Until this week, if you had told me that I would be writing a six room poem, I would have given you a rather confused look. However, while reading Awakening the Heart by Georgia Heard this week, I discovered a strategy for writing poetry called the six room poem. At first this strategy seemed a bit odd. I mean, the name in itself is a bit different even. However, I gave it a shot, and it was great for organizing thoughts and thinking about details!
The first step in a six room poem is to divide the paper into six sections. Writers next think about a place or thing. I decided to think of the pier at my favorite childhood park. Writers then sit with their eyes closed and picture the place. In the first box, this description is then written (Heard, 1999).
Box number two then houses anything related to sight and the scene. Room three is for sounds. Room four may be my favorite room of the poem house. This room houses a question related to the scene. When I first saw this, I really did not picture myself using it. However, it ended up being a focal point for my poem. Room five is for feelings, and in room six writers write the same phrase three times (Heard, 1999).
Once I reached this point in my six room poem journey, I was slightly worried about turning my thoughts into a poem. I had many pieces, but I did not know how these pieces fit together. Georgia Heard instructs that writers choose phrases, mark out phrases, and play with the words unti something comes of the poem (Heard, 1999). Admittedly, this was a bit of a struggle for me. I wanted to turn my words into poetry, but it just did not feel like poetry. I decided to just go for it and see what would happen.
The word "sitting" earned its own spot at the top of the poem, seeing as I have spent quite a bit of time with line breaks this week and knew that this would add emphasis. From there, I added my favorite phrases and ended up with a poem that represents each sense in a distinct line. Rooms four and six helped to give my poem a bit of a dramatic ending.
While I do like the product of my six room poem, I am not yet in love with it. However, that is the beauty of revision! I plan to let this poem sit for a while. When I come back to it, I will have a fresh mind to think of ways to develop it into the poem that I know it has the potential to be. Stay tuned to in the upcoming weeks to see what becomes of this developing poem!
Using this strategy with kids could be rather entertaining. It is quite helpful in organizing thoughts. Writers get their ideas down before they have to worry with turning the piece into an actual poem. This can be very helpful for students that may be timid when writing poetry. Writers know that they do not have to use every statement that is written, but they have options. This strategy can easily be modified for students of different age levels. There can be as little as two or three rooms or as many rooms as desired (Heard, 1999). This strategy is one that I am excited to test with my students!
References
Heard, G. (1999). Awakening the Heart. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
I agree that students will enjoy using this strategy, especially the students that have a hard time forming poems. I think your poem has great potential and cant wait to see how it continues to evolve.
I used this same strategy this week and totally agree that it makes a great starting place for reluctant poets or poets who are just starting out!
I agree with you that this is a good strategy to use with students who may be timid about writing poetry, I think it isn't very demanding and I definitely don't think that (at first) it seems like its poetry. I like your poem a lot, and I think you did a great job walking your readers through the process of a six room poem!