I Went to the Gym
A Funny Weightlifting Poem for Kids
From the book My Cat Knows Karate
I went the the gym.
I lifted a weight.
My muscles got bigger.
It felt really great.
I hoisted another,
a heavier one.
I got even stronger.
I thought it was fun.
I wandered outside where
I bent a steel bar.
I pulled up a park bench
and carried a car.
I picked up a truck
and then set out to try
to boost a big building
I spotted nearby.
So now I’m in jail, with
my muscles to thank.
I probably shouldn’t have
held up that bank.
— Kenn Nesbitt
Copyright © 2018. All Rights Reserved.
Reading Level: Grade 1
Topics: Sports
Poetic Techniques: Alliteration, Narrative Poems, Pun Poems
About This Poem
Many of the poems I write are based, at least a little bit, on real things. I've been going to the gym a lot lately, which inspired me to write a poem about lifting weights. I also love to exaggerate in poems. Of course, nobody can get this strong, or even build muscles this quickly, but I think it makes for a funny story. In addition to rhyming, one poetic technique I often use is "alliteration," which means repeating the consonant sounds at the beginnings of words, as in "boost a big building," which repeats the "B" sound and "carried a car," which repeats the "K" sound of the letter "C." This poem has quite a few alliterations in it. Can you find them all?
From the book My Cat Knows Karate
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