Free Graphic Organizer from Awakening the Heart
One of the most important life lessons that writing and reading poetry can teach our students is how to reach into and honor their well of feelings—their emotional lives—like no other form of writing can. Poetry, by its very nature, teaches emotional literacy.
My goal in teaching poetry is to share what it means to live and see the world as a poet does. What does it mean to see the world like a poet?
Here is one thought:
Poets look at the world in new ways. This is what metaphor and simile do for us: they take the film of familiarity off our everyday world. Metaphor and simile are natural for children—they think in associations and playful imaginative leaps.*
With that in mind, here’s a free poetry prompt from Awakening the Heart, a bestselling resource for teaching poetry, now fully updated with new lessons, exercises, and writing prompts that engage today’s kids.
My Thoughts Are Clouds Graphic Organizer
Graphic Organizer
In this activity, students read my poem about how thoughts are like clouds and then write thoughts they want to let go of on paper clouds beside the poem. This symbolic act helps children visualize freeing these thoughts, using clouds as a metaphor for releasing emotions.
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And you might also enjoy my children’s poetry book, My Thoughts Are Clouds. Named a Bank Street Best Children’s Book of 2022 and a NCTE Notable Children’s Book, the book illustrates what mindfulness is and encourages young, growing minds to be present.
My Thoughts are Clouds
A poetry collection that both illustrates what mindfulness is and encourages young, growing minds to be present
If your students (or you!) write your own cloud poem, I’d love to see it! Tag me on social media, and with your permission, I’ll share.
*Excerpt from Awakening the Heart, Second Edition