Young Leaves : Teaching Haiku for Kids

[nobodhi]

Welcome.  :D  This free area is open to air topics and themes, issues and plans, as to teaching kids haiku. 

Here are just some possible areas for discussion

    * How can we best teach kids haiku
    * What's already being taught that could use  improvement, and how
    * What lesson plans work -- and don't
    * How to fit teaching material for different age groups
    * Do we consider gender class & race and if so how
    * For ESL, can kids learn to translate their own and others' haiku
    * How to sell The Powers That Be (TPTB) on including haiku as curricula
    * What skill sets do haiku instill & foster
    * How can we teach by including seeing and doing as well as hearing
    * How much time can we allot in a semester for haiku
    * Can haiku be taught to kids online
    * What if there were a national day of haiku for kids — what then
    * Are any state or local poet laureates amenable to haiku for kids
    * How to establish and maintain haiku contests for kids
    * With older students, can haiku be included as a slam category
    * What can kids teach us  ( trees are nourished by their leaves )
    *


Ara toto
aoba wakaba
hi no hikari

Ah, how glorious !
green leaves, young leaves
glittering in the sunlight

— Basho

[ translation by Robert Aitken Roshi ]

[Gabi Greve]

Here are some more links and info about teaching children

http://happyhaiku.blogspot.com/2004/01/teaching-children.html

.

[nobodhi]

j a c k p o t !

ありがとう

[nobodhi]

I've found these too online



The Haiku : What It Is & How To Write It by Sherry Salant [ Grades 10 – 12 ]
http://www.slideshare.net/guestd3d7159/the-haikufinaljan11




Haiku at Pete's Power Point Station (pppst)
http://languagearts.pppst.com/haiku.html 
[ the stereotype graphic I ain't too happy about, but ——  anyways ... ]
I haven't gone thru all his links yet, but note the one for EdSitement, at National Endowment of the Humanities [ NEH ] doesn't connect anymore to haiku, so I googled and came up with two there [ no author(s) listed, other than the anonymous product of  taxpayers' money ] :

The World of Haiku
http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plan/world-haiku 
in this lesson, students explore the traditions and conventions of haiku, comparing this classic form of Japanese poetry to a related genre of Japanese visual art and composing haiku of their own. 
                      &
Can You Haiku ?
http://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plan/can-you-haiku
Haiku show us the world in a water drop, providing a tiny lens through which to glimpse the miracle and mystery of life. Combining close observation with a moment of reflection, this simple yet highly sophisticated form of poetry can help sharpen students' response to language and enhance their powers of self-expression. In this lesson, students learn the rules and conventions of haiku, study examples by Japanese masters, and create haiku of their own.
—— each of these with

• Guiding Questions
  
• Learning Objectives
  
  • Preparation Instructions
    
  • Lesson Activities and
    
    • Extending the Lesson
  
  
  
  ¿ what else ?
  
  ( btw, is anyone here a  teacher ? ...  ... parent ? ... .... ... ...  kid ? ...)
  
  

[AlanSummers]

Children love to write haiku about space. 

I often get them to write both factual haiku and fictional/fantasy haiku aka Space Haiku, (my term) which covers both approaches.

Dylan's ebook and video (which includes one of my Space Haiku) is a possibility for children:
1. http://www.scribd.com/doc/27780395/Practical-Haiku-How-Haiku-Can-Change-Your-Life
2. http://www.slideshare.net/dylan20/practical-haiku-how-reading-and-writing-an-ancient-poetic-form-can-change-your-life
3. http://igniteshow.com/videos/dylan-tweney-practical-haiku

all my best,

Alan

[AlanSummers]

Here's a selection of space haiku by me, and space related haiku by other writers:
http://www.thehaikufoundation.org/forum_sm/share-haiku/space/

all my best,

Alan

[nobodhi]

thank you, Alan.  I've been keenly admiring of your work for many years & this recent slice is very nourishing, indeed ! As Sun Ra sang, " space IS the place " ...

———————————————————————————————————————————————————


Confession :  I don't blog. And my motto with the Internet is the Jewel Thief's Motto : (Three G's) ...  "get in , get the jewels, get out."  I'm more of a twitterer. ...  ♫♩♪♬♩ ...

However, I think forums are the best part of the Internet.  ( Thank you, Haiku Foundation ! )

Anyways, I broke form this morning ...  and  blogged! Here's what happened.  See, every week RedRoom.com. gives its members a topic, (with a  prize). This week, it's "If you were poet laureate ... " So I took the opportunity to sound off about haiku in education.
Here's my blog ———————————
http://goo.gl/4hIHG

One thing I touched on, of possible interest, here, for further discussion, is  how to persuade teachers to adopt haiku into their curriculum.  Here's an excerpt :


_________________________________________________

... [ Kids are ] so much closer, already -- & they're our future. [ Haiku ] could teach them so much more than counting syllable (silly bells) — in fact, offering a whole Swiss Army knife of multiple skill sets, such as

    • critical thinking — by learning to READ haiku
    • creative writing — by learning to COMPOSE haiku *
    • mindfulness — by learning to EXPERIENCE haiku ( for "mindfulness" ok to substitute "emotional intelligence" )
    • empiricism — by learning to OBSERVE without judgment from the direct evidence of the senses
    • letting the heart dance — an under-emphasized essential to life

* writing could include senryu, for empathy; haibun, for journalling — plus also be coupled with ink brush / photography / photoshop for haiga ...

I'd also include literary translation for kids — as is already being fostered at Center for Art In Translation's http://catranslation.org/poetry-inside-out Poetry Inside Out .  This could include not only haiku from Japan and other nations — but with kids learning to translate haiku by themselves and their classmates.

Please let me know what you think. Thank you.

[AlanSummers]

Thanks for the kind words Gary. ;-)

Glad you want to show children and young people what haiku can do, and joining in trying to get teachers to understand the power of haiku composing.  It touches so many other disciplines, not just creative writing, but self-belief, a strength to stand alone, non-judgement in social situations, and the list goes on.

Teachers stuck on syllable counting, because it sounds useful, are narrowing the scope of our youth.  It's a shame, but the more of us working with schools in one way or another can only be beneficial on so many levels.

Also renku is a fantastic device as it teaches people to work and think together, and respect each other's views.

Love your breakdown of haiku (and other disciplines) and the translation aspect too.  ;-)

all my best,

Alan

thank you, Alan.  I've been keenly admiring of your work for many years & this recent slice is very nourishing, indeed ! As Sun Ra sang, " space IS the place " ...

———————————————————————————————————————————————————


Confession :  I don't blog. And my motto with the Internet is the Jewel Thief's Motto : (Three G's) ...  "get in , get the jewels, get out."  I'm more of a twitterer. ...  ♫♩♪♬♩ ...

However, I think forums are the best part of the Internet.  ( Thank you, Haiku Foundation ! )

Anyways, I broke form this morning ...  and  blogged! Here's what happened.  See, every week RedRoom.com. gives its members a topic, (with a  prize). This week, it's "If you were poet laureate ... " So I took the opportunity to sound off about haiku in education.
Here's my blog ———————————
http://goo.gl/4hIHG

One thing I touched on, of possible interest, here, for further discussion, is  how to persuade teachers to adopt haiku into their curriculum.  Here's an excerpt :


_________________________________________________

... [ Kids are ] so much closer, already -- & they're our future. [ Haiku ] could teach them so much more than counting syllable (silly bells) — in fact, offering a whole Swiss Army knife of multiple skill sets, such as

    • critical thinking — by learning to READ haiku
    • creative writing — by learning to COMPOSE haiku *
    • mindfulness — by learning to EXPERIENCE haiku ( for "mindfulness" ok to substitute "emotional intelligence" )
    • empiricism — by learning to OBSERVE without judgment from the direct evidence of the senses
    • letting the heart dance — an under-emphasized essential to life

* writing could include senryu, for empathy; haibun, for journalling — plus also be coupled with ink brush / photography / photoshop for haiga ...

I'd also include literary translation for kids — as is already being fostered at Center for Art In Translation's http://catranslation.org/poetry-inside-out Poetry Inside Out .  This could include not only haiku from Japan and other nations — but with kids learning to translate haiku by themselves and their classmates.

Please let me know what you think. Thank you.

[Gabi Greve]

   • critical thinking — by learning to READ haiku
    • creative writing — by learning to COMPOSE haiku *
    • mindfulness — by learning to EXPERIENCE haiku ( for "mindfulness" ok to substitute "emotional intelligence" )
    • empiricism — by learning to OBSERVE without judgment from the direct evidence of the senses
    • letting the heart dance — an under-emphasized essential to life

* writing could include senryu, for empathy; haibun, for journalling — plus also be coupled with ink brush / photography / photoshop for haiga ...

I'd also include literary translation for kids — as is already being fostered at Center for Art In Translation's http://catranslation.org/poetry-inside-out Poetry Inside Out .  This could include not only haiku from Japan and other nations — but with kids learning to translate haiku by themselves and their classmates.

Thanks for this display of learning possibilities.

I found that this is the most important, words follow later ...

by learning to EXPERIENCE haiku
to empty the mind before a haiku can find you ... not the other way round . . .

Well ... kids are great teachers too.
I taught our Japanese grammar schoolers to write haiku ...

Gabi

[nobodhi]

Hi Gabi

¿ might you share with us a bit of what you learned teaching kids ?
( & what did they teach you )

... ... ... ... ... & while you're composing a reply, i applaud your comment :

I found that this is the most important, words follow later ...

by learning to EXPERIENCE haiku
to empty the mind before a haiku can find you ... not the other way round . . .

deserves a toast ... with empty cups !   :D

This opens up a branch for possible further discussion : is it possible for teachers to rely soley on book-learning to teach haiku ?  Or, how do teachers learn to experience haiku so they can teach it to kids ?  ???

[Gabi Greve]

Hi nobodhi san

most of my comments about teaching are here

counting 5 7 5 with Japanese kids, toriawase for Japanese kids . . .
http://happyhaiku.blogspot.com/2004/01/teaching-children.html

What they tought me ? Well,  I knew that before but it was re-confirmed ^
teaching is not my profession !   ;D

Gabi