How to Write an "I Am" Poem
An "I Am" poem is made up of three stanzas that are six lines each and normally do not rhyme. It follows a specific format, and is used to describe something, often a person or an object. The beginning of each line are already written, and the writer fills in the end of each line by inserting a specific word or words. Learn how to create your own "I Am" poem.
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Instructions
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How to Write an "I Am" Poem
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For the first line of the poem, write "I am" and then write two special characteristics about the subject of the poem. Make it sound like a sentence, for example "I am happy and friendly."
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The second line should start "I wonder" and state what your subject is curious about.
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3
Write "I hear" for the third line, and then a sound your subject hears.
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4
The fourth line should start "I see" followed by something your subject sees, and the fifth line begins with "I want" followed by something the subject wants or desires.
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5
Write "I am" and the same words that you wrote in the first line of your poem. The first and sixth lines will be identical. This is the end of the first stanza.
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6
Start the second stanza with "I pretend" followed by what the subject pretends to do. The second line in this stanza starts "I feel" and described what the subject feels.
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Start the third line with "I touch" which usually describes something imaginary the subject touches, and the fourth line starts "I worry" and tells about what worries the subject.
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The next line is "I cry", which tells what makes the subject sad or unhappy, and the last line of this stanza starts with "I am" and is a repeat of the first line again.
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The last stanza starts with the line "I understand" and the subject tells a fact they know to be true. The next to lines are "I say" followed by "I dream". They tell what the subject believes in and what the subject dreams about, or hopes for.
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Start the next line with "I try" and explain what the subject is trying to do. The following line should start "I hope" and expresses another dream or hope the subject has.
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Use "I am" for the next line which will be the last line of the poem. This line will repeat the first line, and that is the end of an "I am" poem.
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Tips & Warnings
The sounds and feelings you choose to include in your poem can be real or imaginary.
Resources
- Photo Credit "Writing." [Online image] Available http://open.salon.com/blog/sandra_no_longer_miller/recent/page/3, 25 April 2009.
