According to Dr. Nile Stanley, a reading specialist, researcher, and professor of education at the University of North Florida, “Poetry helps students do well on high stakes tests because it gives their minds an exhilarating workout. Poetry inspires students to read more, imagine more, think more, discuss more and write more.” Poetry also “massages the heart, cares for the soul, and preps students on life’s tougher questions that are seldom asked on high stakes tests."
-K.J. Wagner, Education Oasis


Borrowed from the San Antonio Writing Project's NCTE presentation, the Social Justice Poetry activity has been quite eye-opening for me. It all started when we discussed the upcoming holiday and Dr. King's dream of equality for all and his non-violent approach. My fourth graders listed some social ailments that they have heard about or have discussed at home. They were sent off to list the feelings, connections, and images created by the topic.

Here are some highlights of the experience:

• They choose the issue. They're motivated by that choice.
• I hesitated to use the word 'poignant' to describe a piece, but when I did, they knew what I meant.
• One stoic young man altered the tone of his piece to make the last line rhyme and when I pointed out the shift, he understood why his tone needed to remain consistent. Rhyming Schmyming.
• I had a one-on-one conversation about Iraq and its effects.
• I learned what issues are discussed in their households and which they would change if they could.
• My students are empathetic... authentically.
  
• One very analytical student unsurprisingly wrote a paragraph and not a poem and I found myself delicately trying to explain the tools that a poet uses: imagery, repetition, alliteration. With a few small nudges, he transformed his piece and maybe even his paradigm as well. We'll see.
  

Poetry Can be Found Anywhere

This activity was a hit at Friday's Poetry Cafe.
Pick a letter of the alphabet.
Write it on a piece of paper. Choose the capitalized version first.
What does it look like?
For instance,

A
is a candy corn
is a snow-capped mountain
A is the fin of a shark, circling our tiny wooden boat
A is the snout of a sea lion
A is...

List what it looks like with repetitive lines and every third line or so, add details. Then flip it and start again. It's also a neat way to incorporate geometry (slides, rotations) with poetry.
I'll include some more student samples next week.