Elfje Poems

An Elfje poem is a very short poem based on 11 syllables. The pattern is:

1

2

3

4

1

As long as the children are clear about what a syllable is, Elfje poems are very straightforward to write, and an alternative to haikus. Today a member of staff brought in her guinea pigs and, after we'd observed their essential piggy qualities, the group went off and wrote their Elfjes. I don't have permission to share their work on this blog, so instead I give you some examples of my own. I also include some fun guinea pig facts for you to share.

Any animal would be a good stimulus for an Elfje poem if cavies aren't available.