Riddle Poems Lesson Plan: A Poetry Guessing Game for Students

ByDylan Callens

This Riddle Poems lesson plan gives students an immediate audience: classmates who are trying to solve the poem. Writers must choose clues carefully, balancing enough information to make the answer possible with enough mystery to keep the riddle interesting.

Learning Goals & Standards

Students will use imagery and figurative language to create precise clues, make inferences from language, and revise for audience. This supports CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.9-10.1, RL.9-10.4, and W.9-10.5.

Materials & Preparation

  • Notebook paper or devices
  • Optional object/topic cards

Bell Ringer: Too Easy, Too Hard, Just Right

Give three clues for the same object: one obvious, one impossibly vague, and one balanced. Students rank them and explain what makes a useful clue.

Mini-Lesson: Hide the Noun, Reveal the Qualities

Explain that a riddle poem should avoid naming the answer or simply listing dictionary features. Model describing movement, sound, function, shape, and comparison. Strong clues become images.

Student Work: Write and Solve Riddle Poems

Step 1: Choose the Answer

Students select a classroom-safe object, place, animal, or everyday concept.

Step 2: Create a Clue Bank

Students list at least eight true details, including appearance, action, sound, location, and comparison.

Step 3: Rank the Clues

Students label clues as obvious, medium, or difficult and plan to reveal them gradually.

Step 4: Draft

Students write 8–14 lines, saving the clearest clue for near the end.

Step 5: Guessing Round

Read poems aloud one at a time. Classmates write guesses and identify the line that helped most.

Assessment & Exit Ticket

Assess accuracy, imagery, clue sequencing, and revision based on audience response. Exit ticket: Which clue did readers find most helpful, and was that what you expected?

Differentiation

Provide a clue organizer with categories. Advanced students can write about an abstract idea such as time or patience while keeping the answer solvable.

First-Hand Suggestions for Teachers

I would let students test their riddle on one partner before the class round. If the partner guesses instantly, the writer can make an early clue subtler; if the partner has no idea, the writer can strengthen the later clues.

Extend the Lesson

Collect the poems into a class riddle book with answers placed at the end.

Find more activities in 45 Poetry Games for the Classroom.

Poetry games and activities from The Teachers' Blog Resources on Teachers Pay Teachers

Featured photo: Mark Casey via Unsplash.