Describes a poetry writing project that uses the "strangeness" of German to beginning students as an impetus for creativity, demonstrating students' unexpected linguistic resourcefulness and the use of the poems as inspiration for more innovative teaching and learning within a task-oriented and communicative curriculum. (Author/CB)

Describes Image-Making, a workshop in creative bookmaking based on a series of simple, carefully structured, parallel verbal and visual activities. Explains how each teacher and student designed and created an individual book (of his or her own poems and visual images) and a large communal book. (MG)

Discusses in detail 10 books selected as the best children's poetry published in the 1980s, as well as 6 others receiving honorable mention. Appends a suggested reading list of 21 picture books, 53 single-author collections, and 25 anthologies. (SR)

Describes an informal study which explored the reasons why students love poetry in the fourth grade and hate it by the time they are in high school or college. Blames the tenets of the New Criticism for the analytical approach which seems to turn away students. (PRA)

Describes a summer course for educators entitled "Teachers as Poets," in which educators considered ways of teaching poetry in the literature classroom. Addresses issues of reading poetry, writing poetry, idea finding, the language of poetry, and the environment of the classroom. (HB)

Reviews six professional books and classroom materials that could support teachers and other educators in making the transition from integrating reading and writing to a synthesis of language arts with other areas of the curriculum. (RS)

Describes a number of poetry writing activities used with third and fifth graders in a week-long poetry project. Includes 14 poems by students. (SR)

Presents annotations of 30 notable children's trade books (suitable for K-8 students) published in 1992. Notes that the books met one of the following criteria: deals explicitly with language, demonstrates uniqueness in use of language or style; invites child response or participation; or meets generally accepted criteria of quality for the genre.…

Discusses the hazards of using timed mathematics tests in hopes of helping children learn basic math facts. Provides samples of children's writing which discuss their feeling about timed tests. Presents one teacher's idea of combining her students' thinking about math with writing haiku poetry. (MG)

Argues that incorporating the use of poetry writing into the clinical treatment of survivors of sexual abuse can be beneficial. Uses examples of such poetry to show how the creative writing of survivors reveals repressed information about their abuses, self-concepts, and about their basic beliefs in the areas of safety, trust, power, intimacy, and…

Describes a simple eight-step technique for teaching poetry that introduces poetry from the standpoint of writing it and by changing prose to poetry. (SR)

Suggests that illustrations can serve as invitations to enjoy and to ponder the images in poetry. Notes that, when poetry is read aloud to children, they should also have the opportunity to view and discuss the accompanying illustrations. Discusses how a variety of poetry books for children incorporate illustrations. (RS)

Describes four attempts to explore the words of a poem to reexamine the experience and feeling which the poet has encoded in the "objective correlative" of language. Parallels poetic technique and dramatic strategy. Shows how such attempts attracted children's attention to poetry and encouraged them to take poetry emotionally. (HB)

Discusses how teachers can incorporate a science poetry contest into the curriculum to encourage students to use poetry to express their thoughts about the natural world. (BB)

Describes how a poet at work in a mental hospital can help chronic patients recapture the use of language and expressiveness by teaching poetry. Describes methods of collaborative poetry writing, as well as the rationale for the use of the approach. Discusses a variety of cases and methods. (RS)