Hidden Message Poetry

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Hidden Message Poetry
Poetry is amazing, isn’t it? There are so many forms and it’s so accessible to all age groups. Kids love it because it’s so familiar. They’ve been hearing it all their lives. Remember all those nursery rhymes?

To encourage my reluctant writer, we turned our poetry into artwork. We made it even more special by hiding our poetry inside the picture using a fun technique, watercolor resist.

hidden message poetry

Write a Poem

We started with the poetry. That was the important part — the writing. It was the part I hoped my daughter would do without too much of a struggle. Since her painting was going to be a flower, it became the theme of the poem.

We also decided on a format. She wanted a rhyming poem, which we kept short at only six lines. It had to fit inside our picture, after all.

We talked about our five senses and what we saw, smelled, and felt when we were observing our favorite flowers.

She loved this and discovered just how much fun it is to write poetry.

Let your child’s interests lead the way for the topic of the poem. Do they love vehicles? Write a poem about cars. What do they sound like? How do they look? It they love animals, they can write about their favorite animal. Maybe they love to read. Write a poem about a book. The key is to let them write about something they love. Let their interests get them excited about writing poetry. hidden message poetry

Write as a Secret Message

Once the poem was written, it was time to turn it into art. My daughter drew a simple flower shape and then commissioned me to write the poem inside the flower. She’s still in first grade and wasn’t quite confident that her big handwriting would fit inside the flower. I used a white crayon to write it. (You can barely see the poem at this point, but the fun will begin when you start painting.)

hidden message poetry 4
We used a standard set of watercolors (Crayola brand has a very vibrant coverage.) The area with the poem should stay a single color to allow for easier reading. My daughter was laughing as she painted. Each line of the poem appeared as she painted over it. Suddenly that poem that she worked so hard on was a piece of art. She started adding details and more color to make her picture as pretty as her words. 

hidden message poetry
In the end, my daughter was proud of her poem and her confidence was blooming.

Writing can come in so many shapes and sizes. If your child lacking confidence or feeling uninspired with writing, turn it into something fun and beautiful. It really will get them excited about writing.

Written by Terri Thompson, mom and blogger at Creative Family Fun.

Also see:
Found Poetry
List Poetry
Poems Kids Should Memorize

Nursery Rhyme Books

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One Comment

  1. This looks like so much fun! Brilliant way to engage children with writing