I have to admit - I was never a fan of poetry. In the words of my students, I just didn't "get it." That all changed my junior year of high school. I had what in most of my classmates' minds was the toughest teacher in the school. She certainly wasn't "warm and fuzzy," but she pushed us and challenged us. I fell in love with poetry in her class because she was able to open my mind to it. Sign of a great teacher. When I told my students that we will complete a unit on poetry this year, there were groans aplenty. That just wouldn't do for me - so I worked to create a poetry unit that they would be excited about. We started out reading a lot of funny poems (Shel Silverstein was a favorite), but we also read a lot of classic poems by Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost, and Langston Hughes. The Langston Hughes poems worked SO well since we were studying the Harlem Renaissance in social studies. Cross-curriculum instruction at its best! I taught them the parts of a poem and rhyme schemes, and we had poetry readings - snaps and all! Lots of fun was had by all, but I just wanted them to go a little deeper. Since I only fell in love with poetry once I was able to fully understand it, I had to teach my students to do the same. Cue annotation. I think as teachers of elementary students, we are often a little apprehensive to introduce concepts like "annotation" because they are still young and you just never know how students will perceive a difficult concepts. They ALWAYS manage to surprise me! To teach annotation, I introduced the poem, The Wind Began to Rock the Grass by Emily Dickinson. The students read the poem to themselves, and then I read it out loud to them. Of course, when I asked them what they thought the poem was about - many were unsure. I told them that we are going to annotate the poem, gave them the definition, and then we dived right in. I read the poem stanza by stanza again, but this time we defined words, asked questions, and made comments on the left hand side. On the right side of each stanza, we wrote a one sentence summary. As we defined words, we talked through the words and used context clues. It's amazing how intuitive fifth graders are. They can always figure out the meaning of a word (even though they don't always believe in themselves). We worked through the first three stanzas together, and then I let them complete the last two on their own. As you may guess, they excitement began to build as the poem drew to a close. The light bulbs went off, the choirs began to sing, the end of the tunnel was in sight...you get the idea. Students were SO EXCITED about the fact that they now understood the poem so clearly! This certainly ended up being one of those "it worked!" lessons. Here is another example with the poem, A Bird Came Down by Emily Dickinson. The next day, I asked students to work in partners and gave them a new poem to annotate. I was very impressed with their work, and they were able to see the purpose of annotation and understand why it helps them become better readers and writers. I learned a good lesson too: start annotation at the beginning of the year! :) I use a PowerPoint Lesson and Interactive Notes to teach this entire unit. The lesson teaches students how to annotate slide by slide! Happy Teaching!
Do your young learners have poetry journals?! Mine do and we love them. The main question I have been asked in the past is what I put inside my journals and I created a resource to help answer that question. Most of the poems in our poetry journals are phonics poems, but I also […]
Oh, tu bene mi pesi l’anima, poesia: tu sai se io manco e mi perdo, tu che allora ti neghi e taci. Poesia, mi confesso con te che sei la mia voce profonda: tu lo sai, tu lo sai che ho tradito, ho camminato sul prato d’oro che fu mio cuore, ho rotto l’erba, rovinata la terra – poesia – quella terra dove tu mi dicesti il più dolce di tutti i tuoi canti, dove un mattino per la prima volta vidi volar nel sereno l’allodola e con gli occhi cercai di salire – Poesia, poesia che rimani il mio profondo rimorso, oh aiutami tu a ritrovare il mio alto paese abbandonato – Poesia che ti doni soltanto a chi con occhi di pianto si cerca – oh rifammi tu degna di te, poesia che mi guardi. Poetry Antonia Pozzi da “Parole: diario di poesia” Artist St. Simon de Pieter Paul Rubens Prado
This post may contain affiliate links. Read the full disclosure for more information. You deserve love. But there’s so much negativity, both internal and external,...
poetry necklaces with the theme “bird” . i’ve been inspired by birds lately. Doing a giveaway on my Instagram (US only) for a Made To Order poetry necklace. Follow y Instagram @hy…
First published in Time of Singing, May, 1989, this poem has been reprinted widely. You are welcome to reprint it if you include my name (Jessica Shaver at that time).
I know you guys like making your readers cry, so I thought I'd enable this pattern.
A beautifully handwritten letter customised to your own choice of words. Whether you want to send a thank you note for a wedding gift or an emotional poem to a loved one, a handwritten letter will always give your communication greater meaning. This listing is for my authentic, cursive writing style for an elegant, easy to read letter. Please see my other listings for cards, calligraphy, bespoke writing service (I supply the words) and other items of wordsmithery! 📃💕FREE SHIPPING 🖊 Prices are based on word count 🖊 Paper sizes are either A4 or A5 depending on word count, always high quality 130gsm Basildon Bond Ivory (white) or Cream unlined 🖊 Pen is either black or blue biro (a favourite for letters which would ordinarily be written to more than one recipient, for example wedding thank you notes, corporate invitations) OR black ink (often selected for more memorable keepsakes or formal writing such as a love poem or job acceptance) 🖊 Items will be supplied flat in hard backed envelope addressed to the purchaser. 🖊 If you require an addressed envelope for the recipient please purchase through separate listing - ***this item is only available, at a reduced cost, to those who have purchased a handwritten letter or letter writing service*** 📃💕I want your letter to be as special as the wording you choose so please get in touch if you have any requirements that are not listed here, such as different paper, coloured ink etc and I will do my best to accommodate. I always aim to post letters within 48 hours. And remember, if you don’t know what to say - I will! See my bespoke letter writing service.
As Plato said, at the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet. And I have one piece of poetry-writing advice that will save you a headache.
From classics to contemporaries, these love poems are sure to add the perfect amount of romance and sentimentality to any wedding ceremony.
End of Year Activities Free This is a page for kids to share their favorites from the past school year. Included on this one page are spaces for My favorite book, moment, activity, memory and space for anything else they would want to share. YOU MAY ALSO LIKE Edn of Year Certificates Summer Re...
I found this lovely poem on Pinterest and I used it with my grade 6 students (11-12 years old) as it was the prefect review for physical description and family. Listening/comprehension: I told the poem “TPRS style” by drawing the “abuela” on the board little by little, [read more…]
Classic poems for kids to memorize that they will actually love. Kids have great brain power and poems they learn now will stay with them forever.
Create adorable, meaningful pocket hugs to spread love all around. Just put the fabric hugs in your pocket or your bag. The fabric heart serves as a fantastic…
What are the best poems for kids to memorize? Read this to discover the 12 poems every child (and adult) should know by heart!
First, here are the freebies - :) Poetry month has officially ended, but we are still enjoying writing poems in class! Last week, the st...
