Poetry and Setting Up Invitations

Poetry has always been a subject that has posed difficulty for myself. In no way do I believe that I am a good poet because I always feel that I have to make my poems rhyme and be a stereotypical poem rather than just as a means of self-expression. As Allen says, "When we begin to speak in the language that is ours and tell our own stories and truths, we are surprised that this too is poetry." Introducing this idea to students and encouraging them to write poetry will be a large focus in literacy in my classroom. I feel that poetry has a lot of power and reveals students' individual voices and writing styles as well as helping them express themselves through literacy. I really enjoyed all of the writing strategies that are demonstrated in the chapter, particularly the "six-rooms poem". This strategy really helped to further poems and make them sound very reflective, descriptive, and influential. I am concerned on how I can introduce poetry in a fun way and help students realize that it is very enjoyable and doesn't have to seem intimidating.

Invitations were somewhat confusing and perplexed to me. I thought it was very interesting that invitations could be performed individually for students when they had extra time on their hands. I thought the organization of invitations in their folders is a very good idea, so that the students know what is expected of them when it is time for them to complete one. Engaging in group discussions after these invitations seems very helpful so that students can gain multiple perspectives on the same topic and invitation so that it benefits the whole group.