Hello and welcome to Virtual Kids Create! This is a self-paced version of the monthly kids day we host at the Poetry Center and includes age-appropriate language arts workshops for children from infancy to ten-years-old, developed by our incredible facilitators. November's theme is tiny poems! The activities include read- and sing-a-longs, and creative writing exercises for pre-school and elementary students. Feel free to use this as a guide to create your own at-home, structured Kids Create, or pick and choose activities you think the kids in your household might enjoy.
Infant to 3-year-old read-a-loud & sing-a-long:
In this video, Kids Create facilitator Kathy Sutton reads nursery rhymes, haiku, the book How to by Julie Morstad, and "What's A Poem" by Charles Ghigna:
When you're done, enjoy this sing-a-long with musician and teacher Gabrielle Pietrangelo. It includes the songs "This Little Light of Mine," "Pumpkin Patch," "The Ashgrove," and "El Día de los Muertos":
4-6-year-old writing workshop: Object Haiku!
"Have you ever heard of a type of poem called Haiku?" writes facilitator Sophie Daws, "It’s a form of poetry originating from Japan and is about 300-400 years old! The Haiku form is characterized by three lines and is very short. It was created in Japan in reaction to long, elaborate poetry. The creators of the Haiku aimed to express a lot in the fewest words possible. Although Haiku are short there is an abundance of emotion, thought, and observation."
After reading examples of haiku, you'll be asked asked to step outside, pick an object and, using your five senses and a series of guiding questions, observe that object. Notes in hand, you're now ready to write your very own haiku!
7-10-year-old writing workshop: Indoor Weather Poems
"Imagine what it would be like if we experienced weather conditions indoors magically," writes facilitator Chalese "Chay the Poet" Potts, "For example, perhaps it is super sunny in your bedroom, so much so that you can feel the sun’s rays and reach out and touch the sun. Perhaps there is a thunderstorm in the garage."
After brainstorming all sorts of zany indoor weather, you'll be asked to choose one weather event and write a one-line poem about it. Sound easy? The challenge lies in packing description, movement, and maybe even metaphor into such a tiny poem! Consider this example:
Kitchen Tornadoes:
A pandemonium of appliances. Obliterated click clacks, only meet in the eye of the storm.