Page Text: How to Read a Poem by Edward Hirsch
"Since the form of a poem is part of its meaning (for example, features such as repetition and rhyme may amplify or extend the meaning of a word or idea, adding emphasis, texture, or dimension), we believe that questions about form and technique, about the observable features of a poem, provide an effective point of entry for interpretation. To ask some of these questions, you’ll need to develop a good ear for the musical qualities of language, particularly how sound and rhythm relate to meaning. This approach is one of many ways into a poem."
Writing the Past: Using Poetry to Explore Family History by Benjamin Gott
"The weekend after my conferences ended, I puzzled over the ways in which I, an English teacher, could try to bridge this communication gap through a writing assignment. I realized that one of the benefits of conversations with our family members is that it allows us access to stories about our past. Several years ago, my father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, and, as his condition worsened, I realized that there were so many questions about our family that I had never asked him and that now would remain unanswered, that there were so many stories locked up inside his increasingly-jumbled mind that would never be told. I knew that the only way to pass on meaningful pieces of family history was through conversations—the same conversations that my students’ parents said were lacking in their lives."
How I Teach Poetry in the Schools by Jack Collom
"The focal point of the school, organizationally and mood-wise, is the principal. School principals, I find, may be helpful or not particularly, or may delegate helpfulness, but seldom trouble the poetry program as long as one is on time and seems confident. There’s little, however, the visiting poet can do about the mood of the whole school. One operates class by class, where the teachers are supremely important. The teacher is the bellwether of the class, of its developed attention. When the teacher writes along with the student, or simply listens alertly, this participation catalyzes the whole room."
Rose, Where Did You Get That Red? by Kenneth Koch
"For several years before, I had been teaching poetry writing to many of these children, and they liked it so much that I thought there must be a way to help them read and enjoy great poetry by adults. I found a way to do it, in conjunction with my students’ own writing, which enabled the children to get close to the adult poems and to understand and enjoy them. What I did, in fact, was to make these adult poems a part of their own writing. I taught reading poetry and writing poetry as one subject. I brought them together by means of 'poetry ideas,' which were suggestions I would give to the children for writing poems of their own in some way like the poems they were studying."