Writing With Writers: Poetry

Writing With Writers: Poetry Project Description The Poetry Writing project features three authors whose works expose students to various characteristics of poetry, such as powerful description, rhythm, and rhyming. Each of the writers offers models of his or her work as well as suggestions for students. Students are introduced to warm-up exercises, and other tips to help them create, revise, and share their work. An ongoing journal component is included in the Teacher's Guide to provide students with a personal portfolio they can use to organize, information, notes, and their own poems in process. Although you may wish to use elements from all three workshops in your poetry lesson, the following grade configuration is a suggestion: Jack Prelutsky's writing workshop is aimed at younger students from grades 1-4; a riddle writing project with author Jean Marzollo targets students from grades 2-5; and Karla Kuskin's writing tips will be most appropriate with more advanced readers and writers between the grades of 4-8. Assessment and Rubrics A rubric assesses student proficiency with the poetry writing activity, and a journal checklist assesses students proficiency with global project skills. Learning Objectives Scholastic's Online Activities are designed to support the teaching of standards-based skills. While participating in the "Poetry Writing" project, students become proficient with several of these skills. Each skill below is linked to its point of use in the Teacher's Guide. In the course of participating in the "Poetry Writing" project students will: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Identify unique characteristics of the poetry genre Practice poetry writing skills such as rhythm, rhyming, and descriptive vocabulary Follow the writing process to create original poetry Understand how to review and revise their own writing Use Web technology to post original writing online Project Components Writing With Writers Activities Poetry Writing With Jack Prelutsky Students discover how to shape ideas and words into creative, descriptive, and silly poems. Popular children's poet Jack Prelutsky provides students with an example of his own poetry accompanied by an audio clip of him reading the poem. He also shares writing tips that he uses when he writes poetry. Students get to show what they learned when Jack challenges them to continue a poem he has begun. Jack also provides students with guidelines for revising their writing. Writing I Spy Riddles With Jean Marzollo Author Jean Marzollo leads students on a poetry writing journey using her riddle-writing style from the award-winning I Spy series. Using models of her published riddles and photographs from her books, Ms. Marzollo turns a complex writing style into a simple format that young students can copy and extend. Poetry Writing With Karla Kuskin Students learn to write poems with help from award-winning poet Karla Kuskin. Karla 1 of 5 3/25/11 11:48 AM

provides students with a sample poem, plus writing tips, strategies, and challenges to help them create their own poetry. She also gives students guidelines on revising their writing, and provides general comments, suggestions, and ideas about writing poetry. Poetry Anthology Once students have crafted their own poems, they can submit them to Scholastic's Poetry Collection using a simple interactive form. After being reviewed by Scholastic.com staff, the students' poems may be published online! Students can view all accepted poetry submissions in the archive. Poetry Idea Engine Students can practice writing their own poems with the Poetry Idea Engine. Developed with GoCyberCamp, this engine allows students to explore several types of poems including limericks, haikus, cinquains, and free verses. Collaborative Poem With Jack Prelutsky On April 21, 2004, Jack Prelutsky moderated a live poem written by students online. Read the transcript of the poem with Jack's comments. Lesson Planning Suggestions Project Introduction (1 Day) Invite students to discuss what they know about poetry. Go through a book of well-known poems with students, and read some favorites. Have students discuss poems that they know. Ask: How are poems different from stories? Begin a poetry web on the chalkboard. Ask volunteers to contribute ideas they feel should be part of the graphic. Then distribute poetry journals to students. Collaborate on a list of ways students will use the journal - include poems and note-taking. Ask students to create a journal entry about what they've learned that they think it will be helpful to remember. Building Background (3-5 Days) Introduce students to the poetry styles of the author that best suits the needs of your class: grades 1-4: Jack Prelutsky; for grades 2-5: Jean Marzollo; and for grades 4-8: Karla Kuskin. Allow students time to visit the pages and read author bios or print-out pages from independent reading. You may wish to read aloud with your students. Encourage students to take notes in the journal. Suggest they write about what interests each author about the genre, or any other interesting tips about writing. Introducing Poems Have a volunteer read aloud a poem from one or each of the three writers: Karla Kuskin, Jack Prelutsky, and Jean Marzollo. Then have students discuss their thoughts about each poem. Write informative responses on the chalkboard. Ask them to pay attention to punctuation marks to help them understand the rhythm of a poem. If applicable, encourage students to compare and contrast elements in the pieces. Ask: How are they similar? Which poem did you like best? Why? Have students create a list of features that make each poem unique. Write these on the chalkboard. Have students contribute any relevant information to their journals. Pre-writing (2-3 Days) Let students know that they will be writing original poems. Point out that poetry, like any other writing genre, has its own rules, and that these rules will help students construct their own poems. Encourage students to visit the tips page for the poet they are working with. You may wish to promote all writing styles by visiting each site. Jack Prelutsky Work with students as a class to develop the first tip. Create a rhyming wall on the chalkboard. Divide it into three columns, one for each "syllable" word. Encourage students to use made-up words as well. Discuss why rhyming might be a good tool to use in poems. Then suggest students work in groups to do activities 2 and 3. 2 of 5 3/25/11 11:48 AM

Jean Marzollo Visit her "Write Your Own Poem Riddle" page for riddle writing tips or Riddle Writing Hints. Share an I Spy book with students, if possible, to familiarize them with the poetic style. Tap out the rhythmic pattern with students as they read. Read aloud Jean Marzollo's "Write Your Own I Spy Riddle" page with students. Encourage students to view the published pieces of poetry to use as models for their own work. Invite them to tour the I Spy gallery for models. Karla Kuskin Have students read in pairs, and drill one another on what they've read. Point out that Ms. Kuskin uses a style called free verse, which has very few distinct rules or boundaries. Ask them to notice the verses in her poem. Have students compare various ones. Let them know that the rhythm, or cadence, of free verse varies throughout her poem. Though the words don't rhyme, they flow along an uneven pattern. Encourage writers to draft a preliminary piece of work. Remind them to implement Kuskin's use of description in a free-verse style. Then have partners exchange their work and check that it responds to each of Karla's suggestions. Print out the list of ten tips and post it in the classroom for reference as students write. Invite all students to discuss authors' tips and share which ones they think they would find particularly useful for their projects. Encourage students to contribute any tips, ideas, or poems in the style of the guiding writers in their journals. Drafting Now, it's time for students to draft their poems. Suggest that they read the ideas presented in their poet's "Write Your Poem" page before they attempt their own work. You may wish to review these aloud. Post the writing rubric in the classroom for students to use as a guideline for what is expected of their poems. Jack Prelutsky: Have students refer to Jack Prelutsky's Write Your Poem page. Suggest that they read all three poems first. Then after choosing the one they like best, have them extend it to create their own version of the poem. Jean Marzollo: Encourage students to write four lines of a riddle poem. Remind them to notice the placement of rhyming words and punctuation. You may wish to encourage eager writers to return to this section on a monthly basis to publish new I Spy work. Karla Kuskin: Encourage students to follow the directions in her Write Your Poem page. If time permits, assign the second poem as a take-home piece. Remind all students to refer to the "My Poem" and "Brainstorming" activities and their journals as they draft their poems. Revising (2 Days) When students are done with their drafts, have them exchange papers with a peer for comments. Partners can write their comments on the draft itself. Then have students follow the revising guidelines. If you are working with a Classport partner class, exchange drafts via e-mail for peer review and comment. While students revise their drafts, have them check for spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes. Publishing (1 Day) Once students have completed their revision, have them follow directions to Publish Online with Jack Prelutsky and Karla Kuskin or with Jean Marzollo. Poetry Anthology (ongoing) Visit the Anthology with students throughout the life of the project. Do one or all of the following activities with the Poetry Anthology: Have students visit this page during each step of the writing process. To inform them on their work in progress. 3 of 5 3/25/11 11:48 AM

Encourage students to read submissions and choose the ones they feel best reflect the skills that were taught. Print them out as good writing models and post them in the classroom. Hold a critiquing circle. Have individual students feature a poem and discuss how it fulfills/doesn't fulfill the requirements of poetry as learned during this project. Challenge students to rework poems. Have them submit before and after works. Invite students to treat poems as starters and extend them. Return to the Poetry Anthology after students publish their pieces online to see if their own writing has been included. Project Wrap-Up (2-3 Days) Give students time to complete any unfinished work. Use this time to schedule a poetry performance day. Assess students' proficiency with the poetry writing activity by consulting the appropriate poetry rubric. You may wish to review students' journal with them. Journal Checklist Use the following guidelines to assess contents. Does the journal: 1. demonstrate the acquisition of key skills? 2. include tips and discussion notes? 3. include pre-writing warm-up exercises? 4. include original poetry? National Standards Correlations This project aids students in meeting national standards in several curriculum areas. Reading/Language Arts National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and the International Reading Association (IRA) include: Read a wide range of print and non-print texts to build an understanding of texts, of themselves, and of the cultures of the United States and the world. (1) Students read a wide range of literature from many periods in many genres to build an understanding of the many dimensions (e.g., philosophical, ethical, aesthetic) of human experience. (2) Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and non-print texts. (6) Students use a variety of technological and informational resources (libraries, databases, computer networks) to gather and synthesize information in order to create and communicate knowledge. (8) Students develop an understanding of and respect for diversity in language use, patterns, and dialects across cultures, ethnic groups, geographic regions, and social roles. (9) Participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities. (11) Students use spoken, written, and visual language for learning, persuasion, and exchange of information. (12) Technology Technology Foundation Standards for Students: use technology tools to enhance learning, increase productivity, and promote creativity use technology tools to collaborate, publish, and interact with peers, experts, and 4 of 5 3/25/11 11:48 AM

other audiences use a variety of media and formats to communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences use technology to locate, evaluate, and collect information from a variety of sources Cross-Curricular Extensions Art Grades 1-6 Have your class compile their poems into a class anthology. Students can create a table of contents, staple, and photocopy all the poems together. Then they may add the anthology to the school library. Students may wish to also make a book of their own "published" poems, and add drawings to illustrate each one. Drama Invite students can act out their poems, or create dance or movement pieces to accompany them. Grades 2-8 Set up a special poetry hour, and ask your students to take turns reading their poems to the class. Invite other classes to take part, and ask questions. Language Arts Grades 4-8 Encourage students to develop additional writing tips and challenges they think would be helpful for writing poetry. Have the rest of the class try them out. Have students write their own poem-starters, then trade with a classmate to complete each other's poems. Grades 4-8 Ask students to read one of Karla Kuskin's or Jack Prelutsky's books of poetry and analyze it using the tips and challenges that have been provided in this lesson. Invite students to bring in copies of their favorite poems to read in class. Math Grades 1-4 Have students come up with a pattern scheme for a favorite poem. Students can transfer the pattern using other forms, such as numbers, letters, pictures, etc. TM & 2011-1996 Scholastic Inc. All Rights Reserved. 5 of 5 3/25/11 11:48 AM