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| we heart found poetry (word cloud made using wordart). |
At the end of a unit in my high school English class, I have students create and present thematic found poetry. I am sure you can vary this activity in numerous ways; I look forward to you sharing your implementation/ideas with me and other readers. Recently, I have been using found poems in the following ways:
1. Near the first day of class, I introduce the concept of found or cut up poetry by using a sample text we have read together in class (can be a shortish excerpt or excerpt(s) chosen for this purpose). Students are told to write down interesting words and phrases that they hear/see (depending on the modality in which you present the information) with the understanding that these words will later be used to write a thematic poem on the work that was read. They are to record a minimum of 25 words and phrases, and I am sure to encourage them to write down at least 10 phrases. Then, I go around the room and get each student to tell me one thing they wrote down. I write these responses on the board (or type them and project). Then, I think aloud as I model the process of weaving a poem from the snippets. I mark out words and phrases used and create lines, editing as I go, asking for student input to get them into things. Students get really excited about the "magic" of the poetry we create out of thin air. I explain to them that this type of poetry writing is an excellent way to teach our brains to think differently, to use words differently. I continue to demonstrate, and once I feel that I have a poem that clearly represents a theme from the literature we have read, I then do a quick edit, adding punctuation, toying with line breaks, playing with syntax and diction.
2. Once I have demonstrated the found poem method as described above, students are ready to try the process on their own. After we complete a unit, they are assigned the found poem assignment (see the assignment sheet below). When we are reading a longer work, such as a play or a novel, I have students record 20-25 words and phrases per assigned reading section as we go so that they will have collected words from throughout the book.
3. After students write their poems, there are several ways I have them present. I have found it beneficial to alternate between a couple of good ways to quickly and informally share these masterpieces, their illustrated found poems. One way is a modified museum walk. I instruct students to hang their final products on the wall any where in the room where it can easily be seen. Then students are given 10-15 minutes to circulate and read and discuss the work on display. next, they are told to stand beside the poem that most spoke to them. We go around the room, reading the poems we are standing beside and explaining why we selected it. At the end of this sharing, we return to our seats and discuss what we noticed about the poems, thematically and otherwise. An alternative sharing is to have students present their poems in their writing circles.
Extensions/Variations:
I have used found poems to teach context. For example, at the end of my readwritethink lesson plan, "The Magnetism of Language," the found poem is used as a summative assessment at the end to ascertain how well students can use context clues such as parts of speech to begin to make meaning when meaning is unclear, as it is in Carroll's "Jabberwocky."
Suggestions: 1. Have students do a found poem at the end of every unit as it is an easy, fun, and accurate assessment of how well students have understood a text and its theme, and this assessment has the added benefit of reinforcing the learning as students complete it. 2. Students can present their poems using the PowerPoint (or whatever presentation platform they'd like to use) Poetry Slam method (the poem is in some way visually represented while it is being spoken. 3. These can be compiled into a class book, online or in print.
Found Poem Directions
A found poem is
created when words in an existing piece of writing are lifted from that writing
and rearranged to create a greater emotional response. A found poem is shaped from a collection of
words or phrases found in one text.
How to create a
“Found” poem:
1. Search
newspapers, textbooks, or any written source for hidden poetic potential.
In our case, you are using Grendel.
2. Lift
and isolate lines from the text and rearrange to expose new meanings.
3. Strip
out unnecessary words.
4. Rearrange
syntax, compress phrases, repeat key words.
5. DO NOT ADD WORDS. That is the one rule in found poetry! YOU CAN ADD SMALL WORDS, like prepositions
and conjunctions.
6. Add punctuation.
7. Arrange the poem poetically.
THEN, rewrite your poem on white paper. Draw a picture to accompany your poem.
Your poem should: (RUBRIC/CHECKLIST)
- Have a title (10 points)
- Be thematically related to
Grendel (title of text being read) (10 points)
- Be written neatly on white
paper (10 points)
- Be illustrated (10 points)
- Have your name on it (10 points); yes, really!
- Be presented to the class (50 points)--10 points eye contact, 10 points voice projection, 10 point content, 10 points body language, 10 points grammar
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FOUND Poetry Resources from Faulkner English:
Student example: 
