Purpose
Children internalise the structure and rhythms of poetry by hearing it read out loud. This strategy aims to connect students to poetry in as many ways as possible. Do not explain and interpret – model an enthusiastic involvement with the poetry. Don’t hold back!
Teaching points
Search and share
Choose some of your favourite poems and read them out to the class. Invite students to do the same. Encourage students to discuss any feelings or memories that each poem elicits.
Teacher performance
Perform a poem with full expression. Model how you engage with the characters in the poem and bring them to life. Do not be embarrassed to give an energetic performance. Encourage applause at the end.
Group performance
Students and teachers perform a poem as a group. Start by reciting single phrases with full expression and encourage students to do the same. Do not let the performance become ‘sing-song’ as this loses all expression and meaning. As confidence builds, individuals can perform solos on different lines. Michael Rosen’s Fast Food or Wes Magee’s Boneyard Rap are good poems to start with.
The sounds of poetry
Students enjoy playing with the sounds of poetic devices such as onomatopoeia, assonance, rhyme and alliteration. It is not necessary for them to know these terms to appreciate the repetition and action in words like ‘whoosh’, ‘boing’, ‘ping’ or phrases such as ‘Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers’. Picture books are often useful when introducing onomatopoeia. Doug MacLeod’s collections of poems, such as Spiky, Spunky, My Pet Monkey (2004), provide many examples of poems that explore sounds and would suit either a solo or group performance. (Onomatopoeia: words that imitate a sound. Assonance: echoing of vowel sounds. Alliteration: echoing of consonants.)
More information
PEN 115: Thistleton-Martin, J. Poetry in the Classroom. Primary English Teaching Association, Newtown.
Tunica, M (2005) A Passion for Poetry. Primary English Teaching Association, Newtown.