Comments (7)

By Mom Unplugged, November 2, 2007 11:32 am

Hopefully this week’s Unplugged Project isn’t too daunting. It involves reading or writing a haiku. If you have older children, then they can try writing one, if not (and you feel brave enough) then you can try it. A very basic description of a haiku is the following:

Haiku:
- subject: everyday things - often nature, feelings, or experiences
- length: three short NON-RHYMING lines
- form:
1st line: 5 syllables
2nd line: 7 syllables
3rd line: 5 syllables

Here a few links which might help or inspire:

Haiku for People

Internet School Library Media Center Haiku Page

eHow: How to Write a Haiku (good basic advice)

I went to our local library in search of some haiku books for children and came home empty- handed (but our library is quite small). If anyone finds some good kids’ haiku books, please write about it! A search on Amazon of “haiku” in the children’s books section turns up lots of good-looking options, so I know the books are out there somewhere, just not in MY library.

Remember, these projects are supposed to be flexible and fun, so if you want to do a poem other than a haiku, that’s fine. If you just want to draw a picture that’s fine too. The point is for everyone to have fun. Plus, I am trying to make the projects adaptable to all ages, little ones through adult. Here, again, are this week’s instructions:

Haiku

1) Write a haiku and illustrate it, either via original artwork or photo

-or-

2) Read (and share) a haiku and illustrate it, either via original artwork or photo

-or-

3) For smaller children, parents can find (or write) the haiku and help their children “illustrate” it

-or-

4) Any other haiku/poetry possibilities that you can imagine! Anything is fine…just go with what you want to do!

(unless you have a newly budding photographer at home, the photo option is probably more one for any older children or adults who want to take part and would rather not illustrate)

Haiku:
- subject: everyday things - often nature, feelings, or experiences
- length: three short NON-RHYMING lines
- form:
1st line: 5 syllables
2nd line: 7 syllables
3rd line: 5 syllables

Click here for some examples.

Hope to see you on Monday!

Image from Wikimedia Commons: Calligraphy by Ishizaki Keisui

Comments (7)

By Mom Unplugged, June 16, 2007 4:46 pm

Since I am in “poetry mode” right now, let me tell you about a friend of mine. My good friend Wishy The Writer and her daughter have a lovely tradition that they began last summer. They take blankets and pillows to a shady spot outside. They pack some food and drinks and a few books of poems and head to their cozy outdoor spot for a Poetry Picnic.

As Wishy was telling me about this I was beginning to feel like an Inferior Mom. Here is Wishy, “A-List Parent,” exposing her daughter to the beauty of nature and poetry all while enjoying some Mother-Daughter quiet time. Here am I, “Tired Parent,” pushing my children out the door to hunt for bugs and ride bikes in the driveway so I can get a little peace and quiet.

Finally she put me out of my maternal misery by revealing the REAL origin of this plan - her urgent need for a nap! Wishy was so desperate for a nap that she hoped quietly lying together reading poetry might lull her daughter to sleep so she could get a nap herself, and it worked.

I am not into using comparisons with other Moms as a measure of my worth as a parent. However I am insecure enough as a mother to admit that I felt SO much better after discovering her much less altruistic motivation for this Mother-Daughter bonding session!

My real point here is that, whatever the reason behind it, a Poetry Picnic sounds like a lovely idea. So whether you want your child to go to sleep and leave you alone, or you genuinely want to experience the “poetry of nature” together, give it a try!

Here is a variety of reading suggestions to consider:

Please share your own favorites in a comment!

This post is part of The Sunday Garden Tour at A Wrung Sponge. Head over there to find more participants, or to add your own garden-related post. Happy Sunday!

(By the way for you gardeners: The photo at the top is a Sexy Rexy rose that is planted in a pot by my front door.)

Comments (4)

By Mom Unplugged, June 14, 2007 6:48 pm

OK, I have decided to try my hand at J’s Thoughts and Musings blog limerick contest. The idea is to write a limerick describing your blog and what makes it unique. Here is my attempt:

There once were three kids with no TV.
Not one program could they ever see.
So they played and they read
And they jumped on the bed.
Mom says “Unplug your kids, that’s the key!”

So, should I hang on to my “day job?” This was pretty fun though. Perhaps next will be a haiku for the National Wildlife Federation’s contest!