Gaonomics

This week I haven’t had much to report because my daughter has been home sick for 2 days with flu, but she can’t wait to go back to school tomorrow, because she wants to participate in the Poetry Slam on Friday, which she is very excited about. When she told me about it, I asked “what is Poetry Slam?” as I wasn’t familiar with that term and she explained that Poetry Slam is when a group get together and write a poem to be performed in front of the class. What makes it different is that the students have to think of sounds to say at the same time as the poem is being read aloud and they can do a performance as well like moving around and make gestures, acting out the poem or do gymnastics, whatever the group thinks would be suitable and enhance the experience and understanding of the poem.

It really is an excellent way to encourage the students to think creatively, teaches them to organise themselves in groups and get their thoughts down on paper as well as solve any conflicts that may arise from group work and to reach an agreement of what each group member’s role is in the performance. This kind of activity makes it interesting and exciting for the students to learn about literacy and motivates them to get involved and to use their skills and to participate creatively and positively in their own learning process, which is a good way to ensure they learn from the experience.