Fellow teachers - I made a step-by-step guide to this project, including all my resources!
You can see it right here
What this project is all about:
In September 2012, I commissioned my students to be Poet Laureates for different periods in American history.
Each student chose an event from their time period to commemorate in poetry, a perspective from which to view the event, and a form for their poem. In addition, each student wrote an essay providing historical context for their poem and explaining their creative decisions, and gave a presentation to their peers about their historical event.
We published a book containing all the poems and essays. You can also read all the poems and essays online, on our website.
Every student produced an archive of their work, which included their final products, drafts, and research material. You can see the sample archive that I produced here. To access the students' archives, visit their Digital portfolios. You can access all their digital portfolios here.
Finally, here are photos from our book launch party, at the Old California Coffee House on West San Marcos Blvd:
Each student chose an event from their time period to commemorate in poetry, a perspective from which to view the event, and a form for their poem. In addition, each student wrote an essay providing historical context for their poem and explaining their creative decisions, and gave a presentation to their peers about their historical event.
We published a book containing all the poems and essays. You can also read all the poems and essays online, on our website.
Every student produced an archive of their work, which included their final products, drafts, and research material. You can see the sample archive that I produced here. To access the students' archives, visit their Digital portfolios. You can access all their digital portfolios here.
Finally, here are photos from our book launch party, at the Old California Coffee House on West San Marcos Blvd: