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Listed under:  Language  >  Literature  >  Poetry
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Come to a poetry slam!

Do you love words and the way they sound out loud? Have you ever been to a poetry slam? The Bankstown poetry slam is a monthly spoken word competition that celebrates the cultural diversity of south west Sydney. Slam poets perform original poems on any subject in front of a live audience. Recently the first Poetry Slam ...

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Dorothea Mackellar's 'My country' as a song

Do you know a poem with the line 'I love a sunburnt country'? The poem is 'My country' by Dorothea Mackellar. Find out what inspired Mackellar to write this famous poem and how she felt about teenager Christine Roberts basing a song on it. This is a black-and-white clip from a 1967 current affairs program This Day Tonight.

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What's With Poetry?, Ch 2: Rhyme time

Do all poems have to rhyme? Matt from the Sydney Story Factory explains how rhyme can be used in poetry to achieve certain effects, but sometimes deliberately not rhyming can be just as effective!

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What's With Poetry?, Ch 6: Why do we create poetry?

There are many reasons why you might write poetry. Maybe it's because you saw something beautiful and you want to share that feeling with others. Or maybe something funny happened to you on your way to school and you want to remember it. You don't have to be a creative genius to write poetry and you don't have to have the ...

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What's With Poetry?, Ch 5: Visual language

When someone is telling you a story, do you visualise that story? You're not alone! A good storyteller or a poet knows exactly how to use certain words so the listener will visualise the story or poem in the way the storyteller or poet intends. A few well chosen and crafted words can allow readers to visualise a whole world. ...

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Feathers, Fur and Fins: A song about goannas

Goannas are a type of Australian lizards. Listen to the lyrics of the song performed by Don Spencer that asks lots of fun questions about goannas. Watch some goannas moving through the bush and looking for food.

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Prose vs poetry with David Malouf

Finding the right narrative form for a story can be tricky. Watch as David Malouf explains how his experience with poetry informed his prose writing. What are some of the things that writing poetry early in his career taught him?

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Teddy Rock's 'Twinkle, twinkle little star'!

Sing along with Buzz, Belle and Bop as they perform 'Twinkle, twinkle little star' in this animated music video. Then have some fun exploring rhyme and description as you create your own verse for this classic nursery rhyme.

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What's With Poetry?, Ch 3: Rhythm and metre

Have you ever had a song or a jingle that got stuck in your head? This can happen because of the rhythm in the song or the jingle. Rhythm helps us to remember a song, jingle or poem by reminding us of other songs, jingles or poems with the same rhythm. Once you get a rhythm stuck in your head it can be very difficult to ...

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Feathers, Fur and Fins: A song about kangaroos

This is a song about an Australian animal, the kangaroo. Don Spencer sings lyrics about how people from all over the world come to see the kangaroo. Listen to the rhythm. It is like the hopping of a kangaroo.

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What's With Poetry?, Ch 1: What is poetry?

It is easy to dismiss poetry as too difficult, but really all you have to do with poetry is read it and then think about how it makes you feel. Yes, there are rules to poetry, but there are rules to most things we enjoy. Watch this video as Matt from the Sydney Story Factory explains how writing poetry is just another way ...

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What's With Poetry?, Ch 4: Sounds count!

In poetry every word, syllable and sound counts! Poetry is usually much shorter than stories so it is important for a poet to convey as much as possible using as little as possible. Sounds can be a very powerful tool in expressing mood and emotion when used correctly. Watch as Matt from the Sydney Story Factory gives examples ...

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How to Build Stories, Ch 5: Using language to flavour your story

Language is like the flavour of a story. It helps relate your imagination to readers in a way they'll understand. But you have to add the right flavours; otherwise your story will be like a bad meal. Learn how to write what you want your readers to imagine and feel.

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Listening for rhythm with author Tony Wilson

Tony Wilson says that listening to rhyming books is like listening to music. How are they similar? Read a rhyming book out loud or ask someone to read one to you, and see if you can hear the rhythm. Can you clap along to it? Think about rhythm when you write your next story. Can you write something that has a beat?

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How to get better at writing in rhyme

What does author Tony Wilson suggest doing to improve your rhyming skills? Why do you think reading might help? Are you familiar with the books and authors Tony mentions? Dame Lynley Dodd is the author of the Hairy Maclary books and Julia Donaldson is another successful author who uses rhyming in her books. Look them up ...

Interactive

Poetry from the Poetry foundaton - iTunes app

View poems from classic and contemporary poets. From William Shakespeare to T.S. Eliot to Emily Dickinson this app turns your device into a mobile poetry library. Free when reviewed 5/6/15.

Interactive

Painting pictures with words

Learn about the art of performance poetry and compose your own slam poem.

Online

Henry Lawson the Poet

Students study one poem by Henry Lawson in depth, investigating a range of language forms and features, before illustrating their poem to reflect the imagery portrayed in the words, and reciting their poem to the class. This activity is supported by resources (photographs, video and textual records) from the State Library ...

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The Conversation - poetry collection

This collection of short articles is about poetry, and its role, relevance and meaning in contemporary Australia and the modern world. It includes commentary about the point of learning poetry, the role of poetry in understanding history (e.g. WW1, Arab Spring, the moon landing), and the role of a Poet Laureate. The articles ...

Interactive

Making waves with Hokusai

Students create artworks and poetry inspired by the works of Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai.