Motivate: Videoconferences for Schools just hosted a couple of videoconferences for students between the ages of 6 and 8 to discuss The Greedy Triangle by Marilyn Burns.
The Greedy Triangle
Shape up, make up your mind!
It’s the number of sides that you must find.
With sides you will see,
A triangle has 3.
A quadrilateral has 4,
There are no more!
A pentagon has 5,
Good heavens alive!
Shape up, make up your mind!
It’s the number of sides that you must find.
How well does the above poem capture the main idea of the story? In response to your reading(s) of The Greedy Triangle, I’d like each of you now to create your own short (rhyming/non-rhyming) poem, then post it here for others to read and provide feedback.
Filed under: Children's Literature | Tagged: Greedy Triangle poem children's literature
The poem above hits home to the story. The triangle couldn’t make up his/her mind and after changing so much changing he/she decided life was so much better as a triangle.
Here is my poem. I did two.
Grumble, grumble
What do I want to be
A shape, a shape don’t you see
One more side, one more angle
That’s all I need
To make me satisfied
I shall be.
JF 2-5-08
Shapeshifter, shapeshifter o’ help me!
Triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons
And many more
Which one to be o’ so unsure
Shapeshifter, shapeshifter o’ help me!
Greddy, Greedy triangle
I want everything
Three sides
Three angles
I want it all.
But should I be
Equilateral
Scalen or
Isosceles
I don’t wanna choose
I want it all!
There once was a triangle
Who wanted a new angle
Wound up with his life in a tangle
Just goes to show
We don’t always know
In life what we need
Don’t get caught up in greed
His simple shape was best
He should have left off the rest
Don’t be something your not
Just be proud of what you’ve got!
I really liked the poem. I know that everyone wants to be someone else but in the end we all want to be ourself and thats the best part.
Shapeshifter shapeshifter
I want to be more
More than 3 sides
More than 3 angels
More than a triangle
Shapeshifter shapeshifter
Give me more sides
Give me more angels
Give me more shapes
Shapeshifter shapeshifter
Dont make me choose
Dont make me choose
Because i want it all!!!
This poem really does fit the story very well. Everyone has something they wish they could change about themselves, making those changes usually results in the realization that the way we are from the very begining was the best way to be.
They call me The Greedy Triangle,
I began with three sides you see
But I wanted to be more than just me,
Not sure what I wanted to be
I just wanted to be more than just me.
More angles, more sides, soon I began to see
No matter my shape I could never be any better than just me.
The Greedy Triangle
Greedy greedy that is what I am
Give me another side
So I can go hide
Now I can be in someone business
With one more side I can’t tell my friends
all the good news
Give me another side
So I can slide
into my friends
Never mind you can have your sides back
friends are more important than gossip
I am what I am,
I am me…
but shapeshifter, what could I be?
Give me another side here
give me another side there there!
Its hip to be square!
Add more,
and more. what do I become?
A circle, its sad-what have I done?!
I am what I am, I am me…
thats it thats all i want to be!