Read first fifteen minutes of class. Read “Defining the Magic” by Charles Bukowski (in your Text and Lyrics section in your binder) and “Unfolding Bud” by Naoshi Koriyama.  Both of these poems use figurative language to talk about poetry.  How can you use figurative language to write about something you care about?  Write a poem that is either a collection of similes and metaphors or expands on a single comparison.  It does not have to describe poetry.
Homework: Read.

Tuesday

Read first fifteen minutes of class.  Creating line and stanza breaks.  Poetry looks different from prose on the page.  Poets use line breaks to create rhythm and emphasize important words.  Stanzas work in a similar way as paragraphs to separate ideas.  Look at your poems and make thoughtful choices with your line and stanza breaks.  Experiment until you find what works best.
Homework: Read.

Wednesday

Read first fifteen minutes of class.   Peer conferences.  Writers don’t work alone.  Most of the writers I know have critique groups or partners who give feedback on their work.  I ask you to do the same.  Use the Peer Conference Form to record the feedback you give and receive.  Before you turn a poem into me, you should ask for feedback from at least two different people.  Once you get feedback from someone, consider what they say.  Then go and make changes to improve your writing.  Check out this cool blog post by Gae Polisner on giving and receiving feedback.
Homework: Read.

Thursday

Read first fifteen minutes of class.  Using repetition.  Poets use repetition to create an effect in their poems.  Sometimes a repeated word or phrase works well, sometimes, not so much.  Read your poem aloud to hear how the repetition works.  Where can you add repeated words and phrases to build rhythm?  Where do you need to change an awkwardly repeated word?
Homework: Read.

Friday

Read first fifteen minutes of class.  Today you get to write your first reading response blog post.  Pick either the book you are currently reading or one you recently finished.  What genre is it?  Write a post explaining the genre of your book based on the notes we’ve discussed in class.  Be sure to talk about how the characters, setting, conflict and other conventions of the genre apply to your book. Give specific examples from the book.  Click here for an example that I’ve done for you.  Click here to see a copy of the rubric.
Homework: Read.  Book orders due.