Visual Haiku
Students will discover, adapt and present elements of traditional Japanese haiku poetry in non-traditional ways. They will develop ‘visual haiku’ – incorporating imagery and text to interpret and represent a haiku poem. In developing this visual haiku, students may use digital cameras (moving and/or still), electronic imaging software and traditional art-making techniques to construct a series of images. Sounds may also be used. Discussions about how art forms convey beliefs and values form an important part of this unit.
- Index
- Activity 1: Examining and developing haiku
Activity 1: Examining and developing haiku
- Ask the students to read the information on Resource sheet 3. Once they have finished reading, ask them to draw a question from a 'hat' and use this to reflect on the text that they have read. The following questions could be used.
- 'I was surprised to find out that …'
- 'The most interesting thing was …'
- 'I'd like to know more about …'
- 'I wonder if …'
- 'I don't understand …'
- 'I was less interested in …'
- 'I didn't know that …'
- 'Someone I know who would be interested in this would be … because …'
- 'This reminded me of …'
- Discuss the responses with students and be prepared to clarify any uncertainty that they may have about this genre of poetry.
- Invite the students to generate their own haiku. The teacher may wish to provide a thematic starting point, eg summer holiday, the first time I visited …, a favourite place, etc. This part of the activity may need some time to complete and students may wish to go away and finish their haiku for homework.
- A related learning experience would provide the opportunity for students to find further examples of haiku (print or Internet) and discuss their favourite examples in small groups.
