Groups 4 - 6: Jack's Attitudes towards Writing Poetry (What kinds of attitudes did Jack have at the start, and did you notice any changes to his attitudes?)

Groups 7 - 8: Jack's Experimentation with Poetry for Self Expression (What changes do you notice in the way Jack expresses himself?)

2. [CREATE A POST IN THIS COLUMN WITH YOUR GROUP NAME AS THE TITLE]

Respond to any ONE of the questions below. In your response, explain what makes you think so by referring to a specific part of Dear Mr Henshaw:

I) How do the 'gaps' in the story affect your reading experience?

II) What did you pay closer attention to in reading this kind of story, as opposed to 'usual' stories?

III) What might you have to do as a reader in order to make sense of this kind of story?

(Allocation:

Groups 1 & 2 - Samples 1A and 1C

Groups 3 & 5 - Samples 2A and 2B

Groups 6 & 8 - Sample 3A

1. In one sentence, define what you think poetry is.

2. What are some essential traits of poetry?

3. What are some non-essential traits of poetry?

2) I did enjoy the book because it is in fact deep and thought-provoking.

3) Some parts of the free-verse were challenging to read and also information was revealed in bits and pieces throughout the book.

4) It is in epistolary-style and the poems are short and sharp.

2) I enjoyed reading the book. It's like trying to understand what he is telling and why so.

2) Yes, I did. I love the way it was written in Jack's perspective. Something my own students may react when asked to write a poem.

3) Many things to 'unpack' in order for students to truly understand the story

2) Yes, I enjoyed reading the book. I could feel the development of Jack's emotions, from his reluctance to poetry to enjoy reading and writing them.

3) The writing style, the way the content is being presented.

4) Fairly interesting, not exactly a story book but yet a story book. Its interesting to try and interpret the story, the character's thoughts and feelings through his posts.

2) Yes, I enjoyed reading it. It's short and easy to follow (for an adult) but one that probes one's reflection about certain things

3) it didn't follow a typical story structure

4) same as 3)

2) Yes, I did enjoy it. Simply written yet conveys deep meanings.

3) Initially, did not quite understand what the writer was trying to convey.

4) Other books that I have read are written in lengthy paragraphs with vivid descriptions and dialogues. This book, however, was written in such a way that it started off with short writings and gradually increased in length. The style of writing is also different.

2) I enjoyed the book. I felt like it could be a journey some of our students might also take during the course of the year. Hesitant at first --> ultimately growing to enjoy something.

3 & 4) The book contains only Jack's thoughts and responses. We have to guess what might have transpired in class to evoke such a response from him. While its not too difficult to make these guesses as an adult learning, I wonder how children will take to this text.

2) Yes & No. When I could not get understand certain parts on the first read. But when things linked up, I find it enjoyable.

3) written in free verse, some details are not explicit. So need to work the brain to link and tie up the details to make sense.

4) written as diary entries. Jack is writing and addressing the teacher as 'you'. very personal

2) I enjoyed it but did not realise that it got me emotional towards the end of the book.

3) Trying to imagine what was happening in class.

4) I had a lot of questions in my head as I was reading and was trying to answer (without looking at Mrsstretchberry's poems).

2) Enjoyed the book because how the story unfolds to provide readers with the background of Jack and his struggles

3) Challenging to keep track of dates and how events because of the multiple entries

4) Format of the chapters

2) Yes, it is something unique.

3) Not much information given to interpret the poems- room for multiple perspectives

2) It was pretty ok.. very easy to get through as the style of writing was simple and easy to digest

3) I didn't find it that challenging. In fact it seemed very realistic how the feelings of Jack was shared

4) For some books, there may be some parts where i have to read and re-read as i get lost at times but this was simple and easy to read.

2) Yes, I enjoyed the book. I liked how he conveyed his emotions through the posts.

3) Some entries were confusing / challenging to understand as there was lack of background information / context.

4) The way that the story was written and progressed.

Yes, I enjoyed it. It was easy reading and I like how the story unfolds - how it linked up to the blue car that was mentioned at the start.

The short short entries, the monologue from Jack which the reader got to piece together the story about his dog...

2) Yes. Probes deeper thinking.

3) Story was from Jack's perspective and some information was revealed in small bits.

4) It's not a typical story structure, and yet, there's a story.

2) I enjoyed reading how Jack progressed to be a more confident poetry writer.

3) No.

4) It is not a regular narrative story style.

2) Enjoyed the book because the characters; emotions are all packed in the short texts & able to see how the character developed.

3) Had to connect what Jack had written with his feelings

4) Not much plot but more of focusing on character development.

2) I pay close attention to establishing the relationships in the text. Also wanted to find out more about the character writing the letter.

3) Going back and forth to check if any details was missed out when reading

II) Look for the intent of words used and the key message(s)

III) Rereading

2) the sudden change in the information in the letter

3) link it to my lived experience or prior knowledge

Eg, My favourite character in the book was Joe's Dad because he didn't get mad when Joe amused his dog by playing a tape of a lady singing, and his dog sat and howled like he was singing, too

The writer's dad probably got mad with him when he did the same thing.

2) Details about the characters and if his demands were met in the previous letter.

3) Definitely builds up our anticipation as to why this boy was writing a lot to the author. Info were given in small details in subsequent letter.

II) I also paid more attention to who was writing the letters and taking note that it was written by the same person.

III) I might have to compare the posts, read the posts again and try to understand the underlying meaning / purpose of why the letters were written.

Though the style is largely similar to Myer's, Jack's poems made reference to his own experience with his beloved dog. E.g. in 14 March's entry where his father would call out to him, "Hey there, son!" and how he would call out to his dog, "Hey there, Sky!"

Using birds loving to fly as symbolic of his interaction with his dog.

So, it's not just pure mimicking of Myer's poem.

He seems to want to be a little more creative in his writing- tries to mimic the style in the original poem but personalises it in his own way. It also seems like he wants to emphasize the 3 words LOUD, THIN and BIG.

Original poem- seems like general descriptions of noise (loud and chaotic- words/font all over the place)

Jack's poem- describes his own life (quiet and calm- shown in his writing)

Poem 4 is about a dog and its manner. How it rests, its body language etc.

Poem 5 is about going along with someone as they go about their day (running errands etc.)

Jack as drawn inspiration from both 4 and 5. However, he has written about his own experiences.

Taking inspiration from poem 5, he wrote about how he went to the animal shelter. Taking inspiration from poem 4, he write about the body language / manner in which the dog travelled back home with him.

He also added his own interpretation by adding details like what the dog was trying to say to him (choose me! / thank you for choosing me!).

Use of words to convey a message in a focused manner.

Essential Traits:

-Conveyance of emotions

-Have a relationship with the subject

Non-essential Traits:

-No standard format

-No prescribed length

-Don't have to rhyme

1C - child is describing his reading experience, and trying to understand the deeper meaning but unable to communicate clearly what is the hidden/deeper meaning or what the red wheelbarrow symbolises

2) 1A - direct child's attention to the what he thinks the red wheelbarrow represent.

1C - asks him to share what he struggles with and what he thinks the hidden message/meaning is in his own words.

2) As a facilitator, we would accept the response as long as the students is able to draw references to the poem in penning down his response. Perhaps, we will post some guiding questions to enable the student to seek clarity on his questions.

The second response --> The student questions but also tries to answer his own questions.

2) It is important to be open to the possibilities and not be fixated on the 'right' answer.

It's nice how you have structured your response in a similar way that Jack has expressed.

If you did not go through RC, do you think you would have been able to respond in a similar way?

1A: Seems to have a superficial understanding of the poem. Student was wondering why the wheelbarrow was left out in the rain.

1C: Seems to understand the poem but does not provide specific details about the what he/she understood.

Q2:

1A: Could you elaborate more about what you mean by "...it can mean a lot" and "the experience was fun"

1C: Could you elaborate more about what the 'hidden information' could be?