They're Not...They're...

 

Draft of Poem

Photo by Amy LV

Students - I dedicate this poem to my new first grade friends from Ms. Rose's class and Ms. Ferrari's class at Furnace Woods Elementary School in Cortlandt, NY. We had a virtual visit yesterday (they at their school, me in my old camper), and one thing we talked about is the importance of making changes to our work. I loved meeting with these thoughtful students, and this is the poem I was drafting before and after our visits. You can see how many changes I made to it in my notebook!

Sometimes people think of cross outs and scratch outs as "mistakes." But I don't see them that way at all. They are really growing marks, showing the birth of new ideas and understandings.

So if you cross something out in your work to replace it with a new idea or to simply leave space where it needs to be...celebrate that and celebrate you!

Can you think of a time when you thought of something one way and then realized that it is not that way at all? This could be the good start to a poem. If you wish, you could even begin by writing:

They're not....

They're....

or

It's not....

It's....

It can be helpful to have a starter and then keep it or not once you get going. 

Your writing is yours. I wish you scribbles!

Cathy is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup at Merely Day by Day with a gentle and generous poem that she wrote for the Poetry Friday community. It speaks of all teachers and all who give. Please know that all are welcome each Friday as folks share poems, poem books, poetry ideas, and friendship.

xo,

Amy

Please share a comment below if you wish. 

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.

Change Eyes for a Week

 

Tree (And Mark's Hives)

Photo by Amy LV

Logs

Photo by Amy LV

Fire

Photo by Amy LV

Ash

Photo by Amy LV

Students - It is getting cold near here in Western New York, and coldness means wood fires. Wood fires are all thanks to the trees around here, and today I am thinking how one thing becomes another, about how the wood that is keeping me warm this minute was not long ago a tree in the forest out back. I thought I'd go around and snap a few photographs of this cycle.

You may have heard the expression, "The only constant is change," attributed to a Greek philosopher (person seeking wisdom) named Heraclitus. This means that change is the only thing that stays the same. Life is always changing. One thing is constantly becoming another. I feel eight years old inside, but my body has changed into that of a grown-up. My kittens Tuck and Winnie look like cats now, even though I still think of them as and call them kittens. The ball of wool yarn (once sheep) I purchased has become some cozy handwarmers. That bag of flour in our kitchen (once wheat), is part of the cookies I baked, along with many ingredients which were also once other things.

Just look around. Look at one thing. What was it before? If that thing had a memory that went back and back and back, what might it remember? Think about it. Tell someone. Jot it down.

I encourage you to look at the world with "change eyes" this week. What changes do you notice? What has become something else? How have YOU changed? What does the new object or new you remember of the old object or the old you? 

Allow these thoughts to play together in your mind...you will likely have many fabulous new ideas, and perhaps they will lead to writings or pieces of music or artwork. If they do, please let me know.

One more thing to notice. Look at today's poem and find the words that come back around: tree, logs, fire, ash, soil, seed, remember. Repetition in a poem can be your good friend. If you write a poem this week or look at an old one, consider repeating something you already have there. 

Matt is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup at Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme with a first birthday celebration of FRIENDS AND ANEMONES: OCEAN POEMS FOR CHILDREN, a book by members of The Writer's Loft in Sherborn Massachusetts. Please know that all are welcome each Friday as folks share poems, poem books, poetry ideas, and friendship.

I wish everyone a joyful week full of making, discovering, and feeling whole.

xo,

Amy

Please share a comment below if you wish. 

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.