May 16

Poetry is All Around Us

Writing poetry is a state of free float. ― Margaret Atwood

In Writing Workshop, our study of poetry and exploring the writing of poetry has been quite liberating for some…we are learning to write Free Verse poems. There are NO rules when it comes to free verse. No punctuation? No problem. No capitals? No worries. No rhymes? Sounds like a plan.

We’ve learned that poetry is different from prose in many ways. One of the ways is that poetry has a wonderful rhythm to it–a flow, a beat…whatever you may call it. Musicians like Rhianna, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake…are all poets. Song lyrics are poems!

We’ve been learning about hearing the music in poetry, writing about issues or topics that matter to us, listening for line breaks, looking at ordinary things in extraordinary ways.

Poetry is all around us…if we’re willing to just slow down and listen.

We studied this poem by Valerie and began to understand the power of line breaks and how they can create visual interest in the poem and influence how the poem is read. Have a look yourself! Do you see a difference between the two? Which one do you think is the ‘proper’ poem and which one was changed?

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Posted May 16, 2016 by MrsS in category 2015-2016, Writing Workshop

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