Valentine's Day is the best time of the year to have fun with rhyme. Though children of all ages do their best to share their love through chocolate, sweets, and all things that sparkle, nothing shows affection the way a love poem does.
And the best of the best love poems tend to capture one's heart with rhyme.
Why not try a few twists on an old fave: Roses Are Red?
Use this Valentine's Day Fill-In Printable, which includes eight different versions of the same Roses Are Red poem. Each version has blanks in different spaces. Kids are free to fill in the blanks as they'd like, but you may want to begin talking about the rhyme pattern of the poem.
1. Start by reading the full version of the poem:
Roses are red,
Violets are blue.
Sugar is sweet,
And so are you!
2. Talk about the existing rhyme pattern: ABCB. (ABCB means that the first line and the third lines do not rhyme but the second and fourth lines do.) Ask your child:
- Can you hear the rhyme sounds in this poem?
- Point to the words that rhyme. (blue, you)
3. Talk about the rhythm (or "meter") of the poem:
- This little poem has a very distinct rhythm.
- Listen as I clap the beat, or the rhythm, of this poem. The beat emphasizes the important words in the poem. (Clap on roses, red, violets, blue, sugar, sweet, so, you.)
4. Create some poem re-writes. Say:
- Let's see if we can make some changes in this poem but still follow the basic patterns.
- The sheets here have blanks in lots of different spots. Let's look at the first few and try to figure out words that might fit and follow the same rhyme and rhythm patterns.
Write some poems together using the Valentine's Rhyme Fill-In and talk about what makes the new poems work. Ask:
- What word changes make them silly? Sweet? Meaningful?
- How should your poems differ according to the audience or recipient of the Valentine?
Valentine's Day is the best time to rhyme!
What are your favorite Valentine's Day tokens of affection—poems, rhymes, or homemade gifts? We want to know!
Share your thoughts on the Scholastic Parents Facebook page, or find Amy on Twitter, @teachmama, and let's continue the conversation!
Read all posts by Amy Mascott.
