March Madness of Poetry

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I love all things March Madness!  For the past 5 years, I have incorporated some type of bracket madness into my literature class.  So, after either loving or hating my bracket...this year's  March Madness of Poetry, has by far been the best!  As poems advance, the activities get more intense, kind of like the tournament.

I have done similar activities in the past, however, setting it up in a bracket has caused INSTANT engagement!

How it Works

This year, my 7th and 8th graders were in the middle of their poetry unit when March hit,  so I decided to have poems go head to head.  Right now we are working through our Sweet 16, these are a combination of poems that I found dramatic readings of on youtube.  We listen to the two poems going up against each other and I have the students vote on their favorite. (That's it!)  I have loved the fact that there hasn't been a landslide win yet! 

Elite 8

Once we get our Elite 8, my class will break into 8 groups where each will get a poem.  They are to re-listen to the poem and be on the look out for figurative language.  Their goal while they listen is to find 3 examples of figurative language, explain what it means, and then draw a picture representing said example.  I usually take a good chunk of the next class to have my students vote so we can go into the next day with our final four.  

The Final Four 

With the last four, we will really dive into each poem.  Here we will analyze the text and vote to find our two favorites. 

The Big Dance

For the final face off, I break the kids into groups.  They need to make 'propaganda posters' for their poem.  These needs to be persuasive and capture what the poem represents. (Our discussions during the Final Four, really help with this!)  

The Winner

Once we have a winner, we will celebrate by creating a one-pager for the poem!  (Of course, we listen to 'We Are the Campion,' when they turn in the one-pagers!)