Bits to Include

Poetry has long been part of the lore and history of cultures around the world. But as information has become more readily available and more disposable, more and more people find poetry difficult not only to write, but also to understand. While it has retained its importance as an art form, it has consequently become undervalued as an effective form of communication and expression of true emotion. Indeed, in many circles, poetry is viewed as a tacky and unnecessary form of communication created by few and enjoyed by fewer. But what really makes poetry difficult for many people to enjoy and understand has less to do with poetry’s perceived value and more to do with how people receive information today.

If you are one of those people who find poetry difficult to understand or enjoy, try approaching a poem from a different angle. No one will argue that meaning is often hard to come by in a poem, but instead of seeking out meaning, try enjoying the rhythm of a poem, or the sound of the words. Poetry can be musical in a sense, but more so, it can be fun simply to combine words in a new and different way. Seeking meaning can make poetry difficult, but enjoying the poem for its rhythmic qualities can be less daunting and immediately rewarding.

http://www.wisegeek.com/why-is-poetry-difficult.htm

--------

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3360

How to Read a Poem
Scholastic

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Reading poetry can be very frustrating if you don't know what it means. So many poems are perplexing, paradoxical, and just plain hard to understand. And yet it is often the poems that are the most difficult to crack open that can offer us the richest reading experiences — if we know how to read them and what to expect from them. With this activity, you can offer your students reading strategies that will allow them to enjoy sophisticated and subtle writing of all kinds.

Begin by explaining to your students that poems don't have answers. Instead, they have possibilities. They point toward feelings, capture contradictions, awaken our understandings. Sometimes they leave us with questions and no answers at all. One day we notice something new about a poem, another day something else. The good news is you can't get a poem right or wrong. A good poem has many, many possible meanings.

Offer your students the following strategies for reading a poem.

A poem with rich layers of possible meanings that students might enjoy talking about is Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening."

• Tell them first that they shouldn't try to explain the poem or figure out its message or "point." They should begin by just noticing the poem: "I notice that the poet repeats the last line of the poem. I notice he only 'thinks' he knows whose woods these are; he's not certain."

• They should ask questions of the poem: "Why does he repeat the last line? Why is he so tired?"

• They should let the poem remind them of things in their own lives: "This reminds me of when I am so tired at the end of the day and the bus ride seems to be taking forever and I just want to go home."

• Remind students that they are under no obligation to "understand" the poem. They just have to be able to notice things, ask questions, and make connections.

• Have students read and respond to the poem on their own and then talk about it as a class. Be careful that they don't try to arrive at a single interpretation of the poem but explore all the possible meanings it might have.

• When students feel that they don't have to understand everything about a poem right away, you may notice them reading more and more difficult pieces! Encourage them to read and respond to all kinds of poems in their journals.