Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Breaking Up a Poem: August 25, 2015

Focus: How can "chunking/sectioning the text" and asking great questions get us to great answers when we're reading tricky texts?

1. Warming up: Returning to your song lyrics from yesterday with your reading strategies

My challenge: Try out at least one reading strategy that you don't usually use. See where it takes you.

2. Performing a physically close reading of last night's song lyrics, one section/stanza at a time

3. Drawing some larger conclusions about the lyrics together

a. Sectioning the text: In a word, this stanza is about...

For example: In a word, this poem is about falling.

b. Drawing conclusions: Looking at these words, form a full statement about each poem: On a deeper level, this song or poem is about...

For example: On a deeper level, this poem is about the world's indifference to tragedy.


4. Trying out the steps above with Billy Collins' "Introduction to Poetry" and the William Carlos Williams poem about Icarus

What happens when the author's stanzas aren't helping? Or there aren't any stanzas? Section the poem yourself by looking for SHIFTS!

My tricks to finding shifts: 

  • Circle your buts (and other words that indicate shift, such as "however," "on the other hand," etc...)
  • Look for end punctuation, such as periods, semicolons, question marks, and exclamation points.

HW:
1. On the back side of your blue reading chart (the front side has your thoughts on "Insignificant"), please use the three columns to analyze the Auden poem linked HERE and given out in class. Try out the reading strategies on the green bookmark that help you the most with this particular poem.

Note: If you prefer to type your reading journals, please click HERE for the electronic version and print your journal before class.

2. Bring your independent reading book and permission slip to class Friday.

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