QUICK RESOURCE SHEET #25
Poetry and language teaching
The sadness of the mere verb "to be"
I would have liked it if it was that way.
It wasn't that way.
I asked: be that way.
So it became that way.
The above words were penned by Hungarian poet Tandori Dezső. I cannot vouch for the accuracy of the translation, but – as someone who has been teaching English since the Jurassic Era – I appreciate the novel slant on one of the challenges we face in try to convey a foreign grammar.
In the abstract, many teachers appreciate poetry - its importance as a tool of personal expression as well as what poetry symbolizes when viewed as a representation of culture. But when it comes to using poetry in a concrete way in the classroom, apart from making students memorize classical verse as some of us were made to do, we are likely to feel bereft of ideas.
Here in Budapest, a simple twenty-minute commute to work might take you across a bridge named Petőfi Sándor, through a Metro station named Arany János, or along a busy downtown street named József Attila. This vicarious communing with Hungary’s literary lions has its effect; a society which shows its reverence for poetry by memorializing its creators in stone and iron tells us in no small way the value of the well-turned phrase. The question is, what can we as educators do to sustain this tradition, and imbue our students with a love of language?
According to the founders of National Poetry Month, plenty. Though one of the most common complaints I hear from teachers is that teaching writing is difficult because students don’t like to write, many teachers who experiment with teaching English through poetry report a new or renewed enthusiasm for writing among their students. Along with the resources of the National Poetry Month web site, you’ll find the usual variety of lesson ideas and intriguing links at the other sites noted below.
“Since its inception, the goal of National Poetry Month has been to increase the visibility, presence, and accessibility of poetry. In April, we will launch a Poetry Book Club section on our website, where visitors will find:
- Free Readers Guides to notable books of poetry
- Profiles of existing poetry reading groups
- How-to suggestions for starting your own
- Reading recommendations from leading poets.”
http://www.onlinepoetryclassroom.org/how/
“This section of www.onlinepoetryclassroom.org contains tools designed to help teachers incorporate poetry into high school classrooms. These resources, chosen and created by OPC staff and participating teachers, include classroom-tested curricula; essays on teaching and reading poetry; ideas and tips for introducing students to poetry; links to recommended education, technology, and poetry sites.”
http://www.pagerealm.com/jackturner/poetry.htm
http://www.ericdigests.org/1994/drama.htm
http://exchanges.state.gov/forum/vols/vol34/no3/p62.htm
These three linked articles offer more detailed background on the use of poetry in the classroom. The first focuses on using poetry to teach writing. The second article explores the use of poems as mini-dramas which form the basis for in-class improvisation, leading to improved conversation skills and greater confidence in learning. The third link takes you to a brief article in Forum magazine which discusses why poetry cuts across boundaries and is therefore useful in many teaching contexts.