This document provides instructions for writing a tanka poem, a traditional Japanese poetic form consisting of 5 lines with a 5-7-5-7-7 syllable structure. It explains that tanka originated older than haiku and were originally single sentences of 31 syllables. The document outlines the line and syllable structure, topics that tanka usually cover which are events or strong feelings, and guides the reader through choosing a theme, brainstorming images and feelings, and arranging words into the tanka format. It concludes with an example tanka poem about going to the beach.