Hello, Mr. Nelson.
You don’t know me, but I stumbled across your blog while looking for excerpts from Joe Brainard’s I Remember. I soon discovered countless poems that I believe are all student submissions. My question is: how have you guided them in crafting such stunning work???
Oh. Right. I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Joe Belknap, and I’m a Creative Writing teacher from Milwaukee.
To the point: Are you willing to share any powerful mentor texts you use? Or are there poets you could recommend to me?
Thank you. And thank you for being a teacher.
Best,
Joe Belknap
Hey, thanks Joe!
I just yelled at my 4th period class (full of sophomores, not creative writing students). So your e-mail was much needed. So how are they producing such great work?
Answer #1: I don't know.
Answer #2: I teach in an affluent, literate area. Maybe since many of them come from literate families, with books in their homes, that they come into the class already equipped with poetry. (Wait, so poor people can't write poetry?)
Answer #3: It's the platform. Because they each have their own blog, and they know other students will be reading their work (and perhaps Joe Belknap), they put forth maximum effort to make their words mean something.
Answer #4: It's not me, it's Anis Mojgani, it's Buddy Wakefield, it's Andrea Gibson, it's Sarah Kay, it's Phil Kaye, it's Derrick Brown.
Answer #5: I teach them less about craft and more about courage. I get them to look at themselves as creative, then I have them list their fears, then I tell them that we're all going to die, then I tell them that all their fears are irrational because really we're all going to die so why be afraid of anything else, and then I make them get up and do some SLAM POETRY SHARE YOUR HEART stuff in front of the class.
As far as mentor texts:
Feel free to use anything I've linked to on my blog. Most of the stuff I'm sure I've stolen myself.
Again, thanks for the e-mail. It means a lot.
Kyle
I think we all totally underestimate how stellar you are as a teacher. I really like the word stellar. Thanks for teaching us courage instead of iambic pentameter. You're really world class, and I think that might be the first (and only) time I don't mean those words ironically.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I think taking your class was the only worthwhile thing I did in high school. My mom said something about my little brother wanting to become an English teacher (which would be an abysmal situation for everyone involved, tbh, considering he refuses to read and that's kind of a thing English teachers should be willing to do and it also wouldn't work out for other reasons, but I guess he can dream) because of you and I wasn't surprised. Everyone wants to be a Nelson. CW was life changing.
ReplyDeleteIt's you too Nelson.
ReplyDeleteI don't really have any words to add, except that I am in total agreement. Life changer.
ReplyDeleteThis is the cutest thing that has ever happened.
ReplyDeleteOn your way to being more successful than Harold Miner ever was.
seriously
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