On March 23rd, students in Second Grade gathered in Room 307 to read their poetry out loud to an eager audience of parents, teachers, and peers. The well-attended Poetry Open Mic was a culmination of the second grade poetry unit, in which second graders learned to apply many poetry techniques to their own poems. During the event, each student read his or her poem aloud (with a MICROPHONE!) while it was projected behind them with a correlating illustration composed by the poet. Students in Rooms 307 and 310 showed their understanding of similes and metaphors by using it in their poetry to compare unlike objects and people. They also learned how to use personification to give nonhuman things human qualities, as well as how to create rhythm and rhyme in their poems.
Students loved experimenting with onomatopoeia in poetry and learned how to revise their poetry by creating purposeful line breaks. Room 310 students even tried writing odes to people, animals, or things that were very important to them! These poetry skills have already carried over into student personal narrative writing as scholars become more descriptive with their newly acquired figurative language. The Poetry Open Mic was a great chance for students to read their own work aloud with expression - they did a fantastic job! Thanks to all who attended!