Yesterday, the kids started mining their identities. I asked them to start writing an “I Am From” poem. I first came across this “type” of poem in Mary Pipher’s book Writing to Change the World. In chapter 2 “Know Thyself” she shares her version based on the original by George Ella Lyon. I shared Lyon’s with the kids (below).
Where I’m From
By George Ella Lyon
I am from clothespins,
from Clorox and carbon-tetrachloride.
I am from the dirt under the back porch.
(Black, glistening
it tasted like beets.)
I am from the forsythia bush,
the Dutch elm
whose long gone limbs I remember
as if they were my own.
I am from fudge and eyeglasses,
from Imogene and Alafair.
I’m from the know-it-alls
and the pass-it-ons,
from perk up and pipe down.
I’m from He restoreth my soul
with cottonball lamb
and ten verses I can say myself.
I’m from Artemus and Billie’s Branch,
fried corn and strong coffee.
From the finger my grandfather lost
to the auger
the eye my father shut to keep his sight.
Under my bed was a dress box
spilling old pictures.
a sift of lost faces
to drift beneath my dreams.
I am from those moments —
snapped before I budded —
leaf-fall from the family tree.
Using a template I found online, I asked kids to start digging through their pasts to find some gems they could include in their own “I’m From” poems. We will continue working on these today, and the kids will publish and share them next week. It’s the first piece in their Project Identity Portfolio that they will be putting together all semester long as they seek to answer the question, “Who Am I?”
I am “digging” this opportunity to learn even more about my kids as they learn about and share themselves.
How’d the webcast go yesterday? Well, turns out, all my worry will have to wait. Spokane Talks had to reschedule. So we will now do it at a later date. I will keep you posted. All good. Life happens.
Today’s Trail
Along today’s trail we will experience…
…connecting through Smiles and Frowns.
…demonstrating learning with parallel structure on a short Performance.
…digging deeper into identity with our “I’m From Poems.”
…reflecting in our Journey Journals.
…hearing a Sappy Sy Rhyme.
Happy Thursday, all. Sorry for the practical post this morning. Have a great day.
Do. Reflect. Do Better.