The Poet Within (Poetry Paper Included)

Believe it or not, there is such a thing as six- and seven-year-old poets.  They don't need to know how to rhyme.  They don't need to follow specific patterns or strict rules.  They just need an opportunity to find the poet within.  I have proof these young poets exist.

(My Grandfather:  1 grandfather fighting for our life died in the army I wish I should have seen him but I can't why?  Please let me I beg you.)

(7 cats and 3 kittens:  Mom cat pregnant one kitten came out dead!)

(Boring Cat:  Walks around boring! Orange boring!  hisses triple boring!  It hates us heart breaking!)

(My fish:  My fish jumps up and down like a dolphin.)

(Puppies:  A beagle a poodle a hound Arf puppies everywhere coming going chasing their tail.)

(Grandpa:  Grandpa died!  Sad no more jokes!)

(My Fish:  My fish died cross-eyes flushed him down the toilet he went somewhere.)

*She told me her fish was cross-eyed when they flushed him.  :)

I believe that certain scaffolds are helpful when making the switch from narrative or expository writing to poetry.  As simple as it may sound, paper is important.  Shorter lines will help kids make the transition from story-like language to poetic language where line breaks are essential.  (You might have noticed that some of them are experimenting with meaningful line breaks already.)  Below is the paper Lucky Calkins suggests using.  It's all yours if you'd like a copy.  (My apologies that it's upside down.  Technical difficulties you see.)

The poems above were written within the first week of my poetry unit.  If you're interested in how these kids were able to find the poet within in such a short time, check out my guest blog where I outline the first three days of teaching the wonderful genre of poetry in my room.  Say hello to Tammy from Klinger Cafe while you're there.