is Catherine?
(b) How long were Catherine’s mom and dad married before they had their first child?
(c) Who was Catherine named after?
(d) Where does Catherine’s family live now?
(e) Where did Catherine’s family live when she was born?
(f) How old was Catherine when she started school?
2. Make your own time line. Think about all the important events that have happened in your family. Make a time line showing all of them. Your time line must have at least five dates on it, and it should have no more than ten dates. Make your time line attractive – draw pictures to illustrate some of the important events.
Your teacher will use the following checklist to assess your time line:
An invitation
An invitation should be addressed to someone asking them to attend some event. It should say who it is from, what the event is, where it will take place, the date and the time. In the next activity you will draw up an invitation.
1. You decide to hold a family reunion. Draw up the invitation. You can decide on the details, but make sure it contains all the elements mentioned above.
2. Discuss your invitation with your partner.
Read poems about family
In this section you are going to read different types of poetry. The first type of poem is called an acrostic poem. Acrostics are fun and easy to write, so you can have some fun creating your own. Next, you are going to read a limerick. Limericks are nonsense poems with a very specific rhyme scheme which you will learn about. Finally, you are going to read a regular poem and compare it to the other two types.
Acrostic poetry
The first type of poem we are going to look at is called acrostic poetry. An acrostic poem does not always look like a poem, sometimes it is just a list of words, and sometimes it can be quite long. All acrostic poems have one thing in common: The first letter of each line spells out a word or words.
Look at the following short acrostic poem:
Sharing parents In a family together, Best friends that Love each other In good times and bad, Now and forever. Good things to have: Sisters and brothers
Can you see that the first letter of each line in the poem spells out the word SIBLINGS? If you do not know the meaning of this word, look it up in a dictionary. Can you see that each line of the poem says something about siblings?
In all acrostic poems the word that is spelt by the first letter of each line forms the theme or main idea of the poem.
1. In this activity you and your partner are going to write your own acrostic poem. As a class, think of as many words as you can that have to do with family and write them on the board. If there are any words you do not know, look them up in your dictionary and write them in your workbook.
Here are some ideas:
Your words don’t all have to be general family words; they could be specific to your family. You could even use the name of a family member.
2. Your teacher is going to put you into pairs. In your pairs decide on a word that you are going to use for your acrostic poem. Your word should have at least six letters, because your poem needs to be six lines or longer. You can use a word from the board, or you can think of a new one if you have any more ideas.
3. Collect as many ideas as you and your partner can, using the letters of the word you have chosen.
4. Write your acrostic poem.
Your teacher will use the following checklist to assess your poem:
5. Share your poem with the class by sticking it up on the classroom walls for everyone to read.
Limericks
The second type of poem you are going to look at is called a limerick or nonsense rhyme. This type of poem is named after the Irish town, Limerick, where they were first written. The most famous limerick poet is Edward Lear.
Limericks are a type of nonsense poem. They do not really mean anything, and were written just for entertainment. Limericks have a very specific, lyrical rhyme scheme and rhythm, which you are going to work out in the next activity. You are going to read two Edward Lear poems about family and discuss them.
1. Read the limerick below by Edward Lear. Read it aloud to hear and sense the rhythm. Look at the picture to help you understand it. Then answer the questions below it.
There was a Young Girl of Majorca,
Whose aunt was a very fast walker;
She walked seventy miles,
And leaped fifteen stiles,
Which astonished that Girl of Majorca.
(a) Who are the characters in the limerick?
(b) What is happening in the picture? Use words from the limerick to explain it.
(c) There are two sets of rhyming words. What are they?
(d) If the first pair of rhyming words is called ‘a’ and the second is called ‘b’, how would you write the rhyme scheme for this limerick?
(e) How many syllables are there in each line of the poem? Read the poem aloud carefully and listen for each sound in each line to help you count.
2. Now read another limerick by Edward Lear and look at the picture. Then answer the questions that follow:
There was an Old Person of Rhodes,
Who strongly objected to toads;
He paid several cousins,
To
