Poetry

To celebrate National Poetry Month, I decided to jump onto Facebook Live and share two of my favorite poetry books for kids with you!

Exploring Poetry: Tools for Teaching Kids to Read and Understand Poetry is a 2-part unit for introducing poetic devices and interpreting poetry. The first part of the poetry unit includes a collection of activities for introducing the basic elements of poetry, and the second part is devoted to reading and responding to poetry. Students begin by exploring the structure and elements of poetry, including the meanings of eight common poetic devices. Next, they apply this knowledge as they engage in close reading strategies, poetry discussions, and written response activities. Lesson suggestions and printables for all activities are included. This unit does not include poems, but it does include links to free online poems that can be used with these lessons. Some of the pages in this packet are in color, but there are black and white versions of all student printables.

How to Teach Kids to Love Poetry (Even If You Don't) - Explore engaging ways to teach your students about poetry! You'll be amazed at how quickly they are able to read, write, and understand poetry... and even more surprised to discover how much your students come to love poetry, too! Most of the activities Laura will be sharing were designed for upper elementary students, but many can be adapted for younger or older students. Even if you haven't enjoyed teaching poetry in the past, you might find yourself actually looking forward to your next poetry lesson!

April is Poetry Month! Learn how easy it is to teach an entire poetry unit in a way that will have your students begging for more!

Teaching resources and freebies including poetry lessons, activities, and digital resources

This Poetry Unit Bundle is a growing bundle that currently includes all four of Laura Candler's poetry ebooks: Exploring Poetry Unit, Crafting Comparison Poems, and Buddy Bio Poems, and Writing Poetry. It also includes the webinar slides from the April 2016 poetry webinar, and a link to the recording of that webinar. The most recent component is my Poetry Task Cards with Images for Plickers. Please read about each item in the "What's Included" section below and preview them online to see if they will meet your needs. If you like them all, you'll save 25% by purchasing them together in this bundle!

A bio poem is a simple poem written about a person, and it follows a predictable pattern. You can have students write Bio Poems about themselves, but later you can have them write about famous historical figures or book characters. This lesson includes directions, graphic organizers, a Bio Poem planning page, a sheet of decorative writing paper, and an example bio poem.

A cinquain is a simple five-line poem that follows a pattern.Interview a friend and use what you learn to write a cinquainabout that person. Copy the cinquain onto the heart pattern.

Poetry pre-writing activity

Presidents Day is celebrated in February, so it's the perfect time to have your students write President Bio Poems! This lesson is also a great way to sneak a little research and creative writing into your social studies curriculum!

Believe it or not, teaching kids to love to write poetry is easy. It's a matter of finding the right poetry books to share and providing time to write about things that matter. It always amazes me how students who seem to struggle in other areas are able to write the most beautiful and expressive poetry. There’s something about the way poets can break all the rules and write from the heart that appeals to kids. I experienced this myself, and I often observed it in my students.

Buddy Bio Poems is a terrific activity that doubles as both a content-based writing lesson AND a fun icebreaker! In this lesson, each student will interview a partner to gather facts and information about his or her classmate. Then each student composes a short bio poem to share what was learned during the interview. Learn more on Corkboard Connections!

6 Reasons to Teach Poetry in the Fall! Why wait for National Poetry Month in April when you can start teaching your kids to love poetry now!