Harriet+Tubman

[|Harriet TubmanPoem.doc]

Day 1

 * Introduce the poem. "This poem is about Harriet Tubman. What have you learned already about Harriet Tubman?"
 * Echo read the poem. Teacher reads a line or two, group echos. Give positive feedback / make a few suggestions for improvement.
 * go over "farewell" -- goodbye
 * third stanza: talk about running north, and the slave catchers chasing her. Review why she ran north. Ask who those "mean men" were.
 * In pairs, students time each other reading the poem and record their initial time on the graph.
 * Comprehension question: Re-read the first stanza. What do we learn about Harriet Tubman from this stanza?

Day 2

 * 1) Today practice the poem with a partner. Have students model reading it with expression. Talk about changing your voice. Have them give each other some feedback.
 * model reading with drama, changing your voice according to what's happening, and explain why you are changing it that way. "When it says '19 times she...' I made my voice kind of strong and surprised, because 19 times is a lot of times!"
 * 1) Go over each part of the poem in more detail. Paraphrase each part in "talking language." Re-write a few of the stanzas in prose on chart paper. (One group can start with the beginning and then the other groups can add to it.)
 * 2) Partners time each other and record their Tuesday time on the sheet.
 * 3) Comprehension:
 * 4) Poets write poems for different reasons. Sometimes it is to tell a story, or to be funny, or to teach a lesson. What do you think is the poet's purpose for writing this poem? What does the poem want us to get out of the poem? Why did she write it? (You may have to model answering this question after a few kids try it. "I think Eloise Greenfield wanted to tell us the story of Harriet Tubman. But I also think she wanted us to think hard about what kind of person Harriet Tubman was -- how brave and fearless she was, and how strong to go back 19 times to the south where they might catch her and make her a slave again."

Day 3

 * 1) Focus on the punctuation. Have them find punctuation marks, and model what each kind of punctuation might mean. Tell them they can experiment with it, and try different ways of reading the punctuation. For example, you might want to pause at the dash, or you might want to hurry on to the next part. They should definitely pause at the periods, and do shorter pauses at commas.
 * 2) Students practice alone or with a partner, as they choose, trying out different ways of reading it and paying close attention to punctuation.
 * 3) They time each other and record the time.
 * 4) Comprehension: Look at the end of the poem. What do you notice about it? Why do you think the poet wrote the same thing twice? The last stanza is just like the first stanza. Why did she repeat it? Why did she repeat the last line? (Again, you might have to model this -- explain that sometimes poets repeat things to get you to really pay attention, because these are the most important things they want you to think about and remember.)

Day 4

 * 1) Today they will get to perform the poem for each other. Give them some time to practice.
 * 2) People who want to can perform for the group. Time them as they do. If some don't perform, be sure they get timed by a partner and record their times.
 * 3) Other options for performing: have pairs or groups of 3 read each stanza, and go around the circle, reading the poem chorally in small groups.
 * 4) Comprehension: Do you notice anything about the words of the poem and how the poet is telling the story? Does it sound like book language or talking language? Point out "didn't take no," and "wasn't scared of nothing neither," and other examples of colloquial language (like " 'em"). Why do you think she wrote the poem in that kind of language? Whose voice is she using to tell the story? You may have to model that she is using a voice like Harriet Tubman's, like a real person talking, not like formal book language,