My Journey With Poetry

Poetry Month Wrap-Up

I'll confess a little secret. I used to hate poetry -with a PASSION! It drove me crazy and made me feel like a complete idiot. Metaphors never made sense, I found it impossible to use words that rhymed and not sound like a 2nd grader in a phonics lesson, it was just tedious and tiring.
Then I took a Latino American Poetry class at The University of Houston and a whole new world opened up for me. My textbooks came from this tiny little press on campus - Arte Publico Press. This press at that time was housed in a dark, narrow basement, but when I opened the door that place became like a secret garden for me. In those books I found poems I could understand, about people and situations I knew, and the words had a rhythm that felt comfortable, not foreign.  I've never looked at poetry the same way since -until I began teaching middle school English. I was preparing the poetry unit and I started getting that nervous feeling, trying to make sense of the poems written in a time to which my students couldn't relate or trying trying to use poems and poets these students studied in elementary school seem fresh. We managed to get through the unit, but I knew I was leaving the same bad taste about poetry for my students that was left with me at their age.
 
I started a quest in the years that followed to find the right poetry for my students. I've been fortunate enough to convince some teachers to pick up on the genius of poets like Helen Frost so that a new generation of students can discover the beauty of poetry and hopefully discover their own secret garden. I've also managed to bring poetry a little more mainstream with events like The Library Lounge where students have an opportunity to read aloud their own poetry or read aloud works from published poets.

Poetry month is a time for me to cast the poetry net a little wider and hopefully get a few more students hooked on this art form. Below are four ideas I tried out this year.

Window Poetry -One side of my library is almost a complete wall of windows, and that wall is what parents and students see when they enter the school. Occasionally I put posters on them, but this year I got the idea I should write on them; kind of like the store fronts common around the holidays. I put up large sheets of construction paper on one side of the window and wrote on the other side. Once I finished one poem, I decided to let students try it out -and their work far surpassed mine, so I happily let them take over the job! Below is an image of what they did. Short poems worked best and the students' drawings really made a huge impact. I've had lots of positive comments on this and it was loads of fun, so I'll bring this back next year.

Library ninjas creating poetic graffiti!

Found Poetry - this is an activity I stole from The New York Times educator blog (GREAT resource - highly recommend it!). It helps me use some of my very interesting magazines that students overlook. I selected and copied at least 10 articles (1 page or less) for each poetry folder. Students were asked to start a word bank of interesting words they found in the article. They were then asked to create a poem using those words and adding only two of their own.  It's a great lesson and some fun poetry was created. Last year I posted some of the poems on the library Instagram account (@nisd_hgmslib). This year I asked the students to post their own and tag it with our library username and the hashtag #hgmspoem. I think next year, I'll have a better response to Instagram tagging.

Students working on found poetry

Poetry Tag - I created a list of contemporary poets that students never see in their curriculum. I cut the list into strips and each student selected a poet's name. They then had to read at least five poems by that poet and select one they would like to share and possibly illustrate.  The tag part of this comes when they "tag" a classmate with their poet and the process is repeated. I REALLY enjoyed this simple activity because students were able to explore Allan Wolf, Margarita Engle, Tracy Vaughn Zimmer, and others they never see in the classroom, in a very relaxed manner. When we shared out the poems, I could tell by the reactions some students discovered poetry can be something they can enjoy. Next year, I would like to bring Instagram into this as well, asking students to post on their own account and then tag it with the library username so the poems reach a larger audience.

scenes from Poem On Your Locker Day

Poem on Your Locker Day- this is our little twist on Poem in Your Pocket day and is now a tradition we have been continuing for three years! Preparation for this starts at least a week before when limericks and other short poems are typed and printed on colorful paper. I try to have at least 30-40 different new poems each year, but I also keep some of the favorites from the previous years. The paper is then cut so one poem is on one slip of paper.  The night before the designated day, a team of secret ninja library helpers tapes one poem on each locker. We have about 1,200 lockers on campus, so a team of 10-15 helpers can get the job done in about 30-45 minutes. The next morning it's always fun to see the students take a poem and read it, stuff it in their pocket, or share it with a friend. This year I had one student turn herself into a poetry bulletin board!

So that's it - Poetry month 2014 is a wrap!  Keeping my eyes open for new ideas for next year. Care to share yours?

A book review that isn't....

We Were Liars - E. Lockhart

I'm not really supposed to give too much away about this book while I tell everyone to go and read it. Here's my attempt!

When you hear the words Martha’s Vineyard, Summer, vacation home, what do you imagine? This book might be about some of those imaginings, but probably not. 

What about a love story of two young teens from opposite sides of the “tracks”?  This book has some of that too, but not they way you would expect.  

What about a generational family story of love and the crazy things we do out of love for our family? There is a lot of that in this book, but not in the way you would expect. 

When you hear the phrase “the perfect family” what other phrases come to mind? The Sinclairs, the top of the family tree in Emily Lockhart’s We Were Liars, have lived what outsiders would see as the perfect life with the perfect family, a sort of Facebook version most of us put out for the world to see - only the good things that are fit for public viewing. Their reality and that of their four daughters is something quite different.  The people responsible for uncovering the truth behind the perfect mirage? Four amazing, beautiful, and very real characters, three of whom are cousins, one who is “almost” part of the family. The story takes place over several Summers on an idyllic island, a sort of family compound.  These summers are where Lockhart lays a trap for readers and makes us fall in love with these beautiful teenagers. We start imagining their futures and we cheer them when they make a bold push away from family traditions/expectations/ideals. 

It’s the perfect Summer read, but not for all the reason you would expect.  It’s perfect for Summer because that’s when most of us seem to have time to think about a book long after we finish reading them.  It’s a time when we can read short books by the pool/beach/lake, but don’t let the length of this book fool you.  You will want, probably need, to re-read this it and you won’t be sorry you did.  I truly and thoroughly LOVED this book. It’s everything I thought it wasn’t and that made me love it even  more.  The ending sucker-punched me, but I didn't mind.  How else could I expect this book to end?  It’s too brilliant to wrap up neatly and that is why I will implore my friends to read this when it is available in book stores (May 13, 2014) and also encourage my students who are ready for it, to dive into it.  But I’ll pass on this warning before they dive, “careful, you don’t know what’s lurking underneath”!  

It looks sweet, doesn't it?

Sisterly Love - It's not always sugar and spice and everything nice

Reading the first pages of Dana Reinhardt's book, We Are The Goldens, I could tell this was a book I would enjoy.  It resonated with me because of the relationship I have with one of my older sisters.  The story is narrated by younger sister, Nell Golden, and the story of older sister Layla, who has always been the perfect role model for Nell.  Layla has made a name for herself at the private school she attends because of her superior academics and equally admirable soccer skills.  Nell has followed in her footsteps hoping to achieve the same admiration but allowing herself a bit of individualism with her venture into the school play.  This situation is so similar to the one I had with my sister, who was a senior in high school - gifted athlete, cheerleader and pretty darn smart - when I entered that same school as a freshman.  I would never be considered an athlete (I'm a much better FAN of sports) and I opted for the dance team, a sort of nemesis to the cheerleaders at our school for whatever reason.  Like Nell and Layla, my sister and I shared a bedroom until she left for college and so the bond that situation created was just as strong as the bond that Reinhardt creates for her characters.
Having lived in a very similar situation, the writing touched me as completely accurate. Based on my experience with both of my sisters and what I see with my own two daughters, there is an unspoken language between sisters (possibly among siblings in general but certainly with sisters).  One can tell when the other is upset, one knows what to say or do to smooth things over, one knows which buttons to push to drive the other one crazy and one can definitely tell when the other is lying.   There is also this unwavering loyalty among sisters and no matter how angry one is with the other, it seems like the goal is always to bring peace  back to the relationship.  So is the case with the Goldens.

Nell can tell very soon into the school year that something is amiss with Layla.  She notices the subtle clues that their divorced parents miss. When she uncovers the secret, Nell is horrified and against her better judgement she tells no one.  Nell calls herself "The Keeper of Secrets and The Keeper of Peace in the family". The relationship between the two slowly unravels to the point where they argue regularly and avoid each other, but the one constant remains - their love for each other.  Throughout Nell's internal debate about how to help her sister, she relies on the ghosts of two brothers her family once new, Duncan and Parker Creed.  The brief background on these characters suggest a close bond that was as close as the one shared by Nell and Layla.  The official story is that older brother Parker died at the age of 16 from an accidental fall down a staircase, and nine months later 14 year old Duncan died from an undetected heart condition, however cocaine and suicide have been the constant whispers.  When Nell uncovers Layla's secret she can't help but "confide" in the other two "perfect" siblings - what will happen to Layla if she stays quiet? As an adult reading the story the answer is obvious, but the writing so cleverly portrays the anguish Nell feels (as any sister may feel) of "betraying" her sister. Her subtle attempts at exposing her sister fail and as things spiral out of control the time comes for a more direct approach.  The ghost brothers push her over the edge with this thought, "That's what it means to be the younger sister You know. You know everything."

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this slim novel.  It felt true - an honest portrayal of a sibling recognizing the call for help but unsure how to answer that call.  I would be happy to share with this with my 8th grade daughter and when the time comes, with her younger sister.  It's a story of sisterly love, and the many different shapes/forms that love is expressed. But be aware, it's not a sweet, sugar-coated version (hooray!). It's the messy, frustrating, selfish, but with love-always-at-the-core version. In other words, the real kind of sisterly love.

My very unprofessional pic of this beautiful book, taken in my favorite thinking spot - my backyard :-)

Recognizing the time to change

I've been mulling over a big change in my library for the past several months. The change to shelve my fiction collection according to genres and not simply the traditional way of alpha by author. I've always stressed to my students the importance of knowing the authors and what types of books they write as well as using the catalog to find books they would enjoy. This seems to work very well...for those students who love to read. If my goal as a librarian is to put the perfect book in the hands of each student (especially those non-readers who would rather be anywhere else but the library) then surely arranging them this way will only help me achieve that goal. Lately I've read some blog posts of librarians who have gone to the "dark side" and arranged their fiction section by genre. Their success stories impressed me and some even provided guidance on how they started the transition. I began thinking this might be something I could do. What sealed the deal though was the various discussions I had with several students explaining the idea. Each and every one had a glint in their eye, a smile on their face, many clapped their hands and all stated this would be "soooo much better" than the current arrangement. "Ok," I thought to myself, "I better do this thing!". But the thing that got me even more motivated was when I explained to the students some of the issues this might bring up (would we shelve zombie books in sci-fi or horror?).  The debates that ensued were a librarian's dream. I've even had some students ask when and how could they help! So, here goes nothing, or rather something quite big. During the last month of the school year, an extremely busy time in the library (there's never really a slow time), I will be re-cataloging, labeling and re-shelving close to 8,000 books. This should be interesting; I'll keep you updated!

Conference musings part 2

There are no "boy" books, or "girl" books, or "gay" books.  There are books - period.

I attended a fabulous panel featuring women whose books at one time or other had been selected to the Texas Lone Star List.   The discussion came around to the fact that some books written by female authors are promoted to girls, and only girls.  While I am guilty of saying things like, "this will be a book most girls will enjoy", I never really considered that in doing so, I may have unconsciously sent the message that these female authors weren't important voices to my male students.  I DO promote authors like Marie Lu, Maggie Stiefvater,  Maureen Johnson and many others to my male students, but I've never done so to promote a female voice -  I did it because they have written some AMAZING books.  Should I make more of a point that they are female authors?  Not really sure.  I haven't seen my male students stay away from a book because it was written by a female author. 

This discussion stayed with me when I moderated a panel featuring authors David Levithan, Alex London, Aaron Hartzler, and Bill Konigsburg who have written YA books featuring gay characters.  Their books are amazing and meeting them was truly one of the highlights of my week.  The stories they shared made such an impact on me and I thought the books these men have written shouldn't be shared with just those students who are gay or questioning their sexuality, they should be shared with all students.  They provide a window into the world of their characters and the hurt and pain they feel when faced with ignorance and hate.  The characters in these books face new adventures, the unknown, the fear of rejection, the breathlessness of a first crush, the heartache of love lost, the joy of discovering new friends, and the pain of lost friendships just as teen characters in every other book I've read.  In preparing for this panel I read these authors' books and immediately started recommending them to my adult friends and the grade level appropriate ones to my students.  The authors of these four books did an outstanding job of writing stories to which I could relate and to which I think teens could relate, not because those students are gay, but because they are teens and will recognize the emotions of the characters.  It is in the pages of books like these that my students can learn that the differences don't define their friends, and the books may help them empathize with those who are dealing with ignorance and hate.  This in turn may help this young generation eliminate the ugliness of ignorance and hate. I look forward to promoting these authors as well as other authors who write books for middle school students featuring gay characters. I look forward to promoting these books using labels such as friendship, romance, action/adventure, family - labels that fit everyone.

Thoughts on a conference (part 1)

This past week, I attended the amazing Texas Library Association conference. For me this week was like Christmas, my birthday, and Summer all rolled into one incredible week. It's my chance to meet and learn from inspiration library leaders, snatch some great ideas and put my twist on them for my library, and geek-out when I get to meet some of my long-admired literary heroes as well as some new voices that should definitely be promoted to my students. It was exhausting and inspiring all at once. I thought I'd share some of the things I learned:

If you're not at the table, you're on the menu

This was a quote, I believe from Doug Johnson, that was used by Jennifer LaGarde, better known as The Library Girl and I can't get it out of my head. I see my role as the librarian on my campus encompass so much more than "keeper of the books". My role involves knowing the curriculum of all content areas so I can suggest materials that would be helpful. It involves advocating for proper research instruction so my students enter high school completely prepared to independently conduct a meaningful research assignment and not just a "fact-finding" paper. It involves staying abreast of recent technology issues so I can gently encourage and teach those colleagues who feel skittish about tech while fully supporting those colleagues who are exploring new and impressive tech destinations with their students. It involves promoting the explosive number of books and authors via book talks, social media and any other way I can think of , so maybe, just maybe I can reach that student who has lost his or her way with reading and bring back that spark. I certainly don't want to be on the menu, but that table sure seems like it's as long as the tables in the dining hall of Hogwarts. It's easy to get discouraged and fear that my voice is drowned out by all the others voices at the table, but I can't bear the thought of staying quiet and just letting things "be". It's not who I am, and exhausted or not, irritable or not, I'll be at that table and become a bullhorn for the all the positive contributions the library program makes in the lives of my students.


More thoughts in the next post :-)