Inside: If you’re looking for innovative ways to celebrate National Poetry Month, look no further! You’ll find strategies, poems, and heart-to-heart advice from a whole bunch of people who love poetry. These #secondaryelateachers want you to make National Poetry Month matter in your classroom.
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Calling All Poetry Lovers… or Haters!
Like it, or leave it, poetry is here to stay. As an ELA teacher, and part-time poet, I talk about poetry a lot. Probably more than the average human. It pains me to say this, but I keep meeting students and even *gasp* ELA teachers with tall walls up against poetry.
Whether you adore figurative language, or dread the infamous poetry unit, ELA teachers all end up in the same boat, needing ideas to make it great for our kiddos! Especially in April, National Poetry Month.
For such a large task, I’ve called in the ELA experts! If you love poetry, you’re going to find yourself smiling big over such great ideas. Never fear – if poetry isn’t your thing, you can find relief in knowing that people who love poetry put their heart into these plans. Also, I have posts on using poetry to build confidence and how to teach poetry for the first time. You’re not alone!
My middle school poetry bundle is a great resource for those wanting more step by step ideas.
PS: I’ve put together a great strategies quick list to make remembering (and planning) these amazing activities even easier… click here.
TPT and Amazon affiliates links have been added for your convenience and at no cost to you. Should you choose to utilize them, I earn a percentage to keep Mrs. Price Writes operational.
Meet the teachers & Get the advice!
Morgan Jeffery, of Jeffery’s Journal.
Intro: Hi, all! I am the mother of a three year old and a teacher of seventh graders. Although I wouldn’t trade either of those roles for the world, I sometimes feel like a professional negotiator, making deals with twelve year olds and toddlers all day long. I love teaching all language-related topics, but I have a special place in my heart for creating strong and capable writers.
On Poetry: Literacy is power, and my goal is to arm my students with the ability to use that power to succeed. The best way to do that is to provide fun and relevant learning opportunities that allow students to discover, explore, play, create and take risks.
Strategy 1: Use relevant songs to inspire an interest in figurative language. Students are surrounded by music every day, but many don’t believe that poetry is relevant to their own lives. Making the connection between poetry and song shows students how prevalent poetry is, encouraging them to more enthusiastically engage with other types of poems.
- Examples: Katy Perry’s “Firework” is an excellent way of analyzing simile and metaphor and what those things do to make a song or poem more effective. Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” shows how assonance can compliment rhyme.
- Play “Song Lyrics Bingo” to practice finding poetic devices in music. This activity, followed up with a related lesson the following day, always leaves students excited and talking, Saying things like, “Oh! You know a really good example of alliteration? [Insert virtually any song title here.]” Students find themselves noticing poetic devices in all songs they hear on the radio. They will care!
Strategy 2: Analyze childhood poems: Another way to make poetry fun for secondary students is to allow them to read their favorite poems from their childhood again with new perspective. Analyzing Shel Silverstein poems or the meter Seuss uses to make his stories catchier and engaging for young readers will provide students with an opportunity to reminisce and have fun while learning.
Strategy 3: Spoken word: Spoken word poems are easy to publish on YouTube or social media and allow students’ voices to be heard by an authentic audience. Exploration of the spoken word poem can also lend itself well to an analysis of the differences between a poem intended to be spoken and one meant to be read. If you are interested, I have created a 1-week Spoken Word Poetry Unit that is meant to encourage discussion of body image and society’s role in defining “beauty.” This activity was part of my personal mission to better incorporate this conversation into the classroom and promote body positivity in adolescents and teenagers.
Parting Words: In short, make poetry relevant to students and use it as an opportunity to empower them. Encourage them to write about things that matter, or things that don’t—use Pablo Neruda’s poem “Ode to My Socks” to show students that you can write descriptively about anything).
Where you can find her: Teacher’s Pay Teachers: Jeffery’s Journal or on Instagram: @literaryloveaffair_.
Stephanie Fujii
Intro: I teach 9th grade AVID, I just restarted with my 3rd class of AVID students. I also teach 9th grade literature, and American Literature Honors (11th grade). I’m all about connecting kids to classics, engaging them in discussion about topical and relevant issues, and hopefully nurturing lifelong learners.
Favorite poet: I LOVE Sarah Kay. She is a spoken word artist, and also has a book of poetry called No Matter the Wreckage. The poems are beautiful, simple, and tell amazing stories. They all utilize so many devices (figurative and storytelling) and they are relatable.
Strategy: Provide an authentic audience This year I had my students participate in a poetry café as our culminating activity for the poetry unit. I love love LOVED it. Students had to choose a poem – this could be something they wrote, or something they found throughout our unit. They then analyzed and annotated the poem, so that they could get to know it, and what made it work. Finally, they had to write out 5-7 meaningful stage directions for themselves in preparation for their performance.
The day of the performance comes, and I transform my classroom as much as I can – putting desks to the side, and making it look as much like a coffee house as I can. I have holiday lights, and then a hot chocolate station. The audience assembles, and are instructed to take brief notes on their peers’ performances so that they can pick their favorite poem, and the strongest performances. And then the students perform for one another! They bring the poems to life – whether they were intended to be spoken word or not. It was incredible, and super fun!
Parting Words:I think I got too bogged down in trying to teach all classic poems. But there are so many modern voices that I actually ended up teaching NO classics this year. I just figured that there is no right way to teach poetry – but the best way is the way that gets kids to buy in.
Where you can find her: Instagram: classwithfooj
Lindsay Ann Learning
Intro: Lindsay, creator of Lindsay Ann Learning, has taught high school English for the past 13 years and is likely to tell you that sophomores are her favorite (shhh, don’t tell). She loves to design and share writing, reading, and digital ELA teaching essentials with educators in search of rigorous, creative, practical resources for their classrooms. Connect with her on Instagram, and be sure to check out her blog and TPT store.
Strategy 1: Invitation to imitate In my classes, students engage in stylistic imitation as a way to build sentence fluency. One of my favorite poems for students to imitate is Carl Sandburg’s “Chicago” as it has such interesting moves in terms of listing and repetition, but also with its layers of imagery to paint a picture of a location. We compare/contrast the tone and style with a slam poem from Adam Gottlieb entitled “Maxwell Street” and the students write their own slam poems about a place that imitate the stylistic moves of these two writers.
Strategy 2: Slam poetry! One of my favorite ways to get students excited about poetry is to have them write and perform slam poetry. Slam poetry turns a class into a family. Even though it might be scary, the first tip I give teachers who are interested in teaching slam poetry is to write and perform alongside the students. They will catch your enthusiasm and also see your writing process which help students to open up and express themselves in a new way and show support to their classmates.
My slam poetry unit has a ton of strategies and student-centered resources designed to promote inquiry and self-expression. I want my students to understand and appreciate slam poetry, but also to learn strategies for how to write it well. I use these materials in my own classroom and have carefully revised and structured them so that they are effective and engaging. If you are ready to bring slam poetry to your classroom or just looking for inspiration, I’d love to send you a free “sound strategies” for poetry writing resource, as well as some of my best tips for teaching slam poetry and a pretty sweet discount on ALL of my slam poetry resources. If you’re interested, click here!
Where you can find her: Instagram: @lindsayannlearning TPT: Lindsay Ann Learning
Tyler Brown
Intro Hello, my name is Tyler Brown, I currently teach 6th Grade English in Upstate New York (the real upstate, as in 25 minutes from Canada). This is my fifth year of teaching, my first year was in second grade, and this is now my fourth year in sixth grade. I also coach varsity football and baseball.
Favorite poem to teach: I, Too by Langston Hughes
On Teaching Poetry: Overall for my students I’ve found that movement is absolutely key in increasing engagement and retention. We do quite a bit of station work within the classroom, and I incorporate this with our poetry analysis.
There are five key elements that we focus on when analyzing poetry, and they correlate with the stations the students travel to. The five key elements we focus on are: figurative language, theme, word choice, text connections, and tone/mood. By analyzing these specific elements it allows for a more in depth understanding of the poem.
Earlier in the year we focus on each of individual element, through the use of mentor texts, which allows for the students to apply that knowledge for an activity such as this.
Process Based Learning Example:
- We read the poem as a class. Discuss the overall meaning quickly (without in depth analysis)
- Students are put in small groups and given their “tracking form” (we try not to use the word “worksheet”, as we’re focused on using engaging materials)
- They are then given a set station to go to, where the poem is, and directions/reminders about the station they are at.
- Students are given ample time to complete each station with the corresponding element of focus. If a group finishes earlier than another, I meet with them and have them explain their reasoning.
- We’ve found that by doing each element as its own station helps the students focus on an individual ideas, instead of thinking about having to complete the entire analysis.
- Students rotate around to each station
- Upon completion students answer a “deep thinking question” about the overall meaning/purpose of the poem.
- We then discuss and share our findings as a class, responding to each other in a constructive manner.
Parting Words: One thing I have discovered with poetry is really focusing on the figurative nature of this style of writing. Many students struggle with the figurative versus literal meaning of poetry, causing them to easily miss the true meaning that’s trying to be conveyed by the author. Although I will admit as English teachers we tend to over-analyze literature.
Where to find him: Instagram: adventuresinpaperback – Shoot me a DM, and I’ll gladly share any resources I have. You can also read his latest article published on Bored Teachers.
Emily Reynolds
Brief Intro: I currently teach fourth grade Reading and formerly taught fifth grade ELA. I like to empower my students to be problem solvers and critical thinkers while building a love of reading.
Favorite Poem to Teach: Casey at the Bat by Ernest Lawrence Thayer
Strategy: Poetry Stalking I love using the “Poetry Stalking” resource from Kasey Kiehl on TPT. This resource is part of her Poetry Workshop resource. It can be used as a guide with any poem across reading levels to guide students in thinking about and analyzing poems. Students look at elements including form, words, theme, perspective, etc. with guiding questions. This is very helpful in teaching students a common strategy that they can apply to differentiated poetry resources. My students range from reading level M to Y so I am always looking for resources I can provide across all ability levels to material appropriate for them individually.
Lovin Lit also has wonderful resources for teaching poetry ranging from the elements to the different types. Her interactive notebook resources are a great starting point for lessons and her practice and assessment resource aligns perfectly to evaluate understanding.
Where to find her: Instagram:@thenewteacherlife & Teacher Pay Teacher Store
Allison Dugan
Intro: My name is Allison Dugan. I currently teach 10th grade English, Speech, Film Literature, and Language Lab. I love teaching and creating lessons that make the kids laugh, think, struggle, and learn. On a personal level I love reading and am mildly obsessed with my dogs.
Favorite Poem to Teach: Sonnet 130 by Shakespeare. I love this poem because it breaks all kinds of stereotypes about poetry, which is exactly why I usually open my poetry units with it.
Activity: My team and I decided to do a short poetry unit, and since we are moving toward our state standardized test, I decided to add in ideas that would help prepare students. Before this activity, we worked on figurative language terms and how to analyze a poem.
The activity is a multiple choice analysis activity that was followed by a color by number page. The students had two poems by Emily Dickinson to read. Then they had 6 multiple choice questions. These questions covered figurative language terms, citing evidence, and comparing theme.
Once they answered those questions and checked in with me, they could do the color by number page and the exit question. The color by number page has a picture with a quote and areas labeled with numbers 1-6. Each answer option for the multiple choice questions (a, b, c, d) are labeled with a different color. So based on their answer that’s what they would color.
For Example:
Question: Which of the following is an example of personification from…?
- a. “A privilege, I think.” (Black)
- b. “A precious, mouldering pleasure ‘t is” (orange)
- c. “Old volumes shake their vellum heads” (Light green)
- d. “A passage back, or two, to make” (red)
Once they finished coloring they had an exit question to answer regarding the quote on the color by number page. (What do you believe the quote means, and why?)
The kids had so much fun with this! I turned on videos of poetry slams while they were coloring so they could see some modern poetry in action. I actually had a few come up and the end and ask if we could do the activity again another day! What could be better than that?!
Parting Words: As most English teachers know, most kids hate poetry with a real passion. But, I think if you can make it fun from the start and sprinkle the fun things throughout, the kids are way more interested and way more willing to deal with one boring day here and there. That is my goal with every unit but I feel it is especially true with poetry because of the adversity kids have towards it.
Where to find her: Instagram: My username is ThoreaulyLit and Teachers Pay Teachers
Eliza Lee
Intro: Salutations! My name is Eliza Lee and I’m a 7th grade ELA/Theatre teacher in Ashland, Kentucky. I teach in a TItle 1 school with full inclusion, which means that I work hard to make EVERY student a success story. Sometimes, that is a lot of work for both of us, but it is worth it.
Favorite poem to teach: Still I Rise by Maya Angelou
Strategy: The most powerful poetry lesson that I teach is the six word memoir and the I AM poem. Students have an opportunity to show themselves without being forced to worry about rhyming or structure. The I AM poem has tons of different templates and can be adapted to meet the needs of any student. I use the students I AM poetry to help them develop their six word memoirs.
Parting Thoughts I love watching students discover that they really DO like poetry.
Where you can find her: I show much of my classroom life on Instragram @mrslee41102
Danielle, from Teach Nouvelle
Intro: I’m Danielle, and I teach 8th & 9th ELA. I blog at teachnouvelle.com and host the YA Cafe Podcast. My goal is to help students find books they LOVE!
Teaching poetry is one of my favorite things because poetry is so varied in scope, subject, and style. I love to share slam poetry, and I always show students how poets have responded to each other throughout history.
Favorite Poem to teach: Right now, I’m really digging Nikki Grimes’ collection, One Last Word. Each of Grimes’ poems is a Golden Shovel response to a poem from the Harlem Renaissance. I share these poems (paired with their inspirations) and challenge students to try out the style for themselves.
Strategy: I also created a Poetry Escape Room to get students up and moving, while still solidifying their understanding. I love that this activity encourages students to see words, lines, and stanzas as a game. Once they feel they can play around with poetry, students are much more likely to enjoy it. I strongly believe there’s a poem for everyone, and it’s simply a matter of giving students room to explore. You can find more poetry resources (and everything else I make) here.
Where you can find her: Instagram, Blog: teachnouvelle.com, and the YA Cafe Podcast.
Lauren Rubash
Intro: Hello! My name is Lauren Rubash, I teach 8th grade English in Suffolk, VA. I am all about making relationships and making learning relevant to my students! Words to live by in my classroom: Strive for progress, not perfection!
Favorite Poem to Teach: Mother to Son by Langston Hughes
Strategy: In addition to it being my favorite poem, I love to analyze “Mother to Son” line by line and really dig into what the mother is saying about her life and how she wants her son to live his life. My students really connect to what she is saying to her son and this is often the first poem we look at as a class. I love to then compare it to “Dear Momma” by Tupac. Normally I put both the poem and lyrics on the same sheet and the students get really excited to find out what Tupac has to do with English class!
Strategy: My other favorite resource is one that I created, On the Spot Poetry. This is a great introduction to writing poetry activity and gets the students creative juices flowing before creating any of their own poetry. Students work in groups to create poems on everyday topics with no set rules. Working in groups and working with topics they are knowledgeable about, takes away some of the stress and fear about writing their own poems.
Parting Words: My number one advice for teaching poetry is to pick poems that can be relevant to your students. If they can relate and understand the topic, you can have great discussions about it and have an easier time analyzing it with your students and teaching them the various poetry standards in your state!
Where you can find her: Instagram: livelovelessonplan, Find my resources on my Teachers Pay Teachers
Katie Padden!
Intro: Hi all! My name is Katie Padden, and I am a 1st year teacher with a long-term substitute position in 7th grade ELA. Previously I completed a long-term substitute position for 10th Honors, 11th and 12th English. Even though I am from the wild and wonderful West Virginia, my main goal is to reside and teach in Pittsburgh.
On teaching: I believe teaching is more than just curriculum… It is about creating a positive and safe atmosphere for your students to connect to each other and most importantly you. It is a job where you teach students how to love, respect and accept others that may be different. Even though I do not have my own classroom yet, I feel like my experience so far has shown me exactly why this is my calling.
Favorite Poem to teach: The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. Although this is a popular poem, I use it because most students can actually understand and relate to it. Whether it is a 7th grade or 12th grade class, it is easy to differentiate while keeping the true meaning alive. I always love to tell my students to be different and take risks and if you are fearful, you should do it.
Strategy: Use poems as a way to introduce skills students will need for longer texts.
- In 10th grade Honors, I taught the novel Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. While we focused on the skills of point of view, perspective and bias, my fellow 10th teachers created a mini unit, using poetry to introduce these skills.
- We used three excerpts from Witness by Karen Heese,
- johnny reeves, leonora stutter, and reynard alexander
- These poems describe different perspectives on the burning of a cross: the KKK, victim, and bystander.
- We analyzed each poem as a class, as well as answering a set of questions for the poems.
- After this, we compared each poem, discussing why each person has a different view point about a very controversial subject.
- This turned into a great debate which lasted the entire class. Poetry is all about interpretation. When you let your students decide, you as s teacher see more in the poem than you ever have before.
Where you can find her: Instagram: @misspaddenela. Come and check out my class! 🙂 Be on the lookout for upcoming TPT account.
Michelle Price, of Mrs. Price Writes
Brief Intro: I’m nearing the end of my 9th year of teaching, and currently teach 6th grade ELA. I’m the founder of Mrs. Price Writes, and enjoy writing poetry.
Favorite Poem to Teach: There is No Word for Goodbye. by Mary Tallmountain or Shadwell Stair by Wilfred Owen
Strategies:
1. Use poetry for reader’s theater to practice and build fluency and public speaking confidence. They can read with a friend or even record their reading on Flipgrid.com
2. Use poetry as a mentor text for a different genre unit. Example: I use Shel Silverstein’s Little Abigail and the Beautiful Pony to launch our persuasive unit.
3. Give your students actual strategies for how to analyze poetry. Sometimes they feel fearful because they aren’t sure what to do with a poem.
4. I also teach them to use the poem to interpret the poem – which means rather imposing your own opinions or the comments of someone online, go back to the poem itself to see if you can unlock it.
Don’t forget my middle school poetry bundle if you want a more detailed resource for using poems in your classroom.
Parting words: Never fear the poetry unit, for your students may take on your view of it. I discuss this in depth in my post about unique poems for high schoolers. Take a deep breath and find a poem that you enjoy. Start there, and eventually, you might find yourself smiling when you see “Poetry” on your pacing calendar. Dare I say that you’ll find ways to include it into other units…?
Where you can find me: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and my literacy focused TPT account!
Thanks for celebrating National Poetry Month with us! Click here to sign up for a quick list of poetry strategies to keep handy in your planning binder.
Also, since poetry is my jam, check out my blog for a regular stream of poetry suggestions.
