Illustration of a Yeti eating dinner
Art by Robb Mommaerts
Poetry,

Betty Met a Yeti

A lighthearted poem about a make-believe encounter

By Kenn Nesbitt | Art by Robb Mommaerts
From the December 2023/January 2024 Issue

Learning Objective: Students will identify the silly mood of this funny and outrageous rhyming poem

Complexity Factors
  • Levels of Meaning
    On one level, “Betty Met a Yeti” is a fictional poem about a girl who gets eaten by a yeti. On another level, it is meant to be funny and amusing.
  • Structure
    The poem contains two stanzas. Each stanza has eight lines. Each stanza follows an ABAB rhyme scheme.
  • Language
    The language is mostly simple but contains a few words—like baguette and fret—that may be unfamiliar to students. The poem ends with a rhetorical question.
  • Knowledge Demands
    No prior knowledge is needed.
Featured Skill: Elements of Poetry,
Other Key Skills: mood, plot, interpreting text, inference, summarizing, rhyme, text features, narrative writing
Standards
  • Common Core
    RL.3.1, RL.3.2, RL.3.3, RL.3.4, RL.3.7, W.3.3, SL.3.1, SL.3.2, L.3.4, L.3.5
  • TEKS Grade 3
    1a, 1c, 3a, 3b, 4, 6a, 6c, 6f, 6i, 7b, 7c, 7f, 7g, 8c, 9b, 10a, 10c, 10d, 12a, 12b

Presentation View
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Betty Met a Yeti

Betty met a yeti

in the mountains of Tibet.

She cooked him some spaghetti

and she baked him a baguette.

And when the food was ready

and the dishes all were set,

the yeti swallowed Betty

and said, “Mmmm. The best one yet.”


So that’s the end of Betty,

but you needn’t be upset

unless you meet a yeti

in the mountains of Tibet.

Then just stay calm and steady.

Don’t be nervous. Never fret.

And don’t cook him spaghetti,

or who knows what you might get?

THINK AND WRITE

A poem’s mood is the way it makes you feel. Figure out this poem’s mood and write your own poem. 

Audio ()
Activities (4)
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
Audio ()
Activities (4) Download All Quizzes and Activities
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
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Table of Contents

1. Preparing to Read

2. Close Reading

3. SEL Focus

4. Skill Building

5. Differentiate and Customize

Struggling Readers, Multilingual Learners, Advanced Readers, Creative Writing

1. Preparing to Read

Set a Purpose for Reading

  • Read the title of the poem along with the poet’s name. Ask students to describe the illustration and predict what the poem will be about. Review the predictions after reading the poem.

  • Explain that the poem has two stanzas. A stanza is a group of lines in a poem. In this poem, each stanza has eight lines. Explain that every other line in the poem rhymes. This means the poem has an ABAB rhyme scheme.

Preview Text Features and Vocabulary 

  • Before reading, point out the words baguette (a long, thin loaf of bread) and fret (worry) to students, and review their definitions. Go over any other vocabulary terms that may be challenging for your students.

2. Reading and Discussing the Poem

  • Read the poem to the class, play the audio Read-Aloud, or use Text-to-Speech.

  • Next, ask students to take turns reading aloud each line in the poem.

  • Discuss the Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions. 

Close-Reading Questions

  • Read the first stanza, or group of lines. What happens to Betty in this part of the poem? In this stanza, Betty meets a yeti in Tibet. She cooks spaghetti and bakes a baguette for him. After the food is ready and she sets it on a table, the yeti swallows her. (plot)
  • Why does the yeti say, “Mmmm. The best one yet”? The yeti says “Mmmm. The best one yet” because he has eaten other people. But Betty is the best-tasting person he has ever eaten! (interpreting text, inference)
  • Read the second stanza of the poem. What does the speaker warn readers to do if they meet a yeti in Tibet? The speaker warns readers to stay calm and not be nervous or worried. Also, they shouldn’t cook spaghetti for the yeti. (summarizing)
  • What words rhyme in each stanza of the poem? In the first stanza, the rhyming words are yeti, spaghetti, ready, and Betty; Tibet, baguette, set, and yet. In the second stanza, the rhyming words are Betty, yeti, steady, and spaghetti; upset, Tibet, fret and get. (rhyme)
  • How did you feel after reading this poem? What made you feel this way? Answers may vary. Sample response: I felt happy because what happened to Betty was so silly and funny that it made me laugh. (mood)
  • How does the illustration help create the mood or feeling of this poem? The illustration helps create a funny, silly mood by showing the large, goofy yeti holding a napkin to his mouth after he has eaten Betty. On the table in front of him is the bowl of spaghetti and the baguette that Betty made for him. Betty’s sneakers are left on the plate after the yeti ate her. (text features)

3 Skill Building

Featured Skill: Mood

Distribute or digitally assign our Mood Skill Builder and have students complete it in class or for homework.  

Text-to-Speech