Limerick, Haiku, Who Cares?

Before reading the poetry readings for this week, I was thinking back to my days in elementary and high school when I was forced to read and write poetry.  I did not particularly enjoy writing them at all.  I could listen to poetry and to people sharing their creativity and emotions, but really did not care to ever participate in it myself.  I was never a very good creative writer; I would rather write a research paper any day of the week and when my teacher told me to write a poem, that really sent me over the edge.  The different kinds were interesting but I did not appreciate some of styles because I knew I enjoyed the typical rhyming pattern with a generally happy subject.  I appreciate song lyrics and love music, but always had the worst time when my teacher encouraged my to go about it that way, in an effort to meet my incapacity. 


After reading about the benefits and all of the really cool ways that poetry can be presented in schools from the readings this week, I quickly became a huge fan of poetry.  I do not think it was presented in the best way at my school.  The readings acknowledged kids who do not like or appreciate poems and gave some neat ways to incorporate it into the every day classroom.  Students can learn so much from poetry and really get in touch with their own emotions as well as get to know their classmates so much better.  It contributes to their literacy development as well as increasing their appreciation for different kinds of expression.  In The Joy of Children's Literature when they said "one, two, or even a few poems every day throughout the curriculum over the course of a school year will make a difference" in regards to developing children's interest and literacy development.

As teachers, Reading and English are both very important subjects in school that we should spend sufficient time on, but working books and poems into the curriculum for all subjects can really enhance our students' learning and make them more well-rounded students.  I think it would be a great idea to start and end every day with a poem because it could get their minds going in the morning and give them something to think about as they go on into the evenings.  I found a really neat website about a movement called Poetry 180.  It is designed for high school students and provides 180 poems so that students can have a poem every day of the school year.  I think the benefits are limitless and that even if you are not the greatest at writing poetry as I am, all students can learn to appreciate and hopefully enjoy it, and maybe one day come up with their own that they are proud of.

http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/

A Blog In The Park

When I first heard we had to blog every week for this class, I have to say I was a little bit less than enthused about it.  I know Todd explained the benefits and reasoning behind it, but I was still skeptical of the purpose and benefits I would feel.  Often times teachers seem to have good ideas and be really excited about things but then it doesn't translate as well to the students.  I thought this was going to be the case until I actually participated.  Using this blog (once I figured out how to set it up and get it) was so easy and I was able to read many posts put up by other classmates.  I enjoyed reading what they had to say on current event issues, classroom readings, and teacher-related topics.  I thought I would just log in, make a quick post and move on with my homework but some of the titles really caught my attention and I found myself reading multiple posts.  I see the benefits in having students participate in blogging and think that even down in the elementary level it could be extremely productive to have kids use them.

I went back to my elementary school this past year to shadow one of my teachers and help out in his classroom.  When I was walking through the hallway I saw the kindergarten room full of kids on computers.  We did not have computers until I was in 4th grade so it just caught me off guard to see a classroom like that when they were so young.  I know that kids today know how to use computers so early in life.  My 6-year-old cousin can find anything on youtube or blank coloring pages in an instant.  There are so many productive things that kids can do on computers and I think that blogging is definitely one of them.  Even as young as elementary school kids, I know the maturity level is not there as it is with older grades, but as far as participation and getting them to think through lessons and communicate with one another about information or questions that blogs could be so helpful in continuing the classroom discussion.  It could spur on class discussion from something they read the night before, or it could help clear up questions that may have arisen during their homework. 

The benefits of critical thinking and extending the classroom discussion are the main benefits I find in blogs.  People can say things you never may have considered and cause you to read more or research further.  As college aged students are using these more in their classrooms, I think we can utilize the benefits and test them out in our own classrooms one day so that they are full of excited and thought provoking discussions during school hours and beyond.