As I have previously mentioned, I teach English Language Arts to seventh graders at the junior high in my town. I have approximately one hundred twenty students, divided into five, fifty-five minute sessions. I am responsible for instructing them in spelling, grammar, writing, and literary skills. Since I enjoy reading, writing, and working with children, this is a dream-job for me.
One of my favorite units to teach is a poetry unit in which we identify, analyze, and write various types of poems. We usually begin with diamante poems.
Diamante poems are structured and derive their name from their diamond shape. There are two ways to construct these poems: the poet keeps the same topic throughout the poem or chooses to contrast two topics.
Here is a line-by-line guide to construct each type:
One Topic (Synonym) Diamante:
Line 1: Noun or subject
Line 2: Two adjectives to describe the subject
Line 3: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the subject
Line 4: Four words or a phrase that describe or relate to the subject
Line 5: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the subject
Line 6: Two adjectives to describe the subject
Line 7: The subject or its synonym
Contrast (Antonym) Diamante:
Line 1: Noun or subject
Line 2: Two adjectives to describe the subject
Line 3: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the subject
Line 4: Two words that describe the original subject and two words that describe the contrasting subject
Line 5: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the contrasting subject
Line 6: Two adjectives to describe the contrasting subject
Line 7: The contrasting subject or the antonym of the original subject
On Monday, I discussed diamante poems with my students. After examining a few examples, including one of mine, the students wrote their own poems as an assignment. Most of the students chose the one topic (synonym) version because it is simpler to construct. Overall, they greatly impressed me with their effort!
Here are some of their poems:
Music
by Mindy
Music
happy, playful
soothing, calming, exciting
concert, headphones, style, culture
feeling, solving, loving
bouncing, rocking
Music
Max
by Matt
Max
playful, soft
playing, eating, jumping
fun, skinny, brown eyes, and gray hair
sleeping, running, barking
fuzzy, loud
Max
Olaf
by Mackenzy
Olaf
funny, sweet
caring, loving, outgoing
some people are worth melting for
inspiring, helping, entertaining
nice, fluffy
Olaf
Relationship
by Genevieve
Relationship
loyalty, love
caring, compromising, trusting
loving one another promising, hugging, talking
compassionate, believing
Taken
Llama and Turtle
by River
Llama
majestic, tall
spitting, grazing, running
fuzzy, hairy, green, brown
walking, eating, sleeping
slow, short
Turtle
Summer and Winter
by Kaylee
Summer
fun, hot
swimming, sleeping, playing
ice cream, shorts, hot chocolate, coats
snowing, freezing, sledding
cold, joyful
Winter
Her Eyes
by Jada
Her eyes
big, brown
shimmering, wondering, amazing
always aware and watching
comforting, warming, twinkling
beautiful, content
Her eyes
Cat and Dog
by Aaron
Cat
cruel, mean
hating, scratching, biting
terrible, unpleasant, lovable, kind
caring, deserving, cuddling
loving, pleasant
Dog
Crayon and Marker
by Makenzie
Crayon
red, yellow
coloring, tracing, drawing
bright, solid, ink, liquid
interesting, enhancing, stimulating
colorful, blue
Marker
Batman and Joker
by Hannah
Batman
dark, silent
watching, fighting, gliding
eternal enemies, forever fighting
killing, joking, laughing
malicious, murderous
Joker
Greek Mythology
by Caitlin
Greek mythology
magical, philosophical
amazing, teaching, helping
Hercules, Odysseus, Perseus, Ariadne
finding, helping, entertaining
heroic, brave
Greek mythology
Oreo
by Alexis
Oreo
cuddly, sassy
purring, eating, sleeping
pretty, destructive, playful, skinny
caring, clinging, jumping
helpful, graceful
Oreo
Cat and Mouse
by Chandler
Cat
fluffy, sleepy
pouncing, meowing, sneaking
large, brave, small, cowardly
hiding, running, eating
hungry, afraid
Mouse
Love and Hate
by Dylan
Love
passionate, boundless
blinding, enticing, controlling
just the same as
controlling, enticing, blinding
boundless, passionate
Hate
Fujisaki-san and Oowada-kun
by Hannah
Fujisaki-san
sweet, caring
programming, smiling, crying
we have more in common than you think
grimacing, working out, complaining
secretly loving, strong
Oowada-kun
Aren’t they awesome? I hope you enjoyed reading them as much as I enjoyed grading them.
One of my favorite units to teach is a poetry unit in which we identify, analyze, and write various types of poems. We usually begin with diamante poems.
Diamante poems are structured and derive their name from their diamond shape. There are two ways to construct these poems: the poet keeps the same topic throughout the poem or chooses to contrast two topics.
Here is a line-by-line guide to construct each type:
One Topic (Synonym) Diamante:
Line 1: Noun or subject
Line 2: Two adjectives to describe the subject
Line 3: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the subject
Line 4: Four words or a phrase that describe or relate to the subject
Line 5: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the subject
Line 6: Two adjectives to describe the subject
Line 7: The subject or its synonym
Contrast (Antonym) Diamante:
Line 1: Noun or subject
Line 2: Two adjectives to describe the subject
Line 3: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the subject
Line 4: Two words that describe the original subject and two words that describe the contrasting subject
Line 5: Three words ending with –ing that describe or relate to the contrasting subject
Line 6: Two adjectives to describe the contrasting subject
Line 7: The contrasting subject or the antonym of the original subject
On Monday, I discussed diamante poems with my students. After examining a few examples, including one of mine, the students wrote their own poems as an assignment. Most of the students chose the one topic (synonym) version because it is simpler to construct. Overall, they greatly impressed me with their effort!
Here are some of their poems:
Music
by Mindy
Music
happy, playful
soothing, calming, exciting
concert, headphones, style, culture
feeling, solving, loving
bouncing, rocking
Music
Max
by Matt
Max
playful, soft
playing, eating, jumping
fun, skinny, brown eyes, and gray hair
sleeping, running, barking
fuzzy, loud
Max
Olaf
by Mackenzy
Olaf
funny, sweet
caring, loving, outgoing
some people are worth melting for
inspiring, helping, entertaining
nice, fluffy
Olaf
Relationship
by Genevieve
Relationship
loyalty, love
caring, compromising, trusting
loving one another promising, hugging, talking
compassionate, believing
Taken
Llama and Turtle
by River
Llama
majestic, tall
spitting, grazing, running
fuzzy, hairy, green, brown
walking, eating, sleeping
slow, short
Turtle
Summer and Winter
by Kaylee
Summer
fun, hot
swimming, sleeping, playing
ice cream, shorts, hot chocolate, coats
snowing, freezing, sledding
cold, joyful
Winter
Her Eyes
by Jada
Her eyes
big, brown
shimmering, wondering, amazing
always aware and watching
comforting, warming, twinkling
beautiful, content
Her eyes
Cat and Dog
by Aaron
Cat
cruel, mean
hating, scratching, biting
terrible, unpleasant, lovable, kind
caring, deserving, cuddling
loving, pleasant
Dog
Crayon and Marker
by Makenzie
Crayon
red, yellow
coloring, tracing, drawing
bright, solid, ink, liquid
interesting, enhancing, stimulating
colorful, blue
Marker
Batman and Joker
by Hannah
Batman
dark, silent
watching, fighting, gliding
eternal enemies, forever fighting
killing, joking, laughing
malicious, murderous
Joker
Greek Mythology
by Caitlin
Greek mythology
magical, philosophical
amazing, teaching, helping
Hercules, Odysseus, Perseus, Ariadne
finding, helping, entertaining
heroic, brave
Greek mythology
Oreo
by Alexis
Oreo
cuddly, sassy
purring, eating, sleeping
pretty, destructive, playful, skinny
caring, clinging, jumping
helpful, graceful
Oreo
Cat and Mouse
by Chandler
Cat
fluffy, sleepy
pouncing, meowing, sneaking
large, brave, small, cowardly
hiding, running, eating
hungry, afraid
Mouse
Love and Hate
by Dylan
Love
passionate, boundless
blinding, enticing, controlling
just the same as
controlling, enticing, blinding
boundless, passionate
Hate
Fujisaki-san and Oowada-kun
by Hannah
Fujisaki-san
sweet, caring
programming, smiling, crying
we have more in common than you think
grimacing, working out, complaining
secretly loving, strong
Oowada-kun
Aren’t they awesome? I hope you enjoyed reading them as much as I enjoyed grading them.
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