Wonder Poetry 1:30

Paul W. Hankins

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This month, Amy Ludwig VanDerwarer (Forest Has a Song, Every Day Birds) will be drafting poems inspired by the previous day's "wonder."

I'll be keeping my drafts in here:

Yesterday's "wonder," #1659, was "Is coral an animal, plant, or rock?"

In order to show process this month, I'll be sharing my notes--my jump starts--my approach to the poem.

This is something we might do with our students. Anne Lamott might call this a "down draft." We're just getting some writing "down."

Note, too, that I am asking myself questions as I go. I want to "wonder" along with you how this approach might work with young writers in the classroom. The "wonder" I've kept coming back to out of today's piece is how poetry is informed and formed by the "wonder." In turn, does the resulting piece begin to shape a response in prose?

Here is today's piece, inspired by Wonder #1659:

An animal without a face?

With coral, one could make a case.

A plant that can't make its own food?

This is a way coral could be viewed.

Or maybe it's more like an ornate stone,

standing on the ocean floor alone.

Coral, coral, it seems to me,

you are the sea's great mystery.

A marvel of a thing to see,

an example of aquatic diversity.

Keywords:

• Wonder
• Coral
• Poetry

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