Dear bear friends:

Perry Bear is now a poet! I have learned to write haiku a form of Japanese poetry.

Haiku has very simple rules. A haiku has three lines. It should contain one "season word" a word that evokes a season in nature. A season word can be a color, like green, or a natural phenomenon, like wind.

Haiku doesn't rhyme.

Finally, to write Japanese haiku, there is a rule about the number of syllables:
The first line has five syllables.
The second line has seven syllables.
The third line has five syllables.
Because haiku is so clear and simple, children can write very nice haiku! Goodness! Even a little teddy bear can write beautiful haiku. Would you like to read mine?

Tokyo Autumn, by Perry Bear Ewer

Trees of steel and glass
Leaves dance crisp on concrete steps
Milk-grey morning light.
Here is a site on the Internet to read some Halloween Haiku, written and illustrated by children:

http://longwood.cs.ucf.edu/~MidLink/haikus.html

For teachers and home teachers, here is a site with lesson plans and information about teaching haiku:

http://cc.matsuyama-u.ac.jp/~shiki/Start-Writing.html

I hope my bear friends will send me their best haiku! I would like to share them with all my friends.

Your poet bear friend,

Perry Bear Ewer