Create a Poetry Mobile with Primary Students

Combine Art, Photography, and Poems Into a Hanging Decoration

Jul 9, 2009

Children hang short poems and small pieces of art from a dowel or branch to create a display of their creativity.

Student combine poems and artwork in a mobile, creating a different venue for work using bound into a book. Put the poems and art onto either cardstock or watercolor paper that won’t curl up when hung. The piece can be held together further by asking students to select a theme or topic that will run through both art and poems.

Constructing a Poetry Mobile

So that the mobile isn’t unwieldy, cut the paper to three inches by five inches. Students can cut the pieces in half for variety or even add one four inch by six inch element. Hold the paper vertically or horizontally. Students will also need a hole-punch and yarn or twine to attach the paper to the dowel.

For variety and depth, students can hang some poems and art pieces from one another, so the mobile hangs down two or three levels. Students will need to hang the pieces so the mobile is balanced. Teachers or parents can determine how many poems or pieces of artwork they want to see in the final piece.

Short Poems to Write

These poems are brief, with specific formats for students to follow. Use any combination of these poems in the mobile, or assign the poems of one's choice.

Haiku – In this three-line poem, the first line contains five syllables, the second line uses words totaling seven syllables, and the third line consists of five syllables.

Cinquain – This five-line poem, like the haiku, follows a specific pattern of so many syllables on each line.

Diamante – A diamante is a seven-line poem shaped like a diamond. Syllable count doesn’t matter in these poems.

Miniature Art Projects

Students can decorate the poem pages, the back of the poems, or separate pages to add color to the mobile. Any technique or project that can be done in a larger format can be done as smaller artwork. Encourage students to use different materials for each piece of art.

Collage – Cut apart magazine pictures and overlap the shapes. Select similar images or cut out a variety of pictures that are the same color.

Watercolors – Paint a picture that stands on its own. Keep the paint light and watery to decorate the background of any of the poems.

Pencil or Pen – Draw a quick sketch and accent it with colored pencil. By adding a lot of color to the mobile through the artwork, the mobile will catch the eye.

Students can combine artwork with brief poems in a final project. Instead of binding poetry into a book, a mobile adds a dynamic and different element to an assignment combining art and language.

The copyright of the article Create a Poetry Mobile with Primary Students in Educational Kids Crafts is owned by Susan Caplan. Permission to republish Create a Poetry Mobile with Primary Students in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.