Haiku

A haiku is an appropriate poetic form for the ENOUGH project.

Here, I will paraphrase and quote from Patricia Donegan’s book. I hope you will seek out her book for more information when you are ready for that.

“when children learn haiku, they are learning more than just poetry. They learn a fresh and sensitive way to see and connect to nature and the world” page 9

Briefly, Patricia says there are 7 keys to writing haiku:

1)FORM
2) IMAGE
3) KIGO (season word)
4) HERE AND NOW
5) FEELING (Show, NOT tell)
6) SURPRISE
7) COMPASSION

FORM: In English, 3 lines is good. (In Japanese, 17 syllables, which are not written in lines.) Don’t worry about the exact syllable count, but “about 8 words per haiku” is good. A haiku is not a sentence- don’t use capital letters or end punctuation, but ok to use : – , !

IMAGE: An image creates a sensory experience. Use 1 or 2 images per haiku.

KIGO: a word that evokes the season, perhaps in a subtle way. This should be based on your direct observation.

“Basho said…’Learn about the pine from the pine and learn about the bamboo from the bamboo.’” page 10

HERE AND NOW: Write about what you see, hear, smell, taste, touch NOW, wherever you are.

FEELING: Try to make your haiku show (not tell!) a feeling. Patricia says it beautifully: “we would not write ‘the lonely frog’ … but rather describe the frog so that it seems lonely, as in ‘a tiny frog sits in the cold rain.’” page 12

SURPRISE: The surprise may come from a new way of seeing something. It may be funny. It’s not a shocking kind of surprise. “The surprise takes our breath away and we say ‘ahhhh!’” page 12. I think the best way to understand this surprise element is by reading lots of haiku.

COMPASSION: Writing haiku is a way to exercise kindness and compassion for nature. The images and voice in your writing should show caring and respect for the natural world.

This page is my interpretation of the advice of Patricia Donegan in her book Write Your Own Haiku For Kids. I hope you will read her book when you want to learn more, as I’ve only shared an introduction here.