Poetry: Starting from Scratch : A Two Week Lesson Plan for Teaching Poetry Writing

The job is not to get nice little poems out of people. It's to get the process started. Carey uses the two week lesson plan in this book to teach students of all ages. He uses it successfully in schools, workshops and even prisons. Creative thinking is emphasized through unexpected association. Use all six senses: sight, sound, smell, hearing, tough and what you feel in your heart. Put a quarter in your ear, press a finger to your nose, open your eyes and repaint the picture on paper. Vivid imagery makes a picture come to life. Do not write it -- repaint it with words, capturing the images, mood, thought and colors. The students know they are poets when they see their words making people laugh or ry or sit in awed silence.