Friday, November 06, 2020

Poetry Friday: PFAMS in 2020

On Thursday morning I grabbed my phone and found, to my surprise, that I had to prove my identity before I could check my email. By that I don't mean put in my passcode, or use my thumbprint, but enter a number where they could send me a code, and then enter another code, and then remember another code I'd created who knows when. All of this happened because I had downloaded software updates overnight. Amazingly, I managed to gain access, but not before I was starting to doubt that I was who I say I am. Talk about getting your adrenaline going first thing in the morning! 


It seems pretty common these days that I feel that way, that I may not actually be myself. I'm a teacher who believes in Writer's Workshop, but am I doing WW? Um, not really. I'm a teacher who has silent reading in class every day, but am I doing that this year? Nope. And I'm a teacher who teaches a poem every day - well, except this year. There are several reasons for this, such as the hybrid format, now changing to a less hybrid but still a little hybrid format, and the addition of another grade, and the new online curriculum I've been given to support the hybrid setup. But the main reason is that last year I had 80 minutes with each class each day, and this year I have 45 minutes. Who am I as a teacher this year? Couldn't really tell you.


BUT! I have my PFAMS, or Poetry Friday Anthology for Middle School! This book, compiled by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong, is rescuing my classroom from a poetry-deprived existence. Each week, PFAMS has a poem for sixth, seventh, and eighth grade, complete with a list of suggestions for how to approach it. The whole thing takes about ten minutes. Done and done. I am only teaching one poem a week instead of four a week plus a song on Friday (my usual plan), but at least I'm teaching one. It is good enough for 2020. And because of PFAMS, the poems are wonderful and already selected.


This is week ten, so today I'll be reading Julie Larios' "Names" with the sixth grade, Mary Quattlebaum's "What I Want to Be" with the seventh grade, and Heidi Bee Roemer's "Food Fest" with the eighth grade. The theme across the board is Food, and all three poems come with activities, which always get me thinking of my own. (The blog, http://pfams.blogspot.com/, is a great resource, too.) If I have extra time I can expand this, but since I usually don't, I can give it the minimum time and still be doing poetry with my kids. (I'm really looking forward to teaching "Names" because it's about nicknames, which are ubiquitous in Haitian culture. In the poem, everyone has nicknames, and the pastries the poem's persona is buying have nicknames too. I'll ask the kids what their nicknames are, and I can already hear the chorus that will ensue.)


Another fun aspect is that I know many of the poets represented in this anthology; many of them are Poetry Friday regulars. In week two I taught "Locker Ness Monster," a very fun poem by Robyn Hood Black. In week three I did Irene Latham's "Biking Along White Rim Road" with the seventh graders, and in week eight, Mary Lee Hahn's "Spiral Glide," a poem about a hawk. 


I've taught poems from this book before (I wrote about it here and here and here, among other places), but I've never before used it as it's intended to be used, going through and doing the poems one after another throughout the school year, starting with week one and ending (I hope I hope I hope we'll still be meeting in person in spite of pandemic and social unrest and elections) week thirty-six. I'm so glad to have this book to use, and to help me remember my teacher identity, in this strangest of years.


Today's roundup is here.

12 comments:

Irene Latham said...

Thank you for sharing your identity crisis, Ruth, which I think many of us share right now... I'd love to be a fly on the wall when you open up the nicknames convo with your students! Names are so so powerful... and you're right about PFAMS being a great go-to resource. Janet & Sylvia are brilliant, aren't they?! xo

jama said...

Wonderful to hear how you're using the PFAMS, and that it's kept you on a somewhat even keel with your classes. I'm fairly certain that you are not alone with your identity crisis. I love nicknames too. :)

Liz Steinglass said...

Nothing is the usual this year! Not even ourselves! So wonderful that you are still sharing poetry and here, a member of the Poetry Friday community.

Linda B said...

I only had the pleasure of using this book & a couple of others at the end of my teaching, Ruth. It, poems & activities, is a wonderful thing to have. I often did work with names, in poetry & writing personal essays. Names are so important to everyone, including middle-schoolers. They had a lot of fun exploring. I'm glad you are still sharing poetry, but know that you & your students are missing so much of what you have done before. Our lives have changed so very much. Thanks for sharing what's going on with you!

Linda Mitchell said...

I love how you begin this post with identity and end it with being grounded in poetry. What a great process for making sure you, and we, know who we are. I love teaching kids poems. I spent the week before this teaching 7th graders about word choice, imagery and figurative language with Lee Benett Hopkins, 'World Make Way.' It's just fun and kids find it fun too.

Mary Lee said...

Did you hear my chorus of AMENS throughout your litany of "who am I"s?

I agree that it's hard to let go of some key identities, but exciting to discover (or rediscover) ways to at least approximate who we are/were/want to be.

Thrilled to know that you and your kids were spiraling with my hawk!

Fran Haley said...

Ruth, I am thinking that poetry is our survival guide these days! We shall find our way and hold onto our identities - maybe even discover new layers, as they children surely will with their names.

laurasalas said...

"Who am I as a teacher this year? Couldn't really tell you." - Maybe your long-standing teaching techniques/tools have had to change this year--of course! But you are still a teacher trying to give the world to your students and sharing poetry however you can! Sylvia and Janet's PF Anthologies are such great resources, and I love that you're adapting them to use in the new world. Sending peace and clarity and gratitude for your work with kids!

Robyn Hood Black said...

You are SUCH a caring a creative teacher, Ruth - whatever you make work this year is magic. It's wonderful to catch a behind-the-scenes look at how the Poetry Friday Anthologies are used in the classroom. Especially in Middle School. My daughter enjoys enjoys using the PFAs for the younger set with her third graders. May your technology adventures remain smooth this next week... :0)

michelle kogan said...

I'm thinking that your using the PFAMS is also helping your students figure out what's coming next as they anticipate it, helping not only you but all of them too–We all can appreciate a little regularity in this uncertain time. To me it sounds like your students have a sensitive and keen teacher, keeping them focused!

Carol Varsalona said...

I may have fallen asleep before sending off my response last night. Love the fact that you have poetry as your guide throughout the year to motivate students to read and write, Ruth. Using FPAMS routinely may create interesting moments of wonder for your students. Keep us updated.

Susan Bruck said...

How wonderful to have that PFAMS book to support you through this wild ride of a year! This is just a different kind of year and we have to find our way--and figure out who we are. Thanks for sharing your identity crisis. I can definitely relate! And it took my roommate several days to get back online after that last update!