Stay on P.A.C.E. through P.E.A.C.E. and P.O.W.E.R.
Overview
Sixth grade students are at a stage of transition in their lives, moving from an elementary school to a middle school. The children are beginning to identify who they are as an individual as this transition requires more responsibility and maturity from them as students. Around this same time, sixth graders should be learning about creative writing, poetry, and sending effective messages through their writing. This project is designed to help students develop a self awareness by searching for and identifying qualities within themselves.
Students will create poem blasts through the P.O.W.E.R. writing process (Pre-write, Organize, Write, Edit, Read/Revise). Throughout the lessons, students will develop an awareness of their own creativeness and individual voice for what they stand for. P.E.A.C.E. helps them realize who they are (Physically, Emotionally, Academically, Communally/Socially, Ethnically). While the students frame their ideas and create their poems, they need to be original, thought provoking, and personally gratifying. Students will be told to P.A.C.E. themselves in order to receive a good grade. This will be my assessment (Product, Analytical Process, Contribution, Engagement).
After the poems have been created, students will take on an important role in publishing their works as a class; a book entitled This is Me. They may be an editor, typist, collator, collector, distributor, photographer, artist, or reader. Once everything is complete, we will submit our newly published book to the school and public libraries.
A key to this unit is to have thought provoking stories and movie clips that hit home to many students. Is it vital to give these sixth graders the opportunity to figure out what they feel about themselves and why. On top of all of this “good stuff”, they will learn to appreciate and love to write and develop an analytical approach to writing.
Rationale
This project will allow students to grow in self esteem and awareness while bettering their skills and understanding of creative writing and poetry. This project gives all sixth graders a sense of self worth and helps them along the path of uncertainty a little more quickly.
Lesson 1 -Who Am I Physically?
Lesson 2 -Who Am I Emotionally?
Lesson 3 – Who Am I Academically?