DLTK's Educational Activities
Limerick Poetry
A limerick is a silly poem with five lines. They are often funny or
nonsensical. All of the limericks on our site are family friendly
(G-rated).
How to write a limerick:
The first, second and fifth lines rhyme with each other and have the same
number of syllables (typically 8 or 9). The third and fourth lines rhyme
with each other and have the same number of syllables (typically 5 or
6).
Limericks often start with the line "There once was a..." or
"There was a..."
Example of an 8,8,5,5,8 syllable limerick:
There once was a clover named Kate,
Who sat on the edge of a plate,
The fancy folk dined,
On foods of all kind,
Then tossed her at quarter past eight.
History of the limerick:
Limericks were made famous by Edward Lear, a famous author who wrote the
"Book of Nonsense" in the 1800's. This was an entire book
of silly limericks.
Limericks aren't Irish (Edward Lear was English) -- but there is a Limerick
county in Ireland and they are fun little poems for children to write -- so writing Saint
Patrick's day limericks with the class is a fun and educational exercise for
children to do. For young children, you can focus on the rhyming and
ignore the syllable count.
You don't have to do a Saint Patrick's theme -- you can write limericks with
any theme you like!
Examples of limericks:
I've included a couple of Saint Patrick's day limericks I've written and some
of the original limericks written by Edward Lear.
I hope you enjoy and that you take the time to try writing one of your own!
Saint Patrick's Day Limerick 1 color
or B&W
Saint Patrick's Day Limerick 2 color
or B&W
Saint Patrick's Day Limerick 3 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 1 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 2 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 3 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 4 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 5 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 6 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 7 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 8 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 9 color
or B&W
Edward Lear Limerick 10 color
or B&W
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