Try these three poem ideas for Veterans Day with your middle and high school students.
Category Archives: Poetry Lessons
A Sept. 11 Artifacts Poetry Display
Personal 9/11 artifacts and acrostic poems recall the depth of human loss Today, I’m posting some photographs sent to me from a fellow high school teacher, Joe Wolf, who last week tried my “The Stories the Artifacts Tell” lesson plan featured in this 9/11 lesson post. Wolf teaches at Hollister High School in southwest MissouriContinue reading “A Sept. 11 Artifacts Poetry Display”
Headline Poetry Reimagined and Redefined
My high school students take headline poems to the next level Again this year, I chose to start the school year with headline poetry. Both my in-school students and those learning at home created headline poems with words and phrases found and clipped from with a variety of printed materials, magazines, newspapers, and even junkContinue reading “Headline Poetry Reimagined and Redefined”
Encourage distance learners with creative “Color Poems”
Distance learners will enjoy this creative, fun poem activity about color!
Top Sept. 11 resources and my 9/11 poetry lesson plan
Plus a new 9/11 resource for distance learning I never thought I’d say this, but I’m going to scale down my September 11 lesson plans this year. My students usually spend a solid week or more reading and responding to survivor accounts, historical articles, and other texts. We often watch an accompanying video, such asContinue reading “Top Sept. 11 resources and my 9/11 poetry lesson plan”
Just in time for back-to-school: Three templates for Where I’m From poems
Plus photos and links to help you plan Back-to-school is the perfect time for Where I’m From poems. I’ve decided to repost this article from last May to help you add this great activity to your opening days. Where I’m From poems from the author and poet George Ella Lyons… you just can’t write enoughContinue reading “Just in time for back-to-school: Three templates for Where I’m From poems”
Use this ‘Hamilton’ article to teach six poetic devices
Thank you, Wall Street Journal, for this amazing resource Buckle up, poetry lovers! This Wall Street Journal article, written by Joel Eastwood and Erik Hinton and published on June 6, promises to brighten your poetry lessons with some Broadway style. The article showcases the hip-hop/musical theater/American history mashup known as Hamilton, written and created byContinue reading “Use this ‘Hamilton’ article to teach six poetic devices”
Headline poetry and serendipity
It’s okay to go with the flow… or not Concrete Prayers Concrete prayers Repel, repel A doomed self-regard & remake common children into Hydrangea tides. When creating a headline poem, it’s okay and good to let the words find you. Another way to say it: don’t insist on finding the word you think you need.Continue reading “Headline poetry and serendipity”
A mentor text for Treasured Object poems
“Poem to My Yellow Coat” by Lucille Clifton Last winter, I wrote a post about a fun, creative activity called Treasured Object poems. Click here for that link. In that post, I included three student-written poems that former students had written. One was about turquoise Converse shoes, another was about a piano, and another aContinue reading “A mentor text for Treasured Object poems”
The Favorite Place Poem
Have students create content with a poem about their favorite place Many of my students are reading poetry. On Instagram. Okay, okay… I know. But whether or not you take verse found on Instagram seriously, poetry is experiencing a resurgence in popularity… thanks to social media, where many poets, including Rupi Kaur and others, gainContinue reading “The Favorite Place Poem”
