BRB, IDK, Same … high school student’s dialogue is changing drastically every year. Is poetry even relevant today? It might feel more difficult to incorporate poetry into the homeschool schedule than teaching Algebra. Fret not friendly reader, we are sharing Poetry for High School Activities you can easily incorporate.
First let’s tackle the “why poetry”? Well written poetry touches our senses helping us to express ourselves in richer ways. Reading poetry develops emotional intelligence and offers awareness of social skills while providing empathy toward others. Poetry also improves literacy, boosts memory skills, and engages self-awareness. Yes, more poetry!! But how do we inspire teens, the one-word responders, to “get it” when memorization sounds more like Charlie Brown’s Mom, wah-wah wah-wah wah.
Poetry for High School Activities
Keep a poetry journal. Jot down a favorite line of the entire poem and identify the literary device. Then have your student write 3-5 of their own sentences using that same literary device.
I remember in high school, 100 years ago, we were instructed to memorize a poem. Surprise! That’s all we do with poetry. Find the shortest poems and blurt it out quickly. I chose Nothing Gold Can Stay by Robert Frost. I still remember the poem eons later, however “her hardest hue to hold” is my favorite line. Absolutely amazing alliteration! Sometimes one line is powerful enough: “Two roads diverged”, “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”, “I carry your heart with me”, “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.”
Match Poetry with Book Themes. When my high school students read a classic I wanted them to identify the theme of the book. Then I would have them look for a poem with that same theme. If grief is the theme of Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, then also read The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe.
Learn about the Poets. Did you know Emily Dickinson was not published during her lifetime and she was a passionate botanist? She maintained a collection of 400 pressed and labeled plants. Her love of nature is obvious as she often used plants and nature as metaphors.
Did you know Chaucer was a diplomat, and civil servant under three different kings: Edward III, Richard II, and Henry IV? His position gave him significant responsibilities and insights into the social dynamics of his time, as he wrote The Canterbury Tales.
When we learn a little bit more about the poets themselves we can see their reason for writing. Poet Biography Pages help students to understand the time, place, and experience the poets were writing.
Combine Poetry and Art. If poetry is the medium to express feelings using words, then art is the medium to display those feelings. Incorporate opportunities to paint poems. Read: The Beauty of Combining Art and Poetry for more ideas.
Act Out Poetry. We have a musical theater student in our home. Any opportunity for him to take center stage usually is a day ending in Y. A few famous poems have been adapted to plays, The Raven and The Night Before Christmas. Pick a few lines or act out the entire poem, get into character, and recite for the family. Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening, would be fun to act out. Or if your student is learning another language, especially ASL. Have them practice their second language by signing a poem.
Make Poetry Available. It’s not always lack of interest but lack of opportunity. Keep a few Books of Poetry around the house, a collection of different writers. Unlike War and Peace, it does not take but a few minutes to read a poem. Having different writers available will also help a student sample more types of poetry and lean toward liking one poet more than another. This in itself is a great discussion. Why do you like Maya Angelou more than Langston Hughes? How is Shel Silverstein like Dr. Seuss?
Adding a few activities beyond memorization will definitely create a Poetry Friendly environment and add a new depth to conversations, assignments, and learning.
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