Out Loud: Preparing for a Poetry Read-Aloud
Developed by Sandy Scragg, New York City, 2002
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Lesson 4: Picking Your Own Favorite Poem
Instructional Objectives:
1) Students will be able to evaluate poems culled from several poetry databases
2) Students will choose a poem to either practice with or to actually read at the read-aloud
Time Required: (1) 45-minute class session
Materials/Resources Required: Three online poetry databases: 1) The Favorite Poem Project, 2) EServer Poetry Database, 3) Academy of American Poets Poetry Search Engine
Vocabulary & Key Concepts: none specific
Procedures & Activities:
1) Ask students if any of them has a favorite poem. (Some of them may, "Phenomenal Woman" and "A Dream Deferred" were mentioned in my class.) Ask them what their favorites are.
2) Tell students that they are going to have a chance to look for a poem that they would like to read, either as practice or actually for the read-aloud.
3) Direct students to the three poetry databases listed above. They should have sufficient time to search through the databases and find a poem they personally like, and one that they would like to read.
4) When the students have found a poem that they "liked best" for the time being, ask them to print them out. Ask students why they chose them (Be patient: a common response is "I don't know, I just liked it." When I persisted, I eventually had students commenting on the subject, the voice, the mood, the rhythm, the language...don't scare students off with typical English teacher verbiage. Allow them to comment on what they liked in their own words.)
5) Collect the printed poems at the end of class. Tell students to be prepared to read these poems aloud at the next class meeting.
Samples of Student Work: Student-chosen poems (There was no "theme" assigned--but apparently, one was on their minds, since all the students chose poems that had something to do with race or discrimination.)
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