 Welcome, Poetry Friday readers! Thanks for visiting me today on the ridge, where I share a wonder poem about how rocks came to be. You can find more poetry wonders this week over at A Penny and Her Jots. Thanks for hosting, Penny! Friends, have you ever wondered how something came to be? I think about this all the time! It's fun to think of all the possibilities for what makes things the way they are and perhaps even more fun to consider what they could be. A few weeks ago, my dear friend and fellow teacher Mrs. Mann, posed this statement to her fourth grade students "Every rock has a story. What could it be?" I could see all the wheels turning in her students' heads as they pondered over this idea. What a great thing to wonder about! After that, she proceeded to read them this amazing book A Rock Can Be... by Laura Purdie Salas. Through the book's vivid images and poetically written lines, the students entered a world where they could engage in the wonderment of what a rock can be. This book then served as an anchor text for students as they were each given a rock to observe and create a story or a poem about. The students were not the only ones eager to take on the exploration of this idea. I couldn't help but join in! I became a rock hunter, searching for rocks all along the ridge. Below are a few of them that I found along with a wonder poem that was inspired by Mrs. Mann's simple truth, "Every rock has a story."   Photo by Kiesha Shepard  Invitation to Write:Writers often think scientifically and creatively about the things they wonder about. What are some things you have observed or noticed lately that you are curious about? Start a list in your notebook. You can use your observations and notes to create stories or wonder poems. You might even choose yourself as your subject of wonder. Don't we all have a story? So what's yours?
11 Comments
2/2/2017 05:20:48 pm
Kiesha, this poem is just lovely! I especially love the questions you ask the rock. Thanks very much for sharing about this:>) 2/2/2017 09:13:11 pm
Kiesha, I love Laura's book and found your poem to be charming. The last two lines resonated with me. 2/3/2017 06:51:46 am
What a lovely poem. (And I want to look for Laura's book, too.). I am reminded of our vacation last summer when we looked for Petosky stones and spent hours sitting on the porch sanding and polishing them. I think I even started a poem about them. I'll have to dig it out and see what story it tells. 2/3/2017 08:11:23 am
Oh my goodness! I love this post and I love your poem! Laura's book is amazing and inspiring. 2/3/2017 04:05:37 pm
Laura's book(s) are all wonders, I agree. How great that you were inspired to find your own rocks. My youngest granddaughter and I have had a marvelous time looking at the superb collection at our museum. And she loved the book! Love the rhyming with 'quarry' and 'story'. 2/3/2017 06:23:32 pm
As I was reading your post I was thinking....this reminds me of....this reminds me of....and then I remembered. If You Were the Moon! That book explains the role of the moon -- to us who might be tempted to overlook it's story. And guess who the author is?! Yep. Laura Purdie Salas. I love your take on the lesson and your own poem about the story that can be from rocks. As always, a great visit for me at the Ridge. Have a great week. 2/3/2017 09:06:40 pm
How great that you answered your fellow teacher friend's classroom call with such a fun poem! (I got a kick out of "quarry/story" too.) Great photo as well. And, yay, Laura! So many terrific books. 2/5/2017 12:26:13 am
Great post. I love that your own rock-poem was about a rock hunter. I've added Laura's book to my wishlist.
Mary Lee Hahn
2/5/2017 06:59:38 am
Love those last two lines! (well, the whole poem, but ESPECIALLY the last two lines!) 2/10/2017 09:35:42 am
As always, I have enjoyed this post. Thank you for sharing the classroom backstory to your poem. Thanks for your invitation to wonder and write. I love your opening lines, an introduction to the poem's characters--rock hunter and rocks: "I am a rock hunter . . . those rocks that hope to be found." 4/19/2018 08:42:43 pm
Your poem affected life?! Yes, you can share your lovely poem and its great "after story" with the world... Submit now on LifePoemsProject.com Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWelcome! 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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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
