Responding to Poetry
Introduction: It is difficult for people of all ages to admit they are wrong. We all do and say things that we know hurt others at times in our lives, but being able to find the words to express the sorrow that we feel in our hearts is difficult. Use this poem to discuss that admitting that you are wrong is not equivalent to admitting that you are a bad person.
"Apology"
Judith Viorst
It's hard to say "I'm sorry,"
Although I'm feeling sorry.
The "s" always sticks in my throat.
And "I made a big mistake"
Would produce a bellyache
That might last till I was old enough to vote.
"Please forgive me" sounds real good.
And I'd say it if I could,
But between the "forgive" and the "please"
I would have to go to bed
With a pounding in my head
And a very shaky feeling in my knees.
"I was wrong" seems oh so right.
But it gives me such a fright
That my "was" always turns into "ain't."
So I hope you'll take this rhyme
As my way of saying "I'm
Really sorry." Now excuse me while I faint.
Extension: Start by sharing a time when you had done something wrong, but were not able to apologize, even though you knew that you were wrong. Invite children to share their personal stories about things that they have done that they should have apologized for, but didn't. Extend the discussion to why we all behave that way and examine the reluctance that we all have to admitting that we were wrong.
Viorst, Judith. 1981. If I were in charge of the world. Illus. by Lynne
Cherry. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks. ISBN 0-689-70770-3.
Introduction: Students in my classes find out before long, it they don't know already, that I am a baseball fan. One way to get boys, who are often reluctant lovers of poetry, hooked, is to show them that there are poems that are not about love, but about things that they enjoy like sports. Paul Janeczko's That Sweet Diamond is a great collection of baseball poems, perfect for capturing the attention of even the most devout advocates of "Its not manly."
"Signs"
Paul Janeczko
The third-base coach
peers
shrugs
(scratches)
brushes his sleeves
encourages
claps
cheers
tugs one earlobe
then the other
whistles
(scratches)
exhorts
rubs his hands
hollers
paces
gazes
turns his back.
The batter
steps out:
he needs to see
them all
again.
Extension: This is a perfect poem for dramatization. Perform in line-around, with each student acting out the line that they read. Have students look up the meaning of "exhorts" before they perform.
Invite a local baseball coach, from either the high school or a local college, to come to your classroom to demonstrate the signs that he uses. Allow students to "read" his signs.
Janeczko, Paul B. 1998. That sweet diamond: baseball poems. Illus. by
Carole Katchen. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.
ISBN 0-689-80735-X.
Introduction: The United States is currently in the midst of the aftermath of a war with Iraq in which thousands of lives have been lost. Sometimes we have a tendency to "de-personalize" war as we watch the evening news. Use this poem to introduce the concept of war and talk about the effects it has on all concerned.
"Pinch of Peace"
Mattie J. T. Stepanek
Dear God,
Tonight my prayers are for the world.
We have to stop this fighting.
We have to stop the wars.
People need to stop arguing and hating.
People need to notice the good things.
People need to remember You, God.
Maybe You could come and
Shoot a little bow-and-arrow pinch
Into all the angry peoples' hearts, God.
Then they would realize what
They are doing and how horrible the
Killing and hating and fighting is,
And they might even begin to pray.
Then, they could reach in, and
Pull the little bow-and-arrow pinch
Out of their hearts and feel good
And be loving and living people again.
And then,
The world would be at peace, and
The children would be safe, and
The people would be happy, and
We could all say "thank You" together.
Amen.
Extension: Have the students research Mattie Stepanek, the young poet who lost his life to mitochondrial myopathy in the summer of 2004. Allow students to read his inspiring poetry. After reading his poetry and learning about his life, ask students to write poems or letters to Mattie's mother, Jeni Stepanek, honoring his life. Send these letters to her in care of the publisher, Hyperion, 77 W. 66th Street, New York, New York 10023-6298.
Stepanek, Mattie T. J. 2001. Heartsongs. New York: Hyperion.
ISBN 0-7868-8809-1.
Introduction: Nature has long been a favorite subject of poets. Take students outside in autumn to observe the surroundings. If that is not possible, have students look out the window, making note of the changes in the environment. Use these poems about autumn to introduce an inquiry into poetry about seasons.
"The Death of Autumn"
Edna St. Vincent Millay
When reeds are dead and a straw to thatch the marshes,
And feathered pampas-grass rides into the wind
Like aged warriors westward, tragic, thinned
Of half their tribe; and over the flattened rushes,
Stripped of its secret, open, stark and bleak,
Blackens afar the half-forgotten creek, -
Then leans on me the weight of the year, and crushes
My heart. I know that Beauty must ail and die,
And will be born again, - but ah, to see
Beauty stiffened, staring up at the sky!
Oh, Autumn! Autumn! - What is the Spring to me?
"Naughtumn"
Douglas Florian
The trees are bare.
The birds have flown.
What's going to grow
This year has grown.
The leaves fall down
And then get burned,
As autumn slowly gets winturned.
Extension: Have students look for other poems about autumn or the other seasons, finding a favorite one to share with the class, either orally or through a poster presentation.
Florian, Douglas. 2003. Autumnblings. New York: Greenwillow Books.
ISBN 0-06-009278-5.
Schoonmaker, Frances, ed. 1999. Edna St. Vincent Millay: poetry
for young people. Illus. by Mike Bryce. New York: Sterling
Publishing Company. ISBN 0-8069-5928-2.
Introduction: Students, for the most part, enjoy and love to write, but rarely do they proofread and revise what they have written once they are finished. Use this poem to introduce the concept of revision.
"After the Storm"
Hilary Haygood
Ideas swirling,
A tornado in my mind.
Quickly, I grab a pencil
To jot them down
Before they disappear like
Snow on a sunny day.
When the storm is over,
Words lie in puddles,
Covering the page.
Slowly��.
I inspect the aftermath,
Scrutinizing each word.
What if
I changed a word here,
Or moved this line
To another place?
After countless revisions,
I read my poem aloud
For the umpteenth time.
The words I have written
Paint a picture,
The same picture
That was swirling through my brain,
Written down
For others to relish,
Just as I did,
When the storm began.
Extension: Model the revision process with students. Pick a topic and write a poem together as a class, allowing all students to contribute ideas in a brainstorming session. Then, as a group, revise and rearrange the words until they are pleasing to all.
Haygood, Hilary. Original poem written August, 2004.
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E-mail: [email protected]
Updated: August 5, 2004