Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poem of Instruction

For Teachers 5th - Higher Ed
Students write a free-verse poem and utilize the skill of providing detailed instructions. identify opportunities to create poems from simple, everyday verbal or written instructions. They study everyday language that has merit as poetry.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rhyming Word Poems

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students create poetry. In this poetry instructional activity, students read poetry and identify rhyming words using highlighters. Students may also add rhyming lines to the poetry they read.
Lesson Plan
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education

Picture Poetry

For Teachers 3rd
What a fun idea! The class discusses, and then writes free-verse poems using sensory detail. They get into small collaborative writing teams to compose their poems. Next, they pantomime the actions from the poem while their teammates...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pictures in Words: Poems of Tennyson and Noyes

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars examine how Tennyson and Noyes use words to paint vivid pictures. They read and analyze two poems, complete an online scavenger hunt, complete a worksheet, and write examples of alliteration, personification, metaphor,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poetry of War and Peace

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students read and discuss the poem "In Flanders Fields," then write poems evoking images of peacetime. They practice the techniques of writing poetry while using textual imagery to create visual images.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poetry In Motion

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Explore poetry with your class by having them film themselves reading different types of poems. They explore different elements in all types of poetry. They choose images to accompany their poems and learn to create video presentations...
Lesson Plan
Poetry Out Loud

Creating "Golden Shovel" Poems

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Get even your most reluctant pupils reading, writing, reciting, and maybe even enjoying poetry! A four day lesson, young writers learn about Golden Shovel poems: a poem format that uses borrowed words from other poems as the last words...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Symphonic Poetry

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Young scholars interpret the themes in Tchaikovsky's Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, create a 6-line poem based on the themes in the Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture, and define musical terms related to the study of programmatic...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Is Perception Reality? Writing Paradoxes in Poetry

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Explore the paradox of the universe - or, at least, of popular music - with this lesson. Using the songs "Inaudible Melodies" by Jack Johnson and "She" by Green Day, your class will complete a graphic organizer to help them understand...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Exaggerated Poetry

For Teachers 2nd - 5th
Students use physical poses and vocal choices to create emphasis in communication. In this exaggerated Poetry instructional activity, students use physical movement and vocal choices to exaggerate an expression make a connection between...
Worksheet
Curated OER

A Poem About Sadness

For Students 2nd - 3rd
In this emotional health worksheet, students explore the feelings of sadness, grief and loss by first reading and decorating a poem which states that it is all right to feel sad. Students color emotion pictures and discuss as a group why...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poetry In Song

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Investigate poetry and song lyrics with your class. They will identify poetic elements in their favorite modern music. Then they will play their song choice aloud for their classmates.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Beautiful Noise Poetry

For Teachers 5th - 8th
"What a beautiful noise comin' up from the street; got a beautiful sound, it's got a beautiful beat..." Use Neil Diamond's "Beautiful Noise" to guide your class through a Six Trait writing activity, in which they write an original poem...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poetry Through Digital Storytelling

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Bring digital storytelling to your language arts class! To begin, learners select their own topic, such as a poem that reflects a life experience they had or a historical figure who interests them. Then they work to create a storyboard...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Poetry As Oral Performance

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Reciting poetry is a great way to build oral language skills and build classroom community. Pupils look at the text elements of poetry and choose a poem to read aloud. They focus on rhythm, fluency, and expression. This is a great way to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Beach Poetry

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Familiarize young analysts with the relationship between words, meaning, and visual images. They consider the relationship between the painting Beach Poetry and the poem Sandpaper. They compose and illustrate an original a...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Analyzing Poetry

For Students 10th - 12th
Use this poetry analysis worksheet to help your learners understand a poem of their or your choosing. This resource asks class members to summarize the poem and analyze it by looking at voice, word choice, imagery, and theme. The...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

I Spy Poetry

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Explore the components of rhythm and form through a reading of Jean Marzollo's I Spy books. After discussing Marzollo’s format, the class agrees upon a theme for a class book and topics that fit with that theme. Pupils write a poem,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Compare and Contrast Poems vs. Lyrics

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Combine your pupils' love of music with their growing knowledge of poetry! First, have them bring in their favorite songs for a discussion on word choice and literary devices. Then, use a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Picture Perfect Poetry

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Do your language arts learners love to draw? Use this lesson to reinforce poetic techniques with illustration. After drawing what they think poem would look like with no words, middle and high schoolers work on several different...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Acronyms--Characters in The Hobbit

For Teachers 8th - 10th
Have your class create acrostic poems for characters in The Hobbit. First, define acronyms and work together to complete sample acronyms for their own first names. Young scholars then research specific characters in the novel and create...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Explore José Martí's Poems

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Explore Cuba and its fight for independence through José Martí's poems "Dos patrias" and "Yo soy un hombre sincero." Identify common themes and touch on various concepts (a list is provided here). Resources and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Poetic Place

For Teachers Pre-K - K
Here is a nice way to introduce your young learners to poetry and writing their own poems. Children create their own poems about their favorite quiet-time places. After listening to some poems read aloud by the teacher, each child gets...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: Nonsense Poetry and Whimsy

For Teachers K - 2nd
Primary learners are introduced to Lewis Carroll's whimsical poetry. They read "The Nursery Alice" Carroll's adaptation for younger readers, view story illustrations, listen to poetry and write whimsical verses of their own about food.