2019 Bonus Post -- A Reflection

by Juli-Anne Benjamin

In the space of afterthought, one comes to the realization that fear, of anything, is really the true reason we don’t jump, lean in, risk it or amplify. Being fearful allows us the opportunity to avoid, procrastinate and pretend. The space of fear intersected with the hope of liberation and freedom in our lives, throughout the years and across the spaces and times, reminds me of the brilliance of Dunbar’s words about the masks we wear that “hides our cheeks and shades our eyes.” Fear is a mask. Fear is my mask, and if I’m being honest, Pain is it’s cousin.

Having lived through and survived much, I’m finding that as I deconstruct my fears and understand the whys, my pain provides the answers to the questions that rise to the surface as I work to manage and heal while learning through it, and true liberation lies in aligning my heart with the UNmasking of what initially makes me fearful. Paul Laurence Dunbar, in “We Wear The Mask”, (one of my favorite poems) always inspires me to do better, be better and make everything better in my life. Dunbar speaks of bleeding hearts, grins and lies; which brings up the whys of it all. I read the poem often as a judgment space and rubric as to how I’m coping and doing with my masks as well as reading it for the beauty we sometimes we find in the cycle of fear, pain, healing and wellness.

As we educators inhabit the space of National Poetry Month in April, countless American schoolchildren recite poems, carry them in their pockets and battle it out using hip hop rhymes in celebration of the genre, expression and love. I too, celebrate poetry and am thankful for the freedoms it offers me, especially as I continue to contemplate how I, and we all wear yet dismantle our masks and work not to shade our eyes.

For a classroom activity related to this poem, please see Trevor Aleo's Go Poems post found here.

Further Reading:

Juli-Anne Benjamin is globally-minded educator who currently works as a vice principal in Newark, NJ and is a founder of both @EdCampBROOKLYN and @EdCampNewark(NJ).  Her background includes teaching experience in South Africa and India.  She serves on the Board of Directors for the International Literacy Association (ILA) and is a tireless advocate for teacher leadership, social justice and equity work, access to technology, and excellence in literacy instruction. 

2019 Post #30 -- The Poetry of Prose

by Travis Crowder

One of the beautiful things about poetry is that is touches all other genres. Poetry dwells within prose, both fiction and nonfiction, sometimes subtle and other times striking, but always trying to nudge us past the ostensible. Authors use poetic language to move their writing and to help us see the world through their eyes. Words, the molecules of ideas, envelope us, nudging us to think deeply about their function. Sometimes they seem to rest in the palm of an open hand, inviting us to use and to lean on them, to pull them into our own way of writing and speaking. This part of author’s craft is majestic, and I love introducing students to how authors use words to convey meaning.

Just a few days ago, conversations about author’s craft centered around the use of short sentences in prose. I mentioned to students how powerful short sentences could be, but like many things in reading and writing, showing works better than telling. During independent reading, I asked them to collect short sentences (usually 1-4 words) form their books on sticky notes. I came to class with my own collection of short sentences from my book, The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, pictured here:





Under the document camera, I began arranging the sentences into the form of a poem, paying attention to the meanings of lines, of how fractured sentences could be fused into new ones, of how meaning changes when lines are extracted from context and blended with something else. As I arranged the sentences, I thought aloud, telling students that adding or removing words from the original sentences was acceptable.

After a few minutes of crafting in front of them, I invited them to do the same. Students worked for about ten minutes with the sentences from their independent reading. During this time, I asked them to mold them into the shape and feel of a poem, read it aloud to themselves, then revise their original poem by swapping lines, interspersing their own lines of original thought, isolating words on a single line to draw attention to them, and so on.

After collecting short sentences from Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow, Levi wrote:

I am alone.

In the house.

I let them pull me in.

Deep down.

Black as night.

Nothing in my mind.

I turn it off.

I stare at the computer.

Years goes by.

But I am not.

....... died.

In my mind.

I feel free.

But in my heart.

I am gone

The arrangement of sentences—filled with haunting lyricism—mesmerized me and his other readers.

Brittany, while reading Flawed by Cecilia Ahern, found this poem of sentences:

A light goes on for me.

I have people.

My hearing is this afternoon.

She makes a face.

I smile at her in thanks.

And then we are inside.

He tips his hat.

¨Do you agree?¨

I silently fume, then think hard.

¨Absolutely.¨

The room erupts.

I jump up.

I pass out.

The blend of dialogue gives her poem a different edge. Characters’ names were in the original version, but I encouraged her to remove them so the reader could create the voices and names. 

Finally, students shared their poems with a classmate and posted it on a class Padlet. I also shared mine.

Grief was different.

an ocean of dark

I could not read.

I had resisted,

but soon said yes,

and felt the rush

of numbing waves.

Grief has no distance

until the morning,

when streams of light

streak the sky.

Stretching Their Thinking

Creativity exploded with this activity. I wanted students to deepen their awareness of the utility of short sentences while also appreciating author’s craft. After students posted their poems on the Padlet, I gave them time to read their classmates’ poems, identifying the one they were drawn to the most. Inside their notebooks, they copied the poem and wrote their why: What caused them to choose this poem? What word or line stands out the most to them? How does this poem make you feel? Time was provided to share poems that resonated and to celebrate their craft.
I asked students to tell me how their thinking had changed about short sentences. They answered, “We had no idea short sentences could be so powerful.”

And now, they have beautiful poems and a method of reflection that they can return to again and again.

Further Reading:

Travis Crowder is a 7th grade ELA teacher in Hiddenite, NC, teaching ten years in both middle and high school settings. His main goal is to inspire a passion for reading and writing in students. You can follow his work on Twitter (@teachermantrav) and his blog: www.teachermantrav.com/blog.

Post #29 -- The Smell of a Book

by Brett Vogelsinger

I was fortunate to receive an ARC of Laurie Halse Anderson's new book Shout back in November, and I knew from page one that I had something special to read.  Now that it has hit the shelves of bookstores everywhere, you can get your own copy!

All of the chapters, written in verse, are powerful as standalone poetry, and the first poem in the book, "PRELUDE: mic test" is an example of one that can send us quickly to our notebooks to write.  

Unlike so many books that begin with images we can see, this book begins with images we can smell.  

Ask your students: Based on this first page, what might you find in the book Shout?  (I dare you to keep this book on your classroom library shelf after reading this chapter aloud!)

Now invite your students:  Try writing a prelude to your life story so far. What would the book that holds your life story smell like? 


Further Reading:

 

Brett Vogelsinger is a ninth-grade English teacher at Holicong Middle School in Bucks County, PA.  He has been starting class with a poem each day for the past six years and is the creator of the Go Poems blog to share poetry reading and writing ideas with teachers around the world. Find him on Twitter @theVogelman.

2019 Post #28 -- A Concrete Clock Poem

by Brett Vogelsinger

When it comes to concrete poetry, students are often impressed with its combination of simplicity and cleverness.  And that's the thing about concrete poems: like masterful acrobats or skateboarders or dancers, they make artful maneuvers look easy.  As some people work on movement to play with gravity, the concrete poet plays with negative space, the blank page, and the shape of words in original and sometimes humorous ways. 

One of my favorite concrete poets is Bob Raczka and his book Wet Cement contains a poem that will ring true to students and teachers everywhere.  It is called "Clock" and the picture below comes from the Kindle preview on Amazon:  

Why not challenge your students to create a smiple clock poem that sets the hour and minute hands at a different time: wake-up time,  lunch, bedtime, game time.  Or you might challenge them to change the form and still write about time: a sundial, an hourglass, a digital clock, an iPhone.  This quick introduction to a sub-genre of poetry in a shape that students of all ages and artistic abilities can handle may do more than just inspire them to create a concrete poem.  Poetry is about moments, and this exercise moves them to think of a poemworthy moment.  Maybe the following day in class, that same moment can be crafted into a poem with line breaks and stanzas.  

The writer's notebook awaits!

Further Reading:

Brett Vogelsinger is a ninth-grade English teacher at Holicong Middle School in Bucks County, PA. He has been starting class with a poem each day for the past six years and is the creator of the Go Poems blog to share poetry reading and writing ideas with teachers around the world. Find him on Twitter @theVogelman.

2019 Post #27 -- Still Life

by Allison Marchetti

One of the greatest lessons we can give our young writers is to pay attention. Nature walks, writer’s notebooks, guided imagery--all of these are wonderful tools for sharpening the writer’s focus. Another tool is the still life in words.

Jim Daniel’s poem “Work Boots: Still Life” describes a pair of work boots drying in the sun. Like an artist painting the tiny details of a thing, each line reveals the hidden layers and larger-than-lifeness of an ordinary pair of boots. The poem builds to reveal much about its wearer, to whom the boots offer the “promise of safety | the promise of steel.”

Daniels’ poems make holy ordinary moments. They are snapshots of everyday life--brushing your teeth at the sink with your sister, a pair of workboots left to dry in the sun, reading in bed with your littles close--written in beautiful, simple language, and they reveal a hidden beauty that is there simply if you pay attention.

Lead your students in an exercise that will help them pay attention to something ordinary and paint a still life in words:

Choose an inanimate object in your bedroom or home that has some significance behind it: that pair of shoes you always reach for, the old hoodie, the stuffed animal you can’t bear to pack away.

Make a two column chart in your notebook. In the left-hand column, describe what you see in plain language. Like a painter, look closely, making your way around the entire object, seeing it from multiple angles. What’s there that you’ve haven’t noticed before, even though you’ve likely looked at it thousands of times? A tiny rip at the seem, some dried chocolate smeared by little hands?

In the right column, make a list of “deeper meanings”: think about what this object means to you, where you’ve used it, or worn it, memories associated with it, etc.

Use Jim Daniels’ poem to think about how you might pair each description with a deeper meaning. Play around with interesting and unexpected similes and metaphors that breathe life and story into this inanimate object.

Consider borrowing Daniels’ syntax in the last three lines: A ____________ reveals a ________, a __________, the ______________ to tie it all together.

Offer the option of bringing in a picture of the object and pairing it with the typed poem for a beautiful still life gallery walk in your classroom.

Further Reading

Allison Marchetti is co-author with Rebekah O’Dell of WRITING WITH MENTORS and BEYOND LITERARY ANALYSIS (Heineman). She is the co-founder of Moving Writers, a blog for secondary writing teachers. She lives with her family in Richmond, Virginia.

2019 Post #26 -- Reading a Poem on Multiple Levels

by John Waite

I enjoy sharing the poem "white dove—found outside Don Teriyaki’s" by Juan Felipe Herrara with my students. It is the fifth of five of Herrera's poems published here by The Boston Review.

While this poem is very readable in terms of language and the basic story line, it offers several challenges for readers that make it an ideal text for students. It can be taken literally, about a man keeping a bird in a cage, or it could be read as symbolic of a parent-child relationship, which could be of interest to students. The form is also interesting. With its lack of punctuation and irregular line breaks it offers a chance to talk about the specific poetic techniques of form.

As a class, we look at this poem with an eye on analysis, theme, and writing craft.

Analytical Questions

1. How does the lack of punctuation affect the way you read the poem? Why might the author choose to do this?

2. Why do you think the author chooses to specify the gender of the birds?

3. Why do you think the author chooses such irregular line breaks? Is there any sort of pattern to them that you can detect?


Thematic Questions

1. How would you characterize the author’s relationship with the white dove?

2. Is the white dove better off with the speaker or in the wild?

3. How might this relationship mirror that of a parent and child?


Writing Prompts

1. Is it better to be safe or free? Why?

2. Pretend you are the white dove. What would you say to the speaker of the poem?

Further Reading:

John Waite is a teacher at Downers Grove North High School in Downers Grove, Il. He is a licensed Reading Specialist and National Board Certified Teacher. He also creates Trojan Poetry, a web series in which he and a colleague (Mike Melie) attempt to discuss poems on a weekly basis. Find it on YouTube and Twitter. Reach John at jwaite@csd99.org.

2019 Post #25 -- Make Your Peace

by Brett Vogelsinger

Anna Grossnickle Hines is a poet who brings a beautiful blend of poetry and quilting expertise to her books for children.  Since I am a poetry enthusiast, and my wife is a professional embroidery artist, we were thrilled to discover her picture books this year!

Her 2011 picture book, Peaceful Pieces, contains a poem that will speak to younger and older writers alike.  It is called "Peace: A Recipe," and the picture under the poem shows how the quilting complements the words.


Peace: A Recipe

Open minds -- at least two.
Willing hearts -- the same.
Rinse well with compassion.
Stir in a fair amount of trust.
Season with forgiveness.
Simmer in a sauce of respect.
A dash of humor brightens the flavor.

Best served with hope.

Click to Enlarge!

After reading the poem twice aloud in my classroom -- first a teacher reading, then a student read aloud -- I ask my students to think of someone that they need to make greater peace with in their own lives.  I invite them to ponder: which of the "ingredients" in this poem could help lead to greater peace.  In their Writer's Notebooks, write for a few minutes about what action they could take using this "ingredient" to create greater peace in their relationship.

This activity welcomes students to see poetry not just as literature or a collection of images or a weaving of words.  Of course, it is all these things.  But it can also be a motivator, a catalyst for change, an invitation to an epiphany.

As teachers, we cannot manufacture epiphanies.  But we can give students the chance to take a message from a poem and look for ways to apply it in their lives.  This deceptively simple poem may give them just such a chance.

Further Reading:

Brett Vogelsinger is a ninth-grade English teacher at Holicong Middle School in Bucks County, PA.  He has been starting class with a poem each day for the past ten years. He is the creator of the Go Poems blog and the author of Poetry Pauses: Teaching With Poems to Elevate Writing in All Genres.   Find him on Twitter @theVogelman.

2019 Post #24 -- Reading and Writing Outdoors

by Sarah Mulhern Gross

Mary Oliver’s “The Summer Day” is one of my favorite poems to share with students. It’s one of Oliver’s best-known and most-quoted poems and has been included in a few of her anthologies. It strikes a chord with many high school students as they are beginning to think about their lives beyond high school. It’s also a great way to get students to slow down and observe nature for a few minutes.

Begin by giving students a copy of the poem and let them read along as they listen to Mary Oliver read it. I like to take my students outside for this activity, so I use my cell phone to share the audio. Ask your students to mark the phrases or lines that strike them in any way while they read the poem. After students have read the poem and listened to Oliver read it, have a brief discussion. I always point out to students that “The Summer Day” sounds like a prayer to me, and this makes sense because Oliver frequently talked about how the forest was her church. Ask students what their “church” might be. Where do they feel spiritual? Where do they feel safe and at peace?

After a brief discussion, give students a few minutes to write. Ask them to let the sights and sounds of the outdoors guide their writing as they try to answer the question “What is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” I don’t give my students too many guidelines here as I just want them to write. Their response can be in prose or poetry form, and if they really get stuck I encourage them to sketch.

You could easily extend this activity into a full lesson by having students choose something outside (a tree, a blade of grass, a bird, a bug, etc) and center their response around it like Oliver centers her poem around the grasshopper. They could spend 10-15 minutes making observations about what they see, hear, smell, feel and (maybe?) taste while observing their species of choice. Oliver’s poem can serve as a mentor for their response to the question in her final line.

For more on Mary Oliver, check out this excellent New Yorker piece: Mary Oliver Helped Us Stay Amazed

For a brief Go Poems idea for Mary Oliver's "Wild Geese" click here.

Further reading:

Sarah Gross is one of the co-organizers of NerdCampNJ. She teaches in central New Jersey and loves spending time outdoors.

2019 Post #23 -- They Have Some Confessions to Make: Sylvia Plath's "Daddy" as a Mentor Poem

by Oona Marie Abrams

After my AP Literature students do the “heavy lifting” of examining Sylvia Plath’s “Daddy” with critical theory in mind, I ask them to try their hand at writing confessional poems. A low-risk way of trying this is asking students to write a confessional poem from the point of view of a literary character. I model the process by showing students a confessional poem of my own based on a recent novel I’ve read. Students genuinely enjoy writing confessional poems, engaging in voice-filled analysis and taking new compositional risks. Take a look at these three student poems, posted with permission.

Barbara to Violet (August: Osage County by Tracy Letts)
By Lily B.


It’s not like you’ve ever loved me.
Stop; I won’t believe you when you say that it’s not so.
I won’t believe you with those pills in your mouth.
You are my mother,
But I wouldn’t know it.
I would never guess it,
Except I grew up under your reign.
I would not believe you are a mother to Ivy or Karen,
Except for the undeniable DNA you share.
You’re not my mother; you’re an addict.
Barely a sister, a friend, a wife.
Years with my father eased by the comfort of those pills.
Osage County burns as hot as hell in the presence of the modern devil—
I thought I had made it out alive.

You can not show love,
Even if you feel it somewhere deep in your sour soul.
I wish to drown my own daughter with affection,
But I’m afraid I don’t know how.
You never taught me.

You made me like this,
So I’ll leave like this.


Honey (Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf by Edward Albee)
By Kaley S.

You Think you control me
You Think you don’t love me
You Think I don't know

the way you look into her eyes,
her big green eyes.
Then you look at me…
ashamed when I dance,
or drink, or speak
of my “pregnancy.”
and how I Love You,
but you not me.

I knew it was wrong…
I never said I didn't.
But, Nick,
I Love You 

with my whole, plain heart
and I needed you to see,
I needed you to stay with me.

I Love You Nick.
Always have, Always will.
I Love You. I Love You.


Biff to Willy (Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller)
By Vincent L.

I do not carry the genes of success,
Father,
But I wish that I did.
Lost as I am,
My devotion for you has not diminished.

What happened to me?
I remember when you encouraged me
with your passionate voice
About my bright future
And how I
Believed in the severity of your words,
As if they were inscripted in the bible.

I cannot once again sink away
In the lies of your making.
I resist.

My words, though earnest,
Turn to poison as they enter your ears.
Even as I try to fulfill your fantasy,
I realize plainly
that I could never live.

You made me this way, 

Father,
A dime in a dozen,
Same as you.

Lily’s poem is an astute distillation of Letts’ play, in which she summarizes the plot and offers a clear characterization of the protagonist. Beyond this, she interprets the play’s ending and articulates her understanding of the playwright’s intent. Kaley tries her hand at using capitalization to identify theme development in Albee’s text, but the capitalization also reveals her character analyses of both Honey and Nick. Vincent uses consonance, assonance, and intentional line breaks to illustrate Biff’s paradoxical sentiments of resentment of his father and longing for validation. I was also intrigued by his deliberate breaking up of the cliché, “a dime a dozen” to show Biff’s perception that he is always falling short.

I like to think of confessional poems as “twofers,” in that students can practice the skills they themselves need to analyze in poetry, and see how poetic conventions emerge on their own (I didn’t “assign” consonance, assonance, capitalization or any other intentional strategy). Upon completion of their point-of-view confessional poems, they’re more likely to try their hand at writing poems from their own perspectives, confessional or otherwise. And that makes this writing teacher very happy.

Further Reading:

Oona Marie Abrams (@oonziela) is one of the co-organizers of NerdCampNJ. She lives and teaches in northern New Jersey.

2019 Post #22 -- The Tweet-Length Poem You Need To Hear Today

by Brett Vogelsinger

Lin-Manuel Miranda, of Hamilton fame, released a book this year, Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks For Me & You, that compiles his ongoing series of tweets to start and finish the day.  The book jacket explain, "He wrote these original sayings, aphorisms, and poetry for himself as much as for others.  But as Miranda' audience grew, these messages took on a life of their own," encouraging many others to face their own personal set of challenges and joys each day.

Here are two sample pairs, republished in the book, that give you a flavor of these morning and nighttime tweets:

Good morning.
Keep going.
They will move the goalposts.
They will upend the board when they're in check.
Life WILL be unfair.
YOU keep going.


Good night.
Keep going.
They will change the rules on you.
There will be chutes lurking after ladders.
Life's not fair.
YOU keep going.

(Miranda 114-115)



Good morning.
Words fail us, often, but when we put 'em together the
right way they can pull boulders out of us.
Keep working with 'em.


Good night.
Tomorrow we take pen to pad, move mountains.
Get some rest.

(Miranda 172-173)



I recommend buying the book, for teachers will likely find multitudinous ways to work these quick words of wisdom into classroom experiences -- just typing that last pair made me realize what an excellent bookends those tweets would make to a classroom writing workshop period.  But here is one idea . . .

After reading one of these pairs, invite students to write a "G'day" or "Good afternoon" or "Hey there" post in their notebook. What encouragement do they need at the moment?  Write to give themselves that little pep talk and keep it brief.

Next, you might ask them to consider: Who else could use those words today?  If your school permits academic use of cell phones in class, give them the opportunity to snap a photo of their work to text or tweet to someone else they feel could use this encouragement.

Further Reading:

Brett Vogelsinger is a ninth-grade English teacher at Holicong Middle School in Bucks County, PA.  He has been starting class with a poem each day for the past ten years. He is the creator of the Go Poems blog and the author of Poetry Pauses: Teaching With Poems to Elevate Writing in All Genres.   Find him on Twitter @theVogelman.

2019 Post #21 -- History Written By the Victors

by Mike Melie

Before students read the poem "Enlightenment" by Natasha Tretheway, have students consider and discuss the following quote from Winston Churchill: “History is written by the victors.”

What does Churchill mean? How has America been a “victor” throughout its history - who has it defeated? What would America’s history look like if its history was told from the point of view of one of the groups that it had “defeated”?

After reading the poem, discuss the title: What is the “enlightenment” referred to in the title? Who is enlightened during the course of this poem, and what is the nature of his/her enlightenment?

Next, choose one or more elements of the poem to explore with greater depth.

Paradox: A paradox is a joining of two things that are seemingly impossible to connect together, which forms a contradiction. Example: “I can resist anything but temptation” -Oscar Wilde OR “All [men] are equal, but some are more equal than others” -George Orwell. What examples of paradox or contradiction do you see in this poem? What is the author’s purpose in including these seeming impossibilities?

Analysis: The speaker states, “For years we debated the distance between word and deed...as if to prove a man’s pursuit of knowledge is greater than his shortcomings, the limits of his vision.” Compare Jefferson to the speaker’s father. What were their “pursuits of knowledge”? What were their “shortcomings”? Does one outweigh the other, and is it fair to judge someone’s legacy in these terms?

Tone: Briefly research Sally Hemings here and here. Consider the speaker’s tone (attitude towards the subject matter) when discussing Hemings in the poem. How would you describe this tone? How would you describe the father’s probable tone when discussing Hemings? Support your answers with evidence from the text.

As a closing activity, ask students to reflect on the poem and to apply Churchill’s quote above. As a “victor” in American history, how is Jefferson traditionally portrayed in elementary and high school history classes? After researching more about Sally Hemings, does her story change your view of Jefferson’s accomplishments? Why or why not?

For a post using another one of Natasha Tretheway's poems, click here.

Further Reading:

Mike Melie is an English Teacher and Instructional Coach at Downers Grove North High School in Downers Grove, IL. He is one half of the Trojan Poetry web series with his friend and colleague, John Waite, in which they make poetry accessible for students through conversation (and laughter). You can find Trojan Poetry on YouTube and Twitter; you can also follow Mike’s blog on equity issues here and contact him at mmelie@csd99.org.

2019 Post #20 -- Poem or Song?

by Jason Hepler

As a teenager in the 90’s, I admit that I still revel in of memories of Blockbuster Video, Doc Martens, and any and every Friends character. I also have a soft spot for Tupac Shakur. While he is no longer with us, his poetry is. I use his most popular piece, which is also the title for his published collection of poetry, “The Rose That Grew from Concrete” as a kickoff to Song Week, usually my third week of National Poetry Month.

Using Brett’s Poem of the Day routine, students enter with the poem projected (without the author) and the task to turn to a table partner and try to identify the underlying theme. While discussion can vary, many often find motifs of the diamond in the rough or the feeling of being dismissed. I then ask to identify a possible author, not necessarily a specific name, but rather consider those in our society who feel underrepresented and/or underappreciated. I have found this part extremely valuable discussion in a school that lives in a world of white privilege -- but that is a different conversation.

This leads to the eventual reveal of Tupac as the poet and our gameshow version of Tupac: Poem or Song? Students who are already grouped in tables compete by trying to identify whether some of my favorite lines are lifted from poems or songs, all PG rated of course. We use an interactive notepad (to click and drag) and rewards of candy to further motivate… though it’s really always about bragging rights.





This bit of silliness leads to the assignment for students to choose one of their favorite artists and select one verse of a favorite song to share and analyze for poetic devices/rhyme schemes that we have previously covered.

After the sharing the devices and schemes, I ask them to type up the verses and bring them to class for the following day. We take a minute or two for students to each cut their verses into lines. This creates anywhere from 20-30 different lines that we throw into a pile at our tables. Student groups are then tasked with fusing the various lines into a unique poem. While some end up being far from poet laureate worthy, you can only imagine the combinations we see when someone brings in “Strawberry Fields Forever” that gets paired with “Party in the USA” while a third partner has the lyrics to “She Thinks My Tractor is Sexy”.




The activity is obviously intended to further blur the line between poetry and music, especially for this still hesitant to embrace the head first dive. Admittedly, I was that student, and I know many are still out there who haven’t embraced the symbiotic relationship between the two genres.

Further Reading:

Jason Hepler lives his 90’s nostalgic life in Bucks County, Pa. He wears several hats at Holicong Middle School in Bucks County, PA, one of which is 9th grade English teacher.

2019 Post #19 -- Letters To and From the Past

by Rama Janamanchi

When I read the poem "Dear NaiNai" by Jennifer Tseng with my class, I remembered my own grandmother, now long gone, and the ways in which I lean back into her as I have come from her. I think too of the many silences that prevent me from knowing her. This is a great way for students to see their own lines going back and leading back to where they stand.

We begin by reading the poem chorally (I project the poem and give my students copies to hold). Then I divide the class in half and have one group read the poem from the beginning until “#1 writes me a letter.”

Group 2 then reads the letter. Group 1 picks up to read the rest of the poem but group 2 joins in just for the italicized words. I tell the students that NaiNai means "grandma" in Chinese and point out that the poet’s father is dead so in effect, she is listening to ghosts. In one group, a student noticed this before I said anything!

We read the poem again but this time switch roles -- Group 1 reads the letter and joins in for the italicized words. This time, group 2 reads the main voice. At the end of the reading, I ask them what they noticed about the poem and its voices.

I then ask them to turn over their copies of the poem and draw a single vertical line. At the bottom of the line, they write their name. Then they write the name of one parent and one grandparent. Then next to each name, write a word or phrase they associate most with that parent and grandparent. For each word, they write what other words they associate with that word. After 3 rounds of word association, we talk about how we could use these words to build our own “Dear NaiNai” letters.

Further Reading:

Bio: I teach 11th-grade English at a private high school for students with language-based learning differences. Twitter: @MsJanamanchi410

2019 Post #18 -- Where Are You From?

by Chris Kehan 

Where are you from? What makes you who you are? George Ella Lyon’s poem "Where I’m From" helps us get to the heart of that question. You can pose these questions to your students prior to reading the poem or after. Model on chart paper your list. Have them jot in their Writer’s Notebooks the answers. For students who may need more support have them split the page into 4 quadrants and label each one: family, friends, hobbies/interests, childhood experiences.

Have your students listen to George Ella read the poem aloud herself from her website. It gives authenticity and voice to the poem for your students to hear. Talk about how she "shows" rather than "tells" about where she’s from. Have a discussion with your students about what they think about where she’s from based off the stanzas. Point out the use of repetition (I’m from) at the start of various lines. 

 
Model writing a stanza from your list. Then allow your students time to write their own Where I’m From poems using her framework. Have them partner up to see if they showed where they’re from rather than telling. (Example: Not, I’m from basketball - Rather, I’m from sneakers screeching on the shiny court.) 

Point out the metaphor ending she uses. Brainstorm other metaphors to which life can be compared (i.e. book, ocean, flower, etc.). Model writing one. Have students try writing different metaphorical endings in their Writer’s Notebooks.

This poem is great to use at any point in the school year as it gives you and your students an opportunity to get to know one another and work on the craft of showing and not telling to describe where they’re from.

Further Reading:

Chris Kehan is a Library Media Specialist in the Central Bucks School District and a proud fellow of PAWLP (PA Writing & Literature Project) whose passion is teaching reading and writing to all grade levels and ages. Follow her on Twitter @CBckehan