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Poetry Writing Activity

(developed for ESOL, but could be used in English or literature classes)

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Activity Objectives

-- to help students develop an appreciation for poetry
-- to give students a chance to play with language to communicate thoughts and feelings

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Materials

Paper and pencil for brainstorming section
Construction paper, markers for writing poems
Handout with format of a haiku or a cinquaine

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Process

1. Students take a walk through the building or outside for ten minutes.  They are to walk without talking and take notes of whatever they see, hear, or smell that interests them.  The notes should be single words or phrases.  Students may either sit in one place or move about the building.  I'd recommend encouraging students to go outside for at least some of the time.
2. At the end of the ten minutes, the students return to the classroom.  Following the format of either the haiku or the cinquaine, or if they wish, even just free verse, they compose a poem.  The poem does not have to relate to the things they observed during their 10-minute walk, but they should be encouraged to allow their observations to influence their writing.  It is very important to tell students that grammar, spelling and vocabulary mistakes are ok.  While the students are composing their poems, music is playing.  I like to use music by George Winston, such as Winter into Spring.  Allow the students 10-15 minutes to compose their poems.
3. The students select an appropriate color of construction paper and a marker and write their poems on the paper.  They may also add drawings or symbols to the paper.  When they are finished, they post the poems on the wall and look at the poems that others have written.  Allow plenty of time for the students to read each others' poems.  During this activity, I like to play music with a bit peppier tempo, such as Four Seasons by Vivaldi.
4. In small groups of 3-4, the students discuss what they have learned about writing poetry and about poetry.  After 5 minutes or so, each group reports to the class what they discovered.  The teacher may prompt for deeper responses, but I find the students come up with good insights themselves.

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Reflection

As a homework assignment, the students write a reflection on poetry.  Following are some questions to get them started, but I encourage them to allow their reflections to develop freely.  What do you like best, or least, about reading poetry?  Why might writers want to express their ideas poetically?  Did writing your own poem change any of your ideas about poetry?  In what ways?

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Dialogue!

The design of this activity was guided by careful consideration of

-- the unique learner - I recognize that not everyone loves poetry, but I do want students to have some appreciation of what is involved in writing poetry before we begin to read several poems in class.  By allowing them to collect observations in silence and write without collaboration, students integrate their own personal selves with their observations.  The format of the poem they write is very loose, so even the most non-poetic student is able to put some words down on paper.

-- the environment- This activity draws heavily on silence, our surroundings, and music as part of the creative process.  By allowing the students a choice of formats or free verse, students do not feel a great amount of stress.  Also taking the emphasis off of correctness enables students to be more playful with the language.

-- the construction of individual meaning - The creation of a poem is a very personal thing.  In my classes, it was interesting to note that even when students wrote poems that were hard to understand, no one questioned the writer.  There was a recognition that each poem was very personal and meaningful to the writer.  The reflection assignments that the students did indicated that they had a new understanding of what poetry was really about and they thought they could appreciate poetry better after the activity.

One of the things I enjoy most about this activity is how eagerly students read each other's poetry. They are proud of their own creation and gain new respect for their fellow students.

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