Blog #5 Poetry Power!

 Poetry Power!

Poetry is life, poetry is the use of words to describe experience artistically. Is defined by Webster's Dictionary as” writing that formulates a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience in language chosen and arranged to create a specific emotional response through meaning, sound, and rhythm”. But I think in a literary sense that Bill Collons in his master class says it best when he describes literary poetry “as a type of literature that conveys a thought, describes a scene or tells a story in a concentrated, lyrical arrangement of words”(Collins, 2021).  As an art form poetry in the form of a song or written expression has been around as long as there have been people. The use of words to a meter has been a way of expressing emotion from the cavemen all the way up to the modern era. We seek to discuss and understand the world around us. As language evolves so do the connotations that we connect to our words (Ted ED & Kovacs, 2017). 

Poetry, as evolved so too, has its definition. poetry at its core is the use of words to describe feelings and thoughts and the forms of poetry are ever evolving in the Lexicon of the human word. It is important to remember that Poetry is not prose.  Prose is the ordinary language people use in speaking or writing. For while prose is like talking, poetry is like singing. You see Unlike prose which has a narrator, poetry has a speaker. While prose may have a narrator who guides you through the text. Poetry asks you to absorb the point of view of the speaker whether that is the wind flowing through the air, the flowers growing in the ground, or the moon shining down upon silent land (Brown, 2022). 

Noted Ted ED & Kovacs, 2017

Poetry Analysis

  when I'm asked the question, what does poetry mean to me? I think of a poem that I love and instead of me going on a long Soliloquy about how poetry gave me an escape when I was younger. Or telling the story of how writing poetry helped me to learn how to properly express my emotions. I'm going to instead spend a little time analyzing one of my favorite poems and I hope that in the breakdown you can understand just what a good poem can do for you as it has done for me. 

Duplex

Don't accuse me of sleeping with your man 

when I didn't know you had a man.

 Back when I didn't know you had a man,

 The moon glowed above the city's blackout.

 I walked home by moonlight through the blackout.

 I was too young to be reasonable.

 He was so young, so unreasonable,

 He dipped weed in embalming fluid.

 He'd dip our weed in embalming fluid.

 We’d make love on trains and in dressing rooms.

 Love in the subway, love in Mall bathrooms.

 A bore at home, he transformed in the city.

 What's yours at home is a wolf in my city.

 You can’t accuse me of sleeping with a man. 

(Brown, 2019, p. 68)

“This duplex tells a true story of lust and love. When broken apart, every odd stanza tells you of a man accused of sleeping with someone else's “Man” [boyfrind/lover]. When the lover is with the accused, he is young, wild, and free! He is loved for his passion. He walks the city as a wolf, a man-eating carnivore. Their love is the subtle dance of the downlow surrounded and shrouded in weed smoke and the thrill of public sex. Ending with a sharp denial of what could have only been young love. 

While, when you read only the even stanzas, you feel the sadness and exasperation of an older, more experienced lover. Everything that the young lover finds exciting this older lover finds foolish and exhausting. All the things they found attractive are now repulsive. As they grew older into their relationship, they needed stability and not this man who is genuinely just a boy.”(Brown, 2021). 

Noted Stewart, 2020

Poetry is exciting because how it breaks the rules of writing while also sharing many different forms. The most common of which are:

Couplet  a poem, or stanza in a poem, written in two lines. Usually rhymes.	Acrostic the first letter of each line, read down the page, spells the subject of the poem.
Haiku A haiku is a Japanese poem with 3 lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables.  (Total of 17 syllables.) Does not rhyme.  Is about an aspect of nature or the seasons.	Shape Poem A concrete poem (also called a shape poem) is written in the shape of its subject. The way the words are arranged is as important as what they mean.
Free Verse A free verse poem does not use rhyme or patterns.  Can vary freely in the length of lines, stanzas, and subject.	Limerick A limerick is a funny poem of 5 lines.   Lines 1, 2 & 5 rhyme.  Lines 3 & 4 are shorter and rhyme. Line 5 refers to line 1. Limericks are a kind of nonsense poem.

Noted Brown, 2022

Noted Ted ED & Silverstein, 2016

Poetry Month Programming!

(The Academy of American Poets & L., 2022)

My top four major ideas in Poetry Programming!

1. Children's poetry book club!
1.  Starting with the Land of Nod, we could do a six-week child-centered poetry reading to inspire children to read more books not written in the standard form.
2. Midsummer open mics!
1.  Introduce The young adults to the wonder that is the iambic pentameter of Shakespeare! First, you have them watch the play “A midsummer's dream” and then see if you can drum up support to put on a small production. If that can't be done then simply stage from line readings so they can get into the mindset and wonder of poetry.
3. Poetry workshops
1. Go about setting up a poetry boot camp! Where students learn the different elements of poetry and all of the figurative language that goes into writing their own. Using this time you can have them decorate the library in conjunction with the Poetry month theme with their own works of art.
4. Invite local poets/ connect with local schools!
1. Working in conjunction with the local schools see about meeting up with high school English classes to do a poetry slam. Work with the teachers to provide a space for the students could invite their friends and family and recite their very own poetry. Even invite local poets to share some of their work for exposure as well as to serve as judges!

Learning about Plants

Nonfiction Stories

1. CARROTS WITH CHARACTER by Erin K. Peabody

2. WHAT'S THE BUZZ ABOUT BEES? by Jacqueline Pratt-Tuke

3. ADHESIVE FROM TREES COULD MAKE TAPE MORE ECO-FRIENDLY by Tyler Berrigan 

4. Decoding the secrets of plants’ stunning leaf patterns By Smithsonian.com, adapted by Newsela staff

5. What are meat-eating plants? By National Geographic Society, adapted by Newsela staff

Children's Stories

Fantasy/Science Fiction

1. HER HANDS THAT HELD THE STARS by Rebecca Birch

2. TAMITHA AND THE DRAGON by Elizabeth C. Desimone

3. THE ORB by Rebecca Birch

4. THE DRAGON'S SCALES by Pamela Love

5. CAREER DAY AT PIXIE ACADEMY by Bradford H. Robie

6. THE CHILD WITH YOUR NAME Debbie Urbanski

References

Brown, M. B. (2021, December). Longform report. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Nmwt_vzP7Anq-GBD8tsrqShrDSB6qea909ee_NfTNFE/edit?usp=sharing

Brown, M. B. (2022, May 24). Understanding Poetry [Slides]. Google Slides. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1VSaXj-ZuEoXsgDXWRzXBCDRTMFi5xVZEGRjdJKR5E3w/edit?usp=sharing

Collins, B. C. (2021, August 6). Poetry 101: Learn About Poetry, Different Types of Poems, and Poetic Devices With Examples. MasterClass. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.masterclass.com/articles/poetry-101-learn-about-poetry-different-types-of-poems-and-poetic-devices-with-examples

Nemerov, H. N. (2021, August 18). poetry - Poetry and prose. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.britannica.com/art/poetry/Poetry-and-prose

poetry. (n.d.). The Merriam-Webster.Com Dictionary. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poetry

Poets.org - Academy of American Poets. (n.d.). Tips for Librarians. Academy of American Poets. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://poets.org/text/tips-librarians

Stewart, E. S. (2020, January 14). Ebony Stewart - “Mental health Barz” @WANPOETRY. YouTube. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIGWWPwJlNY&t=8s

Ted ED, & Kovacs, M. K. (2017, March 20). What makes a poem . . . a poem? - Melissa Kovacs. YouTube. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwhouCNq-Fc

Ted ED, & Silverstein, D. S. (2016, June 2). The pleasure of poetic pattern - David Silverstein. YouTube. Retrieved July 20, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URuMb15CWJs

The Academy of American Poets, & L., L. L. (2022, April 15). National Poetry Month poster [Poster]. Https://Poets.Org/. https://api.poets.org/sites/default/files/2022-01/2022%20NATIONAL%20POETRY%20MONTH%20POSTER.pdf

Michael_Brown_Blog 4_Blog Share

This blog is going to be all about one of the most fascinating topics I have ever heard of as it pertains to library science. While conducting my research and looking through a bunch of different library blogs this week. I just found out about a “library of things”. Let me tell you how excited I am about this concept!

But first, I think we need to understand what I believe to be the purpose of a library. You see in my mind a library is more than just a building of books. A library serves as a lighthouse for the community, a basin of societal change and growth. In a library, you can find programs that are used to enrich its users intellectually and emotionally through the learning and acquisition of new skills. So a "library of things" would simply be taking that concept to the physical. Allowing users within a community to now actively bond and grow past their social-economic means while also enriching themselves and their neighborhoods.

So I stumbled upon this concept while I was on the HackLibrary school blog! They had released an article entitled “10 ideas for building libraries of things” and it is incredibly fascinating!

Library Of Things 

Note Austin, 2021

This list taken directly from the article gives you 10 great starting points for building “A library of things”!

1. Games and Puzzles

2. Toys and STEM Kits

3. Seeds and Gardening Supplies

4. Tools

5. Sewing and Craft Supplies

6. Baking and Kitchen Supplies

7. Musical Instruments

8. Sports Equipment

9. Camping and Outdoor Gear

10. Electronics/Technology

-

 Looking at this list you can easily see how a community could use each and every category listed. You can also see how each one of these categories when thought of in conjunction with a library could increase community engagement. As well as lower the overall need in low socio-economic areas for families to buy these low use high-cost items. From board games and puzzles that you may only need to use once a week for a family game night to seeds and garden supplies that can be used to help start a community garden to help reduce food needs. This type of program could be used in urban and rural environments in order to facilitate a large number of lessons in not just youth but in older users as well.

As an inner-city youth from a low socioeconomic background finding out that some libraries actually loan out objects is mind-blowing. The ability to borrow a guitar or a sewing machine would have been life-changing when I was younger. Just thinking of all the different hobbies I could have tried out or how many different skills I could have picked up just from my local library is astonishing. This would definitely be something that I would consider writing a grant for at any library that I am a part of. To think of the ways that this could change a young adult's or even a college student's life if they were given these types of objects along with instruction manuals or maybe classes on how to use these things in the library. Changing the meaning in the younger generation of just what the idea of a library is. 

 (Image credit: David Wall via Getty Images)

5 of the most famous ghost stories in America

1. The Flying Dutchman

2. The Bell Witch

3. Casper

4. Bloody Mary

5. The Vanishing HitchHiker

Noted Brown 2019

    Before you see my top five poems from the winner of the Pulitzer Prize, Jerico Brown's newest book “The Tradition”. here is a brief review of the anthology as a whole and if you would like to see a full long-form report on Jericho's Brown unique writing style and the subject matter you may follow the link to an article that I have also written.  

    The tradition written by Pulitzer prize winner Jericho Brown brings mythological imagery and Afro-American historical subtext together to weave tales of victimhood and self-understanding to a new level.

     The Tradition questions why and how we’ve become accustomed to terror: in the bedroom, the classroom, the workplace, and most importantly, in our day-to-day interactions. From mass shootings to rape to the murder of unarmed people by police, Brown interrupts complacency by locating each emergency in the garden of the body, where living things grow and wither—or survive. 

    Jericho brings you into the mind-body and spirit of the queer Afro-American experience.  In The Tradition, Brown creates poetry centered on queer male blackness, and how it's subject to the powers that be. His poems are at times soft and vulnerable but also fierce, riveting, and inspiring (Brown 2021)

1. Ganymede

2. Flower

3. The Tradition

4. The Card Tables

5. Duplex

Reference

Austin, B. (2021, December 11). The Secret to the Library of Things - EveryLibrary. Medium. https://medium.com/everylibrary/the-secret-to-the-library-of-things-256e9e361b65

Brown, J. (2019). The Tradition (Later Printing ed.). Copper Canyon Press.

Brown, M. B. (2021, December). The Tradition Long Form Report. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Nmwt_vzP7Anq-GBD8tsrqShrDSB6qea909ee_NfTNFE/edit?usp=sharing

Radford, B., & Gordon, J. (2022, January 19). Top 10 most famous ghosts. Livescience.Com. https://www.livescience.com/11364-top-10-famous-ghosts.html

Richland Library. (n.d.). Library of Things | Richland Library. Richlandlibrary.Com. https://www.richlandlibrary.com/libraryofthings

Szmodis, P. (2022, February 20). 10 Ideas for Building Libraries of Things. HLS. https://hacklibraryschool.com/2022/02/22/10-ideas-for-building-libraries-of-things/

Michael_Brown_Blog Post 3 Free Choice

Myth and Magic

    Look around and tell me what you see. Tell me of the buildings that seem to reach the sky and pierce the clouds, of the floating towns that have risen out of the sea like the tales of Atlantis. When you walk down a street and see the churches, the temples of the new religion, does it make you think of the old ways, the old religions that have come and gone? When you think of the gods and goddesses of myth, do see what their stories have inspired, the impact that they left on what is now modern life? Now let's take a mental journey from the cave gods of old to the modern god of today, from the savage goddesses of the east to the cool and cultured goddesses of the west. For when the people had nothing but their families and their minds they brought forth powerful rulers and the means to pay them proper tribute. Myths have held space in the minds and tales of every culture. For what we call stores where once the explanations of unknown phenomenon

Reasons Why I Love Mythology

• Heroes are not Paragons 

• For many cultures around the world, being a hero didn’t mean being like superman catching cats out of trees. It didn’t even mean you had superpowers or were a crime-fighter. Being a 'hero' didn't have the connotations we put on it in our culture, and therefore didn't have the same pressures or expectations that we have. Being a hero just meant that you stood up for what you believed in.

• The gods are just as messed up as any of us are.

• The gods in most myths are just as messed up as the people who worship them. The greatest takeaway is the people made the gods they needed to survive. In most religions that were not Judeo-Christian dods had faults, they had emotions and made mistakes making them relatable to their followers even as they served as the embodiment of celestial or elemental concepts. 

• Feminist figures in powerful goddesses

• Hestia, Persephone, Hera, Is there really anything else more empowering than being a goddess? These are but a few goddesses that hold great power in the lives of women throughout time. Hestia who fanned the flames of family throughout all the time, Persephone the holder of truth in death whose very presence brings about spring and Hera queen of the gods who would allow no mortal nor God to get in the way of her marriage without taking what was her due.

• Not every story has a happy ending.

• Take for example the myth of the seasons, the “rape” of Persephone. The kind of harsh reality that is found in the Greek myths can be sobering, and serve as a good reality check. In reading mythology, we come to find out that most things are not black and white but are shrouded in varying Shades of Grey. Analyzing these texts allows us to wrap my mind around the idea that everyone is the hero in their own story and maybe the feeling in someone else's.

Mythical storytelling

To tell an epic or Myth in a storytelling setting I prefer collaborative storytelling. So when I would take the time to craft a potential storytime that has been inspired by either Greek-Roman mythology or oceanic mythology. I think we would have to most fun through Shadow theater or assigning various actors to line read. Using this approach I could get either young children or young adults more interested in the content itself by having those who are more enthusiastic read you really bring these stories to life. Whilst maintaining an atmosphere of joy and play at all times. I would also be sure to peruse the different versions of myths that are available to make sure that they match either with the most important or an important lesson that the library is trying to convey that day.

Here is a list of 3 Epic Myths from Around the World

1. The myth of the Great Flood

Noted Holzwarth 2022

2. Romulus, Remus, and the founding of Rome

Noted Holzwarth 2022

3. The Norse saga of Beowulf and Grendel

Noted Holzwarth 2022

Reference

Crash Course, & Rugnetta, M. R. (2017, February 25). What Is Myth? Crash Course World Mythology #1. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeX6CX5LEj0&t=1s

Holzwarth, L. (2022, April 3). The Most Epic Myths from Around the World. History Collection. https://historycollection.com/the-most-epic-myths-from-around-the-world/13/

Marketing The Conscious Club. (2020, June 17). The Wisdom of Myth and Folklore: Why We Need Stories to Keep us Alive as a Society. The Conscious Club. https://theconsciousclub.com/articles/2019/10/9/the-wisdom-of-myth-and-folklore-why-we-need-stories-to-keep-us-alive-as-a-society

TED-Ed. (2018, February 8). The myth of Arachne - Iseult Gillespie. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvUHcsZOhJ8

TEDx Talks. (2018, June 22). Why do we still care about Greek Mythology? | Lilly LeJeune | TEDxYouth@MBJH. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZZSsrDsSYw&t=1s

Why Greek Mythology is Still Relevant - Centre of Excellence. (2019, September 2). Why Greek Mythology Is Still Relevant. https://www.centreofexcellence.com/greek-mythology-still-relevant/

Second Blog Assignment- Storytelling Experience

 This was not my first storytelling experience but I will say it was one of my most stressful! Currently, I've been traveling every single week which is made finding books and time to record very stressfully. working out at this choice I figured that doing a series of poems would be for the best. So after my flight coming from the American Library Association conference and arriving in Dallas for some EDI work, I was able to find time at my grandmother's house to read a book. The only issue being my grandmother had gotten rid of all the children's books that I had at the house! 

So I improvised and went to the  Poetry Foundation website and searched for a children's poem. Now as a mid-level ELA teacher mind immediately went to some of the poems that I've had my students analyze this past year. Leading to me choosing the Land of Nod, you see it is not only a personal favorite of mine but also something that my students truly enjoyed so I figured what makes for a better story time than something I know to catch interest.

When it came to recording the actual video it took three takes. originally I was going to attempt to print out the poem and read it that way but the family printer is broken and I was a little worried about going to the library when I didn't have a car to get back and forth. So then my first video I decided that I can just read the poem off of a tablet! but it didn't work out as the glare from the tablet made it so that you could not even see the poem. So I had to Monitor and adjust and my mind immediately went back to when I was teaching online and had to do readings with my students so I pulled up Zoom to record!

Only to find out that for some reason the camera wasn't working in Zoom. I found that if I split-screen and put the camera app of the computer on one side with the story on the other I was still able to get that full look of showing both the poem as well as myself while I was reading, which came in handy. I was a little worried about how I would look on screen recording doing it this way but it turned out fairly well with me being able to show a lot of emotions and body language.

Going forward in this class I am going to be so happy when I am back in my own home because there I have children's books. but I'm actually really liking the idea of doing a children's poetry series. Maybe even set up a compare and contrast poetry section where I read maybe two or three poems based upon a specific theme as well as in a specific genre. So reading folktale poems all centered on nature would probably be something big that I decide to do and making sure that I'm not traveling while having to record is going to be a big thing for me!

Weekly Reading List:

While getting the weekly reading done, I've actually been accessing sites like commonlit, ReadWorks, and Newsela that I typically use while I'm teaching a class and finding poems and short stories that I haven't read that fit the different genre requirements that I could have been used within the next year when I'm assigning work to my students.

Fable

1. THE FOX AND THE HORSE

2. THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF

3. THE FARMER AND THE VIPER

Folktale

1. THE CLEVER RABBIT

2. THE FISHERMAN AND HIS WIFE

3. THE FOUR DRAGONS

Parable

1. THE SELFISH GIANT

2. THE THREE QUESTIONS

3. THE STORY OF THE BAD LITTLE BOY

Myth

1. THE STORY OF PROMETHEUS AND PANDORA'S BOX

2. THE GOLDEN TOUCH

3. ECHO AND NARCISSUS

#1- Reading Reflections: Week 2

 Reading Reflection

Defined by the Marion Webster's Dictionary folklore is “traditional customs, tales, sayings, dances, or art forms preserved among a people” While, a folktale is “a characteristically anonymous, timeless, and placeless tale circulated orally among a people”. In my mind folktales are explanations or knowledge that your ancestors would prefer to be passed on forever and ever. Before there was the written word there was a fire through which warmed us all, and around that fire, we spread tales to teach the children values and lessons that they can take with them into the dark unknown.

I have personally always been fascinated by Oral storytelling. Even as an English language arts teacher I believed that having a deeper understanding of varying folklore and how they come into today's society was critically important. Take for example the story of “the emperor's new clothes” 

    This story humorously tells us of an emperor being tricked by two conmen and no one in his village except for a child has the bravery to stand up and speak the truth. It describes a situation where people are afraid to criticize something or someone because they want to be a part of the crowd they are stuck as bistandards. it goes deeply with what is happening in the Modern Age of everyone seeing things on social media and instead of standing up to the crowd they instead will silence themselves and participate in cancel culture instead of speaking for what they truly believe to be right. 

    Now to head into the 21st century a new understanding of what it means for something to be a folktale needs to be considered. Tales are art forms passed down among people and their interpersonal language is used to convey new ideas. So going forward with our ever-evolving language be it the "lavender language" or the "African American vernacular" the internet is having an increased power over what is being shared and used. New folk tales and new folklore is being invented in the digital age.

In the video, Leanne McNeil, a folklorist, talks about digital culture and belief as they move us away from having just thought that folklore is this old, rustic thing into now having us understand the nature of folklore in digital culture as communication and informational technologies like phones, tablets, and computers and social media platforms take Center stage. 

    As I look at them, That I would love to analyze different fables, folktales, and fairy, tales paying close attention to their original meaning and context and then bringing that forward into the modern era maybe with a BIPOC Focus. To kind of analyze how these stories and their messages can be relevant to today's youth and our World At Large!

Looking at the historic preservation and presentation of cultural mythoi like folklore, mythology, and the various tales that stand somewhere along the spectrum I hope that this blog to be a place where I can start to do the basic work of analyzing those and seeing what should come next. 

Read List

 Picture books

1. Blueberries for Sal

2. The Lorax

3. Stone Soup

4. Miss Nelson Is Missing!

5. The Story of Ferdinand

Fables 

1. THE HOUSE DOG AND THE WOLF

2. THE ELEPHANT'S CHILD

3. THE BEAR AND THE TWO TRAVELERS

4. CHEESE FOR DINNER

5. THE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF

 Fairy tales

1. Peter Pan

2. Cinderella

3. The Three Little Pigs

4. Hansel and Gretel

5. Little Red Riding Hood

References

Little Cozy Nook. (2019, January 19). The Emperor’s New Clothes READ ALOUD book for Children - Classic Tales for Kids [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyIFXsGJgcI

Merriam-webster. (n.d.-a). folklore. The Merriam-Webster.Com Dictionary. Retrieved July 1, 2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/folklore

Merriam-webster. (n.d.-b). folktale. The Merriam-Webster.Com Dictionary. Retrieved July 1, 2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/folktale

TEDx Talks. (2015, December 18). Folklore doesn’t meme what you think it memes | Lynne McNeill | TEDxUSU [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBDJ2UJpKt4&feature=youtu.be