I have been brainstorming ways to help my AP kids grasp poetry here are a few questions they can ask of any poem...
10 Questions to ask a poem
1. How does this poem make you feel?
2. Why is the title significant - even if it seems silly?
3. How does the prosody (rhythm) affect the 'feel' of the poem?
4. How does the rhyme scheme affect the 'feel' of the poem?
5. What words or phrases catch your mind's eye?
6. Which words or phrases gave you trouble? (hint- it's never all of them- you must have given up after the first or second frustration)
7. After you have finished your internal tantrum, what was it you did not know - a word, a metaphor?
8. What is the message the author is trying to convey (if poetry is condensed prose thought, theme is condensed poetic thought...deep huh)?
9. What is a cool feature you could show off next year to a beautiful or handsome English major that would amaze, rather than amuse?
10. How do you feel now that you understand the poem?
Anyone have any other ideas?
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
First entry
I'm new to blogging, and I'm of the generation that graduated high school with Homer Simpson. I would like to make this some sort of resource for students and teachers to use in exploring literature and poetry.
I teach AP Literature and Composition here in sunny So. Cal. It is June, shool is out, and life is good. I am struggling with how to teach 17 year olds who have cheated and Spark Noted their way through the Honors and AP programs how to read and understand poetry. These kids are marginally literate, with a vocabulary that last year prompted a question rejoined by several other students: "What does this word mean?" The word - no kidding- was 'adversity'. What a wonderful example of a single word symbolizing volumes on what has happened in our educational system.
Now that I have that out of my system, I would like to offer some ideas I have either lifted, grafted or invented for helping kids do the hard work of actually learning.
1. I number essays - at the time I assign an essay, I pass around a sheet with numbers for each period. The list starts with say 4001 through 4041; this would be for fourth period. Each kid takes a number out of sequence (the first kid might take 4027, the next 4004, etc. When the kids turn in essays, the essays are labeled with only the number, no identifying info. This removes politics (psycho moms, my expectations, etc.). This also helps me saw through the 100+ AP essays I collect each time. I use a seven domain rubric that has thusfar eliminated the accusations of unfair grading.
I teach AP Literature and Composition here in sunny So. Cal. It is June, shool is out, and life is good. I am struggling with how to teach 17 year olds who have cheated and Spark Noted their way through the Honors and AP programs how to read and understand poetry. These kids are marginally literate, with a vocabulary that last year prompted a question rejoined by several other students: "What does this word mean?" The word - no kidding- was 'adversity'. What a wonderful example of a single word symbolizing volumes on what has happened in our educational system.
Now that I have that out of my system, I would like to offer some ideas I have either lifted, grafted or invented for helping kids do the hard work of actually learning.
1. I number essays - at the time I assign an essay, I pass around a sheet with numbers for each period. The list starts with say 4001 through 4041; this would be for fourth period. Each kid takes a number out of sequence (the first kid might take 4027, the next 4004, etc. When the kids turn in essays, the essays are labeled with only the number, no identifying info. This removes politics (psycho moms, my expectations, etc.). This also helps me saw through the 100+ AP essays I collect each time. I use a seven domain rubric that has thusfar eliminated the accusations of unfair grading.
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