Remember September 11

(6-8)

Using Poetry to
Commemorate
September 11 (n46)

Subject

Language Arts

Objective

This lesson is designed to use poetry as a vehicle for discussing and recording student reactions to the events of September 11.  As part of this lesson students will read and respond to poetry written by students following 9/11 and discuss their own reactions both at the time of the tragedy and one year later.  Students will also write and revise their own poems, using peer conferencing and response techniques.

Time Needed

Materials

Internet link (if possible) paper or journals

Lesson

Preparation: In preparation for this activity, teachers may find student written poetry on several sites on the internet. There is a broad range of poetry available and it may take some time to read and select poetry appropriate for individual classes. Some of the available sites are:

http://www.cathedralnyc.org/student/project3/poems_9_11_c.htm
http://www.mecca.org/~graham/day/poetrypost/peace.html
http://www.pennmanor.net/showcase/writing/jhemler.html
http://www.poetryzone.ndirect.co.uk/towers.htm
http://www.startribune.com/stories/389/720877.html
http://www.psychservices.com/hopetree.shtml
http://jfg.girlscouts.org/Talk/whoami/issues/poems.htm
http://jfg.girlscouts.org/Space/Poetry/Junior/Archive/2001/JR1.htm
http://www.poetryzone.ndirect.co.uk/towers.htm

Activities:

1. To prepare for this unit, students will be asked to remember where they were on September 11, 2001, when they heard the news of the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. Students will be asked discuss their reactions on that day and the days following the attack – their questions, concerns, emotions, understandings and misunderstandings.
2. Students will then be asked to write in their journals for 2 – 3 minutes about those feelings. This is a free writing activity which allows students to capture their memories of and reactions to that day.
3. The class will read and respond to selected poems written by other school age students. Response questions will differ but may include:
   • What feelings or reactions is the author expressing through this poem?
   • What words or images help you to understand the author’s reactions to this event?
   • What does this poem help us to understand or feel about September 11?
   • Do you share any of this author’s feelings about September 11?
   • What do you like about the way this poem is written?
4. Students will have the opportunity to discuss how they feel about September 11 today. Have their feelings changed? Diminished? Strengthened? Do they understand things now that they didn’t understand then? Have their feelings changed about people or the world we live in? How has September 11 changed the world we live in? If so, how do we feel about that?
5. Because modeling is important, I will share some lines of poetry I have written about September 11. My poem begins
   
   What I wish for you, America,
   is peace
   and if not peace
   compassion.

   It reflects not only my immediate concerns about intolerance and revenge, but also my continuing concerns about the ways September 11 may change our society and our commitment to civil liberty. This activity also models a format for peer writing conference. Students will be asked first what they like about my piece of writing. In addition, students may ask me questions about my writing. Finally, students may suggest revisions I may want to make to my poem.

6. Students will write their own poems. They may use any form of poetry and may be as brief as they wish. They may express immediate reactions, current reactions, or both.

7. Students may then volunteer to share their poetry with the class. The class will respond using the format for a peer conference. Students who don’t wish to volunteer with the whole class will share and respond in groups of twos or threes.

8. Students will have time to revise and edit their poems and submit them if they wish for class publication.

Source: Marian Galbraith, Groton, CT