TeachersFirst - Featured Sites: Week of Apr 21, 2019

Here are this week's features. Clicking the tags in the description area of each listing will present a list of other resources with this topic. | Click here to return to the Featured Sites Archive

 

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The Quarry: A Social Justice Poetry Database - Split This Rock

Grades
10 to 12
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This searchable collection of over 300 poems is designed to share poetry by socially engaged poets. Poetry topics cover a wide variety of themes including aging, economics, and environmental...more
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This searchable collection of over 300 poems is designed to share poetry by socially engaged poets. Poetry topics cover a wide variety of themes including aging, economics, and environmental issues. Use the filters to search by format, language, and more. Many poems include audio and video versions, and international poets offer translations into English. Note: this site contains several adult themes including gender identity and sexuality. Be sure to preview any content before sharing with your students.

tag(s): authors (103), creativity (92), environment (238), identity (28), poetry (188), sexuality (15), sociology (22)

In the Classroom

Be sure to preview any work on this site before sharing with your students. Take advantage of this database for use when looking for contemporary poetry to use in your classroom. Enjoy sharing poetry with students as models for poetry writing and reading or to introduce poets to your students. Be sure to ask students what the poem says about the poet as part of a self identity unit. Once students have written their own poems, ask them what the poem says about their own self identity. Instead of asking students to create a written journal of poetry, replace the written journal and build a poetry portfolio by having them use a bookmarking tool like Wakelet, reviewed here. Use Wakelet to add links to student-created poetry, poems from their favorite poets, audio recordings of their poetry, and videos sharing different structures of poetry. As a final project, ask students to extend learning and classroom technology by creating podcasts discussing and featuring both their work and the work of favorite poets. Spotify for Podcasters, reviewed here, is a free, easy to use podcast creation and sharing site.

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Poem Generator - Masterpiece Generator

Grades
4 to 12
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Quickly create several different forms of poems using the Poem Generator. Choose from over a dozen different options to begin your poem. Follow the prompts to add a topic and ...more
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Quickly create several different forms of poems using the Poem Generator. Choose from over a dozen different options to begin your poem. Follow the prompts to add a topic and words to include. To create and complete your poem, select the "Write me a poem" link. Some formats require additional steps before generating the final piece of poetry. To view different poem creations using the same word prompts, choose refresh for a new poem.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): parts of speech (40), poetry (188)

In the Classroom

Use the Poem Generator to introduce students to different forms of poems through exploration and use of the generator's features. This site is also a great tool to use when teaching parts of speech. Challenge students to identify the features that indicate different types of poems. Create a class Padlet, reviewed here, with columns for each type of poem and ask students to share their creations in the appropriate column. After students have time to experiment with the Poem Generator, challenge them to create poems without using this tool. Enhance classroom technology use by adding a reading of their final project to Voxer, reviewed here. Ask students to add audio recordings including their reading of the poem and a short discussion sharing the features that identify the poem as belonging to a specific genre. Transform classroom technology use by having students publish their poetry using Book Creator, reviewed here, to make a class book with all of your students' poetry. Be sure to have each student include an audio recording reading their poem!
 

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Poetry Generators - Poem of Quotes

Grades
4 to 12
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Are you stuck trying to write a poem? These generators will help you through the process. Choose from a variety of different formats including haiku, limerick, and acrostic to begin....more
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Are you stuck trying to write a poem? These generators will help you through the process. Choose from a variety of different formats including haiku, limerick, and acrostic to begin. Once started, fill in the provided blanks to add names and other information then view your completed poem. Copy the poem as created, edit to your liking, or choose the regenerate option to generate a new creation. New to this tool are several Artificial Intelligence (AI) poetry generators. Enter a word or phrase and the AI Generator will create a poem for you. Make sure your students know to attribute the AI Generated poem. There are programs out there to detect AI created writing, see GPTZero, reviewed here.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): digital storytelling (142), poetry (188)

In the Classroom

Take advantage of the poem generator to motivate students' interest in poetry and offer the opportunity to explore different types of poetry. As students become more confident in creating their poetry, use a digital portfolio tool like Spaces, reviewed here, for students to compile and share their poetry. Transform classroom technology use by having students publish their poetry using Book Creator, reviewed here. In addition to sharing poems, ask students to add images and record audio, reading their poems and sharing their creative process when writing poetry.

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Poetry Writing with Jack Prelutsky - Scholastic

Grades
2 to 8
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Write a poem using Jack Prelutsky's guidance and tips for writing and editing poetry. Gain confidence and success with writing poetry. When finished, post your poem online! Find a Teacher's...more
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Write a poem using Jack Prelutsky's guidance and tips for writing and editing poetry. Gain confidence and success with writing poetry. When finished, post your poem online! Find a Teacher's Guide in the lower left corner to guide you through this lesson.
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tag(s): poetry (188)

In the Classroom

Start your language arts lesson with Jack Prelutsky by reading the poem "Louder Than a Clap of Thunder," featured in this lesson. If you have access to his books, put them out on desks/tables and have students look through and read a poem out loud for their group. After this introduction, read the poem for the lesson again and have students try to write their own "Prelutsky-like" poem. Once students finalize their poems, offer a variety of ways to present their poems through drama or enhance your classroom technology use by using a digital story using Bookemon, reviewed here, or Prezi, reviewed here; with either of these tools you could enhance classroom technology use depending on your requirements for the assignment. Add the poems to your class website or blog.
 This resource requires PDF reader software like Adobe Acrobat.

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CurriConnects Booklist: Poets and Poetry - TeachersFirst

Grades
K to 12
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This CurriConnects booklist features poetry books, biographies of poets, and poets' books about writing to make poetry more approachable and enjoyable for readers of all interests....more
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This CurriConnects booklist features poetry books, biographies of poets, and poets' books about writing to make poetry more approachable and enjoyable for readers of all interests. This list is a perfect companion to formal units about poetry or simply for anyone who would like to learn more about poets and how they write. CurriConnects thematic book lists include ISBN numbers for ordering or searching, interest grade levels, ESL levels and Lexiles''® (where available) to match with student independent reading levels to challenge, not frustrate. Be aware Lexile levels are based on prose (sentence length, words per sentence, etc.), and cannot be calculated for poetry, so Lexile levels are not available for poetry books. Don't miss other CurriConnects themes being added regularly.

tag(s): book lists (159), literature (217), poetry (188)

In the Classroom

This list will fit well during National Poetry Month or any unit on poetry. Finding Lexiles for poetry can be a challenge, but this list includes them where available. Augment or modify classroom technology use (depending on assignment requirements) by having your students "collect" their favorite poems as they read from this list and share them as a multimedia poetry reading using copyright-friendly images or even their own artwork. Upload images and add the poetry in the student's own voice using a tool like Powtoon, reviewed here, or moovly, reviewed here. Go "low tech" by hosting a live poetry reading celebration in your classroom or during lunch in the school cafeteria.

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Kids Magnetic Poetry Kit - McDonagh Brothers

Grades
K to 5
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Create and play with poetry using this interactive magnetic poetry kit! Drag words from the word bank onto the blank board to build poems. Click the more words option to ...more
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Create and play with poetry using this interactive magnetic poetry kit! Drag words from the word bank onto the blank board to build poems. Click the more words option to find additional words for use. When finished, save and share to Facebook or via email using the form provided.
This site includes advertising.

tag(s): interactive stories (20), poetry (188), sight words (22)

In the Classroom

Share this site on your projector or interactive whiteboard for students to see how to create a poem. Use this site to practice sight words. The magnetic poetry kit would make an excellent center activity for use during Poetry Month. Create a shortcut on classroom computers and let students create their own poems. Share completed poems on a class bulletin board or your class website. Take a screenshot (PrntScrn button, then PASTE on a WIndows machine or Command+Shift+4 on a Mac to save a screenshot) of the completed poems to put into a digital portfolio such as Seesaw, reviewed here. View all of TeachersFirst's Editor's Choices for Poetry Month here.

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Power Poetry - Power Poetry

Grades
8 to 12
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Encourage budding poets with Power Poetry. Power Poetry's mission is to close the literacy gap through poetry. This is a community where young people of all backgrounds come together...more
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Encourage budding poets with Power Poetry. Power Poetry's mission is to close the literacy gap through poetry. This is a community where young people of all backgrounds come together to process their emotions using poetry. Find challenges to write about social issues or to write a poem in only 140 characters. Scroll down the page and point out the topic "7 Famous Poetic Pop Songs" where students are sure to recognize current singer/song writers. Find many supportive community members to encourage you to develop your voice. From the dropdown menu on the top click Resources then Teachers to find lesson plans, a free "How to Teach Poetry" course, and lots more. Poets are free to write about any subject; however, there are site guidelines to prevent hate speech and other inappropriate content. Join with a username and email address. On your profile, there is the option of sharing your first name and last initial, profile picture, and a short biography. You can message each other within the site, but this feature can be disabled from account settings.

tag(s): poetry (188), social and emotional learning (80)

In the Classroom

Encourage your most avid writers to submit their poetry to this site. Use your whiteboard or projector to show them the "Take Action Guides." There you will find many issues of concern to youth today. Most students will enjoy uniting multimedia, poetry, and activism in one place. Challenge your students to choose a contemorary poet, either from this site's list or one they know of, and study their poetic form, then to write a poem in that poet's style. Enhance learning by having students keep a blog using a tool like Penzu, reviewed here, to write down their thoughts as they investigate different parts of this site. This will help them when it comes time to write their own poem. With Penzu you can add images or your own artwork as illustrations. Then extend learning by having students either publish their poems on the site or by using a multimedia tool like Genially, reviewed here, and publish their poems on your classroom or school web page. Counselors may want to encourage disenfranchised students to join the site and write about their deepest feelings. This is a supportive community that encourages students to develop their own voice.

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Poem Hunter - PoemHunter.com

Grades
6 to 12
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PoemHunter is a search engine (and more) for finding poems, lyrics, and quotations. Know only part of a poem or quotation? Type it in the search box to find the ...more
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PoemHunter is a search engine (and more) for finding poems, lyrics, and quotations. Know only part of a poem or quotation? Type it in the search box to find the entire original source. Choose from hot poems or specific topics on the home page. View and explore the top 500 poets and/or the top 500 poems. Read the Poem of the Day that includes three poems: one classic, one modern, and one viewer submitted. Choose from the poets, poems, quotations, or lyrics tabs to narrow your search to specific topics. Become a member to save favorite poems for further reference. Be aware: many of the pages include comments from users. While all were appropriate at the time of this review, it is always best to preview!
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tag(s): authors (103), biographies (93), literature (217), poetry (188), quotations (20)

In the Classroom

Bookmark PoemHunter to use as a resource for finding poetry or quotations for classroom use. Share with students to find poems based on personal interest or specific topics. Use as a model when students create their own poems. Challenge students to create their own poems to be shared on a class poetry wiki. Not comfortable with wikis? Check out the TeachersFirst Wiki Walk-Through.

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Theme Poem Generator - Read, Write, Think - International Reading Association

Grades
K to 4
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Engage students while learning about poetry with this easy to use Theme Poem Generator (formerly known as Shape Poem Generator). Type in the author's name and see an example of ...more
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Engage students while learning about poetry with this easy to use Theme Poem Generator (formerly known as Shape Poem Generator). Type in the author's name and see an example of a Theme Poem. Choices of themes include nature, school, celebrations, and sports. Each theme offers several choices of shapes. Choose a shape and then type in several words or phrases that go along with the shape. Make a title and use the words and phrases as ideas to include in the poem. When finished, read the poem, go back and edit, or print the link on the page.

tag(s): poetry (188)

In the Classroom

This site is perfect for use on an interactive whiteboard (or projector) to introduce the concept of theme (shape) poems. Choose a theme and create a poem together as a class. Use as a teacher-led center and have groups of students create shape poems using this site. Print and display student-created poems on a classroom bulletin board. Enhance classroom technology use and challenge students to brainstorm words to go with chosen shapes prior to creating their poem using a tool such as Padlet, reviewed here, or to create a word cloud of terms about a theme before creating poems using a tool such as Word Clouds for Kids, reviewed here.

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Poetry Month Editor's Choice Resources - TeachersFirst

Grades
K to 12
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This collection of reviewed resources from TeachersFirst is selected by our editors from the hundreds of reviewed poetry resources and creative tools listed on TeachersFirst. Now April...more
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This collection of reviewed resources from TeachersFirst is selected by our editors from the hundreds of reviewed poetry resources and creative tools listed on TeachersFirst. Now April can be Poetry Month in any classroom. Even if you teach science or math, there is a place for poetry in your curriculum. Poetry is as brief and economical as a number sentence, but with feelings or messages between the words. Why not throw some poetry lines amid your chemical or algebraic equations to connect with verbal/linguistic learners and spark a new way of seeing any subject? Take time to plan a "poetry break" using these ideas from the TeachersFirst Editors.

tag(s): poetry (188)

In the Classroom

Make Poetry Month a participatory experience. Have students compose a limerick explaining a science term or historic figure. Have students collect a list of words from your current unit. Then offer extra credit for a poetic interpretation to be shared as a daily "poetry break" during April. Use one of the tools featured here to share poetic visions of biology, geometry, and more during April. Cover a classroom wall with white paper for "curriculum poetry" during April. Encourage students to share poetry graffiti (classroom appropriate, of course). Or, replace the papered wall for an online bulletin board like Padlet, reviewed here. For more poetic ideas check out the "In the classroom" suggestions included in each review.

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Poems = Word Comics - Austin Kleon

Grades
6 to 12
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Poems = Word Comics is the perfect venue to view poetry in an entirely new way and hook your students into creating poems. You won't hear any more moans and ...more
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Poems = Word Comics is the perfect venue to view poetry in an entirely new way and hook your students into creating poems. You won't hear any more moans and groans when you mention poetry workshop time. Many poems are like word comics, in that they jump from one image to another in a short amount of lines. Transform your poets into cartoonists by creating a comic strip of images on a page and using the artwork to propel text to convey a message. After all, communication is an art. Be careful, it may become addicting!

tag(s): creative writing (122), poetry (188), writing (315)

In the Classroom

Visual thinkers sometimes experience difficulty expressing their thoughts in words and when asked to write a poem, they literally fall apart. Poetry has images inherent in its form; therefore, spark your students' creativity by enabling them to think of a line in a poem as a frame in a cartoon. By jumping from image to image, the poem takes on a comic-like element, where the words and images are dependent upon each other. Rather than getting jammed up on words that rhyme, this approach offers a clever and amazing way to "write a poem." This activity would work well for pairing visual learners or artistically inclined students with the stronger writers in the class, or by using individual computers and modifying technology use to combine the Poems = Word Comics concept with Make Beliefs Comix, reviewed here, to create professional looking poetic comics.

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