiku focus on a kigo – a word or phrase that hints at a season. For example, "pumpkin vine" is a kigo for fall; "frigid" suggests winter, "blossoms," spring and "burning sun," summer.

Share a variety of haiku with students. Point out that many haiku don't necessarily contain the required 17 syllables. When haiku is translated from Japanese to English, the syllable count differs because Japanese words usually have more syllables than English translations.

Nature is everywhere
Before writing haiku, take your students on a walking trip around the school grounds. Have them observe and take notes on one aspect of nature. No matter where one lives, natural phenomena occur. It might be today's clouds, sky, a part of a bird's nest fallen from a tree. During your walk, encourage students to jot down as many adjectives as they can and record any immediate thoughts that come to mind.

Some haiku contain such few syllables that each word must be carefully chosen. After students have written a draft of a haiku, they can go back and edit word for word, eliminating unnecessary words such as "and" and "the." Keep the work as compact as possible. Finished haiku should be like a spontaneous photograph or a still-life painting flashed on a screen.

Reference shelf
Don't Step on the Sky: A Handful of Haiku by Miriam Chaikin (Holt 2002). Twenty-nine traditional and non-traditional haiku cover many subjects from backyards to brooks.

Cool Melons – Turn to Frogs: The Life and Poems of Issa by Matthew Gollub (Lee & Low, 1998). Beautifully illustrated, this biographical account of Kabayashi Yataro, known as Issa (1763-1827), unfolds for readers.

Grass Sandals: The Travels of Basho by Dawnine Spivak (Atheneum, 1997). Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), one of the most revered poets in the history of Japan, is seen as he travels across his homeland.

Lee Bennett Hopkins is a celebrated poet and anthologist. His latest book of poems is Hamsters, Shells, and Spelling Bees: School Poems (I Can Read Book 2) (HarperCollins; First Edition edition 2008).