When will we decide
to stop squandering our home?
We act like there's time.
We act like there's time.
©Mary Lee Hahn, 2021
Nowhere Else to Go
by Linda Sue Park
Go read Linda Sue Park's poem. I'll wait. There. You understand now why I couldn't excerpt it, right? You need to read all the way to that powerful last line, which sends you back to the title, and then down through the poem again.
This was our Weekly Poem for this past week. Our routine goes like this: on the first day, I just read the poem. My students follow along on the share screen, but we don't talk about the poem. Just read it and let it start soaking in. Then, each day after that, we dig deeper into what we notice about the words, the shape, the craft. Finally, towards the end of the week, we get to possible meanings. It took most of the week, but they totally got this one. Got what Linda Sue Park was doing with the clues at the beginning and that last line that sends you back to the title.
The Last Straw: Kids vs. Plastics
by Susan Hood
Illustrated by Christiane Engel
HarperCollins, 2021
An introduction by Milo Cress, founder of BeStrawFree.org
17 poems
Facts on every page
Fabulous illustrations and quotes
Scientists and children from around the world working on the problem of plastic
AND
An author's note
A timeline
"Sources and More" to go with every poem/topic (great websites!!)
AND
Poetry notes about the forms used in each of the poems
PLUS
"For Further Reading"
I love how you and your students "dig in" to poetry. I would've loved to have a teacher like you. I think most of my teachers were a bit afraid of poetry. They focused more on meter and less on meaning.
ReplyDeleteYep, "Nowhere Else to Go" with lots of work to do right now, and time's too precious to squander! I like Linda Sue Park's "Red-Crowned Crane poem also.
ReplyDelete"Kids vs. Plastics" looks good–thanks for all Mary Lee!
It must be so satisfying to take the time to let a poem simmer, to dig into its meaning and form over a number of day. Linda Sue's poem gave me chills-- so powerful! I'm sure your students thought so, too.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great post, Mary Lee. Again, your haiku fits right in with the reading I've been doing for Writing Wild. I will be sharing Linda Sue Park's poem with many students next week, and I can't wait to get Susan Hood's new book. Thank you for reminding me!
ReplyDeleteBecause I'm a stinker...I read the post without reading the poem first. Then, I read the poem and re-read your post. Yes, it makes sense...and you must read to the end and again. Thank you for a peek into how you teach and learn...with me too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great resources, Mary Lee. I'm enjoying your haiku!
ReplyDeleteSo much goodness here (as usual), Mary Lee. LSP's poem is brilliant on so many levels. :)
ReplyDeleteI love the poem, & how you approach with your students, Mary Lee, and I have The Last Straw on its way from my library. This 'new thinking' should be 'old thinking' by now.
ReplyDeleteOh the resources here for teachers and their lucky students. LOVE. And so happy to hear about what you do for the deep dive into a poem. What did you notice? Think some more. I think many many poems deserve to be savored and read again and again as I am sure you know and agree. And it is such a help to your kids (is it 5th grade this year?) to get into this habit. Light. Tunnels. Growth. Change. Re-view priorities. Your word squandering hit home. Here in my town and I think many others we have a "free" ie "swap shop" site called Buy Nothing. I put up 3 items I no longer needed and they were gone in under 6 hours: a bungee chair, a NWT dressy top and a whole bunch of take out round black plastic containers with lids. That woman is having surgery on her shoulder and was going to prepare meals to freeze ahead of time. I give away newspaper and brown paper bags as well and people want them. I will be doing lots more giving when the weather gets better. Thanks, Mary Lee.
ReplyDeleteJanet Clare F.
Thanks for linking to Linda Sue's poem (new to me). Powerful stuff. And your haiku, only too true. Thanks, too, for the heads up on The Last Straw.
ReplyDeleteTwo powerful poems, Mary Lee. I liked hearing about your process of taking your time with the Linda Sue Park poem over the course of a week. I'm not surprised that your students got it—kids these days aren't dummies when it comes to their future.
ReplyDeleteI loved hearing your process! I can't wait to share poetry in person again with my Kindergarten students. We've kept our "poem of the week" routine up remotely, though, and it's helped things feel a bit more normal. Because we are little, we also illustrate each poem, which is always interesting. Thank you, and happy NPM! -- Christie @https://wonderingandwondering.wordpress.com/
ReplyDeleteWhat interesting conversation you must've had with your students. I'm loving all of Linda's poetry just now!
ReplyDeleteLinda Sue Park is brilliant and cares so much about kids. I'm so glad you shared this poem, it's inspiring, clever and the message hits you in the heart.
ReplyDeleteA trifecta! All 3 really work wonderfully together. Thank you, Mary Lee. xo
ReplyDeleteThe Linda Sue Park poem is powerful indeed, Mary Lee. Your haiku set the stage for a wonderful set of environmental poems to celebrate the Earth. Happy Poetry Reading and Writing to your students.
ReplyDeleteAmazing post, Mary Lee. Titles are such a powerful tool in poetry. I loved the way Linda Sue Park used the title as a call to action in this poem.
ReplyDeleteThere's so much to love in this post!
ReplyDeleteKids who will make a noise--now we only need adults who will listen. Thanks for sharing Linda Sue Park's poem with us and especially with your students!
ReplyDeleteLove reading the process you go through with your students. Poetry takes time to seep in. Perfect poem for fifth graders!
ReplyDeleteThis is wonderful for so many reasons! First, I love how you provide wait time, how you read the poem the first day and let it start soaking in. This is a powerful poem (I’m unfamiliar with this book but will be looking for it now) and I appreciate how you chronicles how your week goes as your students dig into the poem!
ReplyDeleteHoly jeepers. Linda Sue's poem. Thanks, Mary Lee, for your own beautiful voice and for sharing how you dig into poems with students.
ReplyDeleteThank you for this compact yet wide-ranging trio of texts! We do keep acting like there's time, with all kinds of emergencies getting in our way. Wishing you and your 5th graders a happy/serious Earth Week.
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