Falling for Fall

 

Autumn, Queen of Year

– by Winifred Sackville Stoner, Jr.

“When the pumpkins are so yellow

And the vines with grapes abound,

When the melons are so mellow

And the nuts fall to the ground;

When persimmons lose their bitters,

And the apples are so red;

When we love to eat corn fritters

Since the roasting ears have fled;

When vacation days are over

And the children go to school,

They no longer play in clover,

But much learn “Arithmos-rule,”

When weird Hallowe’en’s most naughty elves

With gnomes and sprites appear,

While fat Thanksgiving fills the shelves –

‘Tis AUTUMN, QUEEN OF YEAR.”

Vocabulary

1. vines (plural noun) a climbing or trailing woody-stemmed plant of the grape family.

2. abound(verb) exist in large numbers or amounts.

3. persimmons(noun) an edible fruit that resembles a large tomato and has very sweet flesh. 

4. bitters (plural noun) having a sharp, pungent taste or smell.

5. fritters (plural noun) divide something into small pieces.

6. fled (verb [past tense]) run away from (someone or something)

7. clover (noun) a herbaceous plant of the pea family that has dense, globular flower heads.

8. gnomes (plural noun) a legendary dwarfish creature supposed to guard the earth’s treasures                    underground.

 

Vocabulary Exercise: Matching

1. vines a. a herbaceous plant of the pea family

2. abound         b. divide something into small pieces.

3. Persimmons c. run away from (someone or something)

4. bitters b. a creature that guards the earth’s treasures underground.

5. fritters         e. exist in large numbers or amounts.

6. fled         f. an edible fruit

7. clover g. trailing woody-stemmed plant of the grape family.

8. Gnomes         h. having a sharp, pungent taste or smell

Poetry Talk

The poet uses something called End rhyme in this poem. This is when a poem has lines ending with words that sound the same. For example, yellow and mellow, abound and ground, bitters, and fritters, red and fled, etc. 

Write a 6-line stanza(poem) using end rhyme like the poet did in this poem. Follow the fall theme when writing your own poem.