Thanks to Tara, Dana, Anna, Betsy, Beth and Stacey for keeping on!
Today it's all poetry, and the connection to the Slice of Life Challenge.
Also, I'm happy to be a guest poet at Michelle H. Barnes blog, Today's Little Ditty today. I've written a poem for Margarita Engle's poetry challenge that Michelle shared at the beginning of the month HERE. Michelle is hosting a different poet nearly every month who shares a poetry book, newly published, some of the poems within, and a poetic challenge for writing. It's been a pleasure to try to write a poem per the guidelines. I don't always find the right words, but often enough I do.
I've begun a poetry group at school and we have not gone very far, too many changes in schedules have happened, like the big Advanced School play opens tonight and about half my class are either on stage or part of the crew. That means rehearsals every evening and all day last Saturday, and some late afternoons last week. The homework must be less. So, poetry. I've been reading some to all students all through my time with them. Those in the group are asked to explore, reading some or all of the many poetry books in the classroom or at home, looking for what they like, deciding what they don't. It's a process for me, nudging middle school students into the joy of poetry. Since every student is slicing every day, and I'm also pushing them to take some risks, add pictures, start in different ways, etc., more are writing poems. Some are straight from the heart, some have been written from the structure of poems they like, some are rearranging prose lines, but they are, without our workshop, writing poetry. We'll meet again next week, and I'll share a suggestion/mentor poem and a structure, then let them go. They bring poems to share by other poets, and bring one they've written. It works for me, to just let them write.
This is my fifth year doing the SOLC, but the first time I've had the chance to write with a class. I am so excited to see how much by now, just 11 days done, students are growing in their skills, with a nudge here and there, a compliment and comment. Their editing skills are improving. Their writing is filling up with possibilities. One just can't beat writing every day.