The End of the Year is Near: 4 Fun Ways to Leave. The end of the year is often an emotion-filled time.
One common feeling is relief. We are all ready for a break. We are really tired of the daily grind and look forward to the summer. Students count the days and then hours to the end of school. What students don't know is that their teachers count the same way. A second emotion, at least for teachers, is regret that we didn't get as much done as we'd hoped. I always liked doing activities to end the year that both were joyful and informative, things that helped me understand what students learned and how they felt now that the year was close to ending. 1.
Interviews are a fun way to end the year on a high note. Sample questions from students: Why did you give us so much homework? Sample questions from teacher: What was your favorite activity? 2. Using small groups, ask the students to role-play you teaching a class. Sample situations from students: Teacher giving a lecture.Teacher trying to quiet the class. Sample situations from teacher:
Blackout Poetry on Pinterest. Blackout Poetry. Over Christmas break, I received a message from a high school graduate, urging me to check out the poetry of Tyler Knott.
He writes a variety of poems, but I found myself drawn to his blackout poetry. A recent favorite is “Look on the happy side of all things.” Notice how Tyler adds punctuation in his typed version of the poem. I bet you’ve figured out how blackout poetry works. Austin Kleon collected his blackout poetry of newspaper articles in Newspaper Blackout. Last year when we experimented with blackout poetry in Creative Writing 1, I gave all my students the same article from the Wall Street Journal about being lovesick. This year our school’s librarian happened to be weeding her collection of books in preparation for the big move to our new library. Even if you don’t teach creative writing like I do, you might be able to incorporate blackout poetry into a lesson in your English class. Here are some of my students’ poems: I decided to go early in the morning before the rest wake. Five-Minute Film Festival: The Power of Spoken Word Poetry. April is National Poetry Month, and since I wrote a Five-Minute Film Fest on poetry in general a few years ago, I thought I'd focus on my favorite style of performance poetry: spoken word.
When done well, spoken word has the power to move and enthrall audiences, and it can be an incredible tool for amplifying voices less heard in the mainstream. I've collected a few videos of spoken word poems for you to enjoy -- by teachers, by students, or about issues in schools. Be forewarned: spoken word is known for often including raw language or sensitive themes (in the service of preserving authentic voice). As with any video you plan to use in your classroom, preview first! Video Playlist: The Power of Spoken Word Poetry Watch the player below to see the whole playlist, or view it on YouTube. More Resources for Using Spoken Word Poetry in the Classroom Spoken word poetry can be an fantastic way to engage your class, to bring text alive, and to encourage student voice. See more see less. Blackout Poetry. Dead Poets Society (1989) - Quotes. Holland-buddingpoets-blackout-LG.png (800×417)
Barbaric Yawp in the 21st Century: Using Tech to Engage Budding Poets. What if Dead Poets Society were set in modern times?
Would Mr. Keating (Robin Williams' character) tweet Walt Whitman? I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world. #significantquote #carpediem Would the students have created a Facebook group rather than sneak off to a cave? In the movie, students shouted quotes to music blasted from a record player while on the soccer field. We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We teach poetry because "it is language distilled to its most effective level. However, given our students' inclination to use technology, consider the potential if we leveraged that desire to help them better identify with poetry. Uncovering Poetry in Primary Sources Much like I inadvertently destroyed a number of great literary works with bad book projects, I will also confess to assigning a handful of brutally dry poetry assignments. Lauren also incorporated the audio recording features of Explain Everything into the process.