Literacy

Experts like haikus

Creating mini stories

 Powerful poems

Over the past couple of weeks, I have heard several Literacy experts from totally different organisations discuss how powerful teaching haikus are for developing students' writing skills. Haikus are great fun to create and are a style of poetry that school students (and teachers) enjoy writing each year. The best thing is that they only take a minute or two to create. I even heard of a school having a day where they have to communicate in haikus for the entire time they are at school. 

For those who require an update on their poetry styles, haikus are unrhymed poems, consisting of 17 syllables arranged in three lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively. There are some examples below. 

The T-Rex likes you,

But he can’t give you a hug.

His arms are too short.

It’s Monday morning;

The coffee maker is dead:

Double depresso.

The reason haikus can be so powerful for writing is:

1. They build students' word consciousness. With only 17 syllables to work with, students have to be very careful with the words they use. Trying to cram the conclusion of your message into only 5 syllables makes you think about each word carefully. 
2. Students develop their understanding of syllables. 
3. Students need to use their full vocabulary, or sometimes expand their vocabulary, to create a haiku. Creating a haiku with someone can lead to discussions about how a word might better fit in a sentence. It's a great opportunity to learn about using a thesaurus. 
4. Haikus generally have a meaning to them or something profound is usually said on the last line. This means that students are required to think about their ideas and messaging which is an important skill in writing. 

If you want a fun activity to help improve the writing with your child, write a haiku with them. Be aware that students in Grade 3 and below might require some support, but older students, Grade 4 and above, should be able to do it independently. 

I've read of people creating a haiku a day as a journal. They say it takes around 2 minutes for independent writers. Haikus don't always need to be written, they can be verbalised too. It could even be a dinner table challenge for each family member to complete. 

CHALLENGE

If your child is keen on creating some haikus, they are welcome to come and show Mr Hoskin what they have made. As a mini challenge, if they make a series of 5 haikus on the events of their week, they can choose a small prize from our Literacy prize collection. 

Some Grade 4s created a couple of haikus on the school production as an example. 

School Production Haikus

Butterflies flutter

My heart pounding quickly

Stage fright takes over 

By Cara 4JH

I was so nervous 

But it was actually fun

Singing and dancing

By Kate 4JH

Crowded audience 

Shining light and a hot stage

What a splendid night 

By Lydia 4JH

Book Recommendations

Continuing on from last fortnight's newsletter when we recommended a couple of books, I have a series of texts that teach children aboutfriendship, kindness and gratitude. The list is taken fromhttps://www.ozlitteacher.com.au/blog/10-books-to-teach-friendship-kindness-and-gratitude. 

1. Molly and Mae- Danny Parker and Freya Blackwood

2. Pearl Barley and Charley Parsley- Aaron Blabey

3. Banjo and Ruby Red- Libby Gleeson and Freya Blackwood

4. My Two Blankets- Irena Kobald and Freya Blackwood

5. Have you Filled a Bucket Today?- Carol McCloud

6. Sarah and the Steep Slope- Danny Parker and Matt Ottley

7. The Pocket Dogs and the Lost Kitten- Margaret Wild and Stephen Michael King

8. Three- Stephen Michael King

9. The Thank You Dish- Trace Balla

10. Two Mates- Melanie Prewett and Megan Prewett

The Great Book Swap 

On Friday the 17th of November, the Student Council Representatives will hold the Great Book Swap! The idea is to ‘swap’ ONE of your own books for another book, while also donating money to help purchase books for children in remote communities across the country.

For more information on this exciting opportunity, please read the School Council section of this newsletter. 

Fortnightly Segments 

Writing Challenge

If your child enjoys their writing and is keen to write for enjoyment at home, below is a prompt that you could ask your child to write about. 

You’re the mayor of a new town, and now you want people to move there. How will you convince them to join you?

Comprehension Question 

This fortnight’s questions are:

• Can you think of another title for this book? Why would it be a good title? 
• Is there anything that you have learned while reading this book?