Introducing Our New Educator's Newsletter

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend September 10, 2014 New Beginnings, New Possibilities   Welcome to our new educator newsletter, featuring poems, lesson plans, books, and other resources to help you bring poetry into the classroom. We hope this newsletter sparks new ideas for your work and the beginning of a vibrant online educator community at Poets.org.

Summoning the As If   The educational philosopher Maxine Greene (1917-2014) once said, “Imagination may be activated once the individual realizes that the poem is a created world that can be opened by someone who can summon up an ‘as if,’ the ability to look at things as if they could be otherwise.” Poetry held a special place in Greene’s lectures and writings, where she quoted poems extensively as a way of getting her audience to ‘see things as if they could be otherwise’, and become aware of new possibilities. Read more about Maxine Greene.   Photo credit: Deborah Feingold for Teachers College, Columbia University Poems about New Beginnings   “The Layers” by Stanley Kunitz “The Planting of the Apple-Tree” by William Cullen Bryant “I Have a Rendezvous With Life” by Countee Cullen “Burning the Old Year” by Naomi Shihab Nye “Or to Begin Again” by Ann Lauterbach “Dawn” by James Laughlin Lesson Plan: Mutant Shakespeare   In this month of new beginnings, we feature a Shakespeare unit from Don’t Forget to Write for Secondary Grades: 50 Enthralling and Effective Writing Lessons by 826 National that proposes novel ways to introduce the Bard to reluctant learners. Enjoy this mutant approach and have fun with your students. Browse More Lesson Plans by Grade Level Read Essays on Teaching Poetry Watch Naomi Shihab Nye on the Art of Teaching Poetry Teaching with Fire   Starting off on new paths often requires inspiration. As you prepare for new challenges in the year ahead, take a look at Teaching with Fire: Poetry That Sustains the Courage to Teach, edited by Sam M. Intrator and Megan Scribner, a poetry collection for and about passionate educators who continue to be inspired by poetry in their teaching. Pop Quiz   As we continue to improve the resources we offer educators on Poets.org, we’d like to organize our lesson plans along general themes that are relevant to your instruction. Please take a moment to answer a few questions about our lesson plan themes, and you’ll qualify for a chance to receive a copy of Edward Hirsch’s recently published book A Poet’s Glossary. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038