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Who is your Persona?

Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, tagged gifted education, Out of my Mind, persona poem, The One and Only Ivan, writing about book characters on May 10, 2013| 9 Comments »

As we continue to make our way through the alphabet, this week we worked on persona poems in my classroom. I started the lesson by sharing Margaret Atwood’s poem, Siren Song. We discussed the poem and why it is a persona poem. Also called a mask poem, the writer takes on the persona of a famous person, historical figure, or character and writes from that person’s perspective. I gave them some line starters, such as, “My song is…” “My prayer is…” “I am from …” They were allowed to use the computer to find more information. I asked them to include known facts and little known facts.

The students who impress me most are those who take my assignment and run away with it. The poem grows into something much bigger and much more meaningful than I could’ve imagined. Two of my students decided to write about a book character. What I love about each of these examples is the poem stands alone, even if you do not know the book it is from. Two popular books in my class this year have been “The One and Only Ivan” by Katherine Applegate and “Out of my Mind” by Sharon M. Draper. I hope these poems make you want to pick up and read these books if you haven’t already.

For more persona poems, visit our kidblog site.

The One and Only Ivan
by Brooklyn

I am an artist,
hairier than most artists you know.
The food I crave is a banana,
because
I am a gorilla.

I know what you
guys are thinking.
A gorilla is
not capable of
making art,
but I am.
I know what you’re
saying ,
most of the time.

I am from
the forest,
but I live
in
The Big Top Mall.
It is caged, but
I somewhat
enjoy it here.
I have friends
animal and human.
Yes, this is
true,
and believe me
when I say,
they like me too.

I am not how you think
gorillas are.
I am not mean,
or scary.
I am not trying
to escape and run after you.
I want you to be my friend,
but you can’t hear me
when I say,
“Hello,
my name is Ivan,
what is your name?”
all you hear is a
roar,
and a hum,
and a grumble.

My song is
the thumping on my chest,
which you
hear wrong.
It doesn’t mean I’m mad,
I’m only trying to say “Hi”,
but most of you run.

You would never know how
nice I am,
if you always run away.

All I ever wanted,
was to talk and communicate,
without my paintings,
which look like
a black blob,
with a yellow patch,
and a gray bubble,
me.

So here is my prayer,
don’t judge me by my looks,
look at me with
your soul,
not your eye,
and hear my words,
and be my friend.

As Melody from Out Of My Mind
by Kaylie

Elvira, Elvira
I wish I could tell you
That it hurts when you tease me
I wish,
for once,
that you would understand
what I go through.

Elvira, Elvira,
Born in Ohio soil
Raised with a disability
I want to be noticed,
But in a good way.

Elvira, Elvira,
You gasp when you see me,
Pushed in my wheelchair
By my mother.
But I’m still human, Claire.

Elvira, Elvira,
I tap out the words,
LOOK. AT. ME.
See me, for who I am.
A smart girl.

Elvira, Elvira,
You don’t know the taste
Of music like I do.
Pleasant, flowing, green, resounding.
The song passes through my fingers.

Elvira, Elvira,
I want to be like you.
They don’t know
How hard it is
To have cerebral palsy.

Elvira, Elvira,
I wish I was appreciated.
Here I am,
Being Melody,
Being myself.
Don’t you hear?

Poetry Friday is hosted this week by Anastasia at Booktalking.

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Ode to the Ordinary

Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life, tagged Amy Ludwig Vanderwater, Gone Fishing, odes, Pablo Neruda, poetry, Tamera Will Wissinger on May 7, 2013| 8 Comments »

Slice of Life Tuesday

In this wonderful world of blogging, I discover new and exciting writers. This weekend on a visit to Barnes and Noble, I picked up a copy of Gone Fishing by Tamera Will Wissinger. This is the kind of book I wish I had written. Gone Fishing is a verse novel, but not only that; it teaches different poetry forms and literary devices along the way, an elementary writing teacher’s dream text. I also enjoy Tamera’s posts on Poetry Friday at her blog, The Writer’s Whimsey. I used this book to introduce the ode by reading “For the Love of Harold, Best of the Worms.” The illustrations by Matthew Cordell are adorable, too.

From Amy Ludwig VanDerwater at Poem Farm, I am inspired to sketch into poetry. Amy is a much better sketcher than I, but I reminded my students that it’s not about the product, it’s about the thinking time when you are sketching.

And the last source of inspiration for writing odes came from the master himself, Pablo Neruda. I splurged and bought a hard bound copy of Odes to Common Things. I read aloud a number of his odes. From “Ode to a pair of socks:”

My students loved hearing the rambling praise of something so ordinary. They laughed and called out,”How can he write all that about a pair of socks!”

So, inspired by Tamera, Amy, and Pablo, we sketched and wrote odes. I finally found a way to write about my ankle. I had tendonitis from November to April. I am now able to dance again and go on long walks, so I give praise to my ankle.

I never thought before
about the importance of an ankle
joint until pain came,
swelling, annoying,
limping, awkward
twisted shift in stride.
Turning talocrural-
articulation
where foot and leg unite,
back and forth fulcrum
functioning fine until
it didn’t.
My ankle wanted to be noticed,
announcing its presence
to gain some appreciation
in my world.
Here I am, said ankle to me,
the most complicated,
intricate joint
in your entire body,
thank me, why don’t you?
See how I dorsiflex
and articulate,
turn the a, b, c,
but can you make it to Z, hah!
Not without me!

Oh, gentle joint,
I love how you roll,
how you stretch and adjust;
you are a fine friend.
I will carry you tenderly,
massage you regularly,
soak you in Epsom salt,
and praise you
when I walk,
dance,
jiggidy-jig.
You are mine forever.
We are going places,
you and me.

To read some of students’ odes, go to our Slice of Life kidblog site.

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Mother’s Day Poetry

Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, Teaching, tagged color poems, I Love you the Purplest, metaphor, Mother's Day writing on May 3, 2013| 14 Comments »

We are still writing poems in my classroom even though April is over and May is here. This week we worked on poems for our mothers. If you are a mother of one of my students, stop reading now and save it for after Mother’s Day. You don’t want to spoil the surprise.

I love the beautiful picture book, I Love You the Purplest by Barbara M. Joosse. The watercolor images by Mary Whyte are amazing. The story is sweet about a mother going fishing with her two boys. The boys want to know which one she loves best, and the mother cleverly answers, “Julian, I love you the bluest. I love you the color of a dragon fly at the tip of its wing.” The other boy, Max, she loves the reddest, the color of the sky before it blazes into night.

After reading the book to my students, we talked about colors and what they can symbolize. Each student selected a color and made a list of possible things to use in a poem. There are some great resources for this lesson on Writing Fix. You can find a list of color metaphors as well as a printable form.

Specifically for the Mother’s Day poem, I asked the students to write about their mothers. They wrote some great poems. They typed and printed and painted a background for their poems on a canvas board. I think many mothers will be brought to tears by these gifts of love.

Momma,
I love you the pinkest
The color of a baby girl’s blanket
A freshly bloomed rose
The color of a small little piggy
And brand new point shoes
The color of breast cancer awareness
An October birthstone
The perfect pink for you ………
The color of your three little girly ballerinas
–Rhyan, 6th grade

I love you, Mom, the Greenest.
An emerald when a miner pulls it freshly out of the wall,
Leprechauns running around their pot of gold,
The grass when freshly mowed,
Lettuce from the sky,
The four-leaf clover on the ground,
The pickle on your burger,
The leaves you feel when you feel a tree.
I love you, Mom, the greenest.
–Tobie, 2nd grade

Mom, I love you the orangest.
I love you like the blazing sunset,
like the fire in my eyes,
like a melted orange ice pop,
dripping down my fingers.
I love you as orange as the way
your red hair used to look.
Mom, I love you the orangest.
Matthew, 3rd grade

For more Mother’s Day poems, go to our kidblog site. My students love comments.

Poetry Friday is hosted this week by Elizabeth Steinglass.

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26 Acts of Kindness

Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, tagged 26 Acts of Kindness, Boston marathon, gifted education, kyrielle on April 26, 2013| 14 Comments »

One of the greatest things about teaching gifted kids is that I am amazed everyday. This week we started a new service project inspired by the original 26 Acts of Kindness in response to the Sandy Hook massacre. The 26 Acts was revived following the Boston marathon bombing recognizing the 26 miles of the marathon. We made a poster to hang in the hallway near the cafeteria and students are making announcements daily to encourage others to do an act of kindness and add a note to the poster.

When one of my students, a 6th grader, came in to the classroom on Wednesday morning, she asked, “What letter are we doing today, Mrs. Simon?” I hadn’t made a plan because I was not officially having class. (I had to test some recommended students.) So I said, “K is for Kyrielle. Google it.” She did, and she began to work with the form.
“What topic should I use?”
“What about 26 acts of kindness?”
That was the extent of my instruction. I tested the students while she worked quietly. When I finished and the students left, she said she was stuck. I still left her alone. My two fifth graders came in. Again, I was not “officially” having class, so the three of them worked together on the kyrielle. They decided to use an aaaa rhyme scheme. They opened rhyme zone on the internet. It was fun to just sit back and watch this happen. The kyrielle has an octo-syllabic pattern, so they were counting out beats and adding and taking away words to make each line 8 syllables.
My three students were so pleased with their results, as was I, that they decided to read it aloud on the morning announcements. The whole office staff was touched and amazed. I think I should get out of their way more often.

26 Acts of Kindness

There’s something kind that we must do
To pay respects, so let’s be true
It won’t be for me or for you
So help the dreams they can’t pursue

Please, show your kindness, here’s your cue
Be the person God asked you to
We can stop them from feeling blue
So help the dreams they can’t pursue

Their families are torn in two
Come, everyone, and get a clue
Those men would wish they could undo
So help the dreams they can’t pursue

What is our country going through
To me, it feels like déjà vu
You all know who I’m talking to
So help the dreams they can’t pursue

by Kaylie, Brooklyn, and Kendall

If you want to leave these students a comment, their poem is posted here on our kidblog site. For more about the ABCs of poetry, go to my guest post on Caroline by Line.

Poetry Friday is hosted this week by Laura Purdie Salas at Writing the World for Kids

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ABCs of Poetry

Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life, tagged Caroline Star Rose, George Ella Lyon, I am From, Mississippi, National Poetry Month on April 23, 2013| 9 Comments »

Slice of Life Tuesday

In celebration of National Poetry Month, I am teaching my students a different poetry form each day. Because of all the interruptions, (testing week, field trips, etc.) we are only on the letter I. Today we wrote I am From poems. The I am From form originated with a poem by George Ella Lyon entitled, “Where I’m From.” Alan Wolf writes about the form in his book, Immersed in Verse. We begin by analyzing Lyon’s poem which uses some wonderful literary elements, specificity, imagery, alliteration, metaphor. Then the students make their own lists of sites, sounds, and tastes from their own lives. The challenge comes when you want to make the poem go beyond the personal to the universal. I have tried this form several times, and I’m never totally happy with the results. For last year’s attempt and some student samples, click here.

My students are continuing to post on their Slice of Life kidblog, so click the link to read some of their poems. Be sure to leave a comment.

I am from Sunday drives to Morton,
kisses from Grandmother, Aunt Laurie, and Sister,
picking pecans, and the musty smell
of homemade quilts and old tobacco.

I am from Beechcrest Drive,
running behind the sno-cone truck,
catching fireflies, and roller-skating
on the driveway, cartwheels in the grass.

I’m from climbing Paw Paw’s pink mimosa tree,
listening to loud opera,
From jumping on the trampoline
singing “Shimmy, Shimmy, my playmate,
Come out and play with me!”

I’m from loyal companions Loopy then Lucky,
from Bless-this-food-to-our-use
at every supper, surrounded by yellow-flowered
curtains in a bay window.

I am from the solid soil of Mississippi,
deep roots of oak and pine,
legacy of patience and drawl.

c) Margaret Simon

Easter photo with me, the oldest sitting, my brother and my younger sister.

There are so many great poetry month happenings in the blogoshere. Today, I am the guest blogger at Caroline Starr Rose’s blog site, Caroline by Line. Please stop in and leave a comment. Check out the progress of the progressive poem by clicking on the date in the right side bar. I am following Greg Pincus at GottaBook. He posts a poem each day. Heidi Mordhorst is building a poem at My Juicy Little Universe, 30 days, 30 words. She chooses a different word from the comments each day to add to the poem. An interesting process. Happy Poetry Month!

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Gratiku

Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, tagged gratiku, haiku, Happiness, nature poetry, Shawn Achor, tanka, Ted Talks on April 20, 2013| 1 Comment »

Poetry Friday is hosted this week by Irene Latham at Live your Poem.

My sister-in-law sent me a Ted Talk video of Shawn Achor, “The Happiness Advantage: Linking Positive Brains to Performance.” I watched the whole thing. He is a good speaker, engaging and funny, so I recommend you watch it, too. I was wondering, though, if he would ever get to an answer. Sometimes people can easily identify a problem, but lack any real advice for a resolution. However, Shawn Achor had an answer. And an easy one at that. Make these 5 small changes to create more happiness in your life.

1) 3 Gratitudes
2) Journaling
3) Exercise
4) Meditation
5) Random Acts of Kindness

So today, I exercised (walked my dog) and thought about 3 gratitudes. Since it is National Poetry Month and I am trying to write a poem every day, I turned my gratitudes into gratiku, haiku about gratitude. I want to thank Diane Mayr at Random Noodling for introducing the superstickies site to me. The third gratiku became a tanka and wouldn’t fit on a stickie, so I used the app Overgram.

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Do No Harm

Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life, Spiritual Growth, tagged Anne Lamott, do no harm, kindness, Naomi Shihab Nye on April 16, 2013| 5 Comments »

This is the bumper sticker on my car. When is the world going to get the message?

I didn’t think I would post today because Monday was a long day with school, an after school appointment, then a funeral. But I am feeling that I must respond. The funeral I attended was a joyous celebration of a life. As the bagpipes played when we exited the chapel, I hugged a student I taught 30 years ago, now a beautiful woman with two precious children. Her father suffered a long time with Parkinson’s. He is healed now, and we embraced to share the warmth of his legacy, his love. Why would anyone do harm on a day like today? Or on any day, for that matter? I just don’t get it.

I read Naomi Shihab Nye’s poem, Kindness. I’ve decided this poem will be in my pocket on Poem in your Pocket Day on April 18th.

I have collected words from Naomi, from Anne Lammott, and from a conversation at the funeral. This collection is my message to the terrorists, the ones who do harm, live in fear and create fear. Let us practice kindness. Let us answer with kindness. It is the only answer that makes any sense.

Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
you must cry real tears,
taste them as they fall,
let them baptize you, wash you clean.

We are all cracked and broken.
That is how the light gets in,
the light shining in the darkness.
In the dark room, we hold God’s hand.
Here we are helped,
drawn up out of the depths
to know love.

And when we know this love,
we can live in love
and practice kindness.
It is only kindness that makes sense anymore.
Do no harm.

Slice of Life Tuesday

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Writing Bad Poetry

Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, tagged ghazal, J.K. McDowell, National Poetry Month, poetry forms on April 12, 2013| 14 Comments »

Join Poetry Friday with Diane at Random Noodling

G is for ghazal. I am no expert in poetry. I have a degree in elementary education and a masters for teaching gifted. I have only studied poetry on my own through workshops, reading, and internet research. My list of publications in poetry is short. But I do enjoy trying out new forms. One of the ways I try out writing new poems is by consulting with an expert.

My chosen expert for ghazal is J.K. McDowell. Jim published a book of poems that were all written in the ghazal form. I met Jim at a poetry reading last year and again at a wordlab a few months ago. We are now Facebook friends.

To write this ghazal, I read Jim’s book, Night, Mystery, & Light, published by Hiraeth Press. I used his style of 3 lines that together form a unit that could stand alone as a poem. I collected some of his lines and words. When I later researched on the internet, the definition confused me.

From Poets.org “The ghazal is composed of a minimum of five couplets—and typically no more than fifteen—that are structurally, thematically, and emotionally autonomous. Each line of the poem must be of the same length, though meter is not imposed in English. The first couplet introduces a scheme, made up of a rhyme followed by a refrain. Subsequent couplets pick up the same scheme in the second line only, repeating the refrain and rhyming the second line with both lines of the first stanza. The final couplet usually includes the poet’s signature, referring to the author in the first or third person, and frequently including the poet’s own name or a derivation of its meaning. – See more at: http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/5781#sthash.zcpOLhm5.dpuf”

Jim McDowell’s book

I asked Jim about the couplet and rhyming that I didn’t see in his style. This was his response: “The tradition form is two lines of 18. This can be rough in English, so Bly does three lines of 12. Six stanzas is also a Bly innovation, but common. Hafiz has some pretty long ones, he is the Master of the ghazal but not the Ladinsky translations, they are more free form. My limited understanding is to not rhyme but repeat a special word. Also the last stanza can refer to or address the poet. In a higher form the poem even begins and ends with the same word. I still think the most important is that each stanza be a stand alone poem, the leaping and multiple threads and flow the most powerful.”

Now both of these definitions sound rather scholarly and may be too much for you, and for that matter, for your students. But I gave it a good ole college try. I kept to the Bly tradition of 3 lines, six stanzas. Each stanza could stand alone, and each ends with the same word. I also refer to myself in the final stanza. Let me know what you think. I have to say I had fun with this exercise.

…writing bad poetry

A glass of white wine, maybe red, or some pale ale
smears my day’s end like a phantasm of words
echoed in sounds of prayerful poetry.

Charlie barks at a passing squirrel, pulls hard.
Loosen the leash, make release for his chase.
Mary Oliver, meanwhile, would write poetry.

I want to believe more deeply in pure joy,
sip coffee and look into your eyes for truth.
This delicate awareness becomes my poetry.

Mark time with a toast to events of the each day,
Symphony Day, Iris Blooming Day, Waltzing Day.
Give notice to the day that finds poetry.

I know this hunger that no food or drink subsides.
Will the sunset reveal a sepulcher of secrets?
Do these rambling scribblings mimic poetry?

Historians liken Margaret to a queen who waves
from high upon the royal steed. Did any
Margaret you know turn blue writing bad poetry?

–Margaret Simon, all rights reserved

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May I have this Dance?

Posted in Poetry, tagged Irene Latham, kidlitosphere, Progressive poem on April 11, 2013| 19 Comments »

Today is my turn to take on the Progressive Poem. The idea of this fun way to celebrate National Poetry Month comes from Irene Latham of Live Your Poem. I have to thank Linda Baie at Teacher Dance for inviting me to this poetry playground and for adding the last line. You can follow along using the link list on the sidebar. It all began with Amy Ludwig VanDerwater at The Poem Farm. I love her site. She is sharing sketches with poetic thoughts this month.

I have been watching this poem develop into a beautiful dance with words. Thinking with trepidation about where my line may fit, where it will lead. If it is even worthy. All that stuff. But when it came time to write, my feet started jitterbuggin’ and my fingers tapping, so here goes.

When you listen to your footsteps
the words become music and
the rhythm that you’re rapping gets your fingers tapping, too.
Your pen starts dancing across the page
a private pirouette, a solitary samba until
smiling, you’re beguiling as your love comes shining through.

Pause a moment in your dreaming, hear the whispers
of the words, one dancer to another, saying
Listen, that’s our cue! Mind your meter. Find your rhyme.
Ignore the trepidation while you jitterbug and jive.
Arm in arm, toe to toe, words begin to wiggle and flow

Now on to you, Linda Kulp!

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Main Street Buzz

Posted in Poetry, tagged bee swarms, city bees, Daily Iberian, found poetry on April 10, 2013| 4 Comments »

Image from Creative Commons

F is for Found Poetry. I love doing found poetry. It’s just a matter of finding the right words and putting them together with line breaks. Word play, play with words. In the Daily Iberian, a huge photograph caught my eye: A swarm of bees happening down on Main Street right in front of my church, The Episcopal Church of the Epiphany. Do you know about bee swarms? For the full article, click here.

Robin shares a found poem using song lyrics on her blog, Teaching Tomorrow’s Leaders.

Swarms of bees
buzz in city streets,
prime time for roving.

Scouts looking,
a ball of bee-bodies
flock to the queen.

Killing is a detriment
To the dwindling population,
not to mention, a sticky situation.

In a suit of helmet and veil,
cool pine smoke flushes,
will calm and numb pheromones.

More bees are moving
to the concrete city,
Don’t eradicate,
relocate.

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