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Curriculum Connections

Formulaic Poem Writing Activities

For poetry writing activities limited to a single lesson, you may want to follow a simple formula. The following poems might serve as model formula poems.

Mbuni
Fisi
Punda Milia II (see Bonus Poems)
Tembo
Swara
Nyumbu
Duma II (see Bonus Poems)

In Mbuni the fonts of the first three lines reflect the physical characteristics/abilities highlighted in the comparisons. In the last three lines, the fonts and the shapes formed by the words reflect an egg, skinny legs/neck, and flight, respectively.

Assign each student an animal, or divide the class into small groups and assign each group an animal. Have each student/group research the animal, then brainstorm and come up with five things they could compare something about the animal to, and five different ways they could put the words on the page to represent either the attribute being compared or the thing it is being compared to. Have students write concrete comparison poems using Mbuni as a model.

Tembo follows a similar formula, with the fonts and words representing and referring to specific body parts. Notice in both Mbuni and Tembo, rhyming is not a concern.

Fisi follows a simple pattern that can easily be replicated with younger students: Repeat a sound associated with the animal, add two pairs of rhyming lines that may also contain comparisons and end by repeating the opening words (sounds).

Swara follows a similar pattern, but this time a single word that is most representative of the animal is repeated at the beginning of each line. Again, rhyming is not a concern - though it could certainly fit in the formula. Placing the words on the page to represent an image is also optional, but enhances the presentation - especially if rhyming is not used.

Punda Milia II (found in the Bonus Poems section of the Curriculum Connections pages) also works well with younger students and combines the formulas of Fisi and Swara: repeated central characteristics and short rhyming lines, sometimes containing comparisons.

Duma II (also found in the Bonus Poems section of the Curriculum Connections pages) is a 5-7-5 syllable haiku, focusing on a natural event/phenomenon. (Cross Reference: See Rebel Poets, Connecting Your Safari to the Curriculum: Science and Connecting Your Safari to the Curriculum: Music.)

Nyumbu's formula is more challenging and therefore appropriate for older students. Each of its verses contains a string of -ing words which describe the wildebeests movements, behaviors and sounds as they migrate; followed by a line that rhymes with the lines found in the same place in the other verses (parade, charade, tirade); followed by a repeating central comparison (grass is the magnet) which is not complimented until the end of the poem (and we are the iron filings).

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