Make Shape Poem Greeting Cards

What You Need:

• Paper
• Pencil
• Colored pencils or fine-tipped markers

What You Do:

1. Help your child pick an object as the subject of her poem. Ultimately, your child will be writing the poem in the shape of the object. She can use almost any object, but she must be able to simplify it into a basic, recognizable outline. Some ideas for simple subjects are: a fish, an apple, a leaf, a ball, a star, or a tree.
2. Invite your child to write a poem based on the subject. The poem should be long enough in order to properly create the final shape (five to eight lines should suffice). Have her try to rhyme the ends of the lines for practice!
3. Help your child draw the outline of the object in pencil onto a blank sheet of paper.
4. Ask her to copy the poem in pencil inside the outline of the object, so that the edges of the poem correspond with the object's outline.
5. Have your child retrace the poem in colored pencil or marker. Encourage her to add other decorations around the poem and on the inside of the card as a finishing touch!

If your child enjoys writing her own poems and making them into greeting cards, suggest another option for her! She may enjoy personalizing the poem for a friend or relative. For example, she can write a loving poem about her grandmother, but make it into the shape of her favorite flower.