You have been reading poems and songs. Today you start writing one of your own.
You will meet three craft moves and three starter shapes that get a draft moving. Then you write a quick warm-up: six to ten honest lines built from things you can see or touch. It is practice, not a finished piece.
Two layers help a spoken piece land on the page: craft moves you can use in any draft, and starter shapes that get the first lines down.
Three craft moves
| Term | What it means for you | Real example |
|---|---|---|
| Line break | End a line where you would breathe so the next image can land alone | Stopping after one short phrase |
| Concrete detail | Put real things on the page instead of naming the feeling | A wet umbrella, a schoolbag on its side |
| Returning phrase | Bring the same short line back so the piece has a place to return to | “the last bus is always late” coming back at the end of each verse |
Three starter shapes
| Shape | What it means for you | Real example |
|---|---|---|
| List poem | A stack of real things; you do not need a story arc | What ends up in a bag the night before someone leaves |
| Letter poem | Write to a person, a place, or a thing | Dear spare key… |
| Memory poem | Stay inside one real moment and its concrete detail | The exact sound of a kitchen on a school morning |
Here is a tiny list poem built from concrete things only:
Things in the hall
one wet umbrella
a schoolbag on its side
the good coat on the wrong hook
two shoes that do not match
No line says “I felt rushed.” The objects carry it. Next you write 6 to 10 lines in one of the three shapes, on any subject that is yours.
Write a 6 to 10 line list poem, letter poem, or memory poem on any subject. Favour real things you can see or touch. Mark what you would change, then write it once more. Copy your stronger version into your Communication Portfolio as m4_l104_warmup_<your-initials>.
You have a draft. Now your teacher will read aloud a short original piece written for this lesson; follow it on the page. Notice line breaks, concrete things, and the returning phrase. Then steal one craft move for your own warm-up: mark a breath in your draft, swap an abstract line for an object, or try a short returning phrase. This is craft noticing for your piece, not an exam question.
Talk with the person beside you for a minute:
If you want a longer note, put it in your Reflective Journal later: one line on the first concrete image that arrived when you started writing.
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