by Allison Beldon-Smith

Created on: September 11, 2008

In teaching children how to write poetry I feel the first steps are best taken long before they ever contemplate picking up a pencil. Young children love the sounds that words make and wonderful games can be played with rhyming and rhythm. As a mother walking my children in the pushchair I would point out interesting aspects of life and then encourage the expand the theme. For example we would see a small dog playing with a ball.

"Look, a dog with a ball.
Is it big?
Or is it small?"
Then I'd say, "What else rhymes with ball and small?"
And they would tell me 'tall'.
Then I'd add,
"Did you hear his owner call?
He's the man who's very tall"

This kind of walking, talking, rhythmic entertainment filled those early daily travels. Then over the years as the boys grew and we walked to school it became walking, living rap. I would give a line and then one or other of them would reply.
"All it ever does is rain"
"I know Mum, it's such a pain."
"I'm so cold and I'm so wet"
"And we aren't even half way yet"

Car journeys were made less tedious for the children by playing the rhyming word game, for it was far less mind bogglingly boring than 'I spy'. The person who's turn it is says their word and then in succession each person follows with a rhyming word; i.e. My word is shoe.
This would be followed by loo, poo, who, glue, yahoo etc. until no more could be found.
The idea was to find difficult words to stop your fellow travellers being able to rhyme.

So you see in this way my sons knew the beat and feel of poetry long before any teacher ever asked them to write anything on paper. Surely this is how we were supposed to learn, this is the way of the bard practisd by our ancestors since time began.

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