Poet-Potpourri Introduction

POET-POURRI!

In the novel, Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes, the character Wesley Boone reveals his admiration for the poet Langston Hughes by writing a poem that he calls "Long Live Langston." Wesley suggests to his teacher that the best way to talk about a poet is by using poetry itself.

You will now have an opportunity to do just that! Your class has been asked to produce an anthology of poetry showcasing some of their favorite poets. Each student will create a page for the anthology highlighting his/her chosen poet.

Along the way, you will be answering the following question:

How can a poet's life and work be reflected in student-created poetry?

Task and Product

Design a page for an anthology about a poet of your choice. To do this, you will need to select a poet and read several of his/her poems. After that, you will research biographical information about that poet's life. You will then create two poems related to your author; one that is an imitation of one of his/her poems, and the other that contains information about the poet's life. Finally, you will design your anthology page which will include your two poems.

Assessments

You will be graded on your daily work on the research process as well as on your final product.

Question

Essential Question:

How can a poet's life and work be reflected in student-created poetry?

Subsidiary questions:

Which poet's work appeals to me?
What are the details about this poet's life?
How can I compose a poem about this poet that incorporates some aspect of his/her life?
What are some of the poems that he/she has written?
How can I imitate one of these poems, following both form and style and conveying a theme?
How can I use poetic forms, poetic devices, and figurative language to clearly convey a theme?
How can I use poetic forms, poetic devices, and figurative language to create a mood and tone?
How can I use poetry to express personal ideas?

Gather and Sort

Gather information about your poet from a variety of sources.

Steps in the gathering task:

Record and sort your research findings using a graphic organizer or note cards. Be sure to avoid plagiarism and keep track of your resources for an MLA-style bibliography.

Organize

Analyze your completed graphic organizer or sorted note cards to determine if you have enough information about your poet.

Synthesize your findings by deciding:

which poem by your chosen author you would most like to imitate.
which facts or details about your poet's life that you would like to use as the basis for your biographical poem.
Write two original poems.
- One original poem should imitate your poet's style.
- One original poem should describe some aspect of your poet's life.

Evaluate the effectiveness of your research for the task.

Use the following checklists to make sure that all requirements for the two poems have been met.

Synthesize your findings by answering the following questions using a BCR format:

What are the poetic devices and examples of figurative language this poet uses to convey theme, tone, and mood?
What are the poetic devices and examples of figurative language I have used in my biographical poem to convey theme, tone, and mood?

Create your final product:

Follow these directions for creating your anthology page including your two original poems.
Use the anthology page mock-up (sample layout) and the anthology page scoring tool as a planning guide and checklist to make sure that you have completed all requirements. If you are missing any information, go back and use the resources to find the missing information.

Submit your anthology page for peer and/or teacher review (see below) before producing your final copy for inclusion in the anthology.

Conclusion

Reflection

Participate in a Gallery Walk which will allow you to see the pages designed by your classmates. Your teacher may want you to provide feedback to one or more of your classmates (peer review) using this form. This Peer Review could be conducted before the final copy of your anthology pagee is due to allow you to make changes as needed.

Extension Activities

In the novel, Bronx Masquerade, Wesley Boone's English teacher provides his students an opportunity to read their poems aloud during what he calls "Open Mike Fridays." Open mike readings are usually designed to provide a sharing and support network for poets and are reminiscent of the old coffeehouse idea. Many coffeehouses developed during the 1950's, and these provided informal gatherings and opportunities for poets and artists to come to display their work.

Your teacher may prefer to set up a Poetry Slam opportunity for your class. A poetry slam is an event in which poets perform their work and are judged by members of the audience.