Francis J. Degnan
OBJECTIVES
The students will memorize a poem.
The students will individually recite poetry.
The students will recite poetry together chorally.
The students will read a poem and determine what it is about.
The students will improve their pronunciation skills.
The students will recognize the rhyming words from a selection.
MATERIALS
Each poem should be copied on a separate sheet of paper. The poems for lesson one are:
-
“Batty” by Shel Silverstein (Silverstein,
Light
139)
-
“You’ve no need to light a nightlight,” (Potter,
Tongue
14)
-
“Bubble Gum” by Nina Payne ( Prelutsky, Random 106)
-
“A big blue bug bit a big black bear” (Emrich 181)
-
“A fly and a flea in a flue” (Potter,
Ton
g
ue
7)
-
“My Nose” by Dorothy Aldis, (Prelutsky,
Random
217)
PROCEDURE
This is a whole class unit. The poems are to be given out one at a time. In a twenty-five student class there should be established groups of four or five students. This grouping may be done by using the rows or tables existing in the class. They may be told to read quietly while the rest of the class get their poems. There should follow a list of questions based on the poem. Now it is the first poem that the students will attempt to memorize, it is important to discuss the poem to reinforce it for them. Questions for “batty” might include;
What kind of an animal is a bat?
What do you know about bats?
Why would a bat, especially a baby, be afraid of the light?
How do you “turn on the dark”?
What are the words that rhyme?
Questions for “nightlight” might include;
What is a night light?
Why wouldn’t you need one at night?
What does slight mean?
When it says “night light’s light’s a “ explain the use of the apostrophes?
Questions for “Bubble Gum”;
Why is the person in trouble?
How did the gum get between his toes?
Who did he ask to join him in bubble blowing?
What happened?
Questions for “blue bug”;
What happened?
How quickly can you say this poem?
Questions for, “A fly and a flea”;
What are the meanings of fly and flea in this poem.
Which is the homonym, which the homophone?
What is a flue?
What is a flaw?
Questions for “My Nose”;
Do you smell? Of course you do with your nose!
In the poem what is wrong with the nose?
Are you ‘discouraged’ when your not feeling well?
At the conclusion of this lesson the children will have recited individually as well as in their groups. Most will be able to recall “Batty” with looking. An interesting exercise is to let each child read or recite from memory his/her favorite poem. Most will now be able to read the tongue twisters. The pages maybe the start of a poetry notebook.