Digital+Poetry

=Digital Poetry=

What the Literature Says?
As our textbook, Reading Poetry in the Middle Grades, by Paul Janeczko (2011) suggests, engaging middle school students in reading and writing poetry, can meet the Common Core Standards. As students become familiar with the craft and structure, key ideas and details, integration of knowledge and ideas, and the range of reading and complexity of text, they are also learning formal literary analysis while experiencing poetry.

New literacy studies support writing poetry as a multi-modal composition. First there is the text to consider and draft. Then as the student writes, he or she considers supplementing words or phrases with image, narration, sound and perhaps video. Digital Poetry allows the student to express feelings, thinking, knowledge and share (social) the writing with others easily. THe poems can be archived for use later in a digital writing portfolio, highlighted on a website or wiki, emailed or twittered.

Questions to consider
How can incorporating poetry reading and writing in the middle school adolescent literature classroom help address the common core standards?

How does digital poetry help promote critical thinking?

Mary's Thoughts
When I was first introduced to digital poetry at a Wisconsin Council of Teachers of English conference in 2008, I was amazed at how engaged the student presentations were. The power of music, image, narrative voice and video mixed together to create compelling poetry. IF I were a teacher of adolescents today, teaching poetry would be elevated by introducing digital forms of writing.

Examples

[|Jen Scott Curwood's Blog and Digital Poem example]

Technology Knowledge
There are many ways to create a Digital Poem. Here is some guidance on one method:

Technology Tools You can use any technology tools you want to create this multi-modal composition. Some examples are: Google Docs, I Movie, windows movie maker or Garageband. Below is an example of directions using Garageband with I-movie. You might find other tools to work as well. You can use Garageband to record your voice reading the poem. Make sure to have a head set plugged into the computer. If you have music to which you will read over, drag the music into Garageband before you record your voice. Then save your recording. Open up IMovie or Windows Movie Maker and drag your recording into the program. IMovie or Windows Movie Maker is where you will add images to enhance your poem and effects to those images. Please save your file as a wmv file. You can upload your digital poem to YouTube and link it to the wiki or embed it in the wiki.

Assignment
//Directions:// You will be required to upload a digital poetry response (i.e. podcast format) to the wiki. You will write a poem concerning any theme or issue explored in this novel. The poem must include at least four stanzas each one being at least three lines long. Please copy the text of poem underneath the digital poem link so I can verify the poem’s length and number of lines per stanza. The poem must also include images that help convey the meaning of the text. Music is optional. Image effects (at least a fade in, fade out, and scrolling credits listing where the images came from and who made the music if music is used) are required.

Digital Poetry Rubric

(6+1) || Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader's mind, and the choice and placement of the words seems accurate, natural and not forced. || Writer uses vivid words and phrases that linger or draw pictures in the reader's mind, but occasionally the words are used inaccurately or seem overdone. || Writer uses words that communicate clearly, but the writing lacks variety, punch or flair. || Writer uses a limited vocabulary that does not communicate strongly or capture the reader's interest. Jargon or cliches may be present and detract from the meaning. || (6+1) || The writer seems to be writing from knowledge or experience. The author has taken the ideas and made them "his own." || The writer seems to be drawing on knowledge or experience, but there is some lack of ownership of the topic. || The writer relates some of his own knowledge or experience, but it adds nothing to the discussion of the topic. || The writer has not tried to transform the information in a personal way. The ideas and the way they are expressed seem to belong to someone else. || (6+1) || Writer makes no errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content. || Writer makes 1-2 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content. || Writer makes 3-4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content. || Writer makes more than 4 errors in grammar or spelling that distract the reader from the content. || (6+1) || All sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud. Each sentence is clear and has an obvious emphasis. || Almost all sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud, but 1 or 2 are stiff and awkward or difficult to understand. || Most sentences sound natural and are easy-on-the-ear when read aloud, but several are stiff and awkward or are difficult to understand. || The sentences are difficult to read aloud because they sound awkward, are distractingly repetitive, or difficult to understand. ||
 * CATEGORY || 4 || 3 || 2 || 1 ||
 * Word Choice
 * Adding Personality (Voice)
 * Grammar & Spelling (Conventions)
 * Flow & Rhythm (Sentence Fluency)
 * Poem structure || Good understanding of poem structure. || Average understanding of poem structure || Fair understanding of poem structure. || Poor or no understanding of poem structure. ||