The Poetry Pack
Help your children to read and write poetry with this pack of teaching, activity and display resources!
Limericks can be very funny, and children will enjoy reading them and creating their own in the classroom.
Here are some examples of limericks which were kindly contributed by other teachers.
I went to the staffroom one day For a nice cup of tea during play But a troll had got in And was making a din Even though he had nothing to say. | There was a young man from Dealing Who caught the bus for Ealing. It said on the door Don't spit on the floor So he jumped up and spat on the ceiling |
An artistic male cat called Greebo, | There was a young lady from Ickenham Who went on a bus-trip to Twickenham. She drank too much beer, Which made her feel queer, So she took off her boots and was sick-in-'em. |
There was an old person of Fratton Who would go to church with his hat on. 'If I wake up,' he said, 'With a hat on my head, I will know that it hasn't been sat on.' | There once was an old man from Esser, Whose knowledge grew lesser and lesser. It at last grew so small, He knew nothing at all, And now he's a college professor. |
There was a young lady from Hyde, Who ate a green apple and died. While her lover lamented, The apple fermented, And made cyder inside her inside. | A mosquito was heard to complain, 'A chemist has poisoned my brain!' The cause of his sorrow was paradichloro- triphenyldichloroethane. |
There once was a lass in the staffroom... who found a long and thin broom she waved it about with a scream and a shout and cleaned up the whole of her classroom.. | I once had a blind date with Cilla. |
There was an old man from Milan, | There was a young man from Dundee, Got stung on the leg with a wasp When asked if it hurt He said no not a bit It can do it again if it likes! |
Activities
1) Ask the children to investigate the structure of a limerick. How many lines does a limerick have? How many syllables are there in each line? What is the rhythm of the limerick like? What is the pattern of rhyming in the limerick?
2) When the children are familiar with the structure of limericks, they could create some of their own. Depending on their age and ability, you might want to provide some starters for them, for example...
There once was a young man called Pete...
There once was a girl from Peru...
You could also provide sets of rhyming words for the children to use in their poems, for example...
Mark, dark, park, spark, lark, bark....
Wales, tales, sales, scales, nails, gales, males, quails, rails...
3) When the children have created their limericks, they could jumble up the lines, and ask their friends to rearrange the limerick back to the correct order (developing their sequencing skills).
Comments
Guest
30th May 2011
There was an old man from Dargeiling,Who boarded a bus to Eailing, There was a sign on the door,Which said don't spit on the floor,So he stood up and spat on the ceiling.
Hsgvkys
5th April 2012
no u r soooo wrong!!! it is the 1st, 2nd, and 5th line r all rhyming and have 8-9 syllables. Lines 3&4 rhyme and have 5-7 syllables!!! ONLY 5 LINES!!
guest
13th February 2013
There once was a parrot from ParisWho was bought by a boy named FerrisHe nibbled the boyThen got a new toyThat crazy parrot from Paris
Salamanda
12th September 2013
I once knew of a bird called IzzyWho ate fish until she was dizzy.But the fish didn’t mindBeing treated unkindFor they wanted to help her keep busy!
John Lebron
11th March 2014
There once was a man named PeteWho never wore socks on his feetHe went outside one dayWith a soccer ball to playAnd now he’s got mud all over hisfeet!
Anoushka Sabnis
14th April 2016
Nice
Guest M
15th October 2017
Simple plan and fun examples to engage students Thanks
bob
3rd August 2018
One there was a dog, but he couldn't see in the fog, He had not been bad he's just been glad. One morning the dog went into the fog, and seen a giant tog i dont know lol