Lesson 84

Students wrote a poetry quiz, shared their sound poems, and received their final assignment.

We discussed what an ODE really is, and looked at a variety of examples:

• A Classical ode
• Ode as a veiled critique, but still embodying praise
• Ode as a modern celebration of simple/humble things - as they are great
• Tips for writing an ode

Today's poem is an Ode. As per the links above, there is no specific expectation around the poem, other than it use poetic devices, praise something (or a group of related things), and be 20+ lines long (Odes can be VERY long pieces, so this is a minimum, not a maximum requirement). 

This last assignment will be up in Teams. 

Tomorrow, we will go over quizzes and final writing pieces, and students will share their Ode's. On Friday, we will have a final class - with goodies and games!

Lesson 83

 

Students shared some EXCELLENT sound poems :)

Students are reminded that there is a quiz on poetry terms and labelling rhyme scheme  - TOMORROW

The two poem options for this class (To be brought in hard copy to tomorrow's class): Shape/concrete poems and Found poems

 

 

 

 

TTt

Lesson 82

Students read their personal novels, before sharing their sonnets (many did not write with the correct rhyme scheme - they need to ensure they can label rhyme scheme before Wednesday's quizzzzz).

Today's poem:

 

Picture a rusty spigot (google it) and water struggling to flow out of it, as there is water in the line. Read Eve Merriam's Poem, "The Rusty Spigot," aloud, and see how the choice of onomatopoeia/text actually causes the reader's voice to mimic the sound of water and air fighting to get out of the tap first...and hear how, in the end, the water wins. She forces us to both see and hear what the words are describing...

 

Write your own sound poem, 10+ lines, using onomatopoeia. Don't get caught up in Merriam's artistry - just do your best!

 

Alternatively, you may consider the euphony in Robert Frost's poem "Stopping by a Woods on a Snowy Evening," and seek to create a unified poem, which gives a sensory impression, using euphony...10+ lines.

 

Lesson 81

-Students then read Robert Burns' "Red, Red Rose" for contrast. They labelled the rhyme scheme, and looked for poetic devices, including metaphors, similes, and hyperbole.

-We looked at Christopher Marlowe's "Passionate Shepherd" poem, and did much the same - this time we were looking at the beauty of the love poem, and the connection to nature...

-To contrast the mushy, lovey nature of the previous two poems, we read Shakespeare's "Sonnet 130"

HOMEWORK TO BE SUBMITTED IN TEAMS and brought to class in hard copy:

Shakespeare wrote very carefully crafted sonnets. The poems may have light-hearted content, or may parody the work of other writers, but the form is serious. 

 

They are 14 line pieces, made up of three four-line sections (quatrains) and one rhyming couplet. 

The rhyme scheme is ALWAYS ABAB, CDCD, EFEF, GG without exception. 

Shakespeare also wrote many of his works in iambic pentameter, meaning that each line should have ten syllables, in a pattern of 5 unsstressed/stressed sets (iambs). You can push for that if you like, but we are going to cheat a bit and not worry about meter for this assignment. 

 

Write a sonnet - have fun! You can be serious, but you can also parody the form, or another concept.

 

Lesson 80

Students did a quick read of their personal novels, before sharing their spoken word poems in working groups.

The poetry students created for today's class was fabulous - those who completed the assignment created engaging work, about all manner of things. I am grateful to the poets, and the readers - well done!

We listened to Katy Perry's "Dark Horse," then set about looking for poetic devices, and critiquing lyrics. 

There is no specific homework today, but students are encouraged to study their poetry terms in advance of next week's terms quiz!

Lesson 79 - C

 

This week, we started with a list poem, based on Sarah Kay's Ted Talk Today, students looked at Shayne Koyczan's "To This Day" and examined Barbara Adler's poem "In the Time Before," for poetic devices and ideas that stood out throughout the piece.

 

Assignment: THIS ASSIGNMENT MUST BE SUBMITTED ON TEAMS BY 9am tomorrow, AND brought in, in hard copy :)

Create a 12+ line spoken word poem (no maximum). Give it a title. Use enjambment and rhyme for sure, and feel free to use any other devices that come to mind. 

Possible topic (just here for those struggling to get started): Things which are both ordinary and extraordinary at once.

 

 

Lesson 78 - B

 Students shared their  "10 Things I Know to Be True" lists, which we made into the following word cloud(s):

Blk 5:

 

 

Blk 8:

 

Students then listened to Sarah Kay's second poem (found at 14:30 or so) in her Ted Talk.

While listening, students noted a line that stood out to them from Sarah's second poem - we discussed the various lines, as well as imagery, paradox, and enjambment.

We then returned to the word clouds - they provide students with an opportunity to glean what common ground they have with others, and what on their lists might have been unique to them.

Using their lists (along with Sarah's work, the word cloud etc.) students are to do the following for homework:

Create a poem, using at least one of the topics on their list. It must be 10+ lines long, and include at least one metaphor or simile. This assignment SHOULD BE TYPED then SUBMITTED IN TEAMS, AND BROUGHT INTO CLASS IN HARD COPY.

Lesson 77 - A

 

Today, students reviewed parts of speech (articles, adjectives, nouns, adverbs, verbs, prepositions, and pronouns) in order to create Mad-Lib-inspired poems in groups.

Students then watched part (first 15 minutes or so) of   Sarah Kay's Ted Talk 

Students received a set of poetry terms.

HOMEWORK: As per Sarah's talk, students are to write a list of ten things they know to be true.

For Tuesday:

-Your list  

- Students must bring a NOVEL - we have wandered from this, but we will go back to it for the rest of the term.

Lesson 76

Students worked incredibly hard to get through their writing today - their writing arms are sore, and they're brains are probably all processed-out - the weekend is very well deserved.

On Monday, we will begin poetry work! STUDENTS MUST REMEMBER THEIR NOVELS

Any students who missed today's class, or are working on an extended timeline for writing, should be in tutorial at 8:30 on Monday.

Lesson 75

Students have been working incredibly hard on their writing. Many have opted to write extra, many more yet still have come in early to perfect their drafts.

Today, most students completed peer editing work - some began their final drafts.

Tomorrow, students will complete their final drafts. If one block of time will not be enough time, students should be in tutorial at 8:30 tomorrow morning.

While it is sometimes very hard to stay focused during these last weeks, the work done by these grade 9 students over the past week has been extraordinary. I look forward to the mini-poetry unit to come - a little bit of play to round out a challenging semester :)

Lesson 73 & 74

 Yesterday, students got a writing/brain break, as there was a presentation on volunteering from NV Rec.

Today, students should have come very close to completing their drafts (if not completing them altogether). 

Tutorial tomorrow is a must for those who are not yet done - we will do peer edits during class, begin final copies, and finish them by the end of Friday's class!

 Please note:

Any overdue work not received by the end of tutorial on Thursday, June 13th will receive minimal feedback, will not be assessed until all other assessments have been returned, and may result in required attendance for Review and Completion.

Lesson 72

 Students continued their draft work today.

If a student feels they need more than 20 minutes to complete their draft, they should be in Tuesday's tutorial!

Tomorrow, there is a makeup presentation for the Careers work previously missed.

Wednesday, students will (IN A 20-30 MINUTE WINDOW) complete their drafts - This will be followed by peer-edit work.

Thursday, students will work on their good copies --> folks who are not prepared for good-copy writing should plan on attending Thursday morning tutorial.