Andy Warhol, Marilyn Diptych 1962 Source: artchive.com
One of my favourite ways to introduce students to poetry is by combining it with art. I recently used the poem It's Me! by David Harrison found in Heart to Heart: New Poems Inspired by Twentieth-Century American Art to teach students about the importance of punctuation and line breaks when writing poems. In this case, Harrison's poem is written in response to Andy Warhol's Marilyn Diptych. Each line of the poem represents a different Marilyn claiming to be authentic - a great way to discuss the themes of celebrity and mass production in Warhol's artworks.
To emphasize the importance of poetry being read aloud, have 3 students from the back, middle, and front of the classroom alternate reading lines of It's Me. I colour coded the poem to make it easier. It may take a few tries before students will 'shout' the exclaimation points, but I've found that once they do, students become engaged with using punctuation and line breaks when writing their own poetry.
Click on the image for a larger version of the poem It's Me!
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