GUIDED READING IN POETRY: COMBINING AESTHETIC APPRECIATION AND DEVELOPMENT OF ESSENTIAL SKILLS

Reading and sharing poetry fosters richness in languages and encourages understanding of ideas presented through a beautiful form of expression. Poetry takes the reader through expression of emotion and the ideas that these emotions inspire in the poet. Further, the poet stimulates the reader to explore his or her own feelings and ideas. Discussion of what a particular poem means to individual students provides opportunities to share ideas and feelings which the poem evokes.

The use of poetry invites students to read lines or particular phrases which are appealing to them or about which they have a question. Furthermore, teachers should be encouraged to combine the aesthetic dimensions of poetry with skills development. A poetry guide for encouraging basic language skills is presented herein.