Now for a Challenge: More Poetry Fun

The other day I posted about an easy method for helping children write poetry (see April 24th post).  How about something challenging today? 
Lemonade: and Other Poems Squeezed from a Single WordThis idea comes from a wonderful book (pictured above).
You take a word, then use the letters it contains to write a poem related to the topic.  Bob Raczka provides a compelling prologue in which he explains he found such a poem on the internet which inspired him to write the volume Lemonade.   An example from Bob: 

creative
        i
cr  a   ve
     a
   r   t    (creative   I crave art)

An example I came up with (and, yes, they can be a lot longer--Bob has several lengthy ones in the book):
mathematics
                I
                   s
         e
         e
                   s
              at
                t  s    (mathematics     I  see stats)

 Our sixth graders gave this a try--some working on different words/poems throughout the day.  Below, two examples written by Ally.  (Note:  the formatting follows Raczka's.  Each letter in the poem is written underneath the position in which it occurs in the word at the top of the page--this makes them more challenging to read/figure out (the kids loved this!).

(rain clouds           sounds loud)

(American    I  am  in  America)

Give it a try!   Have fun...like the kiddos, this may keep your brain popping all evening!  If you come up with something, post it here!  I'd love to share other examples with our students! 
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Easy...Poetry!

     In honor of poetry month, I've been working in classrooms to help students experience the wonders of writing in this genre.  Today, one of our first graders (pictured above) got so excited about poems, he literally walked around the classroom announcing, "I'm a writer.  I've written 7 poems!"  A few minutes later, he was up and around again, "Hey!  Now I've written 10 poems!"  etc, etc.  So, I ran to the dollar store and purchased some colorful foam visors (3 for a buck!  Woo hoo!!)  and we dubbed him "Poet of the Day."  He was so proud!  He's a kiddo who really struggled to learn to write his name and learn the abc's in kinder--so this was very rewarding to witness.
   How did we create the fuss?  Easily, actually.  First I read a bunch of fun, kid-friendly, accessible poems aloud (see resources below).  Then, I had the students fold a blank piece of paper into three sections (two sections in kinder and first).  They were asked to record one word--that's right--just one word, in each box (each word represented a topic they might write about--again, see below).  Then, I modeled taking one of my words and doing a "brain dump;" writing any words or phrases that came to mind when thinking of this topic.  I had the students do the same.  Finally, I thought-aloud, as I transformed my brain-dump notes into a 'poem' (actually, something poem-ish...thanks, Peter Reynolds!) in the easiest way possible, just writing them in a list form down the page, repeating some, adding words to others, playing with the white space, then reading and rereading.
   I turned the students' loose, walked around celebrating their efforts, repeating words I saw, having students go forward to share their ideas and poems-in-process on the document camera.  Easy lesson plan...the modeling and celebrating is key.  And...it worked in every classroom.  I have mounds and mounds of poems to type up and several entries waiting to be submitted to our school newspaper the Tiger Times!  Hooray for Poetry Month!
Books  I  used:

  Product Details   Had students record a topic about play in their first box.
Product DetailsWe enjoyed the poem "In My Desk" by Jane Yolen.  Students recorded a topic beginning with "In my..." or "On my..." in their second brainstorming box.

They were asked to come up with a free choice topic for their third box.

I could share several examples, but here's just one, from one of our first grade ESL students.  He really liked Singer's poem "Jump!" which inspired this:

Jump Rope
by JJ

I can jump
With a
        slap
            slap
                slap!
I jump
with a
        swing
              swing
                    swing!
I jump 100 times!
                100 swings
                        100 jumps
                               And 100 slaps!
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Want Kids to Revise? Try Peer Revision!

This strategy really is quick and easy AND effective!  Check out the video and let me know what you think (this is from years ago--my second grade class).  I've had great success getting kids to transfer revision strategies to their own everyday writing after they've completed some peer revision activities.   It's so rewarding and exciting to see students enjoy the process of revising.  If you'd like to know more, be sure to post a question or, you can refer to my Quick Start to Writing Workshop Success book from Scholastic.
Happy writing!
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Elastic Band Models: Phonemic Awareness Practice for ZERO COST!


Here are a few more examples of phonemic awareness models produced by stapling pieces of cardstock to elastic waistband material (see my April 11th post).  You might also use velcro to stick on different pieces and make the models easily interchangeable.  These are great for direct instruction and guided practice in segmenting and blending, plus they can be used effectively in centers, once students learn how they can be used.  For ideas, see my Name Wall book and keep in touch--I'll post more details here.  Thanks again for stopping by!  Happy Friday!  -j
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What Can You Do With Elastic Waistband Material?

What do you think of this idea?  Great way to make phonemic awareness concrete (and, you've gotta' love using students' names--it works!).  This is simply elastic waistband material (bought at Walmart in the sewing section--cheap), with some cardstock stapled on (the bottom drawings depict student pictures stapled to the left).  Stretch to segment, release to blend...viola!  There are many, many more ideas for easy concrete models in my Name Wall book from Scholastic.  Happy Learning!
Using Name Walls to Teach Reading and Writing: Dozens of Classroom-Tested Ideas for Using This Motivating Tool to Teach Phonological Awareness, Letter Recognition, Decoding, Spelling, and More

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Happy Poetry Month! Free Download


Happy Poetry Month! Click here to go to a free download with templates for working with students to produce Photo Poems!  Enjoy!

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Opinion Words (Vocabulary) Chart

The Common Core standards require we balance our writing instruction with about 1/3 opinion or argumentation. As I've worked with our K-6 students, I've found many of them need additional ready-to-use vocabulary to help them express their opinions in more mature ways (other than "I like" or "I don't like..."). This chart is a great beginning! Enjoy! (This is another great one to enlarge to poster size.)
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FREE! (Upgraded :) Rules for Quick Writes Poster

This poster makes it easy to remind students of the most important rules for Quick Writes in the classroom. I've designed it to look simple and clean (great for lower AND upper grades). You might enlarge it to poster size.
With all the writing we should be doing per the new Common Core, a poster like this should be a great help!    Please, click to follow me--lots more to come!  (To download easily (I guess...I'm just learning all this)--click on the 'Teachers Pay Teachers' button on the left to go to my page, then click on the free download.) 
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