1. 4 TH SIX WEEKS

2. WARM-UP: In your journal, answer the following questions: 1.Do some words have more power than others? 2.Does the way you phrase something (the words you choose to use) sometimes determine the answer you receive in return?

3. THE POWER OF LANGUAGE To communicate means to send information in a way that enables others to understand it. Often, we use words to communicate our thoughts & feelings. HOW DOES LANGUAGE INFLUENCE PEOPLE?

4. o In our warm-up, you were asked if some words have more power than others. o Not only that, but can the words you choose to speak or write actually affect others? o Do words have the power to influence people’s decisions? o Do you agree that if words influence a person’s actions, then words can bring about change? Let’s look at an example: http://youtu.be/Hzgzim5m7oU

5. Can you think of a type of writing that requires the writer to really focus on word choice? Hint: They use powerful words that create vivid images and evoke emotion. In fact, a ________ can say in a few words what others have been trying to say their whole lives. _ _ _ _ Y

6. The song, of course, can vary in tone, the attitude it expresses toward the subject. - It can be sad in tone lamenting the loss of a grandparent. Or a poem may reflect the other end of our emotional scale – the happy feeling of liking another person or owning a puppy. Poetry, then, is an emotional response to the world around us.

7. No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world. ~Dead Poet’s Society http://youtu.be/tpeLSMKNFO4

8. See, a poem doesn’t resemble a story in which the sentences flow evenly from margin to margin. A poem doesn’t look like a play with its cast of characters confined to a space called the stage. A poem is not an essay with its logic & heavy words. No, a poem has its own meaning and shape. IN FACT, A POEM CAN EVEN BE TINY. http://youtu.be/-JhwaRYOgxo

9. 1.Think about what you think “poetry” is or means to you. 2.Bring something to class tomorrow that represents “POETRY” to you. (It could be your favorite song lyrics copied on a piece of paper, a picture of a beautiful sunset, your favorite toy/stuffed animal/blanket from your childhood, a letter or note from a relative or best friend, etc.) IN OTHER WORDS, BRING SOMETHING THAT YOU HAVE EMOTIONAL TIES TO… ASSIGNMENT: