Literacy Lesson Plan: Introduction to Haiku

This is a haiku that I wrote for my students as I was preparing this lesson, Introduction to Haiku. In this lesson, students are introduced to the patterns of haiku and are given a graphic organizer to help them brainstorm ideas and follow the syllabic pattern of haiku. It is essential to use the Jack Prelutsky book for this lesson since it captivates the students and gets them excited about haiku.

I have found that this lesson works well when all of the students are writing about the same theme such as animals, places, or people. When students finish their haiku, it can be paired with an art piece to make a class book of haiku to be shared with peers and family.

Introduction to Haiku
Time: 1 hour (additional time for editing and final draft)

Essential Questions:
What is haiku?
How can haiku be used to express ideas?

Topic:
Writing, syllable structures, poetry, word choice

Methodology:
Pre-assessment, read aloud, group discussion, writing conferences

Objective(s):
Students will:
-Recognize that haiku originated in Japan.
-Identify the structure of haiku.
-Create a haiku based upon this traditional structure.
-Use descriptive words to create imagery in writing.

Student Assessment:
Assessment will be made through:
-Participation in group discussion and writing activity.
-Probing questions during discussion.
-Haiku containing set criteria in rubric.

Materials:
-If Not for the Cat by Jack Prelutsky
-Globe or map that shows Japan in relation where students live
-Marker board
-Chart paper with written haiku on it
-Haiku pattern guide for each student
-Paper and pencils for students

Activities:
Tell the students that they will be learning about haiku today. Pre-assess what students know about haiku by asking them to share their ideas about haiku.

Tell students that haiku is a form of traditional poetry that originates in Japan. Use a globe or map to show where Japan is located. Tell students that haiku is made up of 3 lines. The first and last have 5 syllables and middle line has 7 syllables. The lines don't usually rhyme and punctuation isn't normally used.

Read If Not for the Cat by Jack Prelutsky. (This book contains riddle haiku so it is fun to see if the students can guess what kind of animal the author is describing). Introduce the book as a collection of haiku. Pre-read the book and determine if vocabulary should be discussed before reading. As book is being read, don't show the students the pictures and see if they can guess what the haiku is about.

Refer to chart paper that has a written haiku on it (if possible, write your own to share with your students) Read the haiku and underline the syllables as students clap haiku. If needed, repeat with additional words or lines until students understand.

Tell students that they will be writing a haiku similar to Jack Prelutsky's haiku based upon an animal of their choice. Present the Haiku pattern guide to students and provide an overview. Tell students this will be the first draft. When finished, trade with a partner and use editing marks. Then, meet with teacher for writer's conference before writing final draft.

Ongoing:
Circulate through the room as students are working to provide and check for understanding. Meet with each student to provide a conference about the writing before final draft is written.

Haiku Scoring Guide
Poem follows syllable count of 5/7/5 (10 points) ________
Poem makes sense (5 points) _______
Poem creates imagery through descriptive words (5 points) ______

Total ______/20 points

Extension:
1. Students draw a picture or create art to depict the animal described in haiku.
2. Students write additional haiku to describe the environment or season that the animal is in.
3. Students share their haiku with each other to see if they can guess what the animal is.

Haiku Pattern Graphic Organizer

Name_______________________________________ Date______________________

List three words that describe your animal.

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

_____________________________________________

List two verbs (action words) that your animal is doing.

_______________________________________________

_______________________________________________

Use the lines to write a Haiku about your animal.

Line 1:
5 syllables

Line 2:
7 syllables

Line 3:
5 syllables

When finished:
1. Edit your haiku.
2. Ask a friend to edit your haiku.
3. Writer's conference with teacher.
4. Write final draft.