2021 Post #19 Written to Inspire Your Younger Self

 by Brett Vogelsinger

How many times in life do adults wish to go back and ask for a redo in their younger years?  How often do we wish we could time-travel and offer that younger version of ourselves some sage advice?  

This poem, "Seventeen" by Rudy Francisco imagines this possibility.  While the poem is about building up the courage to talk to someone you like and maybe even love, it is also about so much more.  It is about the social hierarchy of high school, male body image, introversion, and confidence, and Francisco's acrobatic skill with simile.  

After listening to this poem, ask your students to write a note, a letter, a poem, a list that they would give to a younger self.  In my school, grades 7-9, it is creatively fruitful to ask my ninth-graders to write to their seventh-grade selves.  Can you use a simile or two like Rudy Francisco does to bring to life what you felt back then or to add dimension to the wisdom you are able to pass on now as an older-but-wiser version of yourself?

I find that sometimes in workshops like this it is better to ask (or cajole) a few volunteers to share their work in class rather than insist everyone turn to a partner and read their writing out loud.  I let my students know this before they write so that they can feel comfortable expressing even thoughts and ideas they feel are deeply private.  The writer's notebook can be a space to write with such candor, but only if our students know how, when, and why they are expected to share, and what to do when they feel they cannot share. 

Depending on the number of volunteers to share with an audience, I might have a little time left for a deeper question raised by this poem:  How does our life experience shape our identity?  

Further Reading:

If you like this poem, check out another post featuring Francisco's "My Honest Poem" from earlier this year on Go Poems.  

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.

2021 Post #14 -- Memories of Home

by Suzanne Dailey

Stories are hidden in the nooks and crannies of our home. Oftentimes, these stories happen when we are doing ordinary things.

I remember my family room growing up. Brown carpet with designs pressed into the surface, covering an original wood floor from the 1800s and dark paneling from the 1970s. And the little space near the downstairs closet that was the p-e-r-f-e-c-t hiding spot for jumping out at someone and scaring my brother – especially when he was carrying something in his hands!

My favorite room was our kitchen tucked in the back of the house. Yellow linoleum floor, cream colored stove, and cabinets that never fully shut, especially in the winter. Yellow linoleum floor, cream colored stove, and cabinets that never fully shut, especially in winter. It’s where I smelled apple pie in autumn, assembled gingerbread houses in winter, dyed Easter eggs in spring, and snuck popsicles in summer.

We spend a lot of time at home making memories that stay in our hearts forever. Some fill our hearts, and some break them.

What are the emotions or memories that live in your home? Maybe it’s a moment of love or a rainy day or the sound of music or a time you heard lifechanging news. Some of these emotions or memories may come to you easily, while some of you may need help accessing the stories in your minds and hearts.

As a class, read the poem "Daily" by Naomi Shihab Nye.

After sharing the poem, I might say to students, "Try drawing your house and jot down some of the memories you’ve created in the space you call home. Then find a story that’s hidden in the nooks and crannies of your home. Some memories may be seemingly insignificant at first glance, like my memory of sneaking popsicles in the kitchen each summer. But if you get still and really think about it, there are stories there."

I remember enjoying that popsicle sitting under our “snowball tree” dressed in terrycloth shorts, grass-stained bare feet, and a blue t-shirt from my Grandpa that said, I’m a Georgia Peach! Some of my favorite memories from home are in my backyard as a young kid. It’s why I find so much peace in nature as an adult.

Draw your home, get still, and find the stories hidden in the nooks and crannies. Your heart will thank you.

Using a document camera/blank document, model drawing a part of your home, and as you draw, naturally tell a summarized story that “lives” in those areas.

Set a timer for about 5-7 minutes, so students can draw their home. As they are drawing, create a quick write for one of the stories you shared earlier using the format of "Daily": 

These meals we eat
gathered around the garage sale refinished table

These games we play and play until there’s a winner
Tattered boxes with missing pieces in the living room


After students have drawn their home, share your quick write and invite them to do a 3-4 minute quick write as well. As they are writing, choose another story from your home and do an additional quick write.

Invite students to share their quick write, asking classmates share a question or compliment. Invite students to do an additional quick write for another space at their home (inside or outside!) to see if there is a possible story hidden in their home.

Further Reading: 

Suzanne Dailey is a staff developer in the Central Bucks School District.  You can learn more about her work at www.suzannedailey.com and check out her Teach Happier podcast.  

2021 Post #10 -- A Miniature Autobiography

by Don Kemball

"Autobiography in Five Short Chapters" by Portia Nelson is one of my favourite poems for discussing the topic of hope.  

What captures me most is that it begins in despair -- but an ignorant sort. A place where you do not realize you are the problem. It builds slowly, finding the solution through struggle. Yet the poem ends with this incredibly powerful message -- that you can take any problem in your life and turn it on its end. You CAN find a way through and be successful.

Once my class has read the poem and broken it down using the SWIFT technique, I give them a short period to jot down a problem they are having -- one they truly feel is insurmountable. Then they look at it through the lens of the poem and look for a solution they haven’t thought of before. Do they keep walking down that same street? Can they find another?

Some years we extend the activity by sitting in a circle and sharing our problems in a general nature. We listen and reflect. Sometimes we give advice. But usually we just sit silently and appreciate each other and the courage it takes to share. Needless to say, this is not a September activity. I usually save this for the darkest part of the year when many people feel the lack of sunlight.

Further Reading: 

Don Kemball works as a teacher for the York Region District School Board just North of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He has been using a poem-a-day strategy for almost 10 years with his class and is not sure how he could live without it. Find him on Twitter @dkemball

2021 Post #8 -- Reflections of Hope in "My Mother's Eyes"

by Andrew Schoenborn

Looking into a mirror or even catching a glimpse of yourself in a darkened window allows you to see yourself objectively and, depending on the circumstance, subjectively. The image we see can be practical, if we are grooming our hair, or produce an emotional response, if we find ourselves looking inward. What visions, emotions, experiences, hopes, and dreams, however, might emerge from the reflections of ourselves we find in the eyes of another? What do they see in us that we may not see in ourselves? How might hope spring from those reflections?

Today let’s ask students to listen to the words of the Chilean-American author Marjorie Agosín. In her poem “My Mother’s Eyes,” Agosín shares the hope she sees for herself in the reflections of her mother’s eyes.

Marjorie Agosín begins her poem: “My Mother’s Eyes”:

My mother's eyes
are cities
where birds
nest
where voyages of the ill-fated
come to rest
where water is a mirror
of sung secrets.

Explore the places these eyes have seen and the unique qualities held in the eyes. Use those moments to shed light on lessons learned as well as adversity they have overcome. Seek, in those perceptions, the qualities you admire that are transmitted and, therefore, reflected back to you.

A writer’s composition is strengthened by the intentional choices made and the effect of those choices on a reader. As a composer of images and words, a writer is in control and powerful pieces are crafted when the author reveals their unique (and sometimes unexpected) perspective that seeks to uplift oneself and others.

Process:

Read “My Mother’s Eyes” and welcome her words into the classroom to set the tone for inspiration and let Marjorie Agosín lead the way. Like Agosín, ask students to begin their poem with “My mother’s eyes…” and see where you end up.

What do you think they see? What do you see when you look at her?

Or, change out the person: “My friend’s eyes…,” “My grandfather’s eyes…,” “My significant other’s eyes…,” etc. Choose the eyes that inspire hope, peace, grace, joy, or a sense of belonging for you.


Sample poem:
“My Grandmother’s Eyes (Inspired by Marjorie Agosín)” by Andy Schoenborn



Photo by Andy Schoenborn

I

My grandmother's eyes
are rolling pastures
where roots
grip tradition
where neighbors weary of work
come to rest
where the good earth is keeper
of whispered words.

II

My grandmother's eyes
are rolling pastures
of coarse corn
strengthening the grip
of a calloused hand.
I approach them
and on the threshold of her eyes
a boy is looking
for himself in the clear blue skies,
in soft sands of insecurity.

In my grandmother's eyes
I also encounter myself
because into them
I move,
to find the steady rhythm of peace
and love
in rolling pastures endured, with humility, for me.


Reflecting on the Strategy:

From time-to-time students may be asked to reflect on their thoughts, actions, and deeds. It is challenging sometimes to reflect upon oneself and see the goodness that lives inside. However, when asked to reflect on the qualities a loved one sees in us, students are invited to encounter and embrace positive self-talk.

This poetry writing strategy creates a win-win-win in the classroom. Students win because they are encouraged to visualize themselves in positive and purposeful ways. Teachers win because they are able to share pieces of themselves while modeling vulnerability. And, poetry wins because words will be viewed through a new lens that encourages the sharing of personal perspective through poetry.

Further Reading:



Andy Schoenborn is an award-winning author and high school English teacher in Michigan at Mt. Pleasant Public Schools. He is a past-president of the Michigan Council of Teachers of English, teacher consultant for the Chippewa River Writing Project, and Region Rep for the Michigan Reading Association. His first book, co-authored with Dr. Troy Hicks, Creating Confident Writers was published in 2020. Follow him on Twitter @aschoenborn.

2021 Post #1 -- Small Moments

by Linda Rief

So many of our students believe that their lives are so uninteresting that there is nothing to write about. But so often, those small moments are some of the most important moments. Kaylie, one of my former eighth graders, shows us just how special a certain moment is when she describes a night walk with her dad.

Read Kaylie’s poem “Night Walks” out loud to your students while they have copies in front of them. Tell them you will read it a second time and ask them to underline any phrase or line that feels important or holds significance for them.

Night Walks
by Kaylie M. (8th grade)

When I was little
The sky danced with new stars
My dad bundled me up
And took me out for night walks


Cradled in his arms
He pointed out the Big Dipper
The Little Dipper
The North Star
Beetlejuice

I don’t remember the story of Beetlejuice
But I remember it was significant
Because my dad pointed it out to me
Beetlejuice is yellow
Far away from Earth

And I know that the older you get
The more distant you become
Farther and farther away from those
Who captured you in their warm embrace
Never reluctant to offer comfort
When it was needed most

The stars
Glistened in the bright sky
Elegant
Full of life’s greatest secrets

Cradled in his arms
Protected by his warm embrace
His breath cool against my cheek
We watched the stars spin
Above the earth and life as we knew it


After reading the poem twice, and underlining any lines or phrases, you can try this:

Write out anything Kaylie’s poem brings to mind for you.

Borrow any line that you underlined and write as fast as you can for two to three minutes, letting the line lead your thinking.

Think about the “small moments” that might have happened while you have been “sheltering-in-place” at home: Write as fast as you can for three to five minutes to capture the essence of that moment.

After finishing this first draft writing, go back to see if there is some line or phrase you want to slow down and develop. Write more. Or simply take some time to extend what you said in only two to five minutes.


Further Reading: 



Linda is an instructor in the University of New Hampshire's Summer Literacy Institute and a national and international presenter on issues of adolescent literacy. She is the author of The Quickwrite Handbook, Read Write Teach, Inside the Writer's-Reader's Notebook and forthcoming from Heinemann Heartfelt Transitions: Using Poetry to Inspire & Deepen Reading & Writing. In 2020 she received the Kent Williamson Exemplary Leader Award from the Conference on English Leadership, in recognition of outstanding leadership in the English Language Arts. Twitter handle is @LindaMRief.

2019 Post #17 -- Writing From a Lyric

by Brett Vogelsinger

I first used the song "A Long and Happy Life" by the band Delta Rae with my class to spark a Writer's Notebook piece about my students' roots.  "I was born to..." or "I was raised by... " make excellent starters for students to explore their heritage in words, perhaps even using quick images and figurative language as the songwriters do in the song.

Some of my students this year wrote lines like "I was raised by a strict Jewish mother and a free-spirited Catholic father" and "We were born to improve the world" and "I raised with brothers who tackled each other for fun" and "I was born to be everything my dad could not be." These lines are windows into my students' lives and afforded me views I might otherwise overlook.

This song is my Poem of the Day about a week prior to starting our personal narrative writing project, and it is the perfect way to start thinking about the stories that make my students the people they are today and the adults they are becoming. Try sharing this song or maybe one of your personal favorite. Find lines in the lyrics that empower new writing ideas for your students and help them to explore their roots.  In my classroom, we even begin to write as the song is playing.

I should also add here that Delta Rae often offers a free ticket giveaway for teachers on their summer tour, a drawing I won (thanks to some generous student nominations) for their Philly 2018 concert.  This band puts on one of the most phenomenal live music shows I've seen, and they have a genuine appreciation for the work of teachers.  I can't wait to see them in concert again in May! Much love to Delta Rae :)



Further Listening:

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.