Poetry Friday, Week 45: Student Work

Thanks to Karen at Karen Edmisten* for hosting Poetry Friday this week. She is sharing an Ellen Bass poem that had me at "the smell of grated ginger."

This week, I subbed for in a fifth grade class for my friend who was a teacher librarian and was moved into the classroom as a result of the district getting rid of the library positions. She has a fabulous class. She left me a Joyce Sidman unit of poetry for the week.  So I read:

• Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night
• Song of the Water Boatman and Other Pond Poems
• This Is Just to Say
• Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold

My goal this week has been to generate four poems.  We ended up with three (one as a group poem based on Sandra Cisneros' "When in Doubt").  I was in Georgia Heard's Write Bites class and she shared that poem. I decided to share my take on it with class so that we could write a group poem.

When In Doubt

When in doubt. 
take a nap. Even at 10 in the morning.

When in doubt
eat the dark chocolate stashed in the drawer labeled “when in doubt”.

When in doubt
go outside at night. Look for the newest stars. Name them.

When in doubt
reread letters you’ve saved in a box. It’s your history.

When in doubt
talk to the neighborhood crow. The one who brings you trinkets.

When in doubt
drive to the coast. Count the waves.

When in doubt
sip tea at your local tea shop. Read the tea leaves.

When in doubt
text your friends. Let them know they’re loved.

© Jone Rush MacCulloch

The class wrote poems in response to Night Emperor and This is Just to Say. In the Padlet, you will also see my "This is Just to Say" poem, regarding teaching fractions in math this week.  I am so hopeless in teaching math!!

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