poetry for every content.

I love the idea of reading and writing workshops. We don’t really have an equivalent to them at the school I work at, but I absolutely think that we should. I have seen these workshops in middle schools, but never at the high school level, which needs to change. Lynne Dorfman and Rose Cappelli have created a mentor text which shows how to use poems in both reading and writing workshops and across content areas titled Poetry Mentor Texts: Making Reading and Writing Connections, K-8.

This text is a collection of lessons devoted to making reading and writing connections through poetry. The authors include a number of different styles of poetry in every chapter, along with a basic lesson using that poem laid out for you. Included are poems that help students reflect on their own lives and poems that inspire response.

Each poetry lesson includes a writing connection, for example: Why did the author choose the words they did? Each poetry lesson also includes a reading connection, for example: Understanding the structure of a poem to help reading comprehension. This helpful resource contains ideas on how to use guided practice, independent reading, and student reflection while using poetry as well. Poetry Mentor Texts is perfect for elementary school teachers.