​Poetry Text Set

Grade Level: Third Grade

 

Objective: Poetry is critical for children to learn due to its nature as literature that helps with discovering self-expression and building critical thinking. Our focus is self discovery and confidence, which assists  students as they transition into a period of their life in which they start to feel pressure to conform to society’s views. We believe poetry, as an especially expressive form of literature, has the ability to help students in realizing their own special potential and unique views of the world.  

 

SOLs:

 

English:

3.5) Student will read and demonstrate comprehension of fictional texts and poetry

        b) make connections between previous experiences and reading selections

        c) make, confirm, or revise predictions.

        e) identify author’s purpose

        g) draw conclusions from text

        i) identify main idea

        m) reading with fluency and accuracy

 

Visual Arts:

3.6: The student will create works of art that communicate ideas, themes, and feelings.

During the unit, students will be required to read and produce poetry. One of the poetry assignments will also include a visual art element, in which students must create a work of art to be paired with and extend one of their own works of poetry.  

 

Assessment:

        Through various activities, such as writing their own poems, creating images to go along with their poems and other written poems, we can observe  students in order to monitor their understanding of the material. In addition, the students’ own works of poetry will be collected and assessed for their ability to identify and reproduce poetic techniques such as rhyme, simile, and metaphor.  

 

Differentiated Aspects:

        The goal is for all students to celebrate who are they are as individuals, therefore it is critical to ensure that all students, regardless of what level of ability they are at, are given tools in order to continue to develop their skill of writing and self-expression.

         Higher level students will be encouraged to try free-verse structure after exhibiting a handling of rhyme scheme, similes, and metaphors. On-level students will be encouraged to focus on producing rhyme schemes and creative similes and metaphors. Lower level students will be encouraged to focus on one aspect at a time so they have the ability to master each before combining them together.

 

The Unit:

Introduction: Book: The Palm of my Heart

Video: Asha Christensen at TEDxKids at SMU 2012 (youtube)

Book: Stanza (Read aloud)

Website: ReadWriteThink Website (http://www.readwritethink.org/search/?resource_type=16&type=28)

• computers for each child needed

Book: I, too, am America 

Writing Poetry Assignment with Visual Arts extension 

Open Mic Poetry (Video and Activity) 

Book: Shel Silverstein’s Falling Up. “Noise Day”

Art Activity 

Website: www.shelsilverstein.com

• computers needed for stations