Brief Description

This lesson helps students to become acquainted with a historical figure, Helen Keller.  The students will be made aware of the creative side of Helen Keller. This personal glimpse of Helen Keller, through a poem she wrote, is also a springboard for a poetry activity.

Standards and Frameworks

Technology Standards

• 1T-E1. Communicate about technology using developmentally appropriate and accurate terminology
• 3T-E1. Use formatting capabilities of technology tools for communicating and illustrating
• 4T-E2. Use technology tools for individual and collaborative writing, communication and publishing activities to create curricular related products for audiences inside and outside the classroom

• R-E2.Use reading strategies such as making inferences and predictions, summarizing, paraphrasing, differentiating fact from opinion, drawing conclusions, and determining the author’s purpose and perspective to comprehend written selections
• R-E3.Analyze selections of fiction, nonfiction and poetry by identifying the plot line (i.e., beginning, conflict, rising action, climax and resolution); distinguishing the main character from minor ones; describing the relationships between and motivations of characters; and making inferences about the events, setting, style, tone, mood and meaning of the selection
• R-F5.Analyze selections of fiction, nonfiction and poetry for their literary elements such as character, setting, plot, sequence of events and organization of text
• R-P2.Recognize, analyze and evaluate an author’s use of literary elements such as mood, tone, theme, point of view, diction, dialog and figurative language (e.g., metaphors, allusions, symbolism, similes) in selections of challenging fiction, nonfiction and poetry
• W-E1.Use correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar and usage, along with varied sentence structure and paragraph organization, to complete effectively a variety of writing tasks
• W-D1.Expand writing experiences by experimenting with language, form and genres (e.g., poetry, screenplays and public policy documents)

Academic

The student will be able to write a poem about an object or situation of their choosing. The poem should contain at least 4 lines, or be written in the form of a quatrain. The poems can be rhymed or unrhymed. The poem will be judged on the minimum 4 line requirement and using the “Official Scoring Guide: Arizona’s Instrument to Measure Writing Standards.”  Each student should score at least 3 on sentence fluency, word choice, and voice for a total score of 9 on the rubric to measure Writing Standards.

Technological

• The students will examine an authentic piece of poetry written 110 years ago by Helen Keller. The written piece can be accessed and examined on “American Memories Learning Page” poem.

The students will then write and print their original poem using the “Kid Pix Deluxe” program.  The students will be judged on their ability to access the "American Memories Learning Page" and to use the "Kid Pix Deluxe" program to write and print their original poem, with a simple teacher created checklist.

• The students will need to know how to use the Internet.
• The students will need to know how to access a URL address.
• The students will need to know how to access "American Memories Learning Page" using bookmarks or favorite in the tool bar.
• The students will need to know how to use the "Kid Pix Deluxe" program.
• The students will need to know how to write a poem and add pictures to the poem using the "Kid Pix Deluxe" program.
• The students will need to know how to print their poem using the "Kid Pix Deluxe" program.

The items needed for this lesson are a “Kid Pix Deluxe” program or any student publishing program, a copy of the biography of the life of Helen Keller, Helen Keller by Johanna Hurwitz or any biography written for children ages 8-12, a copy of Helen Keller's poem, "Autumn" for each student, a video monitor connected to the computer to display Helen Keller's poem to the class, descriptive poem organizer worksheet, and quatrain worksheet.  Also needed throughout the lesson are various poetry books. Books written by humorous poets like Shel Silverstein or Jack Prelutsky are great ways for reluctant students to get hooked into this poetry lesson. Poetry written by traditional poets and about the seasons and holidays are enjoyable for students, too.

Accommodations for Special Needs

• Students who need help with writing or are language challenged will need the assistance of the teacher to either write or complete the activities. The teacher could have a small group with these students or those that are going to need more help.  The teacher could help by generating a word wall with lists of words the students may need to use to complete the worksheets and to write their poems.  The teacher could also help by writing the words, on charts, these students have asked for the correct spelling. This helps because other students may also need the same words.
• Students, who find this difficult, could copy a simple quatrain, by a poet, that they like. They could read this a loud to the class. They could also illustrate their poem.
• Students that find this activity fun and easy to complete will want to write more than one poem and different kinds of poems.
• Any student that wants to could share their poem or act out the poem with sounds. This is also some thing any ability level student could do.

Day One and Two

• The teacher will begin this study of poetry by reading different types of poems aloud to the students.
• The teacher will discuss the meaning of the poems with the students.
• The teacher will ask what words helped the students to "see" the meaning of the poem.
• The students will give their interpretation of the poems through the discussions.
• The students will look through and read the different poetry books that are made available to them in the classroom.
• Students will want to share the poems they have found and enjoy. Provide time during class for those students that want to read the poems aloud to the class.

• The teacher should read the biography of Helen Keller to the class. The teacher and class should discuss Helen Keller's life and the obstacles she had to over come. The discussion should include how her inability to see and hear the world around her did not keep her from expressing herself and her feelings.
• Read and share more poems from the poetry books in the classroom. Some students will want to bring poetry books they may have at home. They can read these as well and share any of the poems that they enjoy from the books.

• The teacher will display "Autumn,” written by Helen Keller on the video monitor that is connected to the computer. Each student should also get a copy of the poem.
• Read the poem aloud, with the students following along with their own copies, the teacher reads several lines at a time. The teacher then asks what the students think about the meanings of the verses.
• Some of the words in the poem maybe unknown by the students, because they are not used frequently. The teacher will need to explain the meaning of these words to the students. The teacher could present the words ahead of time or as the words occur upon reading the poem aloud.
• Reading the poem aloud, with the students following along with their own copies, the teacher reads several lines at a time. The teacher then asks what the  students think is the meanings of the verses.
• The teacher and students note how Helen Keller describes the autumn day with her descriptive words. The teacher asks the students to wonder how someone who is blind and deaf is able to “paint” the day. In the discussion that follows the idea of using the other senses to learn about the world should be brought out in the discussion.

• Hand out the descriptive poem organizer worksheet. The worksheet is intended to be used to help the students organize their thinking, word choices and to help generate ideas for descriptive poems for the next lesson.
• The teacher chooses one of the topics in the topic box to lead the class through a class poem organizer.
• After completing the organizer, the students can complete their own worksheet. They should choose one of the topics to organize. The students should be encouraged to use the words that go with the topic and that would “paint” descriptions of the topic through the senses.
• Allow work time. Circulate among the students and offer help where needed. From time to time, share a student’s sensory description of a topic. This helps those students who need to hear what words they can use and how other students have described a topic.
• This is only an organizer, so phrases are ok. The descriptions don’t have to be in sentences nor should they rhyme.
• For those students that want to, allow time for students to share their sensory descriptions with the class.
• Collect the worksheets at the end of this activity. It will be used on Day Seven.

• Hand out the quatrain worksheet. Follow the directions and read through the examples with the students. Discuss how each quatrain is different and note which stanzas rhyme and which words rhyme.
• Have the students complete “Now It’s Your Turn” either on the back of the worksheet or on another piece of lined paper.  The students should choose one out of the five choices.
• Circulate among the students and offer help where needed. From time to time, share a student’s quatrain aloud with the class. Or the student may want to read the quatrain aloud themselves.
• Collect the worksheets at the end of this activity. It will be used on Day Seven.

• Hand out the two previous worksheets to their owners.
• Review what the students did on the two worksheets.
• Tell the students that they are going to write an original descriptive poem but written in a quatrain format.
• Students will use their descriptive organizer worksheet to complete this task. The quatrain worksheet is to be used to refresh their memories, and to help follow the quatrain format as they write their original poems. This will be a “sloppy copy” and the students will later rewrite this into a final copy.
• Students will use the organizer to recall the descriptive words and phrase they used for the previous topic they wrote about. They can use these words or phrases in their quatrain.
• Circulate among the students and offer help where needed. From time to time, share a student’s quatrain aloud with the class. Or the student may want to read the quatrain aloud themselves.
• Collect the worksheets at the end of this activity.

Allow more time the next day to complete the quatrains. Students will need to rewrite the poems in a final copy form. The students will write their final copy on a “Kid Pix Deluxe” program or any student publishing program. The students can illustrate their poems after writing the final copy.

** Allow more days, if needed, for students to complete their poems. The poems will then be collected so they can be scored.  Do not write the student’s rubric score on their poem, but record it elsewhere; like a grade book.

The poems can be displayed around the room or compiled into a class poetry book.

• Use a writing rubric to score the final original poem of the students. The poems should be scored on fluency, word choice and voice. Each trait should get three points, with a total of nine possible. The “Arizona Writing Score Guide” was used for this lesson.
• For those students that copied a quatrain from another published poet, will be given a + if they copied the poem neatly and with out errors or – if they didn’t finish the poem. These students could also be given more time to complete the activity.
• To show completion of the technology objectives, the student’s poem will be judged on the teacher created checklist. The students will have to have checkmarks in all four areas, if not then the students will work on the assignment until all areas are checked. If the special accommodations have been made for certain students, then they may not have to have all four areas checked.