Eating Words
by Katherine Hauth (Roots)
The Poem :
"When you know
that vore means eat,
you will know
that insectivores feed
on grasshoppers, moths, and butterflies,
mosquitoes, bees, and plain - old flies.
When you know
that carni means meat,
you will know
that carnivores eat
snakes and lizards, deer and lamb,
carrion, birds, fish, and ham.
When you know
that herb means plant,
you will know
that herbivores CAN'T
eat anything that moves on a foot,
just foods that spring up from a root.
When you know
that omni means all,
you will know
that omnivores call
Everything
they can suck or chew -
sometimes even me or you - food.
Summary of the Poem :
This is a fun poem about the eating habits of animals. The poet has very interestingly make us out the definitions of insectivores, carnivores, herbivores and omnivores.
In the first stanza, the poet says that if we know the meaning of vore is eat, then we can know that insectivores eat insects like grasshopper, moths, butterflies, mosquitoes, bees and plain old flies.
In the second stanza, the poet says that if we know the meaning of carni is meat, then we can know that carnivores eat the flesh of other animals like snakes, ,lizards, deer, lamb, carrion, birds, fish and ham.
In the third stanza, the poet says that if we know that herb means plant, then we can know that herbivores can not eat any other animals. Rather they eat plants which spring up from a root.
In the last stanza, the poet very interestingly defines the omnivores. She says that if we know that omni means all, then we can understand that omnivores eat everything. They can suck or chew their food.
Comprehension
1. What did you enjoy about the poem? Tick all the correct answers.
a. the humor in the last stanza. [✓]
b. the information about animals' eating habits. [ ]
c. the rhythm. [✓]
2. Pick out two pairs of rhyming words from stanza 1.
= Two pairs of rhyming words from stanza 1 are -
eat - feed; and butterflies - old flies.
3. What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?
= The rhyme scheme of the poem is ababcc.
4. What does the poet mean by the following line? Explain in your own words.
that herbivores CAN'T
eat anything that moves on a foot,
just foods that spring up from a root.
5. The poem tells us that because 'omni' means 'all', it is easy to understand that 'omnivores' eat everything. Use the dictionary to find two more words which begin with 'omni-'. Can you guess their meanings easily now?
= The other two words which begin with 'omni-' are - omniscient and omnipotent.
Omniscient means knowing all.
Omnipotent means having all power.
Yes, now I can guess their meaning easily.
6. Your teacher will divide the class into two groups to read the poem aloud. One group will read the parts of the poem in black and the other will only read the lines in green. After the activity, try to think about why the poet has chosen to write the poem in this way, giving the last line of each stanza a different rhythm.
= I think the poet has chosen to write the poem in this way, giving the last line of each stanza a different rhythm to make it more interesting for the readers especially children and to make a distinction between the definition and examples of the food habits.
About the Poet :
Katherine Hauth, raised in Michigan, US, is a children's author and poet. On her hikes in the desert and mountains, she was drawn towards the patterns of nature that existed around her. Having developed a keen interest in poetry, she began expressing her observations through simple poems with captivating imagery. Hauth published an entire collection of poems about the animal world that help children access complex science concepts in an easy way.