New Lesson Plans and Teaching Resources for the New Year

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend January 2015 The Words Are Maps   In this, the first educator newsletter of the New Year, we feature resources to help you as you guide students through the complicated task of trying to figure out where they came from, who they are now, and who they might become.

Featured Lesson Plan   Our new lesson plan “Complicated Identities” provides a way for teachers to explore with their students the subject of identity through an in-depth reading of the iconic poem “Diving into the Wreck” by Adrienne Rich.     Featured Book: Unsettling America   Originally published in 1994, the classic text Unsettling America: An Anthology of Contemporary Multicultural Poetry, edited by Maria Mazziotti Gillan and Jennifer Gillan, features work from a multicultural group of writers who recount their experiences with ethnic and national identity in modern-day America.  The Art of Finding   “Too often in workshops and classrooms there is a concentration on the poem’s garments instead of its life’s blood,” writes poet Linda Gregg in “The Art of Finding.” Instead, she suggests readers discover what resonates most for them and use it as an entry point for understanding the poem and themselves.     Browse More Lesson Plans and Classroom Activities Read More Poems on Identity Find Online Resources for Educators Report from the Field   We recently hosted a meetup with New York City high school teachers who work at schools affiliated with New Visions for Public Schools. Poet Rachel Eliza Griffiths began with a reading of her poems, and Educator-in-residence Madeleine Fuchs Holzer led the group through a lesson plan designed to make poetry accessible to diverse learners through the use of perceptual skills and group activities. Learn more about our teacher meetups. Photo: Rachel Eliza Griffiths Pop Quiz   Is our new lesson plan on identity helpful? Give it a try with your students and let us know what worked and what didn’t by completing this short survey. All respondents will be entered in a drawing to receive a free Academy tote bag!  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