Poetry
"Poetry is an invitation to celebrate language and emotions" (Hancock, 2000). Poetry is meant to be read, shared, spoken, and put to music. Children naturally enjoy the rhyme, rhythm, repetition, and sounds of poetry. Poetry has the power to delight, humor, sadden, and challenge children and their thinking. Poetry is meant to be shared for personal and recreational purposes, and it is also an important part of the literacy curriculum at all grade levels.
This poem, Citizen of the World by Dave Calder, will get the class thinking about how children must feel when they arrive in a new place, perhaps not of their own choosing.
It begins:
dave calder
"Poetry is an invitation to celebrate language and emotions" (Hancock, 2000). Poetry is meant to be read, shared, spoken, and put to music. Children naturally enjoy the rhyme, rhythm, repetition, and sounds of poetry. Poetry has the power to delight, humor, sadden, and challenge children and their thinking. Poetry is meant to be shared for personal and recreational purposes, and it is also an important part of the literacy curriculum at all grade levels.
This poem, Citizen of the World by Dave Calder, will get the class thinking about how children must feel when they arrive in a new place, perhaps not of their own choosing.
It begins:
dave calder
Citizen of the world
when you are very small
maybe not quite born
your parents move
for some reason you may never understand they move
from their own town
from their own land
and you grow up in a place
that is never quite your home
and all your childhood people
with a smile or a fist say
you're not from here are you
and part of you says fiercely yes I am
and part of you feels no I'm not
I belong where my parents belonged
but when you go to their town, their country
people there also say
you're not from here are you
and part of you says no I'm not
and part of you feels fiercely yes I am
and so you grow up both and neither
and belong everywhere and nowhere much the same
both stronger and weaker for the lack of ground
able to fly but not to rest
and all over the world, though you feel alone
are millions like you, like a great flock of swallows
soaring or falling exhausted, wings beating the rhythm
of the wind that laughs at fences or frontiers,
whose home is itself, and the whole world it moves over.
when you are very small
maybe not quite born
your parents move
for some reason you may never understand they move
from their own town
from their own land
and you grow up in a place
that is never quite your home
and all your childhood people
with a smile or a fist say
you're not from here are you
and part of you says fiercely yes I am
and part of you feels no I'm not
I belong where my parents belonged
but when you go to their town, their country
people there also say
you're not from here are you
and part of you says no I'm not
and part of you feels fiercely yes I am
and so you grow up both and neither
and belong everywhere and nowhere much the same
both stronger and weaker for the lack of ground
able to fly but not to rest
and all over the world, though you feel alone
are millions like you, like a great flock of swallows
soaring or falling exhausted, wings beating the rhythm
of the wind that laughs at fences or frontiers,
whose home is itself, and the whole world it moves over.
Theatre
Drama education is vital for students. Drama allows students to learn about themselves, their culture, and their community. During drama classes, students begin to visualize the world differently. The creativity and imagination of students will be pushed through the development of drama. It is important to cultivate and guide students with quality drama lessons to increase their understanding and relationship with the world. According to Freedman and Stuhr (2012), drama education conserves, “and transmits heritage, helping students to recognize and appreciate the diverse perspectives they will encounter in an increasingly global community”.
Importance of reading chapter books
1. Chapter books will build on a love for reading.
2. Kids will gain an even greater appreciation for the written word. (There are no pictures to pull you through.)
3. Chapter books force you to practice patience. It would be impossible to read a 300 page book in one sitting. With chapter books you are often forced to press pause on something so exciting. (How many times have you told yourself “just one more page” while reading a nail biting novel?)
4. Visualization is a given. The story unfolds in pictures created in your kids’ imagination instead of an illustrator’s vision.
5. Language, language, language. Chapter books use descriptive words to replace pictures. Imagine the new words your little one will be hearing over and over.
6. Family Connection. Most of the movies and shows that kids are interested in can be pretty boring for adults and vise versa. But reading a carefully selected novel together can be exciting for everyone involved. (Once they can read on their own it may not be quite as easy to join in the journey, so make sure to really enjoy it)
Drama education is vital for students. Drama allows students to learn about themselves, their culture, and their community. During drama classes, students begin to visualize the world differently. The creativity and imagination of students will be pushed through the development of drama. It is important to cultivate and guide students with quality drama lessons to increase their understanding and relationship with the world. According to Freedman and Stuhr (2012), drama education conserves, “and transmits heritage, helping students to recognize and appreciate the diverse perspectives they will encounter in an increasingly global community”.
Importance of reading chapter books
1. Chapter books will build on a love for reading.
2. Kids will gain an even greater appreciation for the written word. (There are no pictures to pull you through.)
3. Chapter books force you to practice patience. It would be impossible to read a 300 page book in one sitting. With chapter books you are often forced to press pause on something so exciting. (How many times have you told yourself “just one more page” while reading a nail biting novel?)
4. Visualization is a given. The story unfolds in pictures created in your kids’ imagination instead of an illustrator’s vision.
5. Language, language, language. Chapter books use descriptive words to replace pictures. Imagine the new words your little one will be hearing over and over.
6. Family Connection. Most of the movies and shows that kids are interested in can be pretty boring for adults and vise versa. But reading a carefully selected novel together can be exciting for everyone involved. (Once they can read on their own it may not be quite as easy to join in the journey, so make sure to really enjoy it)