TOP TEN A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008. ISBN: 9780802853028

 

  Annotation: A beautifully and imaginatively illustrated biography of Williams, telling of his choosing to become a doctor, his continued delight in writing poetry, and including some of his poems

 

  Media: mixed media, collage, watercolour

 

  Rating: 5Q/5P

 

  Curricular connections: Biography, Poetry, Art

 

  Grade level: Upper elementary

 

lss 31/7/09 

 

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TOP TEN. A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008. ISBN 978-0-8028-5302-8

Annotation: Honoring the inspiring the union of William Carlos Williams life of poetry and service through medicine, Bryant and Sweet’s visual biography artistically captures the essence of Williams verse and life.

Media: Watercolor, collage, and mixed media.

Rating: 5Q/5P.

 

Curricular Connections: Biographies/Autobiographies, Visual/Performing Arts, Poetry.

Lesson Plan:

Teacher's Name: Nicole Porter					School: SJSU LIBR 271A-01 Class
Grade Level of Lesson: 7th grade				Subject: English/Language Arts		Date: 07/19/09
Unit Theme/Topic: Poetry
Lesson Title/Topic:	Making Poetry Personal
Expected Student Learning Outcomes:	What will students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson? (Be Specific) Students will be able to... Students will be able to recognize end rhyme, alliteration, simile, metaphor and other poetic elements in poems. Students will be able to write their own poems.
CA Academic Standards Addressed:	Which California Academic Content and Performance Standards will your lesson address? 7.1.1     Identify idioms, analogies, metaphors, and similes in prose and poetry.
Materials Used:	What instructional materials and equipment/supplies will you use in this lesson? A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, pen/pencils, and paper.
Lesson Outline: (Opening, Major Activities, Transitions, Review; Closure)
Opening/Introduce Lesson Do Now Anticipatory Set: Focus Students State Objective Establish Purpose Hook /involve students! Activate prior knowledge Assess students		Time   20 min	Teacher/Student Actions Teacher begins discussion on poetry: reminds students of previous units on poetry, asks to define poetic elements and provide examples off top of head using environment around them. Administer quiz on terms.
Main Activity: Instruction Explain Concept Refer to previous lessons Provide Examples Model Use a variety of instructional strategies		20 min	Break students into small groups of 4-5 and have take turns reading photocopied poem packets aloud to each other. Stress the natural everyday elements of these poems; teacher models by reading aloud the first poem to the entire class. Have each group chose a reader that will then read a poem to the class as a group.
Main Activity: Check for Understanding: Ensure students are ready for activity Pose Key Questions Ask Students to Explain Concepts Use active participation strategies		20 min	Teacher will facilitate class discussion of each poem, pointing out and defining alliteration, end rhyme, metaphor and simile as they come up in poems. Teacher will then read aloud  River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams and have discussion of how his life relates to his poetry.
Main Activity: Guided Practice: Students do task with teacher direction or assistance Provide monitoring Check for understanding Modify/adapt for all!		10 min	Assign homework: each student will create own poem on everyday experience, making especially sure to use alliteration, metaphor, simile and end rhyme. Teacher reads example and shows picture collaged to illustrate.
Closure: (Debrief) Find out what your students learned Share work and give positive feedback Summarize work and behavior Set next steps		50 min	Friday: Students present poems to class. Students fill out the Three Pluses and a Wish evaluation forms for each of their peers presenting to encourage feedback that might not otherwise be obtained from class discussion. Teacher comments and asks questions designed to aid students’ access of learning outcomes in relation to own poem.

 

Monitoring & Assessment:	How will you monitor student learning during the lesson? How will you assess student work? Student learning is monitored through direct assessment by quiz, class discussion and participation, teacher review of writing, and teacher and peer review of poem presentation.
Modifications to Address Individual Student Learning Needs	How will you modify your instruction as needed to ensure that all students meet learning outcomes? Students could partner up instead of working alone, like in the instance of an English language learner. Students also have the option of coming into class during a prep period, lunch or after school to work with teacher.
Follow-up Activities/ Homework	How will you follow up this lesson with homework or other extension activities? Students will journal about the process of creating their everyday poem.

NP 07/04/09

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Bryant, Jennifer.  A River of Words:  the story of William Carlos Williams.        Illustrated by Melissa Sweet. Grand Rapids, Mi.:  Eerlmans Books for Young      Readers, 2008.  ISBN:  78-0-8028-5302-8.  Dewey 811
Summary	A picture book biography of the American poet, who studied to be a doctor, but still found time to write poetry.
Media	Mixed media collage The poetry is part of the art – with different fonts and colors.
Literary     Devices	Poetry.  Kirkus review:  “It is entirely possible that this offering will not only acquaint readers with the man and his poetry, but will also inspire creativity – Williams would no doubt be pleased.”
Curriculum Connection	Use in grades 5 and up for poetry, biography and art classes.
Rating	5Q  5P Caldecott Honor book
Theme/extra	Timeline, notes and websites to explore.

Mary Smartt 8/2/09

 

A River of Words by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.  Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008. 

ISBN:  9780802853028

Media:  Watercolor, collage, and mixed media

Q5/P5

Describes Williams’ inspirations to write poetry and his peers in college, who also influenced his aesthetic.  He continued writing poetry and developed his own style, while still the town doctor.

CURRICULUM CONNECTION:  6^TH – 12^TH grades for language arts classes.

FBoggs 07/09

 

 

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant; Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008. ISBN: 978-0-8028-5302-8

 

This is a biographical account of the life of poet William Carlos Williams, which incorporates his poetry in unique and interesting ways through the use of creative illustrations and collage techniques.

 

Media: pencil, pen and ink, paint, multimedia

 

Rating: 5Q/2P

 

Literary device utilized: onomatopoeia

 

Example: “Gurgle, gurgle—swish, swish, swoosh!—gurgle, gurgle.”

 

Curricular connection: English/poetry, middle school level

 

Lesson plan: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L63JlLhTbrU

 

submitted July 2009 by Josh Mitchell

  

 

 

 

 

A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

ISBN: 9780802853028

A picture book biography of William Carlos Williams, that traces his childhood and events that lead him to becoming a doctor and also pursuing his love of poetry writing.

Media: Illustrations created with watercolor, collage and mixed media.

 

 

5Q/5P

 

 

• use of onomatopoeia through the text and/or through the illustrations.

When he grew tired he stretched out beside the Passaic River Gurgle gurgle-swish, swish, swoosh! -gurgle gurgle (Bryant 2008) A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.

• use of rhyme through the text and/or through the illustrations.

The archer is awake! The swan is flying! Gold against blue.  An arrow is lying. But he had pictures in his mind that didn’t fit exactly. A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.

• use of onomatopoeia through the text and/or through the illustrations.

When he grew tired he stretched out beside the Passaic River Gurgle gurgle-swish, swish, swoosh! -gurgle gurgle (Bryant 2008) A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.

• Use of repetition through the text and/or through the illustrations.

Repetition in illustrations (on the page with the text of the red wheel barrow). A River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams.

 

 

D. Guhl Summer 2009

 

 

 

River of words: The story of William Carlos Williams, by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

ISBN: 978-0802853028

Annotation: Follows the events that lead young William Carlos Williams to become both a doctor and an extraordinarily accomplished poet.

Illustrations: watercolor, collage, and mixed media

Curricular Use: 5^th-7^th grades; Biography, Language Arts

5Q/4P

DM 7/29/09

 

A River of Words:  The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant & Melissa Sweet.  Grand Rapids, Michigan:  Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.  ISBN 978-080285302-8.

 

Top 10

A celebration of William Carlos Williams poetic life.  A beautiful textured window into the life of the brilliant poet and physician, and how poetry has the ability to slow down even the busiest lives.

 

Media:  Watercolors, collage and mixed media

Q5/P5

5-8^th

 

Curricular Connection:  Level 5-8^th.  Language Arts.

 

D. Balestreri added to PB 7/24/09

 

Citation:  A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.  Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmanns Books for Young Readers, 2008.

ISBN: 978-0-8028-5302-8

Annotation: This biography of William Carlos Williams examines his childhood and his love of poetry. It also goes into why he became a doctor and how he created a new style of poetry.

Media: Collage, Watercolor, and Mixed Media

Personal Rating: 5Q/4P

Curricular Connections:  This would be an excellent choice for a Language Arts class. Students could learn about Williams’ style of poetry and practice writing poems in the style of Williams. They could also research Williams’ life and make collages in the style of Sweet.

Grade Level or Age Range: Grades 5-8

 

Lesson Plans:

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams

Concept To Teach

•      This lesson is for a 6^th grade Language Arts class

•      Students will learn about Williams’ life and his love of poetry

•      They will learn about his poetic style and do several activities to experience his poetic technique

•      This lesson can be done in a double period which is two hours or split up into two one hour block lessons

 

 

 

California Language Arts Standards

For Sixth Grade

•       Literary Response and Analysis:

•       3.4 : Define how meaning is conveyed in poetry through word choice, figurative language, sentence structure, line length, punctuation, rhythm, repetition, and rhyme

•       3.7: Explain the effects of common literary devices (symbolism, imagery, metaphor)

•       Writing:

•       1.1: Organization and Focus: Write poems

•       Speaking Applications:

•       2.3: Deliver oral responses to literature

•       Standards Web Site:

•       http://www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/documents/elacontentstnds.pdf

 

Goals and Objectives

•            Students will develop reading comprehension skills by listening to and discussing the read aloud A River of Words

•            Students will learn about Williams’ life by reading A River of Words

•            Students will learn the term “biography” and understand the attributes of this genre

•            Students will learn about Williams’s poetic style: Focus on everyday objects with short stanzas and lines

•            Students will read Williams’ poems to understand his style

•            Students will write poems that focus on the everyday image and his simple style

•            Students will develop oral language skills by reading their poems

•            Students will develop cooperative learning skills by working in teams

 

Materials

•      A River Of Words by Jen Bryant

•      Copies of Williams’ poems

•      Pens, crayons, paint, markers

•      Colored paper, newspaper, magazine pictures

•      Scissors, glue

Anticipatory Set (Lead-In)

•       The teacher will hold up A River Of Words and say, “Can poems be about everyday things?”

•       She will wait for responses and discuss

•       She will then say “Williams wrote about ordinary things and shaped these things into poems”

•       She will then read “The Red Wheelbarrow” to the class and ask them to try to discover what the everyday object is in the poem

•       After she has read the poem, the class will discuss how the red wheelbarrow is ordinary but still important

•       Next, she will say, “We are now going to learn more about Williams’ life and how he created a new style of poetry that focuses on making poems out of everyday things.”

•       The teacher will read A River of Words to the class as a read aloud

 

Procedure

•       After the teacher has read the book, she will ask students why this book is a biography?

•       She will then ask them to discuss in small groups what facts they learned about Williams’ life and she will write them on the overhead

•       She will then ask students to define Williams’ poetic style and then write down their responses on the overhead

•       She will ask them what ordinary objects were the subjects of the poems and how did he shape them into poems?

•       She will write on the overhead that his style focuses on simple stanzas, short lines, and clear images

•       She will then discuss the artwork and ask students how they know the artwork is done in a collage style?

•       She will divide the class into groups of four and give each group a poem by Williams

•       These poems could include: “The Red Wheelbarrow”, “This is Just to Say”, “The Great Figure”, “The Woodthrush”, and “Metric Figure”

•       She will ask each group to read the poem out loud and discuss how the poem uses everyday objects as images

•       She will ask them to look for short lines, simple stanzas, and how Williams uses imagery

•       After 15 minutes, she will ask each group to read their poem to the class

•       Each group will then share out why they think their poem uses ordinary subjects and simple style

 

Independent Practice

•       Each group will write a poem in the style of Williams

•       She will ask one member of each group to come to the front of the class to pick an ordinary object out of a bag

•       These objects could be a plum, a lemon, a toy car, toy birds, or a stuffed animal

•       Each group will spend 30 minutes writing the poem together with the focus on shaping a poem from the object they picked

•       The teacher will visit each group to check for understanding and to make sure every member is contributing to the writing of the poem

•       She will then tell each group that they have 30 minutes to publish their poem and to practice presenting it

•       Each member of the group will do a different job to publish the poem

•       Two members will work on writing the poem using different colors and fonts

•       Two members will work on the artwork for the poem

•       The artwork will be in the style of Melissa Sweet who used mixed media collage

•       Students will cut paper, use different colors, and design backgrounds to create the art for the poem

•       The teacher will visit each group to discuss how the artwork is in the style of collage and to make sure the group is practicing reading their poem

 

Closure

•      Each group will go up to the front of the class to read their poem

•      Each group will explain why their poem uses ordinary objects, short stanzas, and simple phrasing

•      Each group will explain how they used collage to enhance their poem

 

Assessment

•      The teacher will check for understanding as she monitors group work (informal assessment)

•      The teacher will grade each group’s poem based on whether they used simple objects and created images, short stanzas, and simple phrasing

•      The teacher will grade each group on their oral presentation skills and whether they worked well as a group

•      This assessment could be a checklist or a rubric (formal assessment)

 

Adaptations (Students With Learning Disabilities or English Language Learners)

•       Students with writing disabilities could do a fill in the blanks or C.L.O.Z.E poem where they fill in some words but not all of them

•       They could also do the artwork using a computer

•       They could type their poems or orally record them

•       Students who are English Language Learners could be given a model of a finished poem, so they can see the format

•       They could also be given a list of vocabulary words to help them write their poem as well as a c.l.o.z.e or fill in the blanks format

•       They could be given extra time to practice reading their poems

 

Extensions (Gifted Students)

•       Students could write their own poems and make their own collages for homework

•       Students could do more research on Williams’ life and present their information to the class

•       Students could visit: http://writing.upenn.edu/pennsound/x/Williams-WC.html to listen to Williams reading his own poetry

•       Students could write their own “apology poems” in the style of “This is Just to Say”.  They could write poems apologizing for something that they aren’t really sorry for just like Williams apologized for eating the plums but wasn’t really sorry.

•       Great lesson plan on apology poems: http://www.poetryclass.net/lessonb.htm

 

•       Super resources for teaching about Williams: http://webenglishteacher.com/wcwilliams.html

 

 

Cross-Curricular Connections

•       The English teacher could work with the Art teacher to create mixed media collage projects

•       The English teacher could work with the music teacher to add music to the poems

•       The English teacher could work with the computer teacher to create the artwork and poems on the computer and then record them or do a movie

•       The English teacher could work with the science teacher to write poems about animals

By: Joanne Maher July 23rd, 2009

 

 

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams, by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.  Grand Rapids, MI:  Eerdmans Books, 2008.

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Melissa Sweet. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

ISBN: This book tells the life story of William Carlos Williams, and  includes his poetry woven throughout the collage and water color pictures.

Annotation: 978-0802853028

Media: Mixed Media, collage, watercolor

Rating: 5Q/4P

Personification: “The little sparrows…quarreling with sharp voices over things that interest them.”

Onomatopoeia: “Gurgle, gurgle-swish,swish,swoosh!-gurgle, gurgle.” 

Curricular Connections: 5-8th grades: Biography, Poetry

RAC 7.21.09

 

 

Bryant, J. (2008).  A river of words: The story of William Carlos Williams, Sweet, M., (ill). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers.

ISBN: 9780802853028

Collage-like illustrations juxtaposed with biographical text paint a picture of how Williams grew from a boy to a man and from a dreamer to a poet.

Rating: 5Q/5P

Ages: Grades 5-8

Subjects: William Carlos William, Poetry, Attaining dreams/goals

Media: Collage, Watercolor, Mixed Media

Literary Device: Alliteration ("is more majestic/than that of the Episcopal minister"; "went slipping and sliding over the smooth rocks").

Curricular Connections: Poetry; History/Biography

 

A River of Words:  the Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.  Gran Rapids, MI:  Eerdmans Books for

     Young Readers, 2008.  ISBN 978-0-8028-5302-8

Told with colorful, creative collage artwork, this book shares the life and poetry of William Carlos Williams.  Poems are printed, uninterrupted on inside covers, while text tells his life story.

Illustrations:  Collage using watercolors, pencil, found objects and book covers as canvas

Themes:  Poetry, Biography

 

Literary Devices include: 

Onomatopoeia- A river is described, "When he grew tired, he stretched out beside the Passaic River, Gurgle, gurgle-swish, swish, swoosh!-gurgle, gurgle."

Alliteration:  "The water went slipping and sliding over the smooth rocks."

 

5Q/4P

 

ggolden

7/10/09

 

 

Citation: A river of words: The story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

ISBN: 978-0-80285-302-8

Annotation: Young Willie Williams enjoys his idyllic childhood as he grows up to become a doctor, and one of our more celebrated poets.

Age range: 5-6 grades

Media used by illustrator: collage

Personal Rating: 5Q/4P

Curricular connections: perfect in a poetry class for lower elementary students.

 

Literary Device: Smilie - The author relies on many similies to describe how Williams felt about poetry.

 

ateater/07-10-2009

 

A river of words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for young Readers, 2008.

            ISBN: 9780802853028

            Annotation: This is a biography of William Carlos Williams a very important poet. It talks about him growing up, becoming a doctor, and his love for poetry. It also explains how he wrote his poems.

            Media: Book covers are the canvas for the paintings, and random ephemera was used for collages

            Rating: 5Q/3P

Subject: English, Poetry.  Grade 5-6

Armando Rivera 7-05-09

 

A River of Words by Jen Bryant, Melissa Sweet Ill.  Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

 

Summary: A biography of the poet William Carlos Williams with gorgeous collage illustrations of his poems.

 

Rating: 5Q, 4P

 

ISBN: 0802853021

 

Medium: Watercolor, collage, mixed media.

 

Curricular Opportunities: 

• Excellent for Poetry and History curriculum

Age Group: 5th - 8th Grades

 

E.K. 7/1/09

 

 

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant, Melissa Sweet, Ill. Cambridge, UK: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008. ISBN 978-0-8028-5302, Q5/5P

This beautiful story tells the life-story of William Carlos Williams alongside illustrations done in a collage style, with child-like depictions of William’s infamous poems.

-Christina Gendron

 

A River Of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

The life story of poet William Carlos Williams is told, from his discovery of poetry in high school English class to the pursuit of his medical degree and eventual success as both a medical doctor and poet.

    - ISBN 978-0802853028

    - Media: watercolor, collage, and mixed media

    - Rating: 5Q/4P

    - Curricular Connections: Grades 5-6, Language Arts, Biography, Poetry

 

DPower 6/14/09

 

 

A River of Words by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm.B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2008. 

978-08028-5302-8

 

Annotation:The story of doctor and poet William Carlos Williams.

Media: watercolor, collage, mixed media

Rating: 5th-9th 5Q/4P

Literary Device: Assonance, Consonance, Alliteration, Personification, Imagery . . .:)

 

lvanburen/6-09

 

 

Citation:  A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

 

 

ISBN: 0802853021

 

 

Annotation: William Carlos William loved to write poetry, but became a doctor to support himself financially. Even as a doctor, he continues to write prolifically and passionately about his natural surroundings.

 

 

Media: Watercolor, Ink, Mixed Media Collages

 

 

Literary Device: Rhyme- “The archer is awake, The swan is flying, Gold against blue, An arrow is lying.” The words flying and lying rhyme.

 

 

Rating: 5Q/5P

 

 

Top Ten Favorite

 

S.F 06/21/09

 

TOP TEN

River of words, A:  the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.  Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008.

ISBN:  9780802853028

Illustrator:  Melissa Sweet

Media:  Mixed media:  collage, color pencil, watercolors and inks

5Q/5P

Annotation:  A River of Words:  the story of William Carlos Williams depicts Williams as a voracious reader and writer as a child.  After finishing medical school Williams becomes a doctor following his love for writing poetry and helping the community of Rutherford, N.J. 

 

Rhyme is defined by Dictionary.com as identity in sound of some part, especially the end, of words or lines of verse.  Jen Bryant in A River of Words:  The Story of William Carlos Williams incorporates the early poem of Williams that uses traditional rhyme as an example of his earlier poetry.

The archer is awake!

The Swan is flying!

Gold against blue

An Arrow is lying.

LESSON PLAN

SUBJECT:  Creating poetry in response to visual representations

Grade Level:  5^th to 7th grade

 

Lesson Plan Summary: This activity addresses education standards for children ages 10 to in developing critical thinking skills; reading nonfiction and poetry; and identifying different elements of narrative in reading and writing.  Students will have a choice between two activities in creating poetry in response to visual representation.  The first activity is to create three haikus.  The second activity is to draw a picture based on an object in a student’s house, which they will then write a free verse poem about.

 

	Lesson Guide	Student Participation
Objectives	I have designed this lesson plan to introduce young adults to a variety of styles of poetry and ways of journaling based on visual representation.	The students will base their poetry on choosing meaningful personal objects to write about.
Information	•River of words, A:  the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet, ill.  Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008. • Wabi sabi by Mark Reibstein and Ed Young, ill.  New York:  Little, Brown, 2008.	Students will be slit into small groups of five and take turns reading from the two books.	Materials Needed: Reading material from lesson plan
Verification	To measure if students understand the lesson plan, students will practice writing different styles of narrative.	The practice activity is to write a personal narrative describing an object in their house.
Activity	The two activities will help students develop critical thinking skills when creating poetry.	Students will have a choice between two separate activities. See lesson plan summary.	Resources for Activity:  Paper, pen, pencil
Summary	*The information learned in this lesson plan entails: *Haiku *Free verse *Journaling *Visual representation *Self expression *Critical thinking	The teacher may encourage the students to share their poetry and images on a public bulletin board.	Notes:

 

 

KRF 6/22/09

 

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams, by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet (ill). Eerdman's Books for Young Readers, 2008.

Summary: The life story and works of the American poet William Carlos Williams.

Analysis: This won a Caldecott. I should emphasize that it deserved to win the Caldecott; it's nicely written and beautifully illustrated, and really makes a poet come to life whom most students won't have encountered before. But the language is simple and has that cheery elementary school feel, which would make me leery of giving it to anyone much older than 5th grade, unless it were for an art class where they weren't supposed to pay much attention to the text. I think older students would feel talked-down to. Williams' poetry is deceptively simple-looking and is about everyday sorts of things, so that may have been what the author was going for, but it just doesn't work for me. This, along with Duel and Thoreau at Walden (and Laika, which I've read before but not yet for this class) is one of the books everyone has to read, so I'm curious to see other people's reactions to it.

Illustrations: Pen-and-ink, watercolors, and mixed media collage. Watercolor illustrations of Williams' life are backed by newspaper excerpts and prints of his poetry; very beautifully composed.

Rating: 5Q/3P (it would be more popular for younger students)

Curricular Connections: 3-5th grade language arts or 4-8th grade art unit.

--SLH

 

A River Of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant, ill. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2008. ISBN-13: 978-0802853028

    - Media: Watercolor, Mixed Media, Collage, Pen and Ink

    - Rating: 5Q/5P

    - Curricular Connections: Grades 6-8 Language Arts

    - Special Category: use of onomatopoeia through the text and/or through the illustrations. The words of williams' poems are used throughout and onomatopoeia is used to describe the play of water.

 

 

Possible Lesson Plan Ideas

Grade Level: 6-8 Language Arts, Art

 

 

Read A River Of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams aloud to the class in a circle.

 

 

Discussion Ideas

Williams’ poems are seemingly very simple; do you think that was purposeful? Can there sometimes be more substance to a poem that uses minimal wording? What does what Williams’ doesn’t say, say about the his work? Do some of the blank spaces, or the arrangement of the lines create meaning?

 

 

Assignment Ideas

Have students create a short poem about an everyday object or concept, and use mixed media to create an object that relates to their poem. They may start with either, and create the other to match the first.

 

 

Subsequent Discussion Ideas

How do the two simple things (the poem and the object) complement one another? Do they give each other meaning?

CHA 8/1/09