An alphabet or ABC poem uses the letters of the alphabet to guide you from the beginning to the end of your idea (A to Z or Z to A)! Your poem can use one letter, several letters, or the whole alphabet!
The most basic ABC poem is created by writing the letters of the alphabet in order. After a topic is chosen, the author matches each letter with a word that goes with the topic. Usually, a word is added for each letter.
In some
alphabet poems, each letter starts a sentence or phrase. The phrases or
sentences can be long or short. You can use punctuation ... or not.
In other alphabet poems, the first letter of almost every word in every line begins with the same letter. These ABC poems are fun to read aloud ... or even act out! They are also usually VERY silly!
Check out the sentence for the letter "C." Notice that not all of the words begin with the letter C. That's OK. Sometimes you have to add in words so that the sentence makes sense!
There are many other ways to write an alphabet poem! Remember the only rule is that the letters of the alphabet are your guide as you write. See what creative ways you can use your ABC's!
Writer's Toolbox
Before you begin writing, you may want to gather some tools to help you as you search for just the right words. Here is a list of materials you might need:
- something
to write on — notebook paper, adding machine tape, file cards,
graph paper...
- something
to write with — pencils, crayons, typewriter, computer, markers...
- drawing
paper ... sometimes it helps to draw a picture first!
- art supplies
(colored pencils, crayons, and other fun stuff!)
- word lists
(Click HERE for
an example or HERE
for a blank list!)
- a thesaurus
- a dictionary
Your
Turn!
To begin writing an ABC poem, it is helpful to start with a topic! Choose something that you are familiar with or something that you would like to learn more about. Once you have your topic, you can collect words and let the alphabet be your guide.
The great thing about an ABC poem is that any topic will work. You could write a poem about school, your pet, a current event in the news, a favorite subject, your best friend, your favorite holiday ... the possibilities are endless!
When you have finished your rough draft, read it to a friend, your mom or dad, or your teacher. Ask them to give you some feedback about the words you have chosen. If you think that their suggestions will help your poem, add them.
When you have your poem just the way you like it, it's time to publish it. You can publish any way you like. You can act it out, use a computer application (like PowerPoint, HyperStudio, or even Flash), read it out loud, or write it on interesting paper. You may even choose to keep it to yourself!
Click on a button below for the ABC journal page!
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