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Red-eyed Tree Frog: Haiku

10/4/2018

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Happy Poetry Friday! I'm so glad you stopped by! For more of the poetry round-up, visit Tabatha at her space HERE.

Last Friday, I had so much fun visiting all the writers in Mrs. Rodriguez's fourth grade dual language class. I had the opportunity to share my process and my published poem for the Poetry Friday roundup. It was an amazing experience to be with these young writers. Their questions were so insightful, and I learned so much from each of them. One student even offered me a seed poem idea. It was a wonderful invitation! I happily accepted his seed poem idea. The result is this haiku about the very interesting Red-eyed Tree Frog. I want to send a huge thank you to the students of Mrs. Rodriguez's class for welcoming me into their workshop with such enthusiasm for writing!
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Invitation to Write:

For this seed poem idea, I did a little research on the Red-eyed Tree Frog. I didn't know much about this fascinating creature, so I had to do a bit of research on this topic. Writers are researchers at times. It helps them collect around their subject or topic. Next, I made the decision to try a haiku using some of the research I gathered. One of the great features of the haiku form is the freedom it provides from structure and form. For example, a haiku doesn't have to rhyme, and usually it doesn't. Another great aspect of the haiku is that punctuation and capitalization are used only if the poet decides to incorporate these conventions. For writers who like to follow the general rule, the standard haiku follows a 5-7-5 syllable pattern. Of course there are always exceptions to the rule. You may choose to experiment with creating a traditional haiku or a variation, such as a Tanka or a Lune. Just start with any topic of interest, like I did. You'll have lots of fun with this short but sweet form of poetry!
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Pony: A Resolution Poem

12/22/2017

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Happy Poetry Friday! Thanks for stopping by the ridge this holiday weekend. For more of the poetry festivities, visit Buffy's space HERE. I wish all of you a joyful holiday!
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This week, I am sharing a poem of resolution. When we make a resolution, we make a firm decision to do something or not to do something. In my experience, it is much easier for me to make a resolution than it is to keep it. I tend to be wishy-washy when it comes to making definitive decisions sometimes. I find myself resolving to do things that may be too far off in the distance to settle on so intently. Instead, I resolve to do better at setting my sights on doing and caring for things that are already in my current reality. Our sweet pony reminded me of this, each time I failed to acknowledge him when he stuck out his nose for me to give him a touch or a tickle. He made me realize, I must do better. Time must stand still for all the good in my life; all that is waiting to be seen.
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Invitation to Write:

Have you ever made a resolution? If so, take some time to write them down in your notebook or write down a new one. Writing poems of resolution can help you stay focused and committed to what's important to you. 
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Hey, Doodlebug! A Poetry Challenge

1/25/2017

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Today from the ridge, I am sharing a little poetry ditty on the doodlebug! Thanks for visiting today, and be sure to squiggle on over to Carol's space Beyond Literacy Link where she is hosting our round-up this week.

This week, I was invited to participate in a Poetry Challenge by the fourth grade writers in Mrs. Dungan's class. I was thrilled to accept the invitation to write! My task was to write a poem around a student chosen topic. I would be submitting my poem to the class, along with the student poets in the room who had chosen to accept the challenge. On Friday the poems would be read aloud and the poet with the most votes by the audience would be named the Poetry Challenge Champ of the week. I knew immediately, I was going to have some tough competition!  The topic that was chosen for the week was "animals." I definitely wanted to write a poem that was playful and funny. I thought about all the different animals I could write about. It was really hard to choose! I finally decided on an almost invisible  creature that has fascinated me ever since I was a little girl, the antlion or better known as, the doodlebug.   
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Antlion (Doddlebug) pits Photo taken by Kiesha Shepard
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Antlion or Doodlebug in the larva stage
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Antlion in the adult stage
I would like to thank Mrs. Dungan's fourth grade class for their kind invitation to write for their poetry challenge of the week! For more poetry challenge submissions from Mrs. Dungan's amazing poets click HERE.

Invitation to Write:

Writers take on poetry challenges all the time. It is a great way to explore and experiment with language, form, and a variety of literary devices. Best of all, it's really fun! Taking on a challenge can really stretch your thinking and it can motivate you to get your creative juices flowing. Whenever you are faced with a poetry challenge, it can also be helpful to immerse yourself in mentor texts that you might lean on for guidance or inspiration. Since my poetry challenge topic was animals, I found this book of pocket poems about birds particularly helpful. I found a few poems that were very similar to the form that I was wanting to try out for my challenge. Through careful study of these mentor poems and by pushing myself to write in a craft I had never tried before, I was amazed at what I could create on the page. I encourage you, my friends, to consider accepting a poetry challenge or try assigning yourself a writing challenge. It's a great way to learn and grow as a writer.    
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On Wings of Song-Poems About Birds selected and edited by J.D. McClatchy
Here is one of the poems that I referred to as a mentor for my poem Hey, Doodlebug!

The Vulture
The Vulture eats between his meals,
And that's the reason why
He very, very rarely feels
As well as you and I.

His eye is dull, his head is bald,
His neck is growing thinner.
Oh! what a lesson for us all
To only eat at dinner!

​Hilaire Belloc
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    Author

    Welcome! I'm Kiesha Shepard, and I have a love for writing and the teaching of writing. Whispers From the Ridge is a place where I can share my words and ideas for teaching writing. It's also a place for you to find inspiration for writing the words inside of you. I invite you into my world of writing as I capture the whispers from the ridge.

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    Schedule of Round Up:

    July
    2    Laura at Laura Shovan
    9    Margaret at Reflections on the Teche
    16  Molly at Nix the Comfort Zone
    23  Kat at Kathryn Apel
    30  Becky at Sloth Reads
    August
    6   Mary Lee at A(nother) Year of Reading
    13 Christie at Wondering and Wandering
    20 Carol at The Apples in My Orchard
    27 Elisabeth at Unexpected Intersections
    September
    3   Heidi at my juicy little universe
    10 Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect
    17 Denise at Dare to Care
    24 Laura at Laura Purdie Salas
    October
    1   Catherine at Reading to the Core
    8   Irene at Live Your Poem
    15 Bridget at wee words for wee ones
    22 Jama at Jama's Alphabet Soup
    29 Linda at TeacherDance
    November
    5   Tabatha at The Opposite of Indifference
    12 Matt at Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme
    19 Carol at Beyond LiteracyLink
    26 Ruth at there is no such thing as a God-forsaken town
    December
    3   Michelle at Michelle Kogan
    10 Cathy at Merely Day by Day
    17 Jone at Jone Rush MacCulloch
    24 Buffy at Buffy Silverman
    31 Carol at Carol's Corner

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Photos used under Creative Commons from Kristine Paulus, Ryan Hodnett, Marie Hale, gurdonark, btrentler, Kelly Colgan Azar, jeffreyw, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region
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