A poem’s like a puzzle
This is the statement we started with today. With just this one line, students considered how this can be true. During our initial discussion students suggested things like:
- Both are human-made
- Both are mysterious
- Both paint a picture
- Word choice in a poem is like finding the right puzzle piece
Students also noticed that this statement was a simile and could serve as a thesis.
We then continued by revealing and reflecting on the remainder of the poem:
A poem’s like a puzzle
Made of up many parts.
With words and lines and stanzas
It’s assembled from the heart.
Students then had an opportunity to piece together a personal puzzle, unique to a topic of interest each identified last week. As students worked, the following sounds of puzzle making were captured.
- Does this fit?
- This is hard!
- The pieces are shaky.
- Where does this fit?
- This is tricky.
- This is easy.
- Where’s the color?
- It’s not quite right.
- I give up.
- Hooray, I persevered!
- Can we do another?
- I’m missing a piece.
- I need help.
- Something doesn’t seem right.
- Can I help?
- You did it, even though it was hard.
Once puzzles were complete, we paused to reflect on the original statement in relation to the sounds of puzzle making. Could all of these things be said while writing a poem, too? Probably!
Our next step in the process was to describe our puzzle. One a piece of blank paper, students individually generated a list of words to describe what they see, think, and wonder. After a few moments, students had the opportunity to add words to others’ lists, affirming strong word choice and offering an alternative point of view.
Today’s lesson will be one students replicate during I Love to Read and Write week, when we set out to teach students in other classes about poetry.
We hope others enjoy the lesson and learn as much as we did!