Poetry Prompts

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Poetry Prompts

• Responding to Poetry

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Read With a Purpose, Respond to a Prompt

• Whether we are conscious of it or not, we all
  have natural responses to poetry.
• Sometimes the poems make us feel a wide range of
  emotions, and other times we may simply take
  pleasure in the rhythm or the sounds of the words
  on the page.
• Today, we are going to examine poems, try to
  think deeply about their messages, their
  purposes, then respond to a prompt.

Image http//www.delsearegional.us/Academic/Media
Center/hs/poetrywinners08.htm
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Sick by Shel Silversteinhttp//www.youtube.com/
watch?v1XaZboMtdEo

• I cannot go to school today,
• Said little Peggy Ann McKay,
• I have the measles and the mumps,
• A gash, a rash, and purple bumps.
• My mouth is wet, my throat is dry,
• Im going blind in my right eye.
• My tonsils are as big as rocks,
• Ive counted sixteen chicken pox
• And theres one morethats seventeen,
• And dont you think my face looks green?
• My leg is cut, my eyes are blue---
• It might be instamatic flu.
• I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke,
• Im sure that my left leg is broke
• My hip hurts when I move my chin,
• My belly buttons caving in,
• My back is wrenched, my ankles sprained,
• My pendix pains each time it rains.
• My nose is cold, my toes are numb,

Image http//www.visualphotos.com/image/2x1902611
/girl_sick_in_bed
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Read With a Purpose

• Think for a minute what this poem is about?
• What have you learned about little Peggy Ann
  McKay?

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Respond to a Prompt

• Think of a time that you misled someone.
• What did you bend the truth about?
• How did you feel after you told that person
  something that wasnt 100 true?
• Did s/he ever find out that they had been misled?
• Would you do it again?
• Why or why not?

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Another Look at Poetry

• MOON-CATCHIN' NETI've made me a moon-catchin'
  net,And I'm goin' huntin' tonight,I'll run
  along swingin' it over my head,And grab for that
  big ball of light. So tomorrow just look at the
  sky,And if there's no moon you can betI've
  found what I sought and I finally caughtThe moon
  in my moon-catchin' net. But if the moon's still
  shinin' there,Look close underneath and you'll
  getA clear look at me in the sky swingin'
  freeWith a star in my moon-catchin' net.
• - Shel Silverstein

Image http//www.re-imagine.com/print_catchmoon.h
tml
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Respond to a Prompt

• Has there ever been something you wanted very
  much that you may or may not have been able to
  get? Write about what you wanted. Include the
  following
• What did you want and why did you want it?
• If you got it, explain how it happened and why
  you were successful. If you didnt, explain why
  not.
• Explain how you might be successful in getting it
  in the future.

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Yet another look at Poetry

• Sea-Fever
• by John Masefield
• I must down to the seas again, to the lonely sea
  and the sky,
• And all I ask is a tall ship to steer her by,
• And the wheels kick and the winds song and the
  white sails shaking,
• And a grey mist on the seas face, and a grey
  dawn breaking.
• I must down to the seas again, for the call of
  the running tide
• Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be
  denied
• And all I ask is a windy say with the white
  clouds flying,
• And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the
  sea-gulls crying.
• I must down to the seas again to the vagrant
  gypsy life.
• To the gulls way and the whales way where the
  winds like a whetted knife
• All I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing
  fellow-rover,
• And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long
  tricks over.

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Respond to a Prompt

• The poem below may give you ideas for your
  writing. Read the poem again and pay attention
  to unusual details. Then create a story.
• Imagine you are on a ships crew. Your ship is
  your home. Write a story about how the ocean
  affects your life. Tell about some of the things
  youve seen. Use your imagination to make your
  story interesting and original.

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5-Point Response

• Being on a ships crew, I feel happy and free.
  As a sailor, I get to see all different parts of
  the world, and I have all sorts of amazing
  stories to tell when I return home. I have seen
  beautiful islands and amazing animals. Once, we
  saw a bunch of dolphins jumping through the
  waves. Another time, we saw a giant whale. I
  miss the ocean when Im not on it, but my crew
  and I live near each other, so I am never alone.
• Our ship has been on rough oceans and in big
  storms. We even had waves come over the railings
  and onto the deck of our ship. I was afraid we
  might shipwreck. These things can be scary, but
  I have always been happy on the seas. Feeling
  the wind in my hair and smelling the salty waves
  is great!