LLED 449 Blog

Using two diverse formats of Sarah Kay’s poem “Hand-Me-Downs,” students can compare and contrast the impact and meaning of the poem. First performed in November 2007 at SkinText: Brown University’s WORD poetry show, and later published in her book No Matter the Wreckage, this poem could be used to demonstrate the significance of form and intended audience.

Hand-Me-Downs

You have taken to wearing around your father’s

hand-me-down anger. I wish that you wouldn’t.

It’s few sizes too big and everyone can see it doesn’t

fit you, hangs loose in all the wrong places,

even if it does match your skin color…..*

*continued.

Sarah Kay’s book No Matter the Wreckage explores identity and self-discovery through the form of both spoken and written poetry. One possible activity is to take her poem “Paws” and have students compare and contrast it with Cristin O’Keefe Aptowicz’s poem “Hound,” upon which Kay based her text. Students could first compare and contrast these poems, and then they could attempt to identify similar themes and syntax that hints at the inspiration for Kay’s poem.

In Sabrina Benaim’s book, Depression and Other Magic Tricks, depression is rephrased through the lens of somebody who experiences it herself, alongside anxiety. Based off of her infamous spoken word poem, “Explaining my depression to my mother: a conversation,” this book contains modern free verse and slam poetry that phrases depression not only as a lifelong struggle, but also as a different way of thinking.

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magic trick 002

the girl learns to fly.

she is a fish.

the hook is in the water.

she willingly thrusts her body onto the hook

all for a better look at the stars.

This is an activity I would use in a unit on identity and/ or poetry. It indicates, within the tradition of Hemmingway, that more isn’t always better, and that much can be said in very little.

**create 6 words, 1 sentence, to convey your essence.

—————-

• Face to the sun and smile.
• I’m naught but words and caffeine.
• Addict: caffeine, literature, consumerism, procrastination, wanderlust.

**write a poem in 60 seconds to somebody**

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Is there anything more glorious

than falling in love with someone’s flaws?

Or anything more heartbreaking than when

yours got in the way of us?

Continue reading →

Considering how we looked at Stephen King and Edgar Allen Poe the other day, I am going to share some links to a website that hosts material from both Edgar Allen Poe and H.P. Lovecraft. This site also has other horror stories including Dorian Grey, Jekyll and Hyde, and Frankenstein. Overall, I think that this is a good resource for older horror publications.

http://www.dagonbytes.com/thelibrary/lovecraft/

-I recommend the stories, Celephaïs, The Terrible Old Man, and The Shadow Over Innsmouth.

http://www.dagonbytes.com/poe/poems/index.html

-I recommend the poems, The Raven, The Conquer Worm, and Eldorado.

I was thinking about space and place after Friday’s class, and I remembered a book I studied in my undergrad. It’s called What We All Long For by Dionne Brand, and it explores Toronto as a liminal space–one of mixed and changing identities. Here’s a quote about the book from an article in The Canadian Encyclopedia:

“Dionne Brand‘s third novel, What We All Long For (2005), is as much about the city in which it is set as it is about its main characters. Perhaps best known as a poet, Brand uses rich and lyrical language to describe Toronto as her characters move through the cityscape. Toronto is depicted as an “Anglicized” city, built on First Nations land and possessing a multiracial and multicultural population (See also ethnic and race relations). The novel explores this complex relationship between the city and its people, between a history of white-Anglo social dominance and modern globalization, and between the hierarchy of privilege and those it excludes.”

Here’s a link to the full article: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/what-we-all-long-for/

It’s been a little while since I read the book but I remember enjoying it and I think it could be teachable in the upper grades.

To combine some of the concepts we have been discussing in class, I wanted to also add information about an animated short that I taught during my practicum. For my English Language Communications class I taught them about narrative through a series of animated short films which centred on growing up and life stages. Claire Ahn gave me some advice on this too!

One of my favourites (the students loved it too!) was The Present, which ties in quite nicely with ways illnesses/disabilities are represented.

I recently attended a workshop on Suicide Prevention Training here at UBC organized by some folks in the BEd program. It was delivered in “QPR” format: Question, Persuade, Refer. They acknowledged that it was introductory, and it would be beneficial to continue educating yourself in this area, but it was a really great 2-hour intro. I would definitely recommend attending something like this, perhaps for a Pro-D activity, and the one through UBC was fantastic!

http://thrive.ubc.ca/prevent-suicide/qpr/

There are so many fantastic modern interpretations of Shakespearean plays out there, but the one that stands out the most to me is the 1999 movie 10 Things I Hate About You. The movie is a modern interpretation of The Taming of the Shrew, and it would be a fantastic, accessible, hilarious addition to any class teaching that play. There are several parallels throughout the film, the dialogue is witty, and the acting is superb. The movie centres around senior students Kat Stratford and and Patrick Verona as Kat prepares to move across the country to attend post secondary at Sarah Lawrence. As we discuss ways to bring drama into the class, I can’t help thinking this movie would be one of the funnest ways to bring Shakespeare to life.