While it is important to include poetry in every unit of study, at times it can be fun to focus solely on poetry. During this unit (2-3 weeks), students are immersed in poetry. They speak, listen to, write, and read poetry, individually and in groups. This sample unit framework can be used to develop a unit of study for grade 6, 7, 8, or 9.

Poetry is meant to be read, heard, and enjoyed, rather than "studied". Throughout the unit, read poems aloud daily and encourage students to read aloud poems of their choice. Ask students to respond to the words they hear and read in poems, and to picture the images that the words create.

Students may say "I don't get it" and say that they do not like poetry because they are fearful that they do not understand the "correct meaning". Encourage discussion about the poems and the students' responses, making it clear that all responses are valid, and that each reader/listener makes meaning according to his or her own experiences and prior knowledge about poetry and the topic of the poem.

The activities and resources suggested in this framework are appropriate for students in grades 6-9; however, it is important to select learning objectives from the curriculum guide that address students' particular grade level and needs. Be sure to select objectives for each of the language processes.

• Literature Circles: Give each group of students different anthologies or different copies of individual poems to read and discuss. The teacher may request that students find poems that all focus on a specific theme or allow students to select poems that appeal to them as a group.

• Poetry Journals: Have students keep a poetry journal throughout the unit in which they copy or paste poems that appeal to them, along with their responses to the poems. Their responses may be written answers to questions such as the following: What interests you about the poem? Do the ideas in the poem connect with other selections that you know? Does the poem connect with a personal experience you have had? Encourage students to add illustrations or pictures to extend their responses. As well, they may wish to include their own poetry.

• Children's Poetry Anthology: Have students assemble a collection of poems for young children (e.g., 6-7 year olds). Encourage them to illustrate these with their own drawings or cut-out pictures. Extend this project by having students practise reading these selections aloud, then visiting an elementary school to read aloud to students of the appropriate age.

• Oral Reading or Recitation: Have students choose a poem to read or recite aloud to their Literature Circles or the whole class. They may do this individually or in Readers Theatre or choral reading groups.

• Poetry Partners: Have students in the same or different grades partner to share their own and other poetry. Provide opportunities for them to read aloud to their partners and to discuss their experiences with each selection. Have partners develop an anthology of favourite selections, including partner dialogue responses recorded next to each poem.

• Teacher Read Alouds: Read poetry aloud to the students daily. Talk about why you enjoy the poems. This provides opportunities to introduce and discuss specific poetic formats, styles, techniques, and language. For example, one way to introduce how description is used in poetry to evoke images is to give students copies of the poems so they can follow along as they listen, and ask them to draw what they think the poem describes. Then have them circle the words that helped to evoke the images that they drew. Discuss how the circled words created the images and how students can use the technique in their own writing.

• Prose and Poetry - What's the Difference?: One way to help students understand what differentiates a poem from other forms is to have them read and compare a short story and a poem about a similar topic. Have them create a chart or Venn diagram on which they list the similarities and differences between the two genres. Another way to help them discover distinguishing characteristics of a poem is to give them short paragraphs that paraphrase the poems they will read; then have them read the paragraph and match it with the poem it paraphrases. Follow up with a discussion about the similarities and differences between the prose paragraph and the poem.

• Writing Poetry: Use models of various types of poetry and have students experiment with writing each type. Some types of poetry include haiku, limerick, lyric, sonnet, diamante, concrete, ballad, and free verse. Encourage students to go through the writing process just as they do when writing other genres.

• Looks Like ... Sounds Like: Audio and video recordings are useful as models of oral reading of poetry, and demonstrate the need for expression and clarity. As well, video recordings combine words with images to give students one interpretation of the poem. Encourage students to create their own audio or video interpretations of favourite selections (their own and/or others' poetry).

• Sounds Like - Teaching about Similes and Metaphors: Have students close their eyes and listen to the sounds around them. Then ask them to isolate one sound and focus on it for several seconds, imagining what it sounds like. Have them create sound pictures by writing what the sound is like (e.g., A tapping pencil sounds like a clock ticking.).

• Set to Music - Performing Poetry: Select poems or song lyrics that can be, or have been, set to music. Have students work out the meaning conveyed through the words and rhythm by speaking or singing the poem to the music chosen. Encourage them to involve the audience by having members participate in the chorus or repeated phrases. Have students develop appropriate actions to accompany the words.

• Poetic Dialect: Read several poems that use distinctive dialects. Examine the words and phrases and discuss the differences between standard English and the dialect, or between the students' use of language and the dialect in the poem. Explore how the dialect affects the meaning and enjoyment of the poem for each student.

• Meet the Poet: Have students select several poems by one poet, then research the poet and share their findings with the class in written, oral, and/or visual form. If possible, invite a poet to class to read his or her poetry.

Refer to the Middle Level bibliography for annotations of the following titles.

Buried Alive: The Elements of Love
A Child's Anthology of Poetry
Classic Poems to Read Aloud
Departures
Give Yourself a Hug
Exploring Lyric Poetry (includes teacher's guide)
Imagine Poetry (includes anthology, video, audio, transparencies, teacher's guide)
The Last-Place Sports Poems of Jeremy Bloom: A Collection of Poems About Winning, Losing, and Being a Good Sport (sometimes)
Pierced by a Ray of Sun: Poems About the Times We Feel Alone
The D-Poems of Jeremy Bloom: A Collection of Poems About School, Homework, and Life (sort of)
Poetry Express
The Puffin Book of Classic Verse
This Same Sky: A Collection of Poems from Around the World
Side by Side: Songs and Poems

It may also be useful to peruse general anthologies for other poetry selections.

Festival in My Heart: Poems by Japanese Children
Images of Nature: Canadian Poets and the Group of Seven
In Flanders Fields: The Story of the Poem
In Honour of Our Grandmothers
Reach for the Moon
Songs are Thoughts: Poems of the Inuit
Talking to the Sun: An Illustrated Anthology of Poems for Young People

Classroom Events Through Poetry
For the Good of the Earth and Sun: Teaching Poetry
For the Love of Language: Poetry for Every Learner
Haiku: One Breath Poetry
Explore Poetry: The Reading/Writing Teacher's Companion
Multivoice Magic: Poetry as Shared Reading
Poems Please! Sharing Poetry with Children
Poets in the Classroom
Prism of Poetry: Pathways to Writing (includes teacher's guide)
Teaching Poetry: Yes You Can!
Three Voices: An Invitation to Poetry Across the Curriculum
Writing Across Cultures: A Handbook on Writing Poetry and Lyrical Prose