Haiku Hotlist

Haiku HotlistHaiku began in Japan in the 1600s. They are short poems with vivid images that usually reflect an individual's feelings about nature. They consist of 17 syllables divided into 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables.

Sample these internet sites to learn more about haiku.

Haiku
http://www.ahapoetry.com/haiku.htm

Students can find out how to write haiku, see examples of haiku, and find links to other haiku sites. This is part of the AHA! Poetry site.

Haiku for People
http://www.toyomasu.com/haiku/

From this site, you can find an explanation of haiku's form and many examples.

Haiku, Chaiku, God Bless You: Teaching Japanese Poetry Writing - Education World
http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/curr052.shtml

A helpful article about how a junior high teachers uses haiku in her classroom.

Giggle Poetry - Haiku
http://www.gigglepoetry.com/poetryclass/Haiku.html

Information on the form of haiku and examples, too. This is part of the Giggle Poetry site.

Metered Haiku
http://www.sondra.net/haiku/default.htm

There are certain poets who are famous for their haiku. At this site, you can read some of the haiku of Matsuo Basho and Issa.

Haiku Society of America
http://www.hsa-haiku.org/

The Haiku Society of America is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1968 to promote the writing and appreciation of haiku in English.

Haiku Habit
http://hometown.aol.com/Jemrich/HaikuHabit.html

Tips for getting in the mood for haiku.

Virtual Haunted House
http://www.ncsu.edu/midlink/fall98/hh98.htm

This virtual haunted house has Halloween and autumn haikus. Have students write their own haiku and illustrate using KidPix or Hyperstudio.

Haiku
http://www.indiana.edu/~japan/LP/LS3.html

A fun lesson plan where students go outside to gather their inspiration for writing haiku. It also has information about Tanka which is a poetic form derived from haiku.

Cat Haiku
http://www.nanceestar.com/CatHaiku.html

From this site:

The rule for today.
Touch my tail, I shred your hand.
New rule tomorrow.

Have students write haiku about other animals.

Haiku Headlines
http://www.thefulldeck.com/coda.nsf/opensite?open&SITE=thefulldeck&MAIN=/coda.nsf/pages/TheFullDeck?open@page=1

Just for fun. Read national and international news headlines each day written as haiku. Have students write school news as haiku.

Spam Haiku
http://mit.edu/jync/www/spam/archive.html

An important literary site - over 14,000 haiku about Spam. Have students write haiku about other food products.

Craving growing strong
Orange powder coats my fingers
Cheetoes, oh my cheetoes.

Editorial Haiku
http://mit.edu/jync/www/editorial/

Instead of editorial cartoons, check out these editorial haiku. Have students write their own editorial haiku.

Bringing Haiku Back to Life
http://www.angelfire.com/ab/westmounthaiku/

This is a cross-grade interdisciplinary mini-unit for poetry. It is designed to help students explore haiku using technology to enhance their studies.

Dhugal J. Lindsay's Haiku Universe
http://www.cyberoz.net/city/dhugal/haikuhome.html

You'll find information about the poetic forms of senryuu and tanka besides examples of haiku.

North Texas Institute for Educators on the Visual Arts - Haiku
http://www.art.unt.edu/ntieva/artcurr/asian/haiku.html

According to this site, "the primary purpose of reading and writing haiku is sharing moments of our lives that have moved us, pieces of experience and perception that we offer or receive as gifts. At the deepest level, this is one of the great purposes of all art, and especially of literature."

Haiku Gateway - Dog Blossoms
http://glwarner.narrowgate.net/haiku/

An online haiku magazine. This site is not currently up-to-date, but you can read past issues of the magazine. See also haiku world, "a place for poets, readers, and publishers to share their love of haiku."

Random Word Haiku
http://www.cs.indiana.edu/cgi-bin/haiku/

From this site, the computer generates haiku that fit the pattern of 5, 7, and 5 syllables in each line--but the haiku don't necessarily make sense. Read through these haiku and use the "reload" button on your browser to see a different set of randomly generated haiku.

Computer Error Messages Written in Haiku
http://www.pignc-ispi.com/forums/humor/messages/28.html

From this site, you'll find computer problem messages written in haiku such as:

Yesterday it worked
Today it is not working
Windows is like that

Have your students turn other media into haiku. How about commercials as haiku?

Shining, sparkling tub.
Scrubbing bubbles frenzied toil.
Lemon-scented clean.

How about the synopsis of a book or movie or television program as haiku?

Author: LINDA MOSBACKER - Email linda.mosbacker@slc.k12.ut.us