Where Poems Hide: Finding Reflective, Critical Spaces Inside Writing Workshop

Abstract

Research and teaching resources are replete with ideas for creating a more culturally responsive and critical curricula (Allen, 2010; Bomer & Bomer, 2001; Lewison, Leland, & Harste, 2008). Many have suggested that by offering a curriculum that is authentic and meaningful to children, real differences will be made in teaching and learning. In this article, findings are shared when elementary teachers in two schools in the southeastern region of the United Sates implemented a study that integrated poetry with issues related to social justice. Data collected included students' writing, interviews, and classroom observations. Analyses of students' poems and interviews revealed that their compositions and ideas reflected the 4 dimensions of critical literacy identified by Lewison, Flint, and Van Sluys (2002). Through a writing workshop poetry study, the teachers began to reposition children and curriculum, and in the process, built interest in navigating the terrain of more critical approaches to literacy instruction.