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One of the many attributes of poetry is that it conveys a maximum amount of thought and feeling in the fewest and most carefully chosen words. For children, the benefits of reading and learning about poetry are enormous. According to Fountas and Pinnell (2001), "When you immerse your students in rich, lively poetry, you introduce them to intense, concise, skillfully crafted language" (p. 410). They state that poetry should be included as an integral part of the language and literacy curriculum because it:
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Additionally, Norton (2003) states, "Appreciation for language, knowledge about concepts, empathy with characters and situations, insights about oneself and others, self-expression, and enjoyment are values of poetry for children" (p. 345).
Yet, with all of the advantages of including poetry in the reading curriculum, it is the least favorite and most avoided of the genres by teachers. Why? Though young children delight in poetry, this doesn't last into middle childhood when, for many children, reading poetry becomes a task of understanding a predetermined meaning or memorization. This type of experience may have been the way many teachers were taught themselves. As a result, many teachers dislike poetry and, therefore, do not choose to include it in the reading curriculum.
An analysis of studies on the poetry preferences of children by Kutiper & Wilson (1993) reveal further insight. Narrative poems and limericks were preferred while haiku and free verse were not. Humorous and nonsensical poems about familiar experiences or animals were most popular while poems about nature were not. Contemporary poems were preferred and poems that contained visual imagery or figurative language were disliked. Norton (2003) postulates that, "One reason for the narrow range of poems that children enjoy may be that adults infrequently share poetry with children." For teachers to share poetry with children, it is critical that they first learn to enjoy it themselves. Norton goes on to state, "The enjoyment of poetry, like enjoyment of other types of literature, can be increased by an enthusiastic adult who reads poetry to children" (p. 321).
In addition to exhibiting enthusiasm for poetry, how can teachers raise the value of poetry of all types for their students? An appreciation of poetry can be carefully cultivated by presenting poetry in a logical sequence: nursery rhymes and songs; rhymed stories; narrative poems that are highly but carefully illustrated and give contextual support to the poetry; and then a coherent, related sequence of poems by one poet to encourage understanding of the personality of the poet and appreciation of the poems (Gough, 1984).
Teachers must also ensure that poems introduced to students are of the highest quality. Darigan, Tunnell, & Jacobs (2002) offer the following criteria for evaluating poetry:
There should be an abundance of poetry books by a variety of authors available in the classroom and students should be given the opportunity to choose poems they want to read as well as have poetry read aloud to them daily and across the curriculum. If poetry is only added when there is time (and there's never enough time) or is a single unit of study during poetry month, then children will not be provided with the opportunity to build on their knowledge about poetry over time. Fountas and Pinnell (2001) offer an instruction framework for including poetry in the curriculum for 90-120 minutes each week or at least twice a month.
Poetry Workshop (90 – 120 minutes)
Poet talk: Spend a few minutes at the beginning of the workshop to teach about a particular poet's life and work. Once poet talks have been established (possibly with minilessons on how to give a poet talk), students can share in presenting them.
Poetry read-aloud and poetry minilesson: Without lengthy introductions or vocabulary lessons, read aloud a poem for students to hear, enjoy, and discuss. As favorite poems and poets emerge over time, students can use them as models for their own writing of poetry.
Poetry projects and poetry centers: This portion of the workshop constitutes a majority of the workshop time as students are actively engaged in a wide rage of exploration and production while the teacher conferences with individual students or a small group of students. Center examples described by Fountas and Pinnell include a language center (students collect and share amazing words and phrases), listening center, poetry window (writing utensils placed by a window for students to look through and describe/sketch what they see), and an illustration center.
Poetry sharing: For the conclusion of poetry workshop, students come together to share their written poems (finished or in progress) and art work or to perform poems.
The Internet can provide teachers with valuable resources for finding great poetry, information on poets, Internet projects involving poetry, and websites that support student writing and publication of their poetry.
Web Resources
A Patchwork of Places and Poetry
A collaborative Internet project hosted by Marci McGowan, a first-grade teacher at H.W. Mountz Elementary School in Spring Lake, NJ, USA. Students learn about places in the world, write a description in poetry form, create a class quilt related to their special places, and view participating class entries on the project webpage.
Ppart of the Webbing Into Literacy site created by Dr. Laura B. Smolkin, Principal Investigator in the national Center for the Improvement of Early Reading Achievement (CIERA), This site houses 30 different illustrated, ready-to-print nursery rhymes for teaching phonological awareness.
Children's, Young Adults', and Teachers' Choices
A list published each year in the October issue of The Reading Teacher, featuring the top 100 books selected by children, teens, and teachers across the country as their favorites.
Enhancing a Poetry Unit with American Memory
A nicely explained process for using archives from the Library of Congress to inspire "found poetry."
Founded by Robert Pinsky, the 39th Poet Laureate of the United States, The Favorite Poem Project houses a collection of 50 short video documentaries showcasing individual Americans reading and speaking personally about poems they love.
The Internet School Library Media Center (ISLMC) Poetry for Children page is a metasite designed for elementary and middle teachers, librarians, parents, and students to preview selected curriculum-related sites.
Humorous poetry by Bruce Lansky along with writing tips and a poetry contest.
KidAuthors is a place for kids to share stories and poems with people around the world as well as read stories and poems written by other kids.
Writing activities, audio poems, a gallery of children's work, and much more from the British Broadcasting Company.
Classroom Notes Plus: Poetry Page
This website is the National Council of Teachers of English's newsletter of practical teaching ideas for the secondary classroom. The Poetry Page includes in-depth articles, classroom management tips, recommended websites and resources, and advice for new teachers.
Created by the Reading Center at Western Carolina University, this wepage features poems and ideas for integrating poetry throughout the curriculum.
The website of the Academy of American Poets features over 1250 poems, along with biographies, photos, and other information on more than 450 poets. The Serious Play page within the site also provides links for ideas on teaching poetry to children, links to interesting sites, information on approriate poets, and dozens of great poems for younger children, some with audio.
Poetry Writing with Jack Prelutsky
Hosted by Scholastic, the Writing with Writers site allows students to proceed through a series of activities such as reading about the author, reading one of his poems, brainstorming ideas for poems and writing a poem (which can be published online) with poem starters for those who choose to use them, complete with a certificate of achievement signed by Jack Prelutsky himself!
A website that hosts guest poets and interviews, suggestions, ideas and tips for writing, and lots of poetry submitted by readers.
Another classroom project site created by Marcie McGowan, Read A Book features book and poetry resources, along with lots of student work.
A poetry workshop for young writers and teenagers ages 10 to 18. Readers can share poems, get comments, read and comment on poems by other young people, get ideas and advice, and find out about competitions.
This Internet classroom magazine, sponsored by Regulus Communications, Inc., publishes students' poems from around the world.
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Conclusion
Denise Johnson |
References
Darigan, D., Tunnell, M., & Jacobs, J. (2002). Children's literature: Engaging teachers and children in good books. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
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Fountas, I., & Pinnell, G. (2001). Guiding readers and writers grades 3-6: Teaching comprehension, genre, and content literacy. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
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Gough, J. (1988). Poems in a context: Breaking the anthology trap. Children's Literature in Education, 15, 204-210.
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Kutiper, K., & Wilson, P. (1993). Updating poetry preferences: A look at the poetry children really like. The Reading Teacher, 47(1), 28-35.
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Norton, D. (2003). Through the eyes of a child: An introduction to children's literature. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
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Denise Johnson is an assistant professor of reading education at the College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virigina, USA. She received her Ed.D. in reading from the University of Memphis, Tennessee. She has worked as an elementary classroom teacher, a middle school reading specialist, and a Reading Recovery teacher. She now teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in literacy education and conducts research on the integration of technology into preservice and inservice education courses and within elementary classrooms. Her articles on literacy and technology have been published in a variety of journals and she is active in several professional organizations. She enjoys traveling with her family and reading to her son, Derek. Contact her by e-mail at cdjohn@wm.edu. |
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Citation: Johnson, D. (2002, October). Web watch: Poetry workshop. Reading Online, 6(3). Available: http://www.readingonline.org/electronic/elec_index.asp?HREF=webwatch/poetry/index.html
Reading Online, www.readingonline.org
Posted October 2002
© 2002 International Reading Association, Inc. ISSN 1096-1232