This poetry unit will give elementary students the opportunity to discover poetry through an inquiry-based approach. The final outcome will be that students can independently read and write a variety of poetry. They will compile an anthology of their favorite poems from published authors and their own writing. They will perform a reading of their poems aloud to the class. Students will compare and contrast authors' tones and will be able to write poems and explain the tone they chose. They will also reflect on the rhythm of a variety of poems using instruments. To accomplish these goals, they will make observations about the styles of poetry and the sounds they hear. They will start by working with free verse – working on line breaks, alliteration, and onomatopoeia. They will listen to the syllable structure in haikus. Next, students will gain an understanding of meter through two poets. Throughout the unit, students will select poems similar to the poems taught each week. Students will listen to the tone in each poem and note places that give evidence to this tone. They also will make music to the beat of the poems by analyzing different rhythms.
(Developed for Reading and Writing, grade 4; recommended for Reading, Writing, and Poetry, grades 3-5)