Unit 1 Activity 3
Writing a Historical Poem
Estimated time required: Two or three forty minute class periods.
Your historians can demonstrate their understanding of the relevance of the historical site by writing historical poems.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- Students will compile data based upon field research
- Students will compose poetical works based upon historical ideas
- Students will write a poem, using a historical figure's perspective in order to better understand the time period
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STANDARDS FROM MCREL STANDARDS
Historical Understanding Standard 1:Historical Understanding Standards
- Understands and knows how to analyze chronological relationships and patterns
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Historical Understanding Standard 2: Understands the historical perspective
- Knows how to view the past in terms of the norms and values of the time
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Language Arts Standard 1: Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process
- Uses planning and strategies to plan written work
- Uses strategies to draft and revise written work
- Evaluates own and others’ writing
- Writes narrative accounts, such a poems and stories
Language Arts Standard 2:Uses the stylistic and rhetorical aspects of writing
- Uses descriptive language that clarifies and enhances ideas
Language Arts Standard 4: Gathers and uses information for research purposes
- Uses a variety of strategies to plan research
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TOOLS & MATERIALS
- Students will need copies of a completed scavenger hunt based upon their trip to the historical site. (See previous activity.)
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Procedure
- Students should make sure that their scavenger hunts are completed as fully as possible. They may compare notes with other students in their group, use print resources from the media center, or access the Internet in order to complete their scavenger hunts.
- Students should then pick one particular person from the history of the historical site. It does not have to be the person with the most historical significance, and you may wish to encourage students to pick a non-traditional person for this assignment.
- Students will write a historical poem from the perspective of their chosen historical figure.
- Have students pick a number of important details concerning the historical figure, particularly in relationship to the historical site.
- Students should make a list of these important details and place a check next to any of these details that their chosen historical figure would have known.
- Have students write a 10-15-line poem from the perspective of the chosen historical figure. Make sure that they use details from the list they compiled.
- Have students revise the poem before they present it. Make sure that students pay particular attention to various style points, such as using descriptive, active verbs (i.e. slouch instead of sit), using a single consistent perspective, and showing details to the reader (as opposed to telling details).
- If time permits, have students share their poem with a partner for a critique. Have the students critique the poems based upon the style points above. Additionally, have students critique the poem based on how accurate the other students feel the historical figure's perspective is.
- Again, if time permits, have students read their poems to the class. Encourage supportive comments about each poem in order improve the writing and the writing process.
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