Photo: Laura Salas
Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines here)!
Here are some Velcro?balls we’re throwing at targets all this week at a Young Authors Conference. I’m sharing the poetry activity here next week, so if you’re curious, stay tuned. Meanwhile, here are three things this picture reminds of:
1) pinball
2) kids who are rude and prickly to protect themselves
3) tennis lessons when I was a kid
And here’s my?first draft. Hmmm… I like the IDEA of a list poem of rhyming words. But I don’t care for the reality of how this came out…
Tennis Lessons
Sport.
Court.
Heat.
Feet.
Swing.
String.
Net.
Sweat.
Slam.
Wham.
–Laura Purdie Salas, all rights reserved
Now it’s your turn! Have fun and stick to 15 WORDS OR LESS!??(Title doesn’t count toward word count:>)?
[Note: I’m teaching Young Authors Conferences all week, so I won’t be commenting on poems. Boy. I am overwhelmed with deadlines and projects and revisions right now. So much going on! Hopefully things will settle down soon.]
82 Responses
Red
The color
Of love
Blue a sky
Of sadness
Prickled words
Spell out life
I like that you used the colors, and the prickly words from Velcro. Funny how I didn’t notice the colors at all.
Thank you
This is deep. Proof there can be power in just a few words.
Red
The color
Of love
Blue a sky
Of sadness
Prickled words
Spell out life
I like that you used the colors, and the prickly words from Velcro. Funny how I didn’t notice the colors at all.
Thank you
This is deep. Proof there can be power in just a few words.
Prickity skin
Mimics my emotions
Warning :Back off
And give me space.
Non-verbal communication.
Love that ‘prickity’ and ‘non-verbal communication’, Diane.
Prickity skin
Mimics my emotions
Warning :Back off
And give me space.
Non-verbal communication.
Love that ‘prickity’ and ‘non-verbal communication’, Diane.
Stickly prickly
Hit me! Catch me!
Colorful love
Again, that ‘prickly’, and I also like “Hit me, Catch me”. Like little kids chasing who they like on the playground.
Stickly prickly
Hit me! Catch me!
Colorful love
Again, that ‘prickly’, and I also like “Hit me, Catch me”. Like little kids chasing who they like on the playground.
Planet Anxiety
Blue Earth
Red Mars
band together
among the stars;
prickly tethers
separate forever.
Laura, enjoy your week. Busy brings production and continued inspiration. The colors in today’s 15 WOL are outstanding.
To outer space, wonderful idea, Martha. Love the idea.
Thank you Linda, and I like the “self-preservation” mode in your verse.
I love how you talked about space your poem makes me think of space models kids make in school you could use the poem and model in the same project
Thanks Jessica. Yes, I can visualize a mobile representation of the planets used as a model for a science project. Interesting thought.
As a project the balls could have the words of the kids poem panted on them or in letter stickers
Planet Anxiety
Blue Earth
Red Mars
band together
among the stars;
prickly tethers
separate forever.
Laura, enjoy your week. Busy brings production and continued inspiration. The colors in today’s 15 WOL are outstanding.
To outer space, wonderful idea, Martha. Love the idea.
Thank you Linda, and I like the “self-preservation” mode in your verse.
I love how you talked about space your poem makes me think of space models kids make in school you could use the poem and model in the same project
Thanks Jessica. Yes, I can visualize a mobile representation of the planets used as a model for a science project. Interesting thought.
As a project the balls could have the words of the kids poem panted on them or in letter stickers
PERFECT MATCH
Red
Blue
Me
You
Black
Strapped
Both
Wrapped
Step
Chance
Love
Dance
Andria W. Rosenbaum/all rights reserved
Lovely.
Wonderful!!
PERFECT MATCH
Red
Blue
Me
You
Black
Strapped
Both
Wrapped
Step
Chance
Love
Dance
Andria W. Rosenbaum/all rights reserved
Lovely.
Wonderful!!
Stick to me,
I?ll stick with you.
Between us
we?ll get through.
?Kate Coombs
I like this, Kate. Good message!
Stick to me,
I?ll stick with you.
Between us
we?ll get through.
?Kate Coombs
I like this, Kate. Good message!
Woodsy Warfare
Wrapped in
its spiny armor
a horse-chestnut
has a fighting
chance…barely
…to survive.
Diane Mayr, all rights reserved It really needs “the squirrel” as the final line, alas, too many words.
Horse-chestnut — I see that now. Love the squirrel.
Woodsy Warfare
Wrapped in
its spiny armor
a horse-chestnut
has a fighting
chance…barely
…to survive.
Diane Mayr, all rights reserved It really needs “the squirrel” as the final line, alas, too many words.
Horse-chestnut — I see that now. Love the squirrel.
The list in your poem is true, though, Laura. I like it. Hope your own to-do list shrinks!
Balls ? no bounce or roll
stuck to walls was all
their plight,
to stick tight.
Linda Baie ?All Right Reserved
I like the first and last lines
I’m not going put this poem on the blog
But I had another thought the pic short
Reminds me of cactus flowers
Makes me want to set them free.
The list in your poem is true, though, Laura. I like it. Hope your own to-do list shrinks!
Balls ? no bounce or roll
stuck to walls was all
their plight,
to stick tight.
Linda Baie ?All Right Reserved
I like the first and last lines
I’m not going put this poem on the blog
But I had another thought the pic short
Reminds me of cactus flowers
Makes me want to set them free.
Laura, I like your idea. And congrats on being so busy. Sign of success.
When I looked at this, I thought of all the other kinds of balls.
Sport Needs
Play ping-pong with paddle,
baseball with bat,
tennis with racket.
When sunny, wear your hat.
Pat, add a few more kinds of balls and you will have a great children’s poem with rhyme and rhythm — golf, football, croquet, soccer, polo, etc.
Thanks, Martha.
I meant to write “when golfing, wear a hat.” I made a list
of a whole bunch of balls, but limited by time and only 15 words,
I threw this together. It’s a rough, rough draft! Ha!
I like your planet idea. Appropriate for that picture. Clever.
Laura, I like your idea. And congrats on being so busy. Sign of success.
When I looked at this, I thought of all the other kinds of balls.
Sport Needs
Play ping-pong with paddle,
baseball with bat,
tennis with racket.
When sunny, wear your hat.
Pat, add a few more kinds of balls and you will have a great children’s poem with rhyme and rhythm — golf, football, croquet, soccer, polo, etc.
Thanks, Martha.
I meant to write “when golfing, wear a hat.” I made a list
of a whole bunch of balls, but limited by time and only 15 words,
I threw this together. It’s a rough, rough draft! Ha!
I like your planet idea. Appropriate for that picture. Clever.
After a Hunting Trip
Autumn burrs
tangled in fur,
stuck to trousers–
Georges wondered how?
Eureka!
Velcro was born.
The whole story in so few words. Wonderfully done.
Love this, Buffy, Velcro celebrated!
After a Hunting Trip
Autumn burrs
tangled in fur,
stuck to trousers–
Georges wondered how?
Eureka!
Velcro was born.
The whole story in so few words. Wonderfully done.
Love this, Buffy, Velcro celebrated!
When the weather begs to go outside…
Wish Velcro
could help me
stick to
the task at hand.
Ellie, don’t we all? Clever.
Wonderful idea
When the weather begs to go outside…
Wish Velcro
could help me
stick to
the task at hand.
Ellie, don’t we all? Clever.
Wonderful idea
Pitch for Assistance: I Just Can’t Seem to Get the Ball Rolling Again
Gave it my best shot.
Where’d I land?
Stuck!
I need a helping hand…
-Mary McKenna Siddals, all rights reserved
This is wonderful I love the word play and flow
Love the story, Mary.
Pitch for Assistance: I Just Can’t Seem to Get the Ball Rolling Again
Gave it my best shot.
Where’d I land?
Stuck!
I need a helping hand…
-Mary McKenna Siddals, all rights reserved
This is wonderful I love the word play and flow
Love the story, Mary.
Black suspenders
reach around,
keep Grandpa’s bluejeans
off the ground.
Cute Cindy. I can actually see Grandpa. Thanks for the smile.
Fun images 🙂 and they do look like suspenders!
Black suspenders
reach around,
keep Grandpa’s bluejeans
off the ground.
Cute Cindy. I can actually see Grandpa. Thanks for the smile.
Fun images 🙂 and they do look like suspenders!
Fiery red sun
Blue sky turning night
Stars
Green prickly branches
Flowers unfold
Wings swishing ecki ecki
By Jessica Bigi
Fiery red sun
Blue sky turning night
Stars
Green prickly branches
Flowers unfold
Wings swishing ecki ecki
By Jessica Bigi
It’s 18 words but I don’t care. I like the poem. 🙂
ENTRANCE
Perspiration:
I?ll be fine,
I whisper
?This is mine.?
Courage fastens
To my heart,
Curtain opens ?
Play my part.
© Charles Waters 2014 all rights reserved.
It’s 18 words but I don’t care. I like the poem. 🙂
ENTRANCE
Perspiration:
I?ll be fine,
I whisper
?This is mine.?
Courage fastens
To my heart,
Curtain opens ?
Play my part.
© Charles Waters 2014 all rights reserved.