In October, my students and I wrote poems inspired by William Carlos Williams' "The Red Wheelbarrow." We listened to a recording of Williams reading the poem aloud. We talked about word pictures. Some students memorized the poem for reward tickets. We wrote a "so much depends upon" poem as a class. And then students wrote their own Williams-inspired poems (some worked with a friend).
Here are a few of the teacher-guided class poems.
THE OAK TREE
by the students of Mr. H's homeroom
so much depends
upon
a tall oak
tree
swaying in the
wind
beside the old
school
THE BLACK SPIDER MONKEY
by the students of Mrs. S's homeroom
so much depends
upon
a black
spider monkey
jumping tree
to tree
in the damp
rainforest
THE RED-EYED SPIDER
by the students of Mrs. P's homeroom
so much depends
upon
a red-eyed
spider
fat and
furry
beside the cracked
window
THE RAINBOW PENCIL
by the students of my homeroom
so much depends
upon
a rainbow
pencil
smudged with
crayons
beside the ripped
paper
