Here we are with this week’s Tuesday Challenge (yay!).
Write a shape poem.
A shape poem (or concrete poem) can either be a poem that fills up a shape or a poem where you shift letters and words around until it resembles a shape. So if you wanted to write a shape poem about a cat, here are two ways you could go about it:
- write your poem and then sketch out a cat shape and fill it with your poem. (You might make some of the words BIGGER and others smaller until the shape is filled with the poem.)
- write your poem, moving the words and lines and spaces until they sort of resemble a cat shape. (You don’t have to sketch a shape.)
Do you know Lewis Carroll’s poem ‘The Mouse’s Tale’? That’s an example of a shape poem.
Here’s a simple one I tried:
On
weekends
I like to sit here
where the shade is deep
to read my books and think
about the week behind, the week
that’s still to come. But sometimes birds
will sing above my head and chatter to their chicks
and then
I like
to sit
and
listen
with
eyes
shut
Shape poems often work better when they are read on the page. If you read them aloud, your audience can’t see the shape along with the words. Shape poems are like art and poetry combined.
As always, we’d love to read your poems … It might be a bit tricky to paste shape poems in the comments but if you email us a scan of your poems, we’ll paste them into the post here! (Don’t forget to ask permission from a parent or teacher first.)
~ Rebecca
Here is the first of the shape poems sent in by you!
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Until the end of August we’ll have a new poetry challenge every Tuesday.
Read these earlier Poetry Challenges from the 2013 Soup Blog Poetry Festival. (You can still add your poems in the comments at each post if you like!)
- Tuesday Challenge—Limericks
- Tuesday Challenge—A five senses poem
- Tuesday Challenge—A list poem
- Tuesday Challenge—Magnetic poetry
- Tuesday Challenge—A calendar poem
- Tuesday Challenge—A shape poem [you’re here!]
Alphabet Soup 
I’m so enjoying this series. Today’s example is really lovely!
Thanks Book Chook. (It turns out it can be surprisingly challenging to make a shape poem go the way you want it to go!)
Gosh – that was a tricky one. I bet lots of children could do a better job than me. I’ve emailed my poem.
Tricia
Hi Tricia – thanks for stopping by today. I don’t seem to have your poem in my inbox, though. Perhaps you could check that you’ve sent it to the right address? (Would love to read it!)
~ Rebecca
Great poem, Tricia! I like the simile ‘my hands as white as bleach’.
Thanks for stopping by Korg. I love Tricia’s poem, too. It can be surprisingly tricky to make that poem conform to the shape you are after. 🙂 (Dare you to try one!)
~ Rebecca
Thanks Korg, It was a challenge to make the shape work. I hadn’t written a shape poem before which is why I’ve so enjoyed Rebecca’s Tuesday Challenge.
~ Tricia