From Cindy's Heart

How About A Poetry Break??? By Cindy Rushton

How About a Poetry Break???

By Cindy Rushton 
 

     Poetry…what do you think about? Is it lazy days in the sunshine enjoying the beauty of words? Is it precious moments curled up with your blessings enjoying the beauty expressed vividly by a well-written poem? Is it the stirring emotion, which captures you in the midst of a busy day? Is it the beauty of such inspiration articulated in words? OR does your mind wander to the experience from school days of long ago as you were faced with studying without sense the meter, the styles of poetry, and the endless details of how to write poetry? Poetry Study can be a dear memory. Poetry does not have to be an option! Yes, poetry can be a given…a time of great memories…a touch of the beautiful in life!

Why Study Poetry?

     Our beloved Charlotte Mason said in her book Ourselves (Book 2, pages 71-72), “Poetry is, perhaps, the most searching and intimate of our teachers…Poetry supplies us with tools for the modeling of our lives, and the use of these we must get at for ourselves…What we digest we assimilate, take into ourselves, so that it is part and parcel of us, and no longer separable.” With poetry we are able to step into the very depths of another person’s soul to become intimately acquainted with these great teachers. We are challenged to become attentive of details that are only passed to us through means of descriptive words.

     With each poem read, we bring the depths of culture to reside in our minds. We are challenged with the ideas from the minds of great thinkers. It is through the pen of the poet that we are challenged to appreciate in a deeper, greater way the beauty of our awesome Creator. It is in the words of poetry that we may take a first hand look at the despair of the soul running from God’s way, truth, and life. Poetry gives us the challenge of noble, pure, heroic, lovely, virtuous, praiseworthy, and faithful ideals. The pen of the poet brings into the very depths of our soul the wisdom gained by our mentors while we are inspired and filled with admiration of God’s workings with man.

     Our children would miss the riches of ideas without the blessings of poetry. They would miss the blessing of making the work a part of their mind. Words are the link to each other’s souls. Without poetry our children would miss the development of “seeing” into words shared by others. Without a regular poetry break, our children would be handicapped from becoming acquainted with many of the greatest minds in History. In addition, they would be unable to develop that needed appreciation for the beauty within words because they would miss having the time to read, look, listen, and show reverence for the inspiration and beauty in words. Just as poetry draws us to our Creator, if we were to neglect bringing our children to the regular exposure to poetry, we would find our children even missing the depths of appreciating our Heavenly Father. They would miss the beauty all about them. They would miss the abundant lessons on goodness, nobility, worthiness, bravery, and virtue. They would miss seeing the heartbreak of sin in the lives of others. Without an understanding of poetry, our children would never truly understand the impact of beliefs on the culture because they would never fully develop their own beliefs, thoughts, and discernment. Yes, much would be lost without the study of poetry.

Some Quick Poetry How-to’s…

·        Make it natural! Studying poetry needs to be a natural part of your home. It is not as effective in shaping lives if it is taught as a chapter in a book in 4th grade. For your children (and you!) to learn to love and enjoy poetry fully, you must make it part of your lifestyle. Read aloud during tea-time or before bedtime or during your family reading time. Make it part of what your family does.

·        Use poetry for Copywork! Poetry can be used to adorn your various notebooks whether Bible, literature, geography, science, or art. Your children can copy poetry onto cards for others or just to enclose in special notes. Using poetry adds a special touch that blesses everyone whether copying it or receiving it. So, begin early using it and you will find your children developing a taste for poetry while developing the gifts of hospitality.

·        Recite beloved poetry! Charlotte Mason shared in Home Education, “All children have it in them to recite; it is an imprisoned gift waiting to be delivered…The child should speak beautiful thoughts so beautifully, with such delicate rendering of each nuance of meaning, that he becomes to the listener the interpreter of the author’s thought…Consider what appreciation, sympathy, power of expression this implies…The child is led to find the just expression of the thought for himself; never is the poor teacher allowed to set a pattern—‘say this as I say it.’ The ideas are kept well within the child’s range, and the expression is his own.” Yes, children really do love to recite…but we are not talking about rote memory work here. We are talking about the fruit of reading beautiful passages over and over at odd times until the poem becomes a part of the child’s life. It may be the mother reading a certain poem during breakfast one day, then reading it again during the reading time, then again during another day outside…eventually the child will have sweet memories of the poem plus, remember it as part of his vast storage of great ideas. In turn, we are challenged to bring the children ample opportunities to recite those passages whether to family members…during tea-time with visitors…or during a formal homeschool event. No matter the time, enjoy learning poetry and expressing it as one’s own. As time goes by and the child reads more, they will find that poet or poem a special friend as they happen upon them in their reading.

·        Post copies of poetry around the home. Just as the children come to love great art and classical music by constant exposure, so your whole family will come to delight in poetry, as it is accessible within the home. It may be through framed pictures, or copied passages on the refrigerator or mirrors, or through beautiful books placed for constant use, or even a framed copy on the dining table for reading during meals. Just make sure that your home has the beauty of poetry as part of its atmosphere.

·        Always read beautifully. Pay attention to punctuation while reading any poetry. Enunciate clearly! Read with lots of expression…verbal, body, and facial. This is where reading a poem many times is beneficial. You are more familiar so you are able to put more into your reading. Enjoy…in turn, your family will enjoy!

·        Take time to enjoy poetry! So often our days are rushed and the heavy load of learning all the “necessary” subjects encumbers our school time. Well, poetry is just as necessary, if not more so.  Yet, we so often neglect its study due to our busyness. We must take time to nourish our souls! We must take time to be challenged to virtue, honor, greatness, and heroism! If we have all of the knowledge in the world but neglect to take time for the beautiful, we will have missed a vital part of praising our Lord.

·        Make a notebook with collections of beloved poetry for each child! This need not be just another thing to do…just wait until your Copywork notebooks are filled with many favored poems and then place into a poetry notebook of their own. Let the children decorate with pictures to make the Poetry notebook their very own.

·         Focus on one poet at a time! It may take you a whole year to focus on the works of a single poet, but it is perfectly fine to take your time. Our personal favorite is Robert Louis Stevenson. I came to love A Child’s Garden of Verses after checking it out from the library. We have two copies…very worn now! We are still collecting other copies with various illustrators who we also love like Tasha Tudor or Jessie Willcox Smith! If you want to just study a poet but you do not have any compilations of only their works, then just look in the index of a large anthology for their poems. As you study your particular poet, you may want to find a biography as well. In your poetry notebook, you could include a narration from the biography in the section for that poet.

·        In all of your studies, remember to pull in poetry. For example, an American History study is incomplete without reading Henry Wordsworth Longfellow’s poem, Paul Revere’s Ride. Also, Nature Studies are dull and lifeless without the study of poetry alongside. A study of Bible History is incomplete without the Psalms alongside showing the thoughts of the hearts of men and women during all of history. Just tie in poetry into all studies to give balance and beauty!

·        Learn with your children! Perhaps this should have been said first. So, often we neglect studying anything that we are not able to understand fully. Poetry is one study that can be studied best without a teacher giving lectures, sermons, notes, or long lists of questions. Poetry is best without a middleman! Just like the Bible, Poetry is best if the child meets the poet mind-to-mind. This eliminates the need for us to know poetry before we can introduce it into our homes. All we have to do is find a few great books with poems and dig in! The poets will do the speaking…the children (and you!) will do the listening…and the ideas will bring challenge to the mind, relationship with the thinkers, and the discussion will begin. It will not be long until the student of poetry will reap the benefits of poetry in every area of learning!

Don’t Know Where to Start?

·        Find poetry books in the library or recommended by friends. Begin looking at topics that interests you. As you find a favorite, take time to savor that poem. Then, find other works by that author.

·        Choose poetry that you love! Do you love poetry with deep spiritual truths, observing nature, or encouraging romantic love for your spouse? Take a close look at the authors of the poems that you like and look up more poetry by them. Most poets write most of their poetry on the same topics and in the same style.

·        Make poetry part of every day! Read over meals, or at tea-time, or during reading time, or at bedtime!

·        Begin by picking what appeals to you. Chances are that many times your children will enjoy much of what you enjoy. Do take into consideration the differences in personality though. Just read your picks aloud or make available the collections for them to use. Once an appreciation begins to develop, you will find differing tastes that will need to be nurtured. Then you will find that appreciation is set!

     With Poetry Study keep in mind that your job is to guide the children to the best and let them do appreciating for themselves! It may take time of the children to find their favorite area of poetry to study or their favorite poet to want to study, but as they begin to appreciate for themselves the beauty of words fitly spoken you will know that poetry is bearing fruit. Keep in mind that the goal is for the children to develop a relationship with the poetry as well as the poet. They will develop friendships with poets of long ago. If this is attained, then you can consider Poetry Study a complete success!

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