Real Life Poetry

A few days ago a colleague sent me an awesome real world example of poetry, and Double Voice at that!! (Check out how I teach this form here). 

What do you think about sharing this with kiddos?  Is the wife in the bath towel too scandalous?!

Guest Blogger Chelsea: OWP Poetry Take-Aways

Back by popular demand (okay, she actually asked if she could write something for me...even better!), I have a post for you today from the one and only Chelsea Wirtz.  

Chelsea wrote a great post for me a few months ago (has it been THAT long?!) using Screencast on Exploding the Moment that you should check out here along with an introduction to Mrs. Wirtz too.  I'm so glad she's drinking the OWP Kool-Aid and can't wait to steal hear more of the great ideas she has worked on this summer!  Be sure to check out hew new blog here.

When I thought about going back to school for my Master’s degree, (after not being a students for four years!!) the idea of joining a program and adding yet another thing to my plate was exciting, stressful, and yes, overwhelming.  Many friends (including Amy!) suggested that I try an Ohio Writing Project class to see if it might be something I’d be interested in.  I took an OWP weekend workshop in February called "Revision and Reflection."  Needless to say, I was instantly hooked.  When the workshop ended on Sunday afternoon, I left with a plethora of resources that I could use in my very own classroom.  This was the first class that I had ever attended where I didn’t feel like I was just completing busy work.  I knew that OWP’s courses would help me become a better teacher. 

Lucky for me, OWP offers of Master of Arts in Teaching in English program, in which you earn a Master’s degree through their courses and research.  The first step to this program is to complete OWP’s four-week class, a workshop called "Teaching of Writing."  Throughout the past four weeks, I’ve met some phenomenal teachers, made some friendships that I know will last a lifetime, and gained a variety of ideas that I plan to implement in my own classroom. 

Although this summer seems to be sneaking away quickly before my very own eyes, I’m excited to try some of the great ideas my friends have given me.  I’m truly inspired to spice things up!

This year, I plan to teach poetry at the beginning of the year as a personal writing unit.  In my experience, 5^th graders are hesitant to write poetry, but through Love That Dog by Sharon Creech, they gain an appreciation and love for poetry.  My goal is to deepen this love.  During my OWP four-week experience, I gained some insight that I’m excited to share with all of the poetry-loving teachers out there!  Below are my top three favorite ideas that I’m excited to try out in just a few short months!

1. This I Believe

The This I believe project is one that awakens the heart and observes who each participant is individually.  According to www.NPR.org, “During its four-year run on NPR, This I Believe engaged listeners in a discussion of the core beliefs that guide their daily lives.  [NPR] heard from people of all walks of life – the very young and the very old, the famous and the previously unknown.”  What better way the start the year off by asking your students what they believe.  How many opportunities do children get to tell others what’s most important to them?  This is an excellent way to get your students thinking about what makes them unique, and I’m quite sure that you will instantly learn a great deal about your kids by the end of this activity. 

You might start this activity by showing students an example for inspiration.  For his 100^th day of school Tarak Mclain, a seven year old from Austin Texas, chose to write 100 This I believe statements.  Listen to Tarak read thirty of his statements using this link: Tarak Mclain

After hearing Tarak’s ideas, have students create a list of This I believe statements in their Writer’s Notebook.  You can specify a number, if you wish, or have students write as many as they can think of.  Have students choose their top ideas to form a This I Believe poem. 

This I Believe by Chelsea Wirtz

I believe in exceptions to the rule.

I believe in compromises.

I believe in laughter and fun.

I believe in the motto “everything happens for a reason”

I believe in making the most of each day.

I believe in being thankful for what I have.

I believe in giving back to my community.

I believe in thinking of others before myself.

I believe in saying “I love you” before I hang up the phone or leave for the day.

I believe in walking in someone else’s shoes before reacting.

I believe in second chances.

I believe in getting to know new people.

I believe in “it’s okay to be different."

I believe in the motto “God will only give you when you can handle."

I believe in kindness.

I believe in “if you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

Another great way to incorporate this activity into your classroom is to have students write statements about which rules they think should be applied to the classroom.  This would be an excellent way to create a “classroom constitution”.   

2. 6 Word Memoirs

This activity is one that would be fantastic to use to get kids to START writing, especially at the beginning of the year!  I mean hey, you only have to write six words!  Easy, right?

 The idea of a 6 Word Memoir is to tell a story in just six words.  If you try this out on your own, you may realize that it’s probably harder than you initially expected. 

Examples of 6 Word Memoirs:

·         Going back to school is difficult.

·         Who knew I was still shy?

·         Huge weight is off my shoulders.

·         Some people need to open up.

·         Classroom community makes the room exciting.

This would definitely lead to some fascinating stories that I’m sure your students would be excited to expand on in their Writer’s Notebook!    

Visit http://www.sixwordmemoirs.com/ to see how your students can post their memoirs on the official 6 Word Memoir site!

3. Class Symphony

For this poem, students will choose their favorite song.  Encourage students to not only consider the most popular songs that are currently playing, but songs that also have a deeper meaning to them personally. 

Then, have the kids write their favorite line(s) on a sheet of paper or a sentence strip.  Post the lyrics on a bulletin board or wall, and there you go – you have your very own class symphony.  It’s amazing how beautiful the words to the many different songs sound when you read them together as one.

I hope you can use these ideas to build a safe and fun writing community for your kiddos!  Happy writing!

-Chelsea

Rest in Peace, Mr. Walter Dean Myers

Did you hear that beloved author Walter Dean Myers passed away yesterday??  I am so sad to lose this great author and poet!

Any teacher who has read Love That Dog no doubt feels a strong connection to this sweet and talented man.  I will forever think of his sense of humor during this reader's theatre performance of the book.

For those not as familiar with his work, in his career spanning over 45 years, Walter Dean Myers wrote more than 100 books for children of all ages. His impressive body of work includes two Newbery Honor Books, three National Book Award Finalists, and six Coretta Scott King Award/Honor-winning books, among MANY other honors, especially for his work representing African American boys in young adult literature. I highly recommend you honor him by picking up any of the following.

 

More info, including a short obituary can be found at his website.

Rest in peace, Mr. Walter Dean Myers.

Reader's Theatre

One of our sweet librarians shared this resource with us last week and I am in LOVE!

Featured here is a teacher's dream: Authors Avi, Sharon Creech, Walter Dean Myers and Sarah Weeks perform their books and share insights and strategies for incorporating Reader's Theater into the classroom.  A few of my writer hero's promoting reading in SUCH a unique way!  I can't wait to show my students when we get into our poetry unit especially!

 

Figurative Language Rap

Don't you love it when a kid says, "You should really watch this one [whatever weird thing is cool now] youtube video!"

I usually go, "Sure, email it to me and I'll watch it."  And then they drop it, because that sounds like a lot of work to them.

Unless it's really a good video, and then they keep asking and asking and finally send it to you.  And it happens to actually BE good. 

Ever happened?

Anyway, here is a recent find a la one of my very persistent students.  Maybe someone can use it for some figurative language practice.  You know I love a good rap moment...

New Art (of Teaching)

Last week all the ATPs and I had a fun team outing to Painting with a Twist.  It was a fun way to bond and just enjoy conversations that didn't have to revolve around students or teaching.

 

 

It was fun to see how each teacher's painting was unique, even though we were recieving the same instructions.  (A good reminder about the unique talents of each kiddo, too!). 

 

ATP with her masterpiece

ATP #3's lovely "impressionistic" work

 

 

I LOVE these painting studios!  They make art so accessible and low-pressure and FUN.  But it's also the third time I have gone to one.  And I can only hang so many of these in my house!  So the last time I went, one of my brilliant friends suggested "making it work" for my classroom.  Genius!

 

On that outing, I painted this cute owl and added a quote (with my own owly twist...and correct grammar, of course!) from The Help.

 

 

 

So for this tree guy I remembered one of my grandma's favorite poems by Joyce Kilmer:

 

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

 

I painted the first two lines on my canvas, and boom: Poet-Tree!  (Get it?!  Sorry...my dad would love that one!)

My finished painting

 

So here it hangs in my classroom with other lovely student art work.  (And mentor sentences!)

 



 

Poetry Slam (with the new stage!)

Monday marked our first poetry slam competition! Thanks to the example of my mentor, I have been putting on optional poetry competitions for my students since my first year of teaching. It's a great way to challenge students to step out of their comfort zones and I LOVE celebrating their writing! I especially love having some of my BOYS reading poetry and making it cool!

Thanks to Papa Sheets, my new stage really stepped it up a level this year!

(FYI, The red curtains were $3 flat sheets from Walmart on tension rods from my ceiling)

Can't wait for our next one!

I AM Poems

A few weeks ago we wrote "I Am" poems.  It's a great way to get to know students.  (And a great thing to display for parents and visitors!)

They turned out beautifully and gave me some interesting insights into our young writers. 

Check out the beautiful language, specific details, and creativity in this one! 

(Sorry to scan in B&W...it was lovely and colorful!)

Check out a sample from Read Write Think here.  Also, if you want to use this template, click here.

Happy writing!

ps... sorry for the lack of posts lately...silly cold.  That's what I get for bragging about my excellent teacher immune system!

Born for the Stage

 

A while ago I found some Pinspiration to create a stage for my classroom for poetry competitions, presentations, and the like.  Having the world's handiest dad, I emailed him this post along with my idea.

 

Papa put his own twist and engineering on it and I LOVE the final product.

 

 

ATP and I tried it out today (with a little Selena Gomez...ha ha).  Don't you love the rope lighting?


 

 I need to still get some curtains to really make it pop.  I'm thinking I'll get some cheap red flat sheets and tension rods to hang them from my ceiling.

 

I can't wait to bust this bad boy out for our first poetry competition.  It's going to really step it up a notch (literally).

Poetry Masterpieces

Check out these amazing masterpieces!  I have been so, so impressed with my poets this year and am loving the gallery that has developed in my room. 

 

 

A close-up of my favorite watercolor:

Beautiful symbolism in her work:

I think this piece is going to inspire a whole separate post later this week.  This little poet blew me away with all of his revision and hard work!  He was inspired by Billy Collins poem On Turning Ten.

This one makes me almost like geese!  (Don't mind the messy shelf in the background!)

Masterpieces for SURE!

Poems for Two Voices

My little poets have been so impressive throughout our poetry unit.  So I've been adding some fun challenges as we wrap up our unit and they continue working on a piece to publish.  Up next: Two Voice (or Double Voice)Poetry!

We looked at examples from the master, Paul Fleischman.  Fleischman was the first poet to win a Newbery for his book, Joyful Noise.

 

 

 

Our study mostly focused on the poem "Fireflies."  In order to hear a two-voice poem read aloud we watched this clip read by a high school speech duo (names unknown).

 

 

 

Then students partnered up to create their own two voice poems.  It's always a fun way to hear different viewpoints on a subject.  And even more fun to perform!



A Child's Garden of Poetry

Good morning, reader!  What a fun time of year this is at school.  I know my students so well and they know my expectations, goals, routines, and sense of humor.  I just love it and try to take moments to appreciate how far we have come as individual learners and a classroom community. 

Specifically, it's been really fun to rejoice in these moments throughout our poetry unit.  I love the little poets that are growing before my eyes! 

Yesterday we watched "A Child's Garden of Poetry."  It's a 24-minute special from HBO and just lovely.  It's basically children talking about the power of poetry and sharing their favorite verses, which are then read by actors such as Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore, Dave Matthews, and more.  Check out more or order your own copy here.

You can also preview some of my students' favorites below.  Enjoy!

 

 

 

Poetry Stations

We had lot of fun last week doing SEVEN poetry stations, including discovery, interpretation, creation, and performance.

One of the favorite stations included magnetic poetry. I bought my set of "Really Big Words" on Amazon.

Some students even added the twist of combining magnets with written words.

Hey, Macklemore! Can We Go Thift Shopping?

A few weekends ago I went thrift shopping with a dear friend.  She didn't have much luck finding the chairs she was looking for, but I found these Haikubes.

The set includes 63 word cubes, including two red die to help determine the title/ topic.  The package boasts that there are thousands of possible combinations.  I'm hoping it will make for a fun station activity during our poetry unit...or maybe a party game with friends!

Below is my first attempt, A Vision for our World

friendly, sweet, happy
turn along smooth promises
dreaming there, hmmmm

Pretty sure I'll be winning a Pulitzer with this bad boy.

March Madness

I was looking around on Pinterest and spotted this awesome idea for March Madness.

source: flikr by covs97

I am totally stealing this idea and will share my version soon!

I have a colleague who has done a similar project with poetry and has the students each bring in an entry of a favorite published poem. 

Anything fun you're doing to get into the spirit of competition?

Classroom Tour pt 8- Poetry Hall of Fame

Each month I organize a poetry competition for students.  It's completely voluntary, but a great way to extend my readers and writers.

 

For poetry slams, students write an original work of poetry, memorize, and perform it for the team and judges (the teachers).  For readings, students do the same with published poetry.  It's great to see a new side of students- from those that are astounding talents, to students who awe us just by the courage they show in stepping out of their comfort zone.

 

Of course, there are handsome prizes for all who enter (certificates and candy!).  The winner recieves a trophy and fame and glory.  For a lucky few, they get to enter the "Hall of Fame."  This special honor belongs to students who win three competitions during the year.  These students then have to retire from competition and become one of the judges. 

 

So far only four have achieved this honor!  We may have another winner this year!  Ms. G has already won twice and gunning for another win!

Classroom Tour pt 6- Writing Wall

Since my first year of teaching I have had a board in my room featuring reading genres.  A few years ago I realized that my students had a hard time distinguishing between reading genres and types of writing.  So with the help of some great former writers, I created a board in my room with examples.

It's a great way to not only remind students of the types of writing we've done/ are working on, but it also motivates students to add a little variety into their work during journaling time.  Plus they always like seeing siblings' and neighbors' work.

Don't you love this feature article on bacon?! 

Classroom Tour pt 3- Special Paper

I still remember the first day of student teaching, when my glorious mentor showed her students a special part of her classroom- the special paper binder.

Admittedly, at the time I thought it was sort of an odd thing to address on the first day amongst learning names, organizing supplies, and touring the school.  But it captiavted the students!  She had a binder of 100+ different types of special stationary and she offered it up for publishing special pieces of writing.  Right away students went to work creating pieces that would be worthy.  She even covered her door with a "Writing Hall of Fame" all published on this special paper.

And I stole the idea and ran with it!  Over the years I have collected over 125 different types of stationary.  These came from the dollar store or were donated by parents.  Whenever we get towards the end of a writing unit, the special paper binder becomes a very popular attraction in my classroom.

 

 

For the ease of management, I have one of each type in a binder with a post-it number.  In my file cabinet, I have numbered folders the correspond to the binder.

 

The students look through the binder to chose which design they'd like then leave a post-it with the number they'd like on the piece they want copied.  When I get a stack of several, I take them to the copy machine and voila!  Here are a few tips to help organize:

Give it a try and see what it does to encourage your writers.  Don't be afraid to start small.

Classroom Tour pt 1- Poetry Masterpieces

Welcome to the beginning of a multi-part tour of my classroom.  I am excited to share the place where I spend wayyyy too much time.  But keeping that in mind, I have tried to make it a place that I love and where students feel comfortable, welcome, inspired, and included.

 

I love personal touches that remind me of students past.  One way I've been able to do this is keeping student art work.  For the last several years my students have worked on a "Poetry Masterpiece" during our poetry unit.  And for the last several years I've begged the creators of several of my favorites to leave their lovely work behind. 

 



 

 



 

Thanks to our awesome custodian for helping me to hang these floating wall shelves.  They're right above my desk and provide a great area to display special objects without cluttering my work space.

 



Having these around the room makes it cheery. It give students a preview of the work we will do together and inspires their own writing masterpieces. Plus it beats teacher-store packaged posters any day!

Follow Up to 'Nurturing Young Writers'

Yesterday I met with a sweet student to work on poetry (and build her confidence along the way).

It was fun and a big encouragement to me. We ended up writing two poems and painting with watercolors. In the spirit of sharing, here is my poem. Still needs a little work, but I think I like where it's going.