Since people do keep writing rhyming PBs in spite of all the dire warnings, I'm wondering if we should start a thread to talk about what makes a good one? We could talk about the craft, and post examples of recently published rhyming books.
I'll start with my teacher perspective:
I LOVE it when people say "Oh, kids don't care if the rhythm is perfect or the rhyme scheme is off."
B***Sh**!
Most rhyming books are read out loud. If the rhythm is even slightly off, the adult reader will stumble. The kids will be pulled out of the fun, and believe me, when you lose a five-year-old, it's damn hard to get them back.
One of the best ways to prepare small children to be good readers later on, to teach them that language is full of sounds that can be manipulated, to develop all their language skills, is to read them rhyming books.
But guess what? It isn't about the RHYME. It's about the RHYTHM. You have to understand and control the rhythm. Because the rhythm will force attention to certain words, and skip over other words. You have to make sure the rhythm will fall on the words you want to showcase. Throw in a surprise, and have it fall on the accented beat, and POW! You've got kids rolling on the floor laughing.
What I see a lot of is poetry that follows a very simple couplet structure:
LA-di-DAH-di-DAH-di-DAH
LA-di-DAH-di-DAH-di-DAH
Fine, if absolutely every couplet fits that. But you can't fudge it, not even once, or it really shows.
But the thing is, there are so many other ways to structure a poem.
Here's an example (apologies to the author, I don't know who first wrote it):
I like apples,
I like pears,
I like bouncing down the stairs!
LAH-LAH-LAH-di
LAH-LAH-LAH,
LAH-LAH-LAH-di
LAH-LAH-LAH!
One of the reasons this one works is that it is a rhythm that occurs naturally when people speak. That makes it very easy to use the same rhythm and help kids write their own poems, which I've done many times.
I like handball,
I like frogs,
I like playing with my dogs! etc.
People who want to write in rhyme should really explore some of the other ways to write in rhythm. Something unexpected is MUCH more likely to sell!
I'll start with my teacher perspective:
I LOVE it when people say "Oh, kids don't care if the rhythm is perfect or the rhyme scheme is off."
B***Sh**!
Most rhyming books are read out loud. If the rhythm is even slightly off, the adult reader will stumble. The kids will be pulled out of the fun, and believe me, when you lose a five-year-old, it's damn hard to get them back.
One of the best ways to prepare small children to be good readers later on, to teach them that language is full of sounds that can be manipulated, to develop all their language skills, is to read them rhyming books.
But guess what? It isn't about the RHYME. It's about the RHYTHM. You have to understand and control the rhythm. Because the rhythm will force attention to certain words, and skip over other words. You have to make sure the rhythm will fall on the words you want to showcase. Throw in a surprise, and have it fall on the accented beat, and POW! You've got kids rolling on the floor laughing.
What I see a lot of is poetry that follows a very simple couplet structure:
LA-di-DAH-di-DAH-di-DAH
LA-di-DAH-di-DAH-di-DAH
Fine, if absolutely every couplet fits that. But you can't fudge it, not even once, or it really shows.
But the thing is, there are so many other ways to structure a poem.
Here's an example (apologies to the author, I don't know who first wrote it):
I like apples,
I like pears,
I like bouncing down the stairs!
LAH-LAH-LAH-di
LAH-LAH-LAH,
LAH-LAH-LAH-di
LAH-LAH-LAH!
One of the reasons this one works is that it is a rhythm that occurs naturally when people speak. That makes it very easy to use the same rhythm and help kids write their own poems, which I've done many times.
I like handball,
I like frogs,
I like playing with my dogs! etc.
People who want to write in rhyme should really explore some of the other ways to write in rhythm. Something unexpected is MUCH more likely to sell!
