My Relationship with Poetry and Thoughts on Poetry for My Students

As a teacher, I should probably tell you just how much I love all school subjects and that they are all great. Well, if we are being one hundred percent honest, I do not think anyone can say that they have truly loved every school task that has been presented to them. While I do not despise poetry, I can say that I have a different type of relationship with it. I need to be able to read, write, and teach it, with the goal of enjoying the journey. However, this is not always the case.

Reading poetry is so insightful and meaningful to me. I could sit and read poetry, well some poetry, all day. I tend to enjoy short poems that I can put meaning to. If I sit down with a book of poems such as these, you will probably not see me until I have finished the book. I absolutely LOVE it! All I need is a quiet place with some background music and a book of poems.

When it comes to reading poetry as a student, I was not always so intriguied. Part of this could be due to lack of teacher enthusiasm and the thought of being forced to find intepretations that did not make much sense to me. I have memories of teachers standing at the front of the classroom and making the announcement that we would be starting to look at poetry. The teacher would say that it may not be a favorite, but it has to be done. Not every teacher I had approached it in this manner, but I do not think it should ever be approached in this manner. Poetry must be approached as something new, exciting, and sacred. Georgia Heard suggests letting students explore poetry centers. This interactive way of exploring poetry can be eye-opening for all ages (Heard, 1999). I will address this method more in later posts. The other issue I had with poetry as a student was the struggle to put meaning to the poems. Dorfman and Cappelli state that many students face ths struggle (Dorfman, Cappelli, & Hoyt, 2017). Poetry does have meaning, but jumping straight in and working through poetry such as Shakespeare is probably not the best way to start.

While I love reading certain poems and getting in touch with my feelings, writing poetry is a bit more difficult for me. I think my main issue is that I struggle to define the term poetry. How do I know if what I have written is poetry. This answer lies in the fact that nearly anything can be considered poetry. I like strict guidelines to tell me what I am supposed to accomplish. However, writing poetry does not include this. The only way to get past this is to practice writing poetry. I am currently working on this and trying to let down my gaurd. If I want my students to write poetry and trust that they are doing it, I must let down my gaurd and do the same.

This brings me to my final point, the ways in which I aspire to teach reading and writing poetry in my own classroom. While I am currently working on devising a strategy to teach poetry in the most successful and inviting way, I do know that I want my students to want to interact with poetry. I will be sure to approach poetry in way that my students do not feel intimidated. We will start with simple poems that my students are more likely to enjoy. There will be plenty of opportunities for students to interact with poems that reflect their interests. Poetry centers will be a part of my classroom, in order to help students see poems in many different ways and as much more than a few lines that rhyme (Heard, 1999). Before I ever even begin to consider having my students write poetry, I will have them read many mentor texts. When it is time to teach writing poetry, students will encounter many mentor texts and have poems that they can imitate (Dorfman, Cappelli, & Hoyt, 2017).

Overall, poetry and my relationship with poetry is rather complex. However, I am working to improve and strengthen my relationship with this type of writing, in order to help my students have the most positive experiences with poetry, as possible. Poetry can help to show feelings that would not normally be shown. I want my classroom to be an inviting place where my students feel welcome to open up and share their thoughts and feelings through poetry. I know that the only way to make this happen is to show students that I too care for poetry.

References

Dorfman, L. R., Cappelli, R., & Hoyt, L. (2017). Mentor texts : teaching writing through children’s literature, k-6. Portland, Maine : Stenhouse Publishers, [2017].

Heard, G. (1999). Awakening the heart: exploring poetry in elementary and middle school. United States of America: Heinemann.