Poetry . . . the songs of life!

I WISH
I WISH I WAS THINNER
I WISH I HAD MORE MONEY
I WISH I HAD MORE TIME
I WISH I COULD TRAVEL MORE
By: Angela Bunn

I went to Closing the Gap looking for an article on writing. Writing is not something I enjoy teaching just because it is so hard for my students. So I went to find an article that would inspire me . . . an article that would give me some ideas . . . an article that would help ME help them! The article that caught my attention was by Caroline Ramsey Musselwhite and Deanna Kempka Wagner. It was entitled Poetry . . . for language and for LIFE! The article discussed using poetry not only for students to learn, but as a means for self-expression, a means of helping people express who they are. My students all speak, so they have a means of expressing themselves, (sometimes a little more than I need for them to in the classroom!). But for students who are nonspeaking, poetry can be empowering in helping them express who they are to others.




The article gave examples of poems written by individuals who use AAC to communicate. The different types of poems included wish poems (like my attempt at the beginning of this blog), list poems, add-a-word poems, cinquin poems, and examples of poetry starters. All of these types of poems are great ideas for use in classrooms of different types with children at all different levels. The article discusses how poetry can be excellent for language learning and how important it is for people who use AAC to have access to as much vocabulary as possible. The article gave examples and suggestions for software and programs that would offer extensive, organized vocabulary for this purpose.



In thinking back over my previous readings of Cook and Hussey, it is so important to take into consideration an individual's strengths and needs when considering different types of Assistive Technology. The capabilities are out there, it is just a matter of matching the correct AT with the individual for the job that needs to be done. I was so impressed with the poetry examples that the article shared from individuals who use AAC. It provided those individuals with the opportunity to express themselves, inspire themselves and others, and bring joy!

I have had to insert the link for the article because I could not figure out how to upload the file that I had saved on my jumpdrive. I went to Help to see if I could figure it out, but I could not. If anyone can give me some pointers on that, I would greatly appreciate it!