Poetry Lesson Plans
Persona Poems
Literary Model: Ted Kooser’s “Look for Me,” Louise Gluck’s “The Wild Iris,” and (optional) the first stanza of Sarah Teasdale’s “Desert Pools”
Lesson Plan:
brown_persona_poems.pdf
Literary Model: Ted Kooser’s “Look for Me,” Louise Gluck’s “The Wild Iris,” and (optional) the first stanza of Sarah Teasdale’s “Desert Pools”
Lesson Plan:
brown_persona_poems.pdf
Making the Invisible Visible
Literary Model: Emily Dickinson’s “‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers,” and Robert Burns’ “A Red, Red Rose.” Sometimes I add (especially for younger students) “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” and if there’s time—or for another class that builds on this one—use Naimi Shahib Nye’s “Kindness.”
Lesson Plan: brown_making_the_invisible_visible.pdf
Literary Model: Emily Dickinson’s “‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers,” and Robert Burns’ “A Red, Red Rose.” Sometimes I add (especially for younger students) “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” and if there’s time—or for another class that builds on this one—use Naimi Shahib Nye’s “Kindness.”
Lesson Plan:
brown_making_the_invisible_visible.pdf
Haiku Hike
Literary Model: Photograph and haiku by Enrique Aldana (found in this lesson)
Lesson Plan: sensibar_haiku_hike.pdf
Literary Model: Photograph and haiku by Enrique Aldana (found in this lesson)
Lesson Plan:
sensibar_haiku_hike.pdf
Personifying Nature
Literary Model: "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" by William Wordsworth
Lesson Plan: sensibar_personifying_nature.pdf
Literary Model: "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud" by William Wordsworth
Lesson Plan:
sensibar_personifying_nature.pdf
Questions for the Sky
Literary Model: “Sky” by Cecelia Nuñez
Lesson Plan: sierra_questions_for_the_sky.pdf
Literary Model: “Sky” by Cecelia Nuñez
Lesson Plan:
sierra_questions_for_the_sky.pdf
Memoir Writing About Personal Photos
Literary Model: “I Go Back to May 1937” by Sharon Olds could be read as an example of a piece (in this case a poem) that highlights the tension between a more objective description of an image and revealing subjective insights, feelings, or stories behind the image.
Lesson Plan: memoirwritingaboutpersonalphotos_tjohnson.pdf
Literary Model: “I Go Back to May 1937” by Sharon Olds could be read as an example of a piece (in this case a poem) that highlights the tension between a more objective description of an image and revealing subjective insights, feelings, or stories behind the image.
Lesson Plan:
memoirwritingaboutpersonalphotos_tjohnson.pdf
“Jabberwocky” in Clay: Making Monsters and Writing About Them
Literary Model: “Jabberwocky” by Lewis Carrol
Lesson Plan: jabberwocky_tjohnson_2.pdf
Literary Model: “Jabberwocky” by Lewis Carrol
Lesson Plan:
jabberwocky_tjohnson_2.pdf