Monthly Archives: July 2018

I’ve also found using photo prompts as an effective way to help students get over initial apprehension over writing poetry. In the past, I’ve used the following calendar and the images from the calendar as prompts. It’s a beautiful project … Continue reading →

Yesterday, I met with my former School Advisor because she wanted to run her new Grade 9 year by me. This past year, she focused on privilege, prejudice, stereotypes, and power; this upcoming year, she’s focusing on the environment—the personal, … Continue reading →

Hi pals, I was reflecting on the conversation we had on how humour can be used both as armour when undergoing trauma and as an entry point into difficult themes or events. Another TC in my Aboriginal Education class remarked … Continue reading →

I am from laundry detergents from samosas and Ginger Ale I am from the Surrey ghetto curry chicken smell I am from the sunflower The Oak whose long gone limbs I remember as if their were my own I’m from … Continue reading →

We probably all need a good excuse once in a while… a version of this happened to me this morning:

A few years ago, in the UK, Cathedral City started using spoken word in its advertising campaigns. The Evening Standard followed suit. Then NatWest. Before long, spoken word was everywhere and poets like Hollie McNish (cf. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6nHrqIFTj8, probably my favourite … Continue reading →

Here’s one practice I use to assess poetry: the artist statement. Whenever kids write poetry, I require an “artist statement” where they explicate their own poems. I ask for very specific reflections, otherwise they only focus on meaning. So I … Continue reading →

Hey all, just passing on another assessment tool that I find very helpful: the single-point rubric (see cult of pedagogy and edutopia articles). You create a column of expectations only in the middle column which sits around a “meets expectations” … Continue reading →

Here’s a sketch quote/doodle I did based on a quote I pulled from Courageous Voices: Using Text Sets to Inspire Change: “[Using] multiple texts as varied entry points to tackle more complex reading and writing”. I was thinking of the complexity of … Continue reading →

Yesterday’s poetry prompts were a good reminder of how the most interesting/vivid lines are often ones created from otherwise mundane observations. Here were a few of mine from Monday: you left in your wake utter devastation a grand mess your … Continue reading →