Kids love poetry by nature. They love the sounds, the rhythm, the cadence.
But writing poetry? That’s where some kids get stuck. Fast.
The solution? Try having students create “found” poems. This poetry exercise will help jump start students who have trouble pulling their own words out of thin air, and build confidence that they just might, in fact, be poets after all.
Before jumping in, be sure to spend some time reading and viewing a variety of poems with students, discussing some of the elements that make a poem, well, a poem.
“Found poetry” can be created individually, with a partner or in groups, whatever works for your classroom and grade level. It’s also a wonderful center activity, especially suited for addressing the needs of tactile learners.
This exercise will be most effective if you have a sample ready to share beforehand or, even better, if you have some words selected and model the activity for the class first.
What you’ll need:
- newspapers, magazines, other printed materials with words that can be cut apart singularly or in phrases
- blank paper (drawing, computer, construction, etc.)
- scissors
- glue
What you'll do:
Explain to students that poems, like anything else that’s written, are really just made up of groups of words. The poet doesn’t invent the words, just selects them and puts them together in a way that is interesting or expresses a particular feeling or idea. They don’t even have to rhyme! Tell the students that today they will be “selecting words” and putting them together – like the real poets they are!
Pass out printed material for students to work with, along with scissors. Save the glue and paper for later – this gives the kids a chance to focus on the words they’re choosing without jumping right to the “putting together” part.
Have students page through the printed material, cutting out words that catch their eye, that interest them. Be sure to tell them there are no right or wrong words – they should pick what they like, but make sure to include nouns, verbs (“action words”), adjectives (“describing words”), and some necessary pieces like “a”, “an”, “the”, “and”, etc. They can either cut single words, or chunks of two or three words, but no entire sentences! Putting the words together is their job. Note: younger students should probably be advised to stick to clipping from headlines or other large print, and magazines are best for this age group; newspapers are better suited to older students, who can handle cutting out smaller print.
Once the students have collected their words, pass out the paper and have them manipulate the words on the blank page. Remind them that poetry is generally made up of shorter lines of text moving down the page. Encourage them to move words around, trying different combinations. Silly combinations are fine – some of the poetry kids love best is poetry that makes them laugh!
Finally, once the students are satisfied with their arrangements, have them glue the words in place. Voila! Instant poets! Have students share their pieces aloud if they wish, and make the finished work part of a bulletin board display afterwards.
This activity can be used on its own or as a scaffold to more independent means of creating poems. Whatever you choose to do, just be sure to keep them writing!
