Activity

Autumn Cinquain

Like a haiku, a cinquain is a non-rhyming poem with a set number of lines and syllables. A cinquain is a poem that is five lines long. The first line has two syllables, the second four syllables, the third six syllables, the fourth eight syllables, and the fifth two syllables. Help your child create an autumn poem full of colorful sensory details.

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Grades:

Second Grade Third Grade

Subjects:

English Language Arts Writing Writing Types Writing Process Creative Writing Personal Narrative Writing Poetry Writing Prewriting

View aligned standards

W.2.5 W.3.5 W.4.5

English Language Arts and Reading

Grade 1

1.11.A

1.11.B.ii

1.11.C

1.12.A

Grade 2

2.11.A

2.11.B.ii

2.12.A

Grade 3

3.11.B.i

3.11.A

3.11.B.ii

3.12.A

Grade 4

4.11.B.i

4.11.A

4.11.B.ii

4.12.A

English

Grade One

W.1.12.b

W.1.12.e

Grade Two

W.2.10.c

W.2.10.e

W.2.10.h

Grade Three

W.3.8.c

W.3.8.f

Grade Four

W.4.7.f

W.4.7.i

English Language Arts

Grade 1

2.3

Grade 2

2.2

Grade 3

2.2

Grade 4

English Language Arts

Grade 1

2.4.A.1

3.1.A.1

Grade 2

2.4.A.1

2.4.B.1

Grade 3

1.2.B.1

2.4.A.1

2.4.C.2

4.2.A.3

Grade 4

1.2.B.1

2.4.A.1

3.3.A.2

5.2.B.2

English

Year 1

ACELY1661.c

Year 2

ACELY1671.a

ACELT1593.b

ACELT1593.c

ACELT1833.a

ACELY1671.a

Year 3

ACELA1482.b

ACELT1601.a

ACELY1675.c

Year 4

ACELA1493.a

ACELT1607.a

ACELY1694.c

English

Level 1

W.VCELT193.1

W.VCELY194.3

Level 2

W.VCELT229.1

W.VCELY230.1

W.VCELT228.3

W.VCELT229.1

W.VCELY230.1

Level 3

W.VCELA262.2

W.VCELA262.5

W.VCELT264.1

Level 4

W.VCELA292.1

W.VCELT298.1

W.VCELY299.3

Which set of standards are you looking for?

What You Need:

Paper
Pen or pencil

What You Do:

Have your young learner start by brainstorming autumn words. Possibilities include: acorns, apples, colorful, fallen, harvest, leaves, migration, pumpkins, rake, ripe, scarecrow, season, Thanksgiving, and turkey.
Take a look at their created word list. Do the words group into one or two themes? Maybe your child has a lot of words about apple picking or going to the pumpkin patch. Your child might have focused on raking leaves or football. When your child has picked out a theme, it is time to write.
Have your child start with a two-syllable word or two one-syllable words that set the tone for the poem. If your child has chosen the word apples, the first line might be “bright red.” Or maybe your child is writing about a hayride but wants to pick a word that’s a little surprising, a word that doesn’t seem like the first choice for autumn – “tractor.” Work through the poem line by line using this syllable count:
Line 1: 2 syllables

Line 2: 4 syllables

Line 3: 6 syllables

Line 4: 8 syllables

Line 5: 2 syllables
When your child a rough draft of the poem, read it aloud, clapping out the syllables. Are all of the counts correct? No cheating! If a count is wrong, come up with a new word combination that works. Does this poem paint a strong sensory picture? If not, make some changes. Remember that a big part of writing is rewriting. The people who write the books that your children read rewrite them many times until every word is just right.

When the poem is finished, write it out and decorate it to display for the whole family to enjoy.

Activity

Autumn Cinquain

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Autumn Cinquain

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