Day 5 - Pensee

I have really had fun with this poetry form when I taught school. It’s amazing what the students come up with. Let’s see what y’all can do with it. You need to follow the directions exactly – more counting of syllables but no rhyming required. I even created a little fill-in-the-blank chart to help you out! Cheers!!

How to write a “Pensee Poem” ~ “pensee” is a French word that means “a reflection or thought.” It is a five-line, structured poem that does not rhyme. Each line has a specific number of syllables and addresses a specific part of the poem ~ see box below.

The thing to watch out for is to follow the pattern, including WHAT should be expressed on each line, using a SPECIFIC number of syllables ~ and remember – THIS poem does not rhyme.     

                         

Line	Pattern	Example
Line 1	Subject  (2 syllables)	Freedom
Line 2	Description  (4 syllables)	Our liberties
Line 3	Action  7 syllables)	Granted unto us by God
Line 4	Setting (8 syllables)	Outlined in our Constitution
Line 5	Final thought  (6 syllables)	Thank you Founding Fathers

 

This is what the above example looks like as a poem:

Freedom
Our liberties
Granted unto us by God
Outlined in our Constitution
Thank-you Founding Fathers      

      © 2014 Stephanie Abney

 

And here are a couple more examples:

 

 

  

Friendship
Forever bond
Watching out for each other
No matter what, no matter where
What a gift a friend is

      © 2022 Stephanie Abney

 

 

Ice cream
Cold, smooth, and sweet
Makes its way to my tummy
At the end of a trying day
For now, all is just fine.

            © 2016 Stephanie Abney

So, these are a few examples. You get the idea. So, go ahead and try several ~ perhaps one about an emotion, an animal, one of your favorite foods, a time of year (holiday/season), an event, or something in nature. What comes to mind?

PLEASE REMEMBER ~ any poetry found on this blog, written by me, is my personal property and may not be used without my permission, other than sharing it as an example in a lesson or to read it to someone. The same goes for any poems that are shared in the comments of this blog or elsewhere online as a result of this challenge. They are the creative property of the person who writes them. These poems are their original work and no one may use them without their permission. It is understood that they own the copyright to them as soon as they create them and especially once they post them. Thanks so much!

*** Also, if you choose to post your poems on your own blog ~ that’s awesome. But PLEASE don’t just copy and paste my daily instructions, but rather post your poem on your blog or your FB wall or wherever, AND LINK BACK TO THIS BLOG POST for others to come here to read the instructions. I’ve spent considerable time researching the poetry forms and writing them up to share with you. Thanks for respecting my work.