Van Sluys/ MGRP Ch 1-4: Ch 4 Poetry

MGRP Ch 4 - Poetry:
I like that the author starts by explaining how when it comes to poetry, most of us are a little reserved at the idea of sharing our own work, especially with our peers in a classroom. To begin a poetry lesson. Start by having the students bring in their favorite poem to share with the class. (Remember, song lyrics can be looked at as poetry too). More than likely there will be a wide variety of genres and types of poems brought in. Each piece will evoke its own emotion. Once students become more familiar with poetry, we can start having them compose their own poems. Students can choose out of many different types of poetic format including; Acrostic Poems, I am Poems, List Poems, Haikus, Rhyming Poem, or any other types that a child feels passionate about.
The whole idea of this chapter is to show teachers how to help students view poetry as fun. Most students voice their dislike for poetry before the lesson begins, but with the proper tools of instruction a teacher can have her/his class singing a different tune.


Van Sluys:
Like with most classroom lessons, the environment to set up literacy invitations must be supportive to student's creative ideas. These supportive learning environments make it easier for students to feel comfortable to raise interesting and thought-provoking questions. I like that one of Van Sluys suggestions for teachers is to keep organized. Keeping material neat and organized makes it easily accessable to students and the teacher. I also liked that Van Sluys mentioned that teachers give students choices on what invitations they can choose to do. I am very supportive of this idea because, as we know, students learn differently so why wouldn't their presentation of what they learned be different too?
Overall, Van Sluys portrayed how teachers can faciliate literacy in their classrooms that are structured (yet free to express creativity), organized, and offer discussions that make children more aware of their world around them.