Concrete Poetry

 What is concrete poetry?

Concrete poetry is also known as visual poetry.  Concrete poetry is very concerned with how the words are organized on the page.  The words are arranged in a way that accentuates the ideas in the poem.  When looking at concrete poetry the white space, or the places on the page without any words, are equally important to the words on the page.  Pay careful attention to how the poetry is presented on the paper. 

 Here is an example:

 by Michael P. Garofalo

 (www.gardendigest.com/poetry/concr1.htm)

What is happening in this poem?  (Hint: Notice the shape and the words.)

 How do I write a concrete poem?

Writing a concrete poem is like creating a picture with words instead of paint or pencils or markers.  There are NO pictures in a concrete poem.  Instead, the words become the visual.

 First, try one of these phrases as a concrete poem:

 EXPLODING BOMB,  GENTLE WATERFALL,  BOUNCING BALL. 

Place the letters in a way that would enhance the meaning of the phrase.

Look at this concrete poem:

by Lisa (http://www.liswa.wa.gov.au/liskidz/allsorts/concrete/)

Lisa started this poem by noticing a flower in her garden.  You can start the same way.  What objects have very distinct shapes?  Make a list of 3 objects that have potential for concrete poetry:

1.

2.

3.

 Now, choose the object that interests you most to create a sensory word bank below. List as many words as you can to describe your object in each of the sense columns.

 Smell                     Sight                     Touch                    Sound                    Taste

What special significance does your object have?

On a blank sheet of paper, begin crafting the words in your word bank and the special significance into a visual poem.  Don’t get discouraged if it takes several drafts to get the words in the right position.  Most concrete poems take a lot of time to get just right!