The poem
Ode to the Willow (咏柳, Yǒng Liǔ) by He Zhizhang (贺知章).
碧玉妆成一树高bì yù zhuāng chéng yí shù gāoLike green jade, the tall tree is dressed up,
万条垂下绿丝绦wàn tiáo chuí xià lǜ sī tāoTen thousand branches hang down like green silk ribbons.
不知细叶谁裁出bù zhī xì yè shuí cái chūWho cut out these fine little leaves?
二月春风似剪刀èr yuè chūn fēng sì jiǎn dāoThe spring wind of February is like a pair of scissors.
What it means
A willow tree in early spring, described like a girl in a green dress. The last line is the fun part for kids: the spring wind is a pair of scissors that cut the new leaves into shape.
Characters to know
- 树 shù: tree
- 叶 yè: leaf
- 春风 chūn fēng: spring wind
- 剪刀 jiǎn dāo: scissors
How to practise it
Read the poem aloud together first, then write one line a day using the line buttons above the worksheet. By the end of the week your child can write the whole poem and knows what each line means. When it feels easy, set tracing to 0 and write it from memory.
Watch the story
We explain this poem in simple English, line by line, on our YouTube channel Little Moon Chinese Poems.
More poems to print
- 静夜思 Quiet Night Thoughts
- 春晓 Spring Dawn
- 咏鹅 Ode to the Goose
- 登鹳雀楼 On the Stork Tower
- 悯农 Pity the Farmers
- 江雪 River Snow
- 画 A Painting
- 草 Grass
- 鹿柴 Deer Park
- 寻隐者不遇 Looking for the Hermit
- 相思 Thinking of You
- 游子吟 Song of the Traveller
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