Poetry Ideas and Lessons

Found Poetry Copy several pages from a novel you studied in class. Give each student about 10-15 minutes to skim through the pages and highlight any phrases or words they particularly like. Tell them to look for imagery, theme. They write the words or phrases on index cards or strips of paper. Should have 5-10 when they are finished. Put them into groups of 4 or 5. They lay their cards/paper on the floor and work as a group to come up with a poem using only the strips they have chosen. The words/phrases cannot be altered in any way. When they are finished, they can tape or glue their poem onto a large piece of construction paper. The Cinquain Chain Game (can also use haiku, limerick, etc.) The traditional cinquain is based on a syllable count. line 1 - 2 syllables line 2 - 4 syllables line 3 - 6 syllables line 4 - 8 syllables line 5 - 2 syllables In this game, students work in groups and take the last line of the previous persons cinquain to begin their own. Example: Inside it felt like days it was only seconds breathe deep, close eyes, lean in, await first kiss first kiss was not what I had dreamt of, he needed a breath mint, he twitched nervously still.sweet

Abstract vs. concrete Bascially a symbol is an extended metaphor. Help students write (and recognize) symbolism by starting with a single line metaphor. They can do this with simple fill in the blank choices such as: ___________________ is a ______________
(abstract emotion: pain, fear, loneliness) is a (something found in nature: a river, the wind, woods, etc.)

__________________________ _______________________ like ___________________________ (abstract noun: peace, love, anger) (choose one of these: smells,) like (concrete noun) ( tastes, sounds) Example: Hate tastes like jalepenos. Fear smells like iron and glue.

After creating several of these single sentences see which ones they can develop into longer passages and they remove the single line to develop the symbol by showing instead of telling.

Poem Acitivities
Acrostic Chance Pick a book at random and use title as acrostic key phrase. For each letter of key phrase go to page number in book that corresponds (a=1, z=26) and copy as first line of poem from the first word that begins with that letter to end of line or sentence. Continue through all key letters, leaving stanza breaks to mark each new key word. Alphabet Poem Make up a poem of 26 words so that each word begins with the next letter of the alphabet. Or write another alphabet poem but scramble the letter order.1 Anti-Cliche Write a poem that presents the opoposite or different aspect of interpreting a cliche ("home is where the heart is," "many hands make light work," "a chain is only as strong as its weakest link," "any friend of yours is a friend of mine,") Animal Poem Follow these steps: 1) Write a poem about an animal or using an animal. You can describe the animal, talk to the animal, or you can use all three approaches. 2) Whatever your intentions, knowing the animal intimately- its habits, idiosyncracies, anatomy, habitat, diet, and so forthshould prove helpful. Awe Poem Write a poem, reliving the experience of awe. Themes could include, but are not limited to, the following: awesome size or power (ex. first trip to a large city, stadium, etc.); awesome mystery (how did s/he do that, whether a work of art, an athlete, a fireman or doctor); awesome language or attitude (in the face of a very difficult situation); or awesome presence (somebody who profoundly changes the way you think, feel or act just by spending a few minutes with them).4 Autobiographical Write an autobiographical poem without using any pronouns.1 If you get stuck, think about the objects that are important to you and how you use them, the people around you and how they influence you, the particular details of the routine of your days and the objects that inhabit those details. Automatic Writing For 10-15 minutes (use a timer!) write as much and as fast as you can without stopping to think about direction, narration, grammar or punctuation. The idea here is to attempt to get past all the rules of writing and just enjoy writing for the pure discovery of it. This is sometimes called stream of consciousness writing. Change Poem Follow these steps: 1) Write a poem describing a single change or multiple changes using oneword lines and stanzas. 2) The changes you show should be unpredictable and surprising. Your changes should show leaps through time. 3) Note that the sample Change Poems are primarily events. Circle Poem 1) Write a poem where your title "triggers" the next word or phrase of your first line, which, in turn, "triggers" the next line, and so forth. 2) Try to surprise us with each new line, taking us

each time to a new world - taking us on a rich, various trip through time, place, ideas, objects, colors tastes, names, and so forth. 3) Your poem will end when your last last "circles" back to the beginning, approximating your title. City Poem Write a poem which gives a descriptive impression of your favorite city, either one you live in, one you have visited, or one which you imagine. Try using most of the five senses to give your readers a vivid experience as they come to your city. Collage: Favorite Lines Create a list of your favorite lines from poetry. Re-arrange the list into a poem that makes sense to you (i.e., it doesn't have to make sense to everyone). You don't have to use every line (or every word) that you've copied down. Sometimes it is more effective to make your point with fewer lines and words. Dickinson's Rhymes Locate an Emily Dickinson poem on the internet. Copy down the end words of each line and then rewrite a poem filling in the lines before the rhyme. Keep the same set of rhymes Dickinson uses throughout her poem for your own. Excuses Write a poem made up entirely of excuses said to parents, teachers, coaches, siblings, friends, by you, by people you know, by famous people, etc. Construct into collage-type poem of your own imagination. Extended Metaphor Using Extended Metaphor, write a poem about poetry, the poet, or the poem. 2) First, establish through a simile (metaphor using "like" or "as") what the poet, for example, is like (He may be like a magician). Then, throughout the remainder of the poem, talk about poet (or poetry or the poem) exclusively in terms of the magician (or a flame or mason or lion or season, for other examples): what he does; how he practices, thinks, feels, and so forth. For famous poems on this subject, see Marianne Moore's "Poetry," Gary Snyder's "As for poets," or Archibald MacLeish's "Ars Poetica." Found Poem Follow these steps: 1) Copy one or two unique, rich, musical, or odd sentences found in a newspaper, magazine, history book, encyclopedia, letter, and so forth. 2) Break the sentences into poetic lines, arranging words and phrases in the most meaningful and surprising ways. 3) If you can't think of another title, just title your work Found Poem. Haiku Everybody has heard about the form of haikus, but the content of a haiku of the haiku is much more important. "Haiku poets write about common, everyday experiences usually involving natural objects. They avoid complicated words and grammar; many haiku don't have complete sentences." Attempt a haiku of your own. Keep it at 3 lines, the lines containing around 3-5, 5-7, and 3-5 syllables (in that order). Headline/Opening Line Write a poem starting with a headline or opening line you take from a newspaper, magazine, etc. Let your imagination take the headline in any direction you see fit. Fill in the headline with new and unique characters, events, changes in circumstance, or quotes put into new contexts. Try

writing a whole poem using the headline or opening line as your jumping off point. Then try writing a new poem using new lines from the articles as the start of new stanzas. Identity Poem One of slam poet Patricia Smith's more famous poems is called "What It's Like to be a Black Girl (for those of you who aren't)." The poem builds in rhythm because each sentence starts with the contraction "It's... ." For example: "it's being 9 years old and feeling like you're not finished, like your edges are wild, ... ." Create your own "What it's like" poem for a particular part of your identity you identify strongly with (be it race, culture, a sport, religion, a school group, etc.). Try to get ten or more lines starting with "it's." Image Poems Follow these steps: 1)Make three poems each constituted of two concrete nouns. The first word of each poem is the "subject," which the second word describes by suggesting similarity. 2) Avoid word combinations that suggest cause and effect, object and quality, object and environment. 3)Make sure you title your poems, so your audience knows to read them as poetry. Let Them Speak Pick out a poem, favorite or not, in which the speaker of the poem addresses a specific audience (it may be clear from the title, it might not be; just as long as the audience is obvious to you). If you don't know any, you could ask a teacher or librarian to help you find one. After thoroughly reading the poem so that you create a good understanding of it, write a response from the audience to the themes and emotions the poet touches on in the original. Letter To Celebrity/Character Write a letter in poem or prose form to your most (or least) favorite celebrity or tv/movie/game character, questioning their motives or actions in a particular movie or scene. You can include: other characters (from the show and/or your own life), their motives for being there, pieces of the scenery, context, bits of conversation, and a colorful explanation as to what you would have done. List Poem List poem 1: Write a poem consisting of favorite words or phrases collected over a period of time; pick your favorite words from a particular book. You can also create a list poem out of the objects in a room in your apartment or house, your classroom, a friends apartment/house, a favorite restaurant, stadium, park, etc. Or, try List poem 2: write a poem consisting entirely of a list of "things", either homogenous or heterogeneous (common lists include shopping lists, things to do, lists of flowers or rocks, lists of colors, inventory lists, lists of events, lists of names, ...). Memory Poem Write a poem based on a memory (include attention to the senses- sight, smell, touch, sound- to make this person a reality for the reader). 2) It may help if you speak, in your poem, to the person or thing with whom you shared your experience. Now I Am... Write a poem with each line filling in the blanks of "I used to be _____ but now I am ______." ("I used to write poems, but now I just do experiments"; "I used to make sense, but now I just make poems;" "I used to be a tree-climber, but now I am a star-watcher;" etc.).

Ode Neruda wrote a whole book of odes (songs of praise) to commonplace objects like his suit, the drive-in, a large tuna in the market, a lemon, and salt. Think of an object which most people think of as commonplace, but which you couldn't do without. Paradox Poem Write a poem illustrating a paradox. A paradox is a seemingly self-contradictory statement that expresses a possible truth- pointing ultimately to mystery. Pastoral/Lyric Poem Write a poem which gives a descriptive impression of your favorite place in the country, either one you live in, one you have visited, or one which you imagine (these can be located in fields, forests, mountains, a mixture of these, complete with animals, insects, etc.). Try using most of the five senses to give your readers a vivid experience as they come to your country place. Postcard Poem Remember back to your favorite vacation or read through a vacation magazine or National Geographic-like magazine. Write a postcard poem to a friend or family about the literal or virtual trip. Pick out unique details that you can add to the poem that convey your tone while on vacation. The poem doesnt have to be fun; these poems can relate disgust or frustration or sickness. Sentence brevity is key. Questions Or Directions Write a poem composed entirely of questions or directions1 (think of the second like a recipe). Alternative: Ritual poem: these can be thought of as a form of the list poem, one which shows how a person (usually the speaker) prepares for a certain event. It is often written as a list of directions which show how the person put themselves in a specific state of mind. Used by indigenous cultures as a way to put themselves in a spiritual state of mind.3 Repetition Write a poem in which each line starts with the same words like "I remember ..." or I dont remember ; I know or I dont know ; (or one of your own). Sonnet One of three options here: 1) write your own 14 line sonnet, using 10 syllables or 10 words per line; 2) construct a sonnet using a mixture of your own lines and lines from other sonneteers; and 3) construct a sonnet using only lines from other sonnets. Synchronicity Synchronicity: Write a poem in which all the events occur simultaneously. 1 Consider all of the sensory details which occur to different people, animals, plants, things in a room or outside, etc. in the span of a single minute. Take A Walk Structure a poem or prose writing according to city streets, miles, walks, drives. For example: Take a fourteen-block walk, writing one line per block to create a sonnet; choose a city street familiar to you, walk it, make notes and use them to create a work; take a long walk with a group of writers, observe, make notes and create works, then compare them; take a long walk or drivewrite one line or sentence per mile.

Teacher Poem Write a poem describing a teacher whom you find, for one reason or another, unforgettable. Try to see that teacher as clearly and honestly as you can. This teacher can be a teacher in school, a mentor, a coach, a counselor, etc. Things You'd Like To Say Write a poem consisting entirely of things you'd like to say, but never would, to a parent, lover, sibling, child, teacher, roommate, best friend, mayor, president, corporate CEO, etc. Transformation Poem Follow these steps: 1) Write a poem describing a worker becoming a part, a tool, or a product of his or her work. This requires your intimate knowledge of the particular work process and the attitudes, responsibilities, and language connected to the work. 2) Do not use any form of the following words: become, change, transform. Instead, make us experience the transformation.4 Visual Response Poem 1) Freewrite about a representation of a painting, collage, or photograph (or, even better, visit a museum and do this with the real thing!). 2) Comment on the details in the piece of art. What do you see that you think others see? What do you see that you think others don't? (a story, characters, other particular senses?) 3) Revise your freewrite into a poem with line breaks. Include the title and creator of the work in your title.

Poetry Revision

What are you saying? Consider what you are saying in your poem. Poetry, as in any writing really, is all about the ideas. Is it fresh? Original? Or is it trite and clich? Has it been said this way before? Could you add a twist at the end, or create a metaphor to make it more mysterious or interesting? ABSTRACT vs. CONCRETE. Underline all your abstract nouns. (abstract nouns cannot be grasped with the senses: fear, loneliness, peace, love, etc. ) Replace one or two key abstract nouns with a concrete noun or image. Evoke the SENSES. Make sure the senses are represented. Be very specific and write words, phrases that deal with sight, smell, taste, feel, sound. (the velvet chair, clink of the coins, vinegar and garlic, etc.) If it doesnt bleed, cut it. Look at each individual word. If the poem does not need the word, if it still makes sense without it, get rid of it. POETIC elements. Each poem should have several examples of figurative language such as: alliteration (repetition of sounds), metaphor (comparison of two unlike things), hyperbole (exaggeration), simile (comparison of two unlike things using like or as), imagery (create strong images based on the five senses), personification (giving human qualities to something nonhuman). EtcIf they do not have some, then add some. Word Hunt. Take your poem and find five words (verbs and nouns most importantly) that you can replace with a better word. Use a thesaurus but make sure you know the word that you are going to use in place. Rhyme. IF your poem contains end rhyme, change it so that it doesnt. Find several places to add some internal rhyme. Repetition. A key element in poetry. Create a line, or choose one in the poem already, and repeat it throughout. Also, if you do use repetition already, make sure it is not overdone, or that you have chosen the right wording to repeat. Could you tweak it a little to maybe make it more interesting?

To Perform: Watching someone read a poem is much more entertaining when the poet had it memorized. Entertain your audience. Do not stress about having every single word memorized, simply try to get the gist of what your lines are. Read each line aloud then add a line. As you read make sure you move a little and use inflection in your voice. Even if you do not have the entire thing memorized, you can perform it better when you read it if some of it is memorized. You can look up at your audience from time to time. Another activity to try Write its negative. In other words, if you have a poem about a beautiful summer day, change each line to the opposite and end up with a poem about a nasty, rainy day, etc..

http://web.mac.com/tmali/Bakers_Dozen_/Start_%3E.html Tips for reading in public.

Modern Poets who are great for the classroom Taylor Mali Elizabeth Thomas Jimmy Santiago Baca Gary Soto Sandra Cisneros Al Letson William Trowbridge, persona poems Nikki Giovanni Must Have Books for Poetry in the Classroom Holbrook, Sara and Michael Salinger. 2006. OutSpoken! How to Improve Writing and Speaking Skills Through Poetry Performance Dunning, Stephen, and William Stafford. 1992. Getting the Knack: 20 Poetry Writing Exercises 20. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English. Smith, Marc Kelly, and Joe Krynak. 2004. Complete Idiots Guide to Slam Poetry. New York: Alpha. Behn, Robin and Chase Twitchell ED. 1992. The Practice of Poetry: Writing Exercises from Poets who Teach. New York: Harper Perennial. For students to publish Stone Soup Scholastic Writing Awards - competition for students in grades 7-12

www.Teenink.com www.merlynspen.org www.kalwriters.com/kidswwwrte

Resources www.poetryslam.com The official source of poetry slam rules and information. www.upwordspoetry.com is Elizabeth Thomas poetry site. www.youthspeaks.org Contains information about the annual Youth Poetry Slam. http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180 an excellent collection of poems ready to use for the classroom. 180 for each day of the school year. http://www.loc.gov/poetry Library of Congress website with lots of great links to teacher resources and poet information/readings. http://www.poetryfoundation.org
is an independent literary organization

committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture.

http://poetryoutloud.org Created by the National Endowment for the Arts and the
Poetry Foundation, Poetry Out Loud is a National Recitation Contest offering excellen prizes for state and national winners. FREE RESOURCES-email request from the site.

www.poets.org The Academy of American Poets