Are you afraid of the dark? When the lights go out in your bedroom at bedtime do you imagine creatures? Do you imagine a boogie monster under your bed? Or a ghoul in the closet? Many of us imagine spooky, scary creatures in the dark—you’re not the only one who is afraid of the dark. I’m afraid of the dark sometimes, too.

Believe it or not, sometimes the way to feel less afraid of the scary monsters lurking under our bed is to face them—or even talk to them! In our exercise today, we’ll be writing an ode to the spooky, scary monsters that live in the dark.

What is an ode? An ode is a poem in honor of or dedicated to a specific thing. Why would we want to honor the monster under our bed? Often the things we’re afraid of most, have the most to teach us.

Before we write our ode, let’s take a moment to brainstorm.

Step 1. Think of the monster under your bed. In our pretend poetry world, we can talk to the monster and know that we’ll be safe.  

Step 2. Brainstorm the following questions about your monster.

• What does this monster look like? What characteristics does it have? Is it big? Small? Does it have scales or fur? Brainstorm as many physical traits as you can!
• What does this monster sound like? Does this monster growl? Bark? Does it have a scary laugh?
• What does this monster want?
• Is the monster under your bed lonely?
• Could this monster be friendly?
• What do you think this monster would say if you talked to it?

Step 3. Fill out the poem below to write your ode!

An Ode to the Monster Under My Bed

Oh, monster under my bed,

You make me ___________How does the monster make you feel?_____

You have _______What are the monster’s physical traits. What does it look like?_____

I don’t like ______Something you don’t like about the monster______

When the lights go off in my bedroom at night, you ________What do you imagine this monster does in the night?______

This makes me ______How do you feel about this?_____

Monster, I don’t always like you, but what if we were friends?

Do you have any ____Something you wonder whether or not the monster has—friends, toys, food, family. _____

Monster, are you afraid of the __What is something else you’re afraid of besides this monster?______ like me?

I would like to ____What would you would like to do with the monster—play tag, hide and go seek, bake cookies?_______

Monster, would you ____What you would like the monster to do for you? How do you want the monster to treat you? What would you want the monster to give you?______

Monster, _____What is one last thing you want to tell the monster?_____

Step 4. Read you poem out loud to a friend!