Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Writing Children's Poems - End Rhyme

What is rhyme?

So many people think they can write a rhyme, especially for children. They read Dr. Seuss and Mother Goose and think it’s easy.

Trust me. It’s not.

Rhyme is the agreement in sound between words or syllables. But each of those words must count in describing the story arc you are trying to convey. None can be added as filler to make the meter sound right and sometimes writers reverse the word order to make the lines rhyme. This is known as “forcing” the rhyme.

Since it’s Rhyme Time Tuesday I thought I’d start a short series titled, RHYME PATTERNS.

Today’s discussion will focus on End Rhyme, the most common.

It’s exactly what it says. The words at the end of the lines rhyme. The lines may be consecutive or alternate. Here are a few excerpts from my poems.

Alternate lines—

The red-veiled lady in the sky A

cures every ache and ill. B

A mentor to the butterfly, A

she takes away man’s chill. B


Consecutive lines—

Oatmeal cookies, chocolate drops, A

Coffee cakes with streusel tops, A

Crullers with a sugar glaze, B

Sprinkled cupcakes line the trays. B

Next week— Internal Rhyme

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