Wow Jennifer! I want to teach in your school...would love to hear their work.
I remember growing up without poetry, got out of it every chance I had. I never felt I understood exactly what the author meant, and never took the risk to ask. It wasn't until these last few years that I feel poetry. I was in a 2nd grade classroom recently and was blown away at the depth of students understanding toward "friendship" as they were expressing it with "friendship" poetry, it really does "break through the skin of suffering in which children are often imprisoned: silent, confused, scared" (pg. 3) Our district got involved with the PEBC out of Denver a few years ago, so Poetry is the 3rd genre for every Thinking Strategy study, kids are so smart and they seem to take risks with poetry deepening their understanding. This is the "lens" I am looking through as we go through this book study: student discourse and understanding. Thanks Jennifer, you have given me a lot to think about with students and society and a way to express... -----Original Message----- From: mosaic-bounces+wardl=laramie1....@literacyworkshop.org [mailto:mosaic-bounces+wardl=laramie1....@literacyworkshop.org] On Behalf Of Palmer, Jennifer Sent: Sunday, January 29, 2012 10:39 AM To: Mosaic: A Reading Comprehension Strategies Email Group Subject: Re: [MOSAIC] Awakening Heart poetry discussion I know I have poetry inside...I have even written it from time to time, though I rarely, if ever share it. Poetry, at its very best, uses fewer words to express deep, rich emotion. I love the language of poetry...how so few words say SO much! I feel drawn to write poetry when I am feeling deep emotion, either positive or negative. Poetry is a fabulous way to get to the bottom of our hearts. In my Title One school, so many of my students have had struggles. Almost 90 percent of the students are in poverty and don't eat on the weekends unless we send food home. Many of the students have seen violence...either in their home or from the neighborhood gangs and drug dealers. Some of the students feel abandoned, lost, hopeless from time to time. Yet, don't let any stereotype settle in your mind upon reading this... There is resilience...strength...even joy in their lives as well. We are an arts integration school...we have been learning how to integrate music, visual arts, photography, drama into our regular curriculum...and the results have been amazing. Our fifth grade classes had an opportunity to have a Slam Poet in residence by the name of Gail Danley. The results were AMAZING. Many students who struggle to write, to express thoughts, found slam poetry to be a fabulous way to become a writer. After the children wrote their own slam poetry, we invited parents in to hear the poems. The children saw the adults in the room moved to tears, to laughter, to fear...from their words. It was a wonderful way to help students understand the power of the written word and for some, it was also a catharsis, a way to express to the adults in their lives their pain, and the depth of their love for their families. If someone doesn't feel she has a poet inside, I wonder if that is because so many of us push our deepest emotions down deep... Writing good poetry is not just about choosing the right words... it is also about being real...about touching hearts as well as minds. To touch someone else's heart, one first has to be open about what is on your heart. It is that fearlessness in the face of your own pain, your own joy that aids in the selection of the just right words. Take it from my fifth graders in Title One. They fearlessly faced abandonment, hunger, fear, homelessness and the powerful words followed. Jennifer L. Palmer Instructional Facilitator National Board Certified Teacher Magnolia Elementary (home school) 901 Trimble Road Joppa, MD 21085 410-612-1553 Fax 410-612-1576 "In every child a touch of greatness!!' Proud of our Title One School Norrisville Elementary 5302 Norrisville Road White Hall, MD 21161 410-692-7810 Fax 410-692-7812 Where Bright Futures Begin!! _______________________________________________ Mosaic mailing list Mosaic@literacyworkshop.org To unsubscribe or modify your membership please go to http://literacyworkshop.org/mailman/options/mosaic_literacyworkshop.org Search the MOSAIC archives at http://snipurl.com/MosaicArchive
