Okay; so I have certainly alluded to the “virtues” of vulnerability and humility in teaching and learning; more specifically as Dan Liston would argue, that vulnerability is an inescapable condition of teaching and learning. I fully acknowledge that we teachers should experience the joys and the delights, as well as the discomforts and tensions of vulnerability and uncertainties in our teaching. So, I am embracing this today by sharing a draft of a manuscript. Please know, this is only a draft! However, I do believe it may provide you with a more specific instructional and theoretical framework for writing informational poetry with your students. Enjoy : )Please see attached manuscript. Also, please use Writing Circle 3 to guide your discussion tonight.
Writing Informational Poetry: Transforming Ideas through Instructional Scaffolding
February 13, 2008 at 4:48 pm (Poetry)
marymcb said,
February 18, 2008 at 7:08 pm
I like the manuscript so far. One of the things about writing poetry is that it differs so much from the research report or essay. One simple difference is that with the persona poems, all the verses can start with “I”. We would never allow that with an essay. If we are looking for information that has been learn, assimilated, analyzed, synthesized and evaluated, we shouldn’t worry about the style as much as the content. Persona poems manifest connections, not grammatical errors. I am going to work with my enrichment group on this and see what happens. These kids are supposed to be the brightest in the 5th grade and they are pretty smart. It will be interesting to see what they make of this instead of the usual essay. It will be even more interesting to see if I can get the teachers to think about it too. They are very traditional here. I went on and on about Silver Seeds in my newsletter and then left it by the sign-in sheet for staff to peruse. I hope that some of them will begin to see the possibilities. We ar epretty capable with Haikus and acrostics as far as personal expression. We have yet to cross over to the content area. It is a sea-change for all of us.
I appreciate that you put the models and examples into your manuscript. One of the struggles we have with the new teacher evaluation instrument is that we do not know what 21st century skills and global awareness look like. We know we probably do not have them, but we need to see and be scaffolded into what it is we are supposed to be doing.
cc57241 said,
February 18, 2008 at 8:00 pm
Dr. Frye,
What a great manuscript–can’t wait to see the finish product! I am really intrigued by the informational aspect of “I” poems. I had such a fun time writing my own! I started off trying it with the formula, but then realized I wasn’t able to fit everything in I wanted to that way…so I just tried my own thing (hope that’s okay)! Reading your manuscript made me realize how much I researched without even thinking about it. I had to research hippos, Kenya, tsunamis, Aldabra tortoises, and Kenya’s flora/fauna. I definitely see how beneficial this can be for kids. Like the manuscript said, it surely would reduce plagiarism, and kids will take away the most important facts (I know I remember several from my poem)! I really enjoyed taking the information and making it my own. It is even fun for “big kids” to pretend to be hippos every now and then, haha. Thanks for sharing this with us!
Holley Wright said,
February 19, 2008 at 1:57 am
To me vulnerability is when you share really sensitive stuff like you don’t don’t wear underwear to church or you once ate an entire box of Ding Dongs. Still, I guess I can see the vulnerability in your manuscript, but I thought of it as a helpful and scholarly article – nothing near as intimate as the Ding Dong scenario.
I love the quote from Creech’s Love That Dog. My block at App had that put on our t-shirt.
A couple of things that I found helpful:
- formula poems as “mentorship.” There is something very personal instead of “assignment-like.”
- during the arctic animal project we did, the media specialist made a point of talking about plagarism, yet I still had students copying directly from their sources. I think they do this because they don’t have their own words or the confidence/expectation that they can say it their way.
- the scaffolding model is great across content areas
- page 4 speaks a lot to the emphasis we havve on higher level thinking. It makes sense that less memorization and more original/creative thought produces a deeper and more profound understanding of a subject/idea.
- writing in front of students – why didn’t I think of that. So simple but so important. I guess I had this feeling that teaching meant I was disconnected so that I could “help” students.
- there are so many outlets for persona poems. Children are free to write about something of interest, something emotional, a fear, or maybe they just need a way to cry out.
- it is just drilled into us that we have to teach character, setting, plot, problem/solution in reading. These poems bring this to a personal level so that children can transfer this to other authors.
- these poems also make great assessment about a subject. Also, if used in connection with current events or other news articles, this gives them a way of processing the world around them.
- I wish I could see this process modeled, I am such a visual learner. I don’t know if I can really understand this until I see it.
This a thought provoking and informative draft. I look forward to reading it as a published work.
Kari Harrington said,
February 19, 2008 at 2:03 am
Dr. Frye,
I just finished reading your manuscript. Being introduced to “I Poems” in your class already had me thinking in several different directions. I’m glad you shared this with us as it adds to an already good thing! I also liked your idea when you commented on my blog about using the I Poems with the characters in “Charlotte’s Web.” Great idea, and I’m definitely going to do that!
I really liked what you had to say and how you said it in your manuscript. There is no question, especially at the elementary level, that most students need the “formulas” and modeling to help them with their poetry. Rhyming poetry isn’t easy (and it isn’t my favorite form to write, either!), and when the students do it, it usually turns out just like you said, in terms of how what they write doesn’t make sense. Just like any other type of assignment we do with our students, we want them to think about the content, make connections, and transfer what they have learned. The I Poems are a great way (and fun way) to do this, and also to assess the students’ understanding of the content area that has been taught. You talked about Langer and Applebee’s five components of instructional scaffolding. The ownership part of this scaffolding is important….the students are taking what they are learning, and they can transfer that into a poetry form that is their own. I really like how you included the Instructional Scaffolding and broke that down as a model. Very helpful!
I’ve been brainstorming as to different ideas as to how I can incorporate the I Poems in my content areas. I so wish I would have known about these before. It would have been great when reading “Charlotte’s Web,” and I’ve already finished my unit on Earth, Moon, and Sun, and this would have been a great extension to that unit, as well as others. I was possibly thinking about landforms and biographies. We’re going to be reading “James and the Giant Peach,” soon, too, so that has possibilities. Anyway, great so far, looking forward to reading it in its entirety.
A side note – I went ahead and tried the “extended” version of acrostics with my students on Valentine’s Day. I was so happy with the results. I modeled one with the students and they took it from there. It makes the poems so much more meaningful than just one or two words for each letter!
Thank you for putting yourself out there and sharing!
Whitney said,
February 20, 2008 at 12:43 am
Hi Dr. Frye. I thought your manuscript was very insightful. It really showed how students can get so much more from any topic by owning it and forming something creative. The little girls poem about Anne Bonney showed more than just factual information. It showed a deeper understanding for what a pirate’s life may have been like and things that they endured. It also utilized many parts of speech and poetic elements which exemplifies their understanding of language arts.
I also really liked how you explicitly laid out the scaffolding to use in helping the students understand the I poem process. You made it come together for me and gave me a clearer understanding as to how I could present it to my children. I think it is very well written and could help many educators understand the value of this type of assignment and how they can easily implement it in their class!!!
maxmom said,
February 20, 2008 at 3:45 am
Writing Informational Poetry: Transforming Ideas through Instructional Scaffolding
I can relate to Jack in Love That Dog. I agree that writing is “taxing and demanding”. I am stepping out of my comfort zone to write poetry. I am enjoying all that I have learned and look forward to trying new ideas and strategies with my second graders.
I love the idea of students writing poetry in response to reading and/or research. “Writing tasks where learners manipulate ideas, lead to less memorization of information and to a more in-depth understanding.” This is what I like about the persona poetry. The scaffold formula poems provide for students gives students a starting point for their writing. I know my students would need the support… I certainly appreciated it as I attempted to create my own persona poem.
Thanks for sharing your writing and for “inviting” me to try something new and different.