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The importance of poetry
What is the importance of poetry
The importance of poetry
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A great way to get children more involved and engaged in the classroom is by using poems as a guide towards a student’s learning. The two poems, “If a Bad Dream Comes” by Siv Cedering Fox and “Sunflakes” by Frank Asch, are excellent examples that are capable of doing just that. Through careful analysis of each of these poems possible themes, developmental lessons, structures, and morals; it will be apparent that these poems, as well as any others, can adequately contribute to directing students to the path of an enriched lesson to learn.
“If a Bad Dream Comes” and “Sunflakes” are both poems that connect to a child’s reaction to a particular subject or problem. Every child has difficulties sleeping based on fear from a nightmare and the poem “If a Bad Dream Comes” is a great way to give the child an answer on how to make them feel safe. This poem is full of metaphors that connect one thing to another. For example, in stanza two “My blanket is a ceiling. My mattress is a floor…”, the child does not literally mean that the blanket is in fact a ceiling. Through the child’s imaginations, he or she envisions that the mattress plays the part of the floor. However, to the child who is hiding underneath the blanket, this is seen as a way to protect him or herself from the scary darkness of the bad dream. In the poem “Sunflakes”, it begins with the simile, “If sunlight fell like snowflakes…” This particular line allows children to attain the thought of what if sunlight could actually give the joy that snow can. Most kids have a ton of things to do in the winter with the snow, such as snowball fights, snowboarding, and building a snowman; but fun in the sun can be pretty limited, and without proper precautions, you could receive very bad ...
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...ects. “Sunflakes” can be used for science in the general knowledge of how sunlight is created and English in the use of prepositions. Most of the lines have prepositions, for example, “And my pillow is a door that I can lock against the night.”
In conclusion, the two poems, “If a Bad Dream Comes” and “Sunflakes” would be a great asset to any classroom. Children can easily connect with the main thought present within the poems. One lesson learned is that anyone can be scared, but there are ways that can help make you feel safe, as taught by “If a Bad Dream Comes”. The other lesson is that a child’s imagination can go beyond the impossible and enter the words of curiosity. Each poem gives a suitable reaction a child would envision if placed in that particular position, for example, hiding away from the dream and wondering if something could become something else.
In her poem “The School Children”, Louise Gluck uses imagery by applying an extended metaphor to show how going to school is similar to going to battle and by describing the mothers’ actions through the use of vivid verbs to portray the disconnection between children and their guardians, despite the sacrifices that mothers make.
Dreams are something all humans share in common and they manifest the realization of our lives. They have a great influence over our essence and can provide colossal amounts of courage and strength to accomplish our greatest desires. However, when we do not have dreams to fight for our lives become meaningless and sorrowful, nevertheless this is the situation many people face throughout their lives. Broken dreams have become a popular theme among writers because a connection can be made with the theme and because there one’s truth can be faced. Whether dreams are forgotten or unaccomplished, there is a theory by philosopher Carl Jung that states, “Nothing has a stronger influence psychologically on their environment, and especially on their children, than the unlived lives of their parents”, incorporated into literary pieces, we are able to understand the impact thorough the work of several writers. The theme is encountered on “Boys and Girls” by Alice Munro, “Brother Dear” by Bernice Friensen, and “A Cap of Steve” by Morley Callaghan. The stories portray parents living vicariously through their children as well as the impact their social and economical status has on them therefore forcing their will upon them and leaving them with no choice but to resign to their life and fulfillment of their dreams.
Are adults overprotective of their children? To what point do we protect children? Where should the line be drawn? Along with those questions is how easily children can be influenced by these same adults. Two poets, Richard Wilbur and Billy Collins, express the ideas of how easily children can be manipulated and how sometimes adults think they are protecting their innocent children, when in reality they are not. Wilbur and Collins express these ideas in their poems through numerous literary devices. The literary devices used by Wilbur and Collins expose different meanings and two extremely different end results. Among the various literary devices used, Wilbur uses imagery, a simple rhyme scheme and meter, juxtaposition of the rational and irrational, and a humorous tone to represent the narrator’s attempt to “domesticate” irrational fears. Conversely Collins uses symbols, historical interpretations, imagery, diction and other literary devices to depict the history teacher’s effort to shield his students from reality. In the poems, “A Barred Owl,” by Richard Wilbur, and “The History Teacher,” by Billy Collins, both poets convey how adults protect and calm children from their biggest, darkest fears and curiosities.
The poems “A Barred Owl” and “The History Teacher” by Richard Wilbur and Billy Collins respectively, depict two different scenarios in which an adult deceives a child/children, which ranges from the sounds of a bird at night, to the history of the world itself. “A Barred Owl” depicts two parents who lie to their daughter about an owl who woke her in the night, while “The History Teacher” involves a man who tries to protect his students by using education as a tool to deceive them. Both poets use diction, imagery, and rhyme to help them convey a certain tone in their poems.
...r’.” Poetry for students. Ed. Sara Constantakis. Vol. 43 Detroit: Gale, 2013. Literature Resource Center. Web. 30 Mar. 2014. http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?>.
The poem “Students,” by Tom Wayman and the story, “Crow Lake,” by Mary Lawson presents two teachers who cope with the same difficulties of teaching. Although the teachers are faced with identical circumstances, their resolutions for the problem vary. Wayman, in the poem, and the narrator in the story both fails to make connection with their students, however, Wayman understands his students’ behavior while the narrator refuses to communicate and simply gives up on teaching.
I have elected to analyze seven poems spoken by a child to its parent. Despite a wide variety of sentiments, all share one theme: the deep and complicated love between child and parent.
Frost uses different stylistic devices throughout this poem. He is very descriptive using things such as imagery and personification to express his intentions in the poem. Frost uses imagery when he describes the setting of the place. He tells his readers the boy is standing outside by describing the visible mountain ranges and sets the time of day by saying that the sun is setting. Frost gives his readers an image of the boy feeling pain by using contradicting words such as "rueful" and "laugh" and by using powerful words such as "outcry". He also describes the blood coming from the boy's hand as life that is spilling. To show how the boy is dying, Frost gives his readers an image of the boy breathing shallowly by saying that he is puffing his lips out with his breath.
Early on, poetry was often used with rhyme to remember things more accurately, this still rings true today, even though its use is more often to entertain. However, although it appeals to both the young, in children's books, and the old, in a more sophisticated and complex form, people are bound to have different preferences towards the different styles of poetry. Dobson’s poetry covers a variation of styles that captivate different individuals. “Her Story” is a lengthy poem with shorter stanzas. It’s free verse structure and simplistic language and face value ideas might appeal better to a younger audience. This poem includes quotes with informal language that children or teens would better understand. It’s narrative-based style is easy to follow, and although the poem covers very basic concepts, it’s message is still communicated subliminally. This particular poem is interesting because it focusses on the universal experience of pain and it’s relation to time. Similar to this is “The Householder”, written in a cyclical style, opening with a “house” and ending with a “home”. With only three stanzas, it is
The poem contains the central idea that many of these children never understood what home really means. In Native American culture the people venerate earth and it is referred to as mother nature which we see in the poem. The rails cut right through their home but they don’t view them like the average person. They view the tracks as if they are scars across mother earths face and her face is the Native American’s homeland. She is scarred for eternity but she is perfect in their dreams. This symbolism is ironic because the children try to reach home using the railroad that ruined natural life for them and many other Native Americans. In the second stanza the speaker says “The worn-down welts of ancient punishments lead back and fourth” (15-16). Which can be talking about the marks on the children’s bodies after getting caught while running away. But the “word-down welts” can also symbolize the welts that were put on mother nature throughout history. The last five lines of the poem sums up the symbol of hope through their memories and dreams. The last line of the poem says, “the spines of names and leaves.” (20-24). The “spines” symbolize the physical strength of the children and their ability to maintain hope individually “names”, and for their tribe
Each year, as a new group of students enter my classroom, I will encourage them to be expressive of their imaginations in their favorite subjects, whether it will be art, literature, math or music. We all have rules and regulations to follow, and each student will know that there is no exception in the school or the classroom. Another goal in my classroom will be to keep the students excited about learning, not to treat school as a game or a social event, but to encourage a unique and fun atmosphere to learn.
...a silence deep and white” (Line,4) they are talking about how the white snow is beautiful and, how it looks like to me this is a love of nature to some maybe not.Last one is Intuition over fact in this quote “Father,who makes the snow?” (Line,22) says his daughter, “And told of the good All father” (Line,23) and lastly “Who cares for us here below” (Line,24) he is talking about and all father which i believe he is talking about god,and this is a great characteristic for this poem.
Children are our inspiration. They are the reason that educators today need to be more than sufficient in teaching, but remarkable at teaching. Children are little sponges that absorb knowledge quickly and abundantly and with guidance, can achieve great goals in their academic life. Children are the future. As teachers, we need to educate ourselves as much as possible so that we can better educate the future generations. “Piaget, working with children, found that the growth of their ideas is a process spread over years,” (Sawyer, 2003, p.6). Teachers, families and communities must support one another in learning and educating our young children. If we don’t spend the time necessary to learn and broaden our knowledge, our children suffer, our future suffers.
The poem ‘The Echoing Green’ is written by William Blake. It is taken from SONGS OF INNOCENCE. It is divine voice of childhood unchallenged by the test and doubts of later years. Blake expresses in simple and lovely diction the happiness and innocence of a child’s first thoughts about. This is a pictorial poem. ‘The Echoing Green’ is a poem about a grassy field on a warm morning in late spring. The poet gives a very beautiful description of a dawn and morning of spring. The spring represents the life. Morning is the beginning of life and the dark evening is the end. This poem is a blend of child like innocence and grayness of later years. It is symbolic and draws a contrast between youth and old age. Blake has expressed broad meaning of the playground. The children are carefree and they are not surrounded by any kind of worries because worries are associated with old age and pleasures with childhood. The children are busy in games.
“The Sun Rising” by John Donne is an aubade all about two lovers getting woken up by the sun when all they want to do is lay in bed all day. The entire poem is the speaker, presumably Donne himself, is talking to the sun and telling him to go away. This poem is broken into three stanzas with a rhyme scheme of ABBACDCDEE. Each of those stanzas represents what Donne is telling the sun to do, which is, to go away, I am stronger than you, and that he and his lover are the center of the world. He uses diction all throughout the poem to emphasize that the sun is not welcome in waking him and is lover and throughout all three stanzas to make his three points and to give the overall points of the poem. There are many metaphors used all through the poem and one overall metaphor.