Haiku, A Fun Way To Make Poetry With Children

Haiku is a type of short Japanese poetry that alludes to nature. But at the same time, it’s a fun way to make poetry with children.

The classic haiku consists of 17 syllables divided into three lines of 5, 7 and 5 syllables, respectively, although today there are some variations in terms of lines and themes. Want to know more about this type of poetry? Want to learn how to write haiku and have fun with your kids? Here’s how you do it.

The origin of haiku

Haiku is a type of short Japanese poetry. Its popularity in Japan began in the mid-17th century thanks to the Japanese poet Matsuo Bashō. Then came other poets, such as Yosa Buson and the great master of haiku, Kobayashi Issa.

But now haiku is no longer a type of poetry exclusive to the Japanese. Through the Mexican poets José Juan Tablada and Octavio Paz, haiku spread through Latin American literature and became the shortest universal style of poetry.

Form criteria and topic

As we said at the beginning, a haiku consists of 17 syllables divided into three lines. The first line consists of 5 syllables, the second of 7 and the third of another 5 syllables. These are the form criteria for the classic haiku. Although the syllables between the lines may vary, the total must be 17.

Haiku is not only the combination of words, but they must convey a feeling and must conquer the reader. For this reason, in order for a haiku to be considered really good, you need to choose words that together evoke emotion.

There are many haiku on a wide variety of themes. However, the main theme of classic haiku is nature. At the same time, their authors reflected the emotions they experienced when observing and contemplating the environment. So if you want to preserve its essence, it is best to think about a natural environment.

Moreover, one of the requirements for the composition of a haiku is the introduction of kigo, a word that refers to a season of the year. You do not necessarily have to name the season of the year, but something that represents it, e.g. “Winter’s icy dawn”; “Dry leaves”; “Flowers are reborn”; “The hot summer sun” etc…

Names of animals and plants can also be used, as these short poems, as we have said, can be about anything. In fact , haiku offers just as many possibilities as one’s creative abilities can come up with.

How to enjoy poetry with children through haiku?

Children have innate creativity, which is essential for creating haiku. They can instantly capture an image and describe it in their own way by turning it into a haiku. They have an amazing ability to discover the little things that we adults miss. Therefore, they should be encouraged to observe nature, imagine and describe what they see, what excites and amazes them.

By simply teaching them to experience the present, to observe and assimilate the surroundings around them through their five senses, we can create a lot of fun haiku with our children.

In addition to practicing creative writing and being an enriching activity through haiku, the little ones will also improve their reading skills and ability to express themselves, and they will learn vocabulary and form criteria. But the most valuable of all is that they get a taste for poetry.

Recommendations to start writing haiku

• Read other haiku. If you do not know this type of short poetry before you start writing, it is best to read haiku with our children. In this way, we can capture the essence they contain. Of course, you need to choose haiku according to their age so that they can understand them.
• Consider everything around you. Although we may not be aware of it, the environment around us transmits emotions and sensations. Are you e.g. Ever stopped to think about how you feel when you see snow behind the windows of your house? And when you see the sunset on a summer night or a giant flock of birds in the sky? In all of us, there is a feeling behind what we see and experience that we can capture in a haiku.

• Tell me something. Writing a haiku is not about putting words together and making the lines rhyme. If they do not tell us anything, it is not a haiku. We need to create a very short story that makes sense and also touches us. It is not an easy task as we know very little to communicate a lot of meaning. But with practice and imagination, children will create fabulous haiku.

Some examples

To get a more general idea of ​​what a haiku is, here are some examples from well-known authors.

Recommendation of haiku to enjoy poetry with children

Now that we have seen how to make haiku and the possibilities that exist, we invite you to practice this type of poetry with your children. They will definitely make amazing poems that will surprise you! What are you waiting for to enter this poetic world with your children?