I am already obsessed with our poetry unit...and we just started it on Monday! We had a special guest on Tuesday: my roommate Michelle. Michelle majored in English in college and loves writing poetry and short stories in her free time. A few months ago, we were sitting in our living room and Michelle read me a poem that she had written that day. At the time, I had no idea that she regularly wrote poetry. I was blown away by her talent! I said that when we kicked off our poetry unit, I'd love if she came in and read some of her poems to the kids. Well fast forward a few months, and we made it happen. Michelle took the day off from work and spent reading block with both homerooms. She read poems that she had written in fourth grade, seventh grade, college, and recently. It was sooo awesome to show the kids Michelle's enthusiasm for this genre. After analyzing one of Michelle's poems with strong imagery, the kids were given the opportunity to write a poem on any topic of their choice. Their goal was to include descriptive adjectives, vivid verbs, figurative language, and their senses. The poems they created in just twenty minutes were absolutely incredible. I couldn't believe it! Since then, many kids have been writing poems on their own. I ended up getting blank composition notebooks for students interested in compiling the poems that they write. The excitement the kids are showing for reading and writing poetry is every teacher's dream!!!

On Wednesday, students worked in groups on a STEAM activity. The activity revolved around making instruments out of recycled materials, and then using the sounds those instruments produced to play a message to the class. In order to communicate the message, each group developed their own morse code. It was a super cool activity and the kids did a great job with it. On Friday, we attended a performance called "Heroines on the Homefront". A talented historian and storyteller came in and talked about life during the Colonial times. The performance portrayed how Colonial women contributed to winning the war for Independence and how learning to spin created a new, independent, American textile economy that helped ensure the survival of the nation. It was neat!

Our Bucket Fillers this week were Nathan and Andrew. Both boys really blew me away this week with the poetry they wrote. They included impressive imagery and I loved seeing them showcase their creativity. I can't wait to see what else they come up with during this unit!