Onomotopoeia Lesson Part 2

Everybody get your rain boots and brollies ready. We are going for a poem walk and it's going to be a wet one.

In my last post, I introduced the word and concept of onomatopoeia to the Manor Woods ES third graders. Today, let's jump into the second half of the lesson. The model poem I use for this lesson is Eve Merriam's "Weather." It's filled with onomatopoeia, rhyme, juicy and invented words.

We have already come up with a working definition of onomatopoeia. A list of sample words is on the board. Before I read the poem, I ask the students to listen for the onomatopoeia words, which we'll add to our list. Some of them are highlighted here.

Weather

by Eve Merriam

Dot a dot dot dot a dot dot
Spotting the windowpane.

Spack a spack speck flick a flack fleck
Freckling the windowpane.

A spatter a scatter a wet cat a clatter

A splatter a rumble outside.

Umbrella umbrella umbrella umbrella
Bumbershoot barrel of rain.

Slosh a galosh slosh a galosh
Slither and slather a glide.

A puddle a jump a puddle a jump

A puddle a jump puddle splosh.

A juddle a pump a luddle a dump
A pudmuddle jump in and slide!

The words in gray? I put those in jail (which makes the class hysterical) because they're not onomatopoeia words. We'll come back to these words in a minute.

Got your rain boots on? Now we'll walk through the poem carefully. Students take turn reading one stanza and describing what our mysterious person is up to.

Dot a dot dot dot a dot dot
Spotting the windowpane.

We figure out that the person is inside, watching and listening to the rain on the window.

Spack a spack speck flick a flack fleck

Freckling the windowpane.

Has anything changed? Not yet. Still inside, watching the rain.

A spatter a scatter a wet cat a clatter A splatter a 
A splatter a rumble outside.

This is the most challenging stanza for students to parse, but it's worth the effort. Here are the dots we have to connect: The person in the poem sees a cat outside. Is the cat just sitting peacefully in the rain? No -- it scatters and clatters. But why? We realize that "rumble" is the sound of thunder. Oh, we get it! The cat heard the thunder, it was afraid, and ran away in a clatter.

Our residency is often one of the students' first experiences with close reading. Once they realize how good they are at finding meaning, they become champions at this skill.

Umbrella umbrella umbrella umbrella

Bumbershoot barrel of rain.

Why does the author repeat "umbrella" four times? To make it clear that our person is heading out into the rain. Let's grab that word bumbershoot out of jail. I thought it was a made up word. A parent finally told me that it is a British slang term for umbrella. (Next time it rains, put on your best British accent and ask whether you may take the bumbershoot to school.)

Slosh a galosh slosh a galosh

Slither and slather a glide

Let's get those galoshes out of jail. At least one person in the class usually knows what galoshes are. We can see that our person has galoshes on, and is splashing around in the rain.

A puddle a jump a puddle a jump

A puddle a jump puddle splosh

Now he or she is jumping in puddles.

A juddle a pump a luddle a dump

A pudmuddle jump in and slide!

Last, we talk about the invented word "pudmuddle." Sliding in mud puddles sounds like a great way to spend a rainy day, don't you think?

When it's time to write, some of my students like the idea of creating an onomatopoeia riddle poem. The prompt is to describe a place or activity using mostly sounds. Will the class be able to guess what's happening in the poem? Let's read some third grade onomatopoeia poems and find out.

Untitled

by Sabba H.

Stomp giggle

I see the way

clippity clop

to the

pop crunch bunch

tons of lunch

boom pow

I see you

talk and walk to my

pow eat

crunch crunch

yum yum

thank you very much.

The Lunch Room

by Brandon Li

A rumble, a grumble, a mumble.

We sit at a table and dine.

A chit, a chat, or something like that.

We talk about stuff as we gulp our food.

A splish, a splash, and there goes milk.

The janitor comes and dries it.

A teacher, a speaker,

they say to line up to class.

They throw, they go,

and they go to the class.

Now the eating is done

and we go to math class.

Untitled

by Dana M.

Sploosh, splash, on the diving board.

Clitter, clatter, droop, drop. People jumping in.

Floosh, flop go the little kids.

Flitter, flatter, tap, tap, running across the cement.

"Marco! Polo!" go the kids.

Crunch, crunch goes the snack cart.

All the kids are screaming with joy.

Horseback Riding

by Julia G.

Thump each time I come down.

A squeeze to make her go.

Pad, pad. I walk into the tack room.

Click, clack go her feet.

Swoosh. I swipe the brush.

Tap, tap! I go with the crop.

The sun is shining, a beautiful day.

I feel very confident to ride.

Gymnastics

by Cora S.

I'm on the beam.

I hear a soft thump

as I walk on it slowly

with my arms out. I'm ready.

I put my hands down.

Suddenly, I'm upside down.

My friends say, "Arms straight."

With a big giant thump

I'm on my feet again.

I jump off and a swoosh

when I put my hands out.

I can hear the floor creak

as I walk to do the finale.

I'm upside down

over and over again.

I can't stop.

Then everybody hears

a big boom when I slam

my feet to the ground.

Untitled

by Navneet K.

Whish the ball goes.

Crash goes the person.

Boom the ball

hits the ground.

"Hike!" he goes.

He throws the ball.

Whish, interception. Boom!

He hits the ground.

Clunk his helmet goes.

The fans stare.

He gets up.

He gets the ball.

Touchdown.

Game

by Srikar L.

Whistle, kick, a slide, a foul, free kick.

The sound of the game starting.

Whoosh, cheering, tense excitement.

The sound of the game.

Whistle, break, water, coach.

The sound of halftime.

Whistle, start, kick, smash, goal, beep.

The sound of the scoreboard.

Cheer, win, yell, ping, bang, splat.

The sound of winning.

All of a sudden, the field is quiet.

Slam, beep, vroom, honk.

The sound of cars leaving.

I love the moment in Srikar’s poem where it gets quiet for just a moment at the end of the game.

My appreciation goes out, again, to the families, teachers, and PTA at Manor Woods Elementary School. I'm having a great time working with the students. Aren't their poems impressive? Thank you for allowing me to share your students' poems online.

For Poetry Friday, I'll have some third grade opposite poems to share.

Onomatopoeia Lesson Part 1

Boom! Crash!

Look out, readers. The Manor Woods Third Graders have more ear-splitting onomatopoeia poems to share with you today.

Diane Mayr is hosting all
of the Poetry Friday links
at Random Noodling.
Stop by for book reviews,
original verses, favorite
poems, and more.

After last week's Halloween sound poems, many of you asked about the onomatopoeia lesson that I use in elementary schools. For Poetry Friday, I'm sharing Part 1 of the workshop, along with some sample responses. Next week, I'll post Part 2. Feel free to use or adapt this lesson plan for your classroom.

Onomatopoeia is a great way to start a residency or poetry unit with emerging writers.

1. I write the word "Onomatopoeia" on the board with great flourish.

This, everyone, is exciting. Onomatopoeia is a long word. It's a cool word. A mysterious word. Plus, it's fun to say. (The whole class says "onomatopoeia!")

2. Rather than defining "onomatopoeia" for the students, I help them to figure the meaning out themselves. I begin filling the board with words:

Vroom

Crash

Zoom

Crunch

Slurp

Crack

Meow

Woof

Cluck

Whisper

Rumble

Snap

3. After just a few of these words, the students are starting to get the idea. Now we have something to discuss. 

Onomatopoeia has to do with sound. Some may notice that most of the words on the board are one syllable. They have a few words to add to the list: pop, stomp, shush, splash. But it's still not easy to come up with a definition.

What if I say, "Loud and quiet are not onomatopoeia words"? Hmm. Those words are about sound. So why aren't they onomatopoeia words? The light bulbs are really flashing on now. Oh -- onomatopoeia words make a sound.

4. Yes! Now I can integrate everyone's ideas and share a definition. Onomatopoeia words sound like, or mimic, the sounds they are describing. It's pretty cool to look at a word such as "Moo" and realize the cow sound came first and people created a word from it.

In the next post, I'll take you through a poem walk with the model poem for this lesson, Eve Merriam's "Weather." Until then, let's enjoy some onomatopoeia poems from the Manor Woods third grade poets.

Here's one last Halloween poem for those of you still enjoying your candy haul.

One Piece

by Nora E.

One piece

of candy and a boo.

A wolf in the woods

and a crunch munch

on candy. A funny

or scary costume.

A meow from a cat.

Laugh from a witch.

The wind goes by.

An owl's hoo.

Hoo! Hoo!

A stomp, stomp, stomp

and a trick or treat.

Yum!

The next poem tells the story of a typical school morning through the sounds our poet, Chimee, hears.

Rolling Away

by Chimee E.

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

Hop down from the bed.

Brush! Brush! Swish! Swish!

Teeth are sparkly white.

Drop drip, drop drip.

Step into the shower.

Wipe dry. Wipe dry.

Pull on your clothing.

Tie tie, tie tie.

Shoes are tied well.

Munch, crunch, much.

Needs more milk.

Sip, sip, sip.

Taste the orange juice.

Open, close.

Chilly fall air.

Vroom! Vroom!

The bus is coming near.

Sniff! Sniff!

Smell the gasoline.

Clop! Cop!

Walk to the seat.

Rumble! Rumble!

We're rolling away.

In the last poem for today, Nathan takes us to a very noisy place -- a construction site.

Big Machine

by Nathan Z.

Boom! Crash!

Hammer strike. Hammer strike.

Looking out, a mess.

Ready for lunch!

Tires are rolling.

Lots of wet concrete.

Splat, sploot, spleet.

A big machine goes by.

Cranes are everywhere.

So much wood.

A brand new area is born.

Thanks to the awesome educators (seriously, they are a joy to work with) at Manor Woods. And a special thanks to the PTA and the Howard County Arts Council for sponsoring our poetry residency.

Parents and poets -- I love being able to share your poems. Thanks to all of you for giving me permission to post your work today.

Are you a Loud or a Pitterpat?

Ida Zelaya, happy Poetry Friday and welcome to Author Amok!

We’re talking about Carolyn Crimi’s picture book, The Louds Move In!


If you’d like a mini-lesson on using the book to teach onomatopoeia, check out the previous post. You’ll also find an overview of the story there.

Ida and I spoke about Sensory Processing Disorder, and how The Louds might help younger kids understand SPD.

For a brief explanation of SPD, check out this piece from CBS News:

Ida, as an advocate who helps parents understand SPD, what was your reaction to The Louds Move In?

I loved how real the Louds were. They were open. They were out there. They didn’t notice that the rest of the neighborhood was quiet. Maybe they didn’t see beyond their own loudness.

They liked who they were, and that sort of spilled out to the rest of the neighborhood. The Louds brought these quiet folks out of their comfort zone.

Very sensitive kids can become rigid in their rules and routines in order to maintain control. The Louds helped whittle away some of that fear of the unexpected and showed that it’s okay to give up a little control.

What was interesting was that the community was so quiet. Any unexpected noise startled them and really sort of rocked their world

We’ve talked about how my kid used to be very sensitive to loud noises. An unannounced fire drill at school would send him into fight or flight mode.

They [the Earmuffle Ave residents] were afraid, bothered and annoyed by these changes that were going on in their neighborhood. This equates to kids with sensory challenges who need to control their environment to feel safe. They don’t like unexpected noise. It’s an intrusion.

I also saw the sensory seeking person in the Louds themselves – stomping, chewing.

That’s who they are. They are seeking. They are under-responsive [to stimuli].

And over-responsive, sensory-avoiding kids are like the neighbors.

When the children’s nervous systems are exposed to more sensory stimulation, their nervous systems are rewired to learn to accept that stimulation. So if a child has trouble with sound, noise . . . a therapist would start a program to help their nervous system desensitize or get used to certain frequencies. It’s highly successful.

And that could be what happened to the neighbors. After a while, they got used to those crashes, bangs, unexpected noises. It almost becomes part of the background instead of something loud and annoying.

What message do you think The Louds has for kids?

It could help kids see themselves as one of the characters, from the Louds to Miss Shushermush. Maybe with a little guidance from parents, they could start talking about how the qualities match between the child [and one of the characters]. And they can open up a really nice dialogue about how the children are feeling.

It’s hard for the lower school children to relate [what they’re feeling], but with these fun names that are fun to say, and with the pictures of the different people, they could probably all understand how they fit into this book.

It would also give the parents an understanding of how the kids are thinking.

What about the use of onomatopoeia in the characters’ names?

When we’re introduced to the characters we get an understanding of who they are just by their names. I know what a Shushermush is. Just by hearing the shhh, I know the person probably likes it quiet. These are people that don’t like to speak up normally. They like their own places, because if anything out of the ordinary happens, Kaboom!

When SPD kids get overloaded, they can have a tantrum or feel anxious. How might it help to have a name for how they're feeling?

For instance, “I like to be a Shushermush when I’m reading.” It’s kind of a fun way to describe themselves without negative connotations. Pitterpatter – “I like to have a very quiet, gentle day. I don’t want to rock the boat. I’d better step lightly.” Instead of a label like sensory-seeking, [kids could say] “Oh, I’m like the Louds.”

These characters are qualities that people develop to cope with their sensory issues. It’s how they’re reacting to the world because they are quiet like Mr. Meekerton. [Whether they are Louds or Pitterpatters] they’ve developed these qualities as a result of how they need to interact with their environment.

Thanks, Ida.

If you’d like more information on SPD, Ida’s website is www.sensorystreet.org.

For recommended reading, pick up Carol Kranowitz’ The Out of Sync Child. Have a sensational Poetry Friday.

Amok in a Noisy Art Room?

Great minds make think alike, but great poems often show how individual our points of view can be.

Today -- two onomatopoeia poems by Northfield Elementary third graders. Both explore the sounds of the school art room, but each poet hears the room differently.

Poet: Sage T. Art Room The paint brushes go swish, swish. I hear the pencils going scraaatch, scraaatch. I hear people thinking of how to be more creative hmmm, hmmm. I listen to the sound of people dipping their paint brushes into some paint plop, plop, plop. Ahh, the sounds of the art room. Swish, scratch, hmmm, plop, plop!

Poet: Collette L. I hear the click, clik, clack Of pencils writing. I hear the swish, swash, swash, Swish the paint brush washes Away the white with a fresh New coat of color. I hear the marker caps Pop pop shhh, shh, shhh. I hear the pencil drop Clit clat. I hear the paper move Sswish, crinkle!

For more ekphrastic poetry (poems in reaction to art), check out this post.

Tomorrow, Northfield students share their opposites poems as they learn to work with stanzas.

Yahoo for onomatopoeia!

Onomatopoeia -- what a delicious word.

I love hearing a classroom full of elementary schoolers say it. They relish the sound, "Onomatopoeia!"

Today, I started my annual poetry residency at Northfield Elementary School near my home in Howard County, MD. The residency is courtesy of Northfield's PTA and a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council.

You can read a previous post with detail on my onomatopoeia lesson. If you try it with your students, let me know how it goes.

The third grade teachers are almost as enthusiastic about poetry as I am. We have a great time together. Here is the group onomatopoeia poem, written by Ms. Hilliard's class today:

Cafeteria

I hear screaming.

Ms. Poe says, "Five inch voices."

My friend is crunching on Doritos.

Someone clattering their coins for snack.

People are whispering,

talking, laughing.

"First call for clean up."

"Final call!"

I hear footsteps tapping.

Time for recess!

Don't you just love "clattering their coins?"

More onomatopoeia poems to come...

Amok in Third Grade, Day 2

It's Poetry Friday!

I'll be in residence at Norwood Elementary in Baltimore for another week and a half. Our second workshop session was onomatopoeia.

The lesson begins with kids volunteering sound words: bam! pop! shh, crash, zoom, whisper. They know onomatopoeia has something to do with sounds but -- what a cool idea -- these words actually make the sound they are describing!

Before I introduce the model poem, Eve Merriam's "Weather," the kids and I create a rainstorm in the classroom. They follow me as we tap the desks, snap our fingers, clap our hands, slap the desktops. It actually sounds like a rainstorm in their classroom. The children love making noise and moving their bodies.

We write down all of the rain sounds we made: rumble, tap, snap, drop.

It's especially fun when it rains the day after we do the "rain dance." Kids look at me and say, "Mrs. Shovan, we made it rain."

That's a nice segue into the Merriam poem,

Weather by Eve Merriam

Dot a dot dot dot a dot dot Spotting the windowpane.

Spack a spack speck flick a flack fleck Freckling the windowpane.

A spatter a scatter a wet cat a clatter A splatter a rumble outside.

The rest, here: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15415

Not only is "Weather" filled with onomatopoeia, it has a hidden surprise that's great to share with kids.

Merriam never uses the words "he," "she," "boy," or "girl," but there is a person in the poem. It's easy to miss him/her on the first reading (I did) because we focus on the juicy sounds.

I love walking through the stanzas of "Weather," one by one, with children. Together, we figure out what the person in the poem is doing. It's enough to make me splosh in a mud puddle.

Last, we write.

Writing Exercise (All Ages)

A sound riddle.

Using mostly sounds, describe a place (the school cafeteria, your house in the morning, a diner), or activity (a sport you do, riding bikes in your neighborhood). See if your readers can guess where you are and what you are doing.

Yat-Yee Chong is hosting Poetry Friday today. You'll find more poetry at http://yatyeechong.blogspot.com/