Blue lipstick concrete poems by John Grandits.  New York:  Clarion Books, 2007.

ISBN-13: 9780618851324

ISBN-10: 0618851321

Illustrator: John Grandits

Media: Mixed media

4Q/3P

 

Curricular connection:  Poetry.  Poetry can be used at any grade as a writing exercise in self-expression.  Visual representation can be used as a curricular connection to incorporate art into the lesson plan.  Books that can be used to teach visual poetry include: Blue Lipstick Concrete Poems, A River of Words, Walt Whitman:  Words for America, Wabi Sabi, Poke in the I and Popcorn.

Reading level:  5^th grade

Artwork:  Concrete poetry uses graphic patterns of letters, words, or symbols as a way to reinterpret the meaning of words into images.  All that is needed in order to make a concrete poem is paper and a pencil.  Concrete poetry uses forms and shapes as visual cues in shaping the writing on paper, at times varying the length and shape of the lines of the poem if necessary.     

 

Rhythm defined by Dictionary.com is a movement or procedure with uniform or patterned recurrence of a beat, accent, or the like.  John Grandits’s Blue Lipstick:  Concreted Poems titled Zombie Jock uses repetition of words to create rhythm in the different verses.

 

Trophy, trophy, trophy, trophy.

Zombie jocks must have the trophy.

Shiny, Shiny, pretty trophy

With our names engraved on trophy.

 

 

Annotation:  Concrete poems combine pictures and patterns in design with ideas and words.  Blue lipstick follows the life of high school girl Jessie whose individualistic ideas do not always sit well with those around her.

 

KRF 6/22/09

 

Grandits, J. (2007). Blue lipstick : concrete poems. New York:  Clarion Books. ISBN-13: 978-0-618-56860-4

 

 

In a series of clever, imaginative concrete poems, ninth-grader Jessie chronicles the ups and downs of her relationships with her family, her peers, and school in general.  Especially witty is the poem “All My Important Thinking Gets Done in the Shower” in which the wide range of her thoughts radiates from the showerhead as sprays of blue-lettered sentences. As Jessie presents her dreams, frustrations, and anxieties, her typical teenage point of view gradually matures over the year, realizations which are reflected in the poem “The Wall” which details her likes and dislikes.

Artwork:  Concrete poetry in varying fonts, line drawings, colors in black and white with touches of light blue

 

Subjects: School life; Humor

 

Themes: The people in your life who care about you make decisions for your own good.  Everyone survives high school, even if some moments are best to be forgotten.

 

Categories: Fiction; Poetry 811

Age Level Recommendation: Middle School

 

Rating: 5Q/5P

 

AAS 5-3-08

 

 

 

Lesson Plan:  Middle/High School Survival Guide (AAS 5-4-08)

 

 

 

Objective:  React to literature with comprehension, insight, and understanding.  

 

 

 

Grade Range:  6^th -- 9th (but adaptable to higher grades)

 

 

 

Standards:  Applicable to a variety of Language Arts Content Standards depending on the grade level and needs of the students.

 

 

 

Picture Books:

 

 

 

American born Chinese / Gene Luen Yang ; color by Lark Pien. New York:  First Second, 2006.

 

Babymouse. 1,Queen of the world! / by Jennifer L. Holm & Matthew Holm. New York:  Random House, c2005. (This book is the first in a series.  Many of the titles are primarily set in schools.)

 

Blue lipstick : concrete poems / by John Grandits. New York:  Clarion Books, c2007.

 

Diary of a wimpy kid : Greg Heffley's journal / by Jeff Kinney. New York:  Amulet Books, 2007.

 

Middle school is worse than meatloaf : a year told through stuff / by Jennifer L. Holm ; pictures by Elicia Castaldi. New York:  Atheneum Books for Young Readers, c2007.

 

 

 

Anticipatory Set:

 

“Although most of my work days go well, when I first came to  ______________ school, I didn’t know anyone and had lots of questions.  Everyone gave me lots of advice and assistance to make that first year run smoothly.”

 

 

 

“So far in your life (or just this school year), what was the worst day you have had in school?  The best?  If you had a little brother or sister, would you offer advice to make it easier when they get to middle school/high school?  Do you feel like a survivor?  Could you help others survive?  Well, one way we learn how to approach new situations is through books and how characters cope with the same situations.  We are going to let some book characters give us advice on to do and what not to do to feel successful at school.”

 

 

 

Teaching:

 

1.  You will need 6-7 copies of each of the 5 books.  Separate the class into 5 literature circles and assign each group one book.  The group members each read and discuss the book giving special attention to how the characters survive the school year. (If students have not had previous experience with literature circles, set the framework and model how it is done.)  Set a timeline for the completion of the book. To spur discussion, give each group a list of 8-10 questions to discuss at various points in their reading.  Some of the questions should be the same for all the groups and some should be tailored to the text. “While you are reading this book and talking about it in your literature circles, be thinking as to what lessons the characters are learning and how that information can be used as advice.” Encourage note-taking during reading, especially of scenes in which the character has learned something new or should have learned something new from the events. The teacher roams during the literature circle time but generally doesn’t intervene.

 

 

 

Share with students an example of the kind of advice you will be expecting-- Example  “Always carry some energy bars in your backpack because you never know when the cafeteria is going to serve mystery meat.”  (Ginny in Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf practically has nightmares about her cafeteria’s meatloaf.)

 

 

 

General questions (blanks are generally for the name of the main character):

 

 

 

How did _________________try to fit in at school?

 

What character traits could be used to describe____________?

 

What would __________________change about him/herself?

 

What one thing could the ______________ not afford to lose?

 

How is the main character’s school the same as our school?

 

What would ____________do in ____________situation?

 

How did the pictures add to the story? Could the story have been told without the pictures?  Why or why not?

 

Have you ever wanted to be someone else?

 

What would you change about yourself?

 

What would you never change about yourself?

 

 

 

Specific questions:

 

 

 

American Born Chinese

 

In the story, the herbalist says, “It is easy to become anything you wish . . .so long as you are willing to forfeit your soul.”  Is that good advice?

 

Why were all the monkeys directed to wear shoes?  Did wearing shoes help the Monkey King achieve what he wanted?

 

What lesson does Monkey King learn that he tries to share with Jin?

 

How are Monkey King, Jin Wang, and Danny alike?

 

Babymouse

 

Are you surprised that this book was written by a brother/sister team?  Why or why not?

 

What are some of the things Babymouse imagines herself to be and why?

 

What makes Babymouse make up with Wilson Weasel?

 

Would you want to be friends with Felicia (even a little bit)?

 

Blue Lipstick

 

What is Jessie’s problem with cheerleaders?

 

How did Jessie’s likes and dislikes change?  Why is the poem depicted as The Wall?

 

Where do you do your best thinking?

 

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

 

Why does Greg prefer calling the book a journal rather than a diary?

 

What do you think Greg will grow up to be?  Why?

 

Should Greg’s friends tell him when he has a questionable idea?

 

How is Greg different from his friends?

 

Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf

 

What is the worst food in our cafeteria?

 

Is making a list a good strategy for getting things you want? Why or why not?

 

Should Ginny babysit for very unruly children?

 

What is Ginny’s older brother’s biggest problem?

 

What is something you figured out about Ginny that you think might not have been apparent to someone else?

 

 

 

Guided Practice

 

2. After reading and discussing the books, each group will meet and develop 5-7 tidbits of advice that they would give to an incoming student at their school and cite the event(s) in the book that is/are the inspiration behind the advice.  Groups need to conference with the teacher to explain the logic behind their choices and refine their advice due to teacher feedback if need be.

 

Repeat the example to get students thinking about what is expected--  “Always carry some energy bars in your backpack because you never know when the cafeteria is going to serve mystery meat.”  (Ginny in Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf practically has nightmares about her cafeteria’s meatloaf.)  Add other examples as needed to illustrate the task but not give away some of the best ideas.

 

 

 

3.  When all the groups have created their advice lists, each group shares a synopsis of the plot of their book with the class and then shares their tidbits of advice (or pearls of wisdom). 

 

 

 

4.The advice of the five groups is compared and contrasted (eliminating duplicates), then the top 10 to 15 tidbits are compiled into a general guide to survival at ____________ School.  Voting may be necessary to create a list that isn’t too cumbersome.

 

 

 

Optional:  The guide could be illustrated – one piece of advice per page.

 

 

 

Optional:  Comparing and contrasting two of the books on the list.

 

 

 

Independent Practice

 

5.  Students select and read a book individually from a teacher recommendation list and develop 3-5 pieces of advice based on the lives of the characters in the book.

 

 

 

 

Citation: Blue Lipstick: Concrete Poems by John Grandits. New York: Clarion, 2007.

 

 

ISBN: 0618851321

 

 

Annotation: A humorous account of a 15 year old girl named Jessie. Told in poems, Jessie recounts her hair-coloring mishap, DIY fashion, writing poetry for her cat, among other unique things.

 

 

Media: Poetry is displayed in different font formats and going in different directions on the page, line drawings. Primarily in black and white format, but also blue.

 

 

Rating: 4Q/4P

 

S.F 06/21/09