A New Day

The morning dawns.

I reawaken

The rain falling like a lullaby soothes me.

I feel powerless, weak, to the violence, creation,

madness, reason that surrounds me.

Is there no hope?

As time marches on, are all men doomed?

I need to reawaken to simplicity.

My soul embraces the possibilities of a new day.

The sun will rise again.

Mindy Bassitt

Toys

Pick up your toys, dear children.

Day is turning into night and toys abound.

The Lego train, Buzz and Woody, Barbie without her shoe,

the puzzle with the missing pieces abandoned.

Tomorrow will be another day.

I can see that.

Will my sweeper make it through the jungle of toys?

I trot my children gently off to bed and

kiss them goodnight.

Walking softly down the steps wrapped in darkness,

I step on Barbie's other shoe.

I smile.

Mindy Bassitt

Earth Day Poetry Unit

Philosophy

Children need to be exposed to all forms of literature including

poetry. They enjoy poetry and should experience all the varied forms and styles of poetry. Children can be exposed to poetry by reading together, illustrating poems, and creating their own poems. I have created a poetry unit that focuses on Earth Day in April. This unit will take about a week to complete.

This unit was created for my second grade classroom.

Objective

1. Students will read a variety of poems.

2. Students will illustrate an Earth Day poem.

3. Students will create a shape poem.

4. Students will create a haiku poem.

5. Students will create a poetry portfolio.

6. Students will share their poems with others.

7. Students will work in cooperative groups to create group poems.

8. Students will create a wide variety of poems such as rhyming,

non rhyming, haiku, and shape poems.

9. Students will create classroom poetry books.

Resources (Materials)

1. A variety of poem books

2. overhead projector

3. transparencies

4. pencils, markers, crayons

5. scissors

6. construction paper and drawing paper

7. brown lunch sacks (to make into books)

8. folder for each child (poetry portfolio)

9. index cards

10. hole punch

11. brown yarn (to put together the lunch sacks)

Classroom Activities

1. To begin the unit we will do the question and answer activity using index cards. Each child will get two index cards. They are to write a question on one and the answer on the other. They will be collected and mixed up. Each child will get a question and answer and then those will be read aloud and shared with the class.

2. We will discuss poetry and ask children what they think poetry is. I will share the book Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening by Robert Frost. We will discuss the book and discuss what kind of poem it is. We will also look at the illustrations and talk about how they go along with the poem.

3. We will share poems from the book The Earth Is Painted Green.

4. I will make a transparency of the poem "Poison Ivy" written by Louis Phillips. I will have the children find four words that they may like or find silly. They are then to create four sentences using those words. Remind students that they can make the lines rhyme if they choose. Have children put in their poetry portfolios.

5. Cooperative Group Activity- Have each group draw a card that has a

word on it such as bird, ocean etc... Have each group work together to create a poem. When the poems are completed each group will share their poem with the rest of the class. Bind the poems into a classroom poetry book.

6. Cooperative Group Activity-Give each group a sheet of writing paper. One student will write a sentence and pass the paper on. Each child in the group will add a sentence. Encourage them to see if they can get their lines to rhyme. When they finish their group poem the will illustrate their poem on drawing paper. These will be displayed in a classroom poetry display.

7. Use the overhead and demonstrate how to write a haiku poem. Students will then create their own haiku poem having to do with a nature theme. These will be put in their poetry portfolios.

8. Give children an outline of the Earth. Children will create an Earth Day poem in the shape of the Earth. Brainstorm and put a list of Earth Day words on the board that children may use in their poems. Put in their poetry portfolios.

9. Give each child an Earth Day poem. They are to draw and color an

illustration to go along with the poem. Bind into an illustrated Earth Day poem book.

10. Have students create poems and write them in their books made out of paper sacks. This project is a neat one to show recycling.

Assignments

1. Student created haiku poems

2. Student created Earth Day poems

3. Illustrated Earth Day poems

4. Student created poem portfolio

5. Group created poems

6. Don't Borrow, Steal poems

7. Classroom poetry books

Evaluation

These projects will be non graded projects. My students are in second grade and at this point in their education, I want them to be encouraged by their writing. I will look through their poem portfolios and make encouraging comments about their work. I will encourage them to share their portfolios with their families.