Assigning A Poetry Notebook

By Author: carling
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Not only was I going to introduce the students to poetry, poets, and terms to know and use, I was also going to assign a poetry notebook. The idea of researching a chosen poet and crafting ten poems did not initially go over smoothly with most of the students, particularly the males. Overall, most of them viewed writing poetry to be as favorable as removing ingrown toenails. I only lessened some of the initial pain when I informed them that their poetry notebooks would count as the quarter's final, since it was worth so many points and would take most of the quarter to complete.

As the students stared at the guideline sheet for the poetry notebook assignment, many of them questioned how they were going to create ten poems. I ensured them that I was not just going to turn them loose; I would provide forms and together we would explore a variety of ways to write poetry. Besides, I was aware that without some guidelines I could get some real drivel. I also realized that I would have to start with the basics of poetry before my students could attempt anything that had meaning beyond just fulfilling the assignment. I wanted ...
... them to understand the dance of words poetry inspires in comparison to the steady march of ordered thought that they were used to putting in their essays. I knew that understanding poetry—the connection of imagery, the lift of alliteration, simile, and allusion—could bring more life to their expository writing. I also hoped it would demonstrate the value of poetry in comparison to essay writing. I was eager to explain this point during my follow-up discussions with my colleague.

In my lesson planner, I had carefully laid out my approach to how I would teach poetry. We would begin with a couple of autobiographical poems, "I Am" or "Bio Poems." A number of my students were familiar with these forms. Others, however, lodged complaints: "I did this in fourth grade."
I asked, "Don't you think you have changed some of your perspectives in six years" To that question, I did not get any arguments or dissenting points of view. As the weeks went by, the students learned terms, experienced a variety of poets, discussed the New England metered scenes of Robert Frost, and critiqued Walt Whitman's wanderings as he yawped a song of himself. We turned prose into poems and poems into prose. In the process, we learned how sometimes a few words can express more than one anticipates, and how poetry has its place in exploring a variety of perspectives. We also learned that song lyrics are poetry set to music. Music definitely was something my students could relate to. One of the requirements of the poetry notebook was to select two song lyrics that used poetic elements. So many of the songs selected spoke of the pain and deep emotions my students felt. I began to witness a breakthrough in attitude toward poetry as students experienced poetry as a means to explore and express feelings, opinions, and worldviews.Cartier Pasha de Cartier Chronograph Replica have a magical trace, which attracts everyone with specific beauty and elegance. The Replica Cartier Pasha Seatimer 2006 Cartier Pasha Seatimer 2006 New Model is designed in a unique way and has many complications.