Middle schoolers explore creative expression through concrete poetry

Sixth grade students at Coal City Middle School, under the guidance of Mrs. Clark, are exploring poetry in their English/language arts class. The students have been reading "Love That Dog" by Sharon Creech, a novel that introduces them to concrete poems—poems that visually represent their subject matter.

Mrs. Clark shared insights into the class activities: “As a class, we looked at examples of other concrete poems that have been written and published. Then students were tasked with creating their own.”

The young poets crafted poems in various shapes including hearts, stars, coffee mugs, clocks, trees, and hands. Mrs. Clark noted the students' growing understanding of poetry's flexibility: “Students have realized that poetry does not have to follow a rhyming pattern but can literally take any shape they want.”