1st Edition
Teach This Poem, Volume I The Natural World
Instill a love of poetry in your classroom with the illuminating and inviting lessons from Teach This Poem classroom activities. Co-published with the Academy of American Poets, the leading champion of poets and poetry in the US, this book is an accessible entry-point to teaching poetry and fostering a poetic sensibility in the classroom.
Each lesson follows a consistent format, with a warm-up activity to introduce the chosen poem, pair-shares, whole class synthesis, related resources, oral readings, and extension activities. Curated by the AAP, the poems are chosen with an eye toward fostering compassion and representing diverse experiences. Understanding that poetry is a powerful way of seeing the world, the volumes are organized thematically: Volume I is centered on the natural world and Volume II on equality and justice.
Aligned with current standards and pedagogy, the lessons in this poem will inspire English teachers and their students alike.
Preface by Richard Blanco
Introduction by Madeleine Fuchs Holzer
1. Why Poetry?
Introduction
Lessons
“These Poems” by June Jordan
“There is no frigate like a book (1263)” by Emily Dickinson
“from WHEREAS [“WHEREAS when offered...”]” by Layli Long Soldier
“Poetry” by Marianne Moore
“Valentine for Ernest Mann” by Naomi Shihab Nye
“Bracken” by Kai Carlson-Wee
“On Gathering Artists” by Alberto Ríos
“The Indications [excerpt]” by Walt Whitman
“A Way of Seeing” by Kwame Dawes
2. The Natural World
Introduction
Lessons
Part I: Future
“Letter to Someone Living Fifty Years From Now” by Matthew Olzmann
“Characteristics of Life” by Camille T. Dungy
“The Everglades” by Campbell McGrath
“The Shapes of Leaves” by Arthur Sze
“The Forest for the Trees” by Rena Priest
“Dead Stars” by Ada Limón
“Radium Dream” by Sheila Black
“Nimbawaadaan Akiing / I Dream A World” by Margaret Noodin
Part 2: Present
“In Praise of Okra” by January Gill O’Neil
“Remember” by Joy Harjo
“The Tree Sparrows” by Joseph O. Legaspi
“A Small Needful Fact” by Ross Gay
“In cold spring air” by Reginald Gibbons
“Cherry Blossoms” by Toi Derricotte
“Map” by Linda Hogan
“She Was Fed Turtle Soup” by Lois Red Elk
“Instructions on Not Giving Up” by Ada Limón
“The Silver Thread” by Afaa Michael Weaver
“Complaint of El Rio Grande” by Richard Blanco
Part 3: Past
“Coyote” by Alexander Posey
“Peace Path” by Heid E. Erdrich
“Binsey Poplars” by Gerard Manley Hopkins
“The Snowfall is So Silent” by Miguel de Unamuno, translated by Ricardo Alberto Maldonado
“To Winter” by Claude McKay
“maggie and milly and molly and may” by E. E. Cummings
“Willow Poem” by William Carlos Williams
“Saint Francis and the Sow” by Galway Kinnell
“The Metier of Blossoming” by Denise Levertov
“blessing the boats” by Lucille Clifton
Glossary of Poetic Terms
Teaching With Primary Sources
Adapting Teach This Poem to an Online or Hybrid Classroom
Poet and Translator Biographies
Bibliography
Biography
Madeleine Fuchs Holzer was the Inaugural Educator in Residence at the Academy of American Poets, where she curated and created Teach this Poem. She has taught at the high school and university levels, and has worked as an arts-in-education administrator. Her poetry and essays have appeared in several literary journals.
Founded in 1934 in New York City by Marie Bullock, the Academy of American Poets is an organization that connects millions of readers to poets’ work with its many free programs and publications. Its mission is to support poets at all stages of their careers and to foster the appreciation of contemporary poetry.
