Third Graders Showcase Their Multimedia Talents at the Poetry Celebration

What an exciting week of celebration in third grade! After months of learning and preparation, the third graders hosted parents and special guests at their Poetry Celebration. The celebration showed their loved ones all the work they have put in throughout their poetry lessons. Over the course of the unit, students were introduced to a variety of poetic devices, like similes, personification, repetition, and much more. Together, the children explored published poems and looked for these devices and discussed other patterns they noticed. Then, it was time to write their very own poetry. Students were encouraged to write about anything that inspired them. If they were feeling some writer’s block, they picked an "ordinary object" out of the poetry bucket and brought it to life with their words! They also explored their identities and cultures, writing poems about special artifacts in their families and crafting "Where I’m From" poems. All these poems sparked conversations about what is important to the children, the experiences that have shaped them, and how each person is connected to those who came before.

After weeks of drafting, conferencing, and revising, students published their own anthologies of poetry, carefully designing and painting each page. The anthologies were put on display at the poetry celebrations, along with digital and physical art components that supported their wonderful writing. Each student showed off impressive public speaking skills as he or she read aloud two original poems for the audience. After the presentation, visitors explored the multimedia works throughout room. They flipped through the anthologies; listened on iPads to each student reading aloud his or her poetry; and examined the drawings the students created of their special family artifact. Their families and teachers could not be more proud of the third graders!