This being the final week of C&I English 473, I’d like to say that my time spent in these tutorials has been very captivating, practical and thought engaging. The class has aided me to have a level of understading in english enducation and how to better myself as a prospective teacher.
This week took a look at poetry and how it can be applied in the classroom, because I came into this class about half an hour late (traffic, rain, the sun, moon and planets not being aligned) I came into class without an idea of what was going on. Placed into group of friendly strangers, we were given a simple task. Read the poem “I like that stuff” by Adrian Mitchell
An excerpt of the poem
I like That Stuff
“Lovers lie around in it
Broken glass is found in it
Grass
I like that Stuff
…
Elephants get sprayed with it
Scotch is made with it
Water
I like that stuff
…
Man made fibres and raw materials
Old rolled gold and breakfast cereal
Platinum linoleum
I like that stuff
…
Well I like that stuff
Yes I like that stuff
The earth
Is made of that stuff
And I like that stuff”
-Adrian Mitchell.
The task was to think about the conventions of the poem and how it can be viewed.
Form my analysis; this poem employs subjective binaries. The stark contrast between the romance of lovers and the broken glass creates an argument and could perhaps be the voice of different personas. One could read this as a conversation between three or four people. The poem is quite a cleaver one and therefore it can be approached at many different angles. When we performed this poem, as a group of six, our challenge was to find way in which the reading would include all members. Thus we stuck with the format of 2 stanzas each and a continuation of the line “I like that stuff” said by one group member.
So what was the importance of this activity?
I believe it displays the possibilities teachers have at approaching poetry, one can create a song, or an act or a monologue. The options for creative and performing outlets concerned with poetry are endless. I think the main point of this is to ‘let students go’ let them approach the topic from the direction they want. I believe this will make any topic more interesting and practical.
Hopefully, I can take these ideas with me and apply them to my practicum.
