Poetry

Teach Living Poets

Lindsay Illich and Melissa Alter Smith Teach Living Poets opens up the flourishing world of contemporary poetry to secondary teachers, giving advice on discovering new poets and reading contemporary poetry, as well as sharing sample lessons, writing prompts, and ways to become an engaged member of a professional learning community. This approach offers rich opportunities for students to improve critical reading and writing, opportunities for self-expression and social-emotional learning, and perhaps the most desirable outcome, the opportunity to fall in love with language and discover (or renew) their love of reading. The many poems included in Teach Living Poets are representative of the diverse poets writing today.

200 pp. | 2021 | Grades 7–12 | ISBN 9780814152614 $27.96 member/$34.99 nonmember ebook ISBN: 9780814152621

Empowering Students’ Knowledge of Vocabulary

Learning How Language Works, Grades 3–5

Mary Jo Fresch and David L. Harrison

This fun and practical book offers grades 3–5 teachers both the research and dayto-day practical activities that support a fascinating approach for empowering their students’ vocabulary. Students will develop a deeper understanding of how the English language works, enrich their vocabularies, and improve their reading and writing skills. Six chapters present definitions and playful examples (in poetry and prose) to teach antonyms, synonyms, acronyms (and many more “nyms”), similes, metaphors, idioms, shades of meaning, and word origins. Eight well-known children’s poets and authors, including two former US Young People’s Poets Laureate—Kenn Nesbitt and Margarita Engle—and world-renowned Jane Yolen, offer insights into language choices.

166 pp. | 2020 | Grades 3–5 | ISBN 9780814113370 $23.96 member/$29.99 nonmember ebook: ISBN 9780814113387

Lightning Paths

75 Poetry Writing Exercises

Kyle Vaughn Lightning Paths features poetry writing exercises that, while they teach and utilize technique, also focus on and inspire the intuitive and imaginative qualities of poetry. Each exercise features a philosophical introduction that explains the nature of what the exercise aims for, the detailed exercise instructions, and a student example. The exercises themselves are divided into three sections: (1) exercises that focus on different types of imagery and different methods to generate fresh imagery; (2) exercises born out of unusual prompts and ideas aimed at engaging a writer’s experiences beyond poetry in the real world; and (3) exercises related to form or perhaps a reconsideration of what form might be or how it might function. Also included are introductions or essays related to imagery, inspiration, “leaping” poetry, and constrained writing.

121 pp. | 2018 | Grades 9–12 | ISBN 9780814128213 $22.36 member/$27.99 nonmember ebook: ISBN 9780814128237

360 Degrees of Text

Using Poetry to Teach Close Reading and Powerful Writing

Eileen Murphy Buckley Youth culture is rich with poetry, from song lyrics that teens read, listen to, and write, to poetry they perform through slams and open mics. The rich, compact language of poetry both inside and outside the classroom plays a valuable role in bridging the divide between youth culture and academic culture.

Whether we call it “critical literacy” or just “making meaning,” being able to read and analyze with precision and judgment empowers all students, not just in their academic courses but in everyday situations that require thoughtful evaluation and response. Through Eileen Murphy Buckley’s 360-degree approach to teaching critical literacy, students investigate texts through a full spectrum of learning modalities, harnessing the excitement of performance, imitation, creative writing, and argument/debate activities to become more powerful thinkers, readers, and writers. Theory and Research Into Practice (TRIP) series

193 pp. | 2011 | Grades 9–12 | ISBN 9780814160237 $27.96 member/$34.99 nonmember

Teaching Poetry in High School

Albert B. Somers

Albert Somers offers a vast compendium of resources in a highly accessible format. A comprehensive resource for teachers, the book contains more than 40 complete poems and presents practical ideas and myriad ways for teachers and students to discover the joys of poetry.

234 pp. | 1999 | Grades 9–12 | ISBN 9780814152898 $27.96 member/$34.99 nonmember

Wordplaygrounds

Reading, Writing, and Performing Poetry in the English Classroom John S. O’Connor

“Wow, so good! I keep thinking ‘How has this book escaped my notice all these years!’”

—Brett Vogelsinger, English teacher, Holicong Middle School, Doylestown, PA

John S. O’Connor offers exciting approaches to teaching poetry in middle school and high school classrooms with more than 25 highinterest activities designed to sharpen students’ writing and self-understanding and heighten their awareness of the world around them. In the process, he demystifies poetry for teachers and students by using students’ own life experiences as the basis for all student writing. Wordplaygrounds shows how students can move beyond the traditional boundaries of English curricula, interpreting poetry through a variety of media, including music, art, and dance— without special talent and training in these areas.

155 pp. | 2004 | Grades 7–12 | ISBN 9780814158197 $23.96 member/$29.99 nonmember

Getting the Knack

20 Poetry Writing Exercises

Stephen Dunning and William Stafford

A perennial bestseller and favorite of teachers nationwide, Getting the Knack offers 20 poetry writing exercises in an easy-to-use, winning style. Dunning and Stafford, both widely known poets and educators, offer this delightful manual of ideas for teaching everything from found poems to headline poems to letter poems, acrostic poems, and pantoums. Each exercise covers different types or phases of poetry writing—and is presented with wit, humor, and a nonacademic style that makes it a perfect guide for novice and experienced poets (and teachers!) of all ages.

203 pp. | 1992 | Grades 6–12 | ISBN 9780814118481 $27.96 member/$34.99 nonmember