Showing posts with label poetry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label poetry. Show all posts

Fun Poetry Bulletin Board Ideas

Students will love these interactive poetry-inspired bulletin boards!

Do your students have a negative attitude about poetry? Do you wish you could change that?
One way to combat this is by showing students that poetry is cool (or whatever the latest term is for being awesome). 

My interactive bulletin board displays–which also come with presentations and a fun quiz handout–show students that the music they may listen to is similar to classic poetry. Plus, they are sure to pique your students' interest and challenge them. I offer these packs on TpT; click on the images or links below to learn more about each in my store.

Poetry Bulletin Board www.traceeorman.com

IS IT GREEN DAY OR WALT WHITMAN?
Your students will be surprised by how much lyrics from a Green Day song and lines from a Walt Whitman poem have in common. Whitman is the father of free verse and lover of retrospect and while Green Day loves a rhyme, they also go deep and reflective. Here are a few samples:
Engage students with interactive poetry bulletin boards  - www.traceeorman.com

So, how did you do? 

This pack contains 45 quote cards, 134-slide presentation, student quiz (45 questions--same as the quote cards), and teacher answer key. It also includes a brief bio of both Green Day and Walt Whitman to give your students some background information on both.



Engage students with interactive poetry bulletin boards  - www.traceeorman.com

IS IT QUEEN OR EMILY DICKINSON?
Again, the similarities are very surprising! Dickinson's lines are lyrical and Queen's are creative and sometimes a little out there. A perfect pairing. See for yourself:
Engage students with interactive poetry bulletin boards  - www.traceeorman.com

What did you think about those?

Like my other packs, this pack contains the same presentation, quiz, answer key, and 40 bulletin board cards. 


Engage students with interactive poetry bulletin boards  - www.traceeorman.com

IS IT TUPAC OR SHAKESPEARE?
Tupac made it known that he loved reading (and acting in) William Shakespeare plays. Some of his lines in his rap music are taken straight from the Bard:
Engage students with interactive poetry bulletin boards  - www.traceeorman.com


It's guaranteed to bring a new appreciation for both Shakespeare AND rap music! 

This pack includes 40 bulletin board quote cards, student quiz, teacher key, and a 122-slide presentation. Use whichever you like to suit your students. It's a fun way to introduce Shakespeare or to bring awareness any time during the school year!

What other pairings would you like to see? Drop me a suggestion in the comments and if I create it, I'll send it to you free!


FREE DISPLAY:
Poetry bulletin board ideas from www.traceeorman.com

POEM IN YOUR POCKET DISPLAY
This free download features short poems that are easy to print, cut, and have available for students to take. I provide a fun pocket display in which you can stick the poems. I like to keep this up all year long so students always have poetry available.

You can find additional ideas at poets.org for Poetry Month or any time of the year. Also, check out my poetry Pinterest boards:

POETRY/LYRICS

POETRY in SONG LYRICS

NATIONAL POETRY MONTH RESOURCES collaborative board

I hope these help your students connect more with poetry and have a great attitude about it. Thanks for reading! -Tracee

Interactive Poetry Bulletin Boards www.traceeorman.com



Using Holiday Ads in the Classroom

Using Holiday Ads in the Classroom www.traceeorman.com


During the holidays, advertisers ramp up their advertising, luring buyers to their stores. They'll use colorful, vivid words to snag new customers, which actually works in YOUR favor, English teachers! You can use their ads to teach a number of lessons.

Using Holiday Ads in the Classroom  www.traceeorman.com

1. CHANCE (or DADA) POEMS: Cut up the words and use them for an impromptu poetry writing session. I like to store the words in little plastic baggies and use them when we have time left at the end of the period. I'll have students work in groups and prompt them to create a poem based on the lesson we just practiced (or the book/story/character we are reading). Or if there is a fun event coming up (a holiday, a dance, etc.), have them create a poem related to the event. Give them a limited time to create a poem, then have each group share with the class.

Using Holiday Ads in the Classroom  www.traceeorman.com

Writing chance poems with newspaper ads  www.traceeorman.com


2. PARTS OF SPEECH REVIEW: Have students cut out the words themselves*, only with a twist--require students to find an example of each part of speech (noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection). You can make it a contest and see who can come up with the most (and the most interesting). *If the words are already cut out, they can just each take a baggie full and sort them by part of speech.

3. REVIEW IDIOMS AND CLICHÉS: Ads are perfect for containing overused idioms and clichés. Introduce and/or review the figurative phrases with your students. Have them find their own in the ads, old magazines, or in newspaper headlines.

Review Idioms and Clichés with Holiday Ads  www.traceeorman.com


4. ANALYZE THE MERIT OF MARKETING: Have students look over the ads, analyzing the marketing techniques used, including the word choices and design/aesthetics (colors, font, and placement of words and products on the page). Which phrases stood out to them? Which did they pay little attention to? Were others more effective? Why?

5. ANALYZE TARGET AUDIENCES: As students look over the ads, ask them to evaluate who might the target audience be for the ad. How did they come to that conclusion? Which words and/or phrases did they use as clues? Do the ads stereotype?

I've been using ads and newspapers in my classroom for years. If you do not have access to a newspaper or magazines, check with your media specialist to see if she/he has older copies that can be saved for you. Also, your school may be eligible for Newspapers in Education. It's a wonderful program that supplies classrooms with copies of newspapers, which are paid for by donations from local businesses.

My Magnetic Poetry Kit is also an option for activities #1 and #2 if you don't have access to newspapers or magazines.

You can keep collecting the ads through the spring: Valentine's Day ads are perfect for love-inspired poems; there's also President's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, and so on... Each holiday will offer different flavors of language to suit the occasion.

Use holiday ads in the English/Language Arts classroom  www.traceeorman.com


COMING SOON: Handouts for each of these activities, which will be included in my POETRY BUNDLE (a bundle of ALL of my poetry-related resources...past, present, and future!)

Poetry bundle: A growing bundle of all my poetry resources


Using Holiday Ads in the Classroom  www.traceeorman.com

Using Holiday Ads in the Classroom  www.traceeorman.com


New Year Freebie & Half Way There Teacher Resources Sale





  We are half way through the school year, so a group of secondary teachers are celebrating with a 20% off sale on our teaching resources from December 31st through January 1st. Arm yourself for the new year with great teacher-created resources from your favorite sellers on TeachersPayTeachers.


*Click on the image of your favorite seller (above) 
to go right to their store.*

Special thanks to Gina from All Things Algebra for the image!

Tracee Orman on TpT http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Tracee-Orman


.:* HAPPY NEW YEAR! *:.
My New Year gift to you: a free activity to start the year 
(or semester) off right!

I included both traditional handouts AND interactive notebook activities:
New Year Creative Writing Activities Freebie http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/New-Year-Writing-Goals-Activities-for-2015-Free-1551635

2015 Goals Activity Free DownloadInteractive 2015 New Year Writing Activities Free

New Year Goal Setting Activity


Stay tuned for some NEW writing resources in my store in the next couple of days! For those of you who love my Argument Writing pack, I've been working on additional resources for Informational Writing.  

Have a great second half of the school year, 
my Teacher Friends!

10 Ways to Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday

10 Ways to Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday - www.traceeorman.com

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April 23rd will mark Shakespeare's 450th birthday. Here are 10 different ways you can celebrate the Bard's special day in your classroom (or on your own):

Shakespeare word cloud (from: 10 Ways to Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday)1. READ A SONNET: Have each student read one of Shakespeare's sonnets aloud. With 154 to choose from, surely your students will find one 14-liner they like to recite. (Use this as a Common Core speaking/listening activity.) This also counts as a great activity for celebrating National Poetry Month! (Don't forget that Poem in Your Pocket Day is Thursday, April 24th. Perhaps students will like one of the sonnets they hear that they will choose to carry a copy of it with them.)

2. CREATE A SONNET WORD CLOUD: Have your students decorate the room with sonnet word clouds using Shakespeare's poems and either www.Wordle.net or www.Tagxedo.com. (They can even choose a Shakespeare bust or a related shape on Tagxedo.)


Shakespeare's Sonnet #18 (from: 10 Ways to Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday)Shakespeare's Sonnet #98 (from: 10 Ways to Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday)


3. PLAY SHAKESPEARE WORD GAMES: The Folger Shakespeare Library website offers activities for kids, such as these word games. Students can also try to figure out what these weird words mean. (Give your students the word and have them come up with different definitions. Have the class vote on their favorite definition, then reveal the real one and see how close/far-off they are.)
Shakespeare cake (from 10 ways to celebrate Shakespeare's birthday)
4. LET THEM EAT CAKE: Have a real birthday bash for Shakespeare, complete with cake!

5. COMPETE TO FIND THE MOST FACTS ABOUT SHAKESPEARE: This activity can be done either with books (reference books such as encyclopedias or other nonfiction volumes found in your library) or done online (or use a combination of both). See which class can come up with the MOST facts about the Bard in a limited amount of time. Each class can designate several secretaries to write the information down and several "fact-finders." If computer or book access is limited, you can divide the class into small groups and have them work in shifts. After students have found facts, discuss their favorite ones (or ones they find the most unusual).

6. AMAZING RACE SHAKESPEARE: Along the same lines as the fact-finding competition in #5, but different because students will be looking for specific answers to questions, in the style of the popular TV reality show "The Amazing Race." You can come up with the questions yourself, or use this pre-made activity already done for you (with answer key).
The Globe Theatre from Paper-Toys.com (from 10 Ways to Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday)
7. RECREATE THE GLOBE THEATRE: Using this free online printable, have your students recreate a three-dimensional miniature replica of The Globe theatre (from www.Paper-Toys.com). If this task is a little too difficult, have them create their own little mini-Shakespeare from www.Toy-a-Day.blogspot.com.

8. "WHO AM I?" SHAKESPEARE CHARACTER QUIZ: Challenge your students with these "Who Am I?" clues on the Folger Shakespeare Library website. Then have your students create their own clues for a "Who Am I?" game. They can use characters from plays already studied, or mix in some characters from other works of literature from the entire year. It'll be a great review of all the books and stories your students have read this past school year.

9. PLAY AN ONLINE PUZZLE OR GAME: If you have access to the internet, play an online game (some can be printed if there is no access to the internet). Using the www.shakespeareinamericanlife.org website, students can color pictures, solve jigsaw and crossword puzzles, word searches, and complete mazes.

Shakespeare puzzles and games from www.shakespeareinamericanlife.org

10. FAVORITE QUOTE PARTY: Have students select their favorite Shakespearean quotes (can be from the plays, his poems, or anything related to Shakespeare). Then have them create a mini-poster of the quote (being as decorative as they'd like). As a writing component, have students write a paragraph explaining why they chose that particular quote. They can attach the explanation on the back of their mini-quote poster.
"There are no tricks in plain and simple faith" Shakespeare quote (from 10 Ways to Celebrate Shakespeare's Birthday)  Hang the quotes around the room and have students roam from quote to quote, jotting down those that they may not have selected, but also like. As a variation (or to add a speaking/listening activity), have students tell the class their favorite quote and why they like it or why it means something to them.

BONUS! yes...here's one more for a bonus 11th activity:

11. SHAKESPEARE'S LEGACY PROMPT: Would Shakespeare be surprised that—450 years later—his work is being studied, performed, and celebrated by people worldwide? Have students write a narrative piece about what their own legacy may be 450 years from now. They can tie in bits and pieces of Shakespeare for comparison's sake. They can speculate whether they think Shakespeare really wanted all his work published and read, or was some of it very private to him? Would students be surprised if some of their private work (journal/diary entries, poems) was studied by others?
  Students can also speculate whether they think documented words such as Twitter "tweets" or Facebook statuses will be considered narrative nonfiction in the future (or are they already?). Would they be horrified or pleased to know people hundreds of years in the future would be reading and studying them? Why?

If you wish to have these activities in printable form, you can find it here:
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Shakespeare-Activities-Free-Download-1216646

Shakespeare Activities FREE Download http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Shakespeare-Activities-Free-Download-1216646

The free download includes these great printable pages to use with some of the activities:

My Favorite Shakespeare Quotes FREE Download http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Shakespeare-Activities-Free-Download-1216646

Weird Words Shakespeare Activity FREE Download http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Shakespeare-Activities-Free-Download-1216646Who Am I? Shakespeare Activity FREE Download http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Shakespeare-Activities-Free-Download-1216646



I hope you have a great Shakespeare Birthday celebration!

Top 5 Reasons Why I Never Complete My To-Do Spring Break List

Top 5 Reasons I Never Complete My Spring Break To-Do List  from www.traceeorman.com

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Today is my last day of spring break. And while I SHOULD be frantically tackling my to-do list, I am here blogging about why I never complete it. Hmmm.

REASONS I NEVER GET AS MUCH DONE OVER SPRING BREAK AS I'D LIKE:

1. My to-do list is way too long. This year my list included: catch up on grading, organize my classroom, create new TpT products (too many to list), upload already completed TpT products (but make preview files for them), revise old units, read lots of books, go to baseball games, take lots of pictures at the games, organize & edit pictures, upload pics to Facebook & Flickr, plan out final days of school for seniors & sophomores, watch Frozen, watch 12 Years a Slave, go back to see my parents, and the list goes on... I think I accomplished five things (and they involve movies, baseball games, and pictures).


Movies I watched: 
I could not pick more opposite movies to watch, but both were very good. "Twelve Years a Slave" made me cry and "Frozen" made me laugh. 

12 years a slave

Yet both made me think: what is it inside humans that makes us do evil things? Greed? Selfishness? Lust for power? Funny how both movies touch on the same theme, albeit in much different ways.

Frozen



2. Some of the things on my list really suck. If I could just list non-productive things (like watching movies and hanging out with family) on my list, I really wouldn't need a list. But I don't want to spend spring break doing sucky things like organizing my classroom. (Or any room, for that matter.) And grading papers is a chore no matter when I have to do it. Over break, I always think I'll have more time "tomorrow" to do these sucky things. Well, guess what I'll be doing TODAY when I finish this blog post!? (If you guessed pinning on Pinterest while procrastinating grading until about 9 p.m., you are probably right on the money.)


Spring break...aaaannnd it's gone. (from www.traceeorman.com)

3. Break is never long enough. Seriously. It should be at least two weeks. And I know many districts are lucky to get one day. (I feel for you all!) We need at least an extra week to recharge our batteries after spending the first week trying to accomplish our to-do lists.


Pin ALL the things!  (from www.traceeorman.com)
4. Pinterest. There. I said it. I have a problem and it involves wasting spending numerous hours pinning funny memes, teaching resources, books, and things that make you say "What the freak?" (or something like that).

But isn't this idea genius to catch the drip from your sports cooler (or jumbo thermos...what are these things called?)? It comes courtesy of our chemistry teacher, who took a 2 liter bottle and cut it to hang right over the spout to catch the dripping liquid and protect the floor. (And using a clear one will not only match/blend in, but it looks so much better than just putting a wad of paper towels or napkins on the floor under it.)
When I saw these set up in our teacher's lounge, I immediately thought of taking a picture and pinning it. Does that mean I have a problem??? ;)


5. I procrastinate. Yes, my name is Tracee and I'm a procrastinator. Why do I wait until the last minute for so many things? I don't know. I just do. In my defense, though, we did get our taxes done and it's not even April 15th yet. That has to count for something, right? ;)

Perhaps next year I'll create a more realistic spring break to-do list. If so, I think I could complete it with time to spare. For naps. Or more pinning. 


I could probably complete this list. (from Top 5 Reasons I Never Complete My To-Do Lists)


WHAT I DID ACCOMPLISH :)
I did complete a few TpT-related things. If you purchased my DIVERGENT unit, MOCKINGJAY unit, POETRY RESOURCES, VOL. 1 bundle, ARGUMENT WRITING bundle, and other smaller items, check your "My Purchases" page on TpT to re-download the revised products. I've updated many files over break.

I've also added the following new products:


Poetry Book Assignment & Rubrics (www.traceeorman.com)

Poetry Book Assignment - includes the requirements/criteria, checklist of types of poems/forms & figurative language/poetic devices, rubrics for grading, and sample poems/books from students. 
All in editable PDF format.

Divergent Poetry Activities (www.traceeorman.com)

Divergent Poetry Activities - Numerous exercises to practice writing, reading, and analyzing poetry. Even if you don't teach this unit, you can use these activities to connect with students in your class who have read it.


 For my clip art friends/followers:
Doodle Borders Clip Art for Commercial Use
Doodle Borders:
Swirly Dots (26 .png files)
Small Circles (28 .png files)
Small Boxes (20 .png files)
Basket Weave (26 .png files)


The highlight of my break? 
Watching my son play high school baseball! With the cruddy weather, this week was the first time they could get outside and actually play. 

KO - EP Baseball 2014 (photo by T.Orman www.traceeorman.com)K.O.  EP Baseball (photo: T.Orman www.traceeorman.com)


I hope you had (or will have) a very relaxing and productive (if that's what you want) spring break. If not...we're not too far from summer break, right!?

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