Showing posts with label Poetry Challenges. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Poetry Challenges. Show all posts

Sunday, January 30, 2011

A Sock Dreams in #305 - End of Sock Week


Sock Dreams
by Amy LV


This is the final poem of sock week, a challenge inspired by Jamie Palmer's fifth grade students to write about socks each day for seven days.  We had talked about how one can write about anything for many days, even toilet paper.  (Thank you, Rachel, for this funny link!)

Students - I've honestly been looking forward to writing this poem all week.  As you may have noticed, I love writing mask poems, poems in the voice of something else.  What could be better for a sock than to come alive as a puppet?  We all have dreams...and being our best selves each day...makes those dreams come true.

Teachers - part of the fun of this week has been reading Jamie's students' poems.  I encourage you and your students to visit their kidblogs to see how these young writers have approached one topic in a variety of ways, explaining their decisions and new learnings below each poem.  Some are even challenging each other to try various approaches.  Students are commenting, teachers are commenting, parents are commenting - it's delightful!  Too, don't forget to read Jessica and Nathaniel's growing collection of one-topic poems at FamilySchool.  

This will be my last post about write-about-one-topic-week until Jamie Palmer and her students visit us formally for a Poetry Peek in the near future.

Did you try this challenge?  If so, please leave a comment to let us all know.

(Please click on POST A COMMENT below to share a thought.)

Saturday, January 29, 2011

#304 Wonders About Little Kitty Socks


Kitty Socks
by Amy LV


Students - one of the good things about having a theme writing week is that your mind chews on your theme all of the time.  I've found myself thinking about socks on many occasions this week, considering different types of socks, who wears what kind, expressions with socks, anything socklike.  Today's poem idea came as I snuggled our fuzziest cat, Mini Monster, who does not have socks at all!

This is poem #6 of sock week, a week of writing a new poem about the same topic each day.  You can read more about this challenge, inspired by Jamie Palmer's fifth grade students here.  You can read and comment on these students' poems-about-one-subject on their kidblogs.  You can read several same-subject poems by homeschoolers Nathaniel and Jessica at FamilySchool.  Trust me: it will be a treat for you to visit these student poem spots.

Teachers - a challenge such as this one mirrors what poets do when they write a collection around one topic.  Choose an idea and examine it from all angles, just as you would a beautiful shell, or an emerald, or your own child.  There are so many possibilities, and each of us has doorways into writing that no other person can find.

This month brought us the 2011 Comment Challenge, hosted by Pam Coughlan and Lee Wind.  The goal of this challenge was to leave 100 comments at children's literature blogs between January 6 and January 26.  Lee Wind designed the logo, including all 131 mastheads of the blogs that participated.  You can find The Poem Farm's logo in the bottom right corner.


Yesterday I won three books at the culmination of the 2011 Comment Challenge. Lucky me...I found great new blogs and soon I'll have new books to read.  Thank you Pam and Lee!

(Please click on COMMENTS below to share a thought.)