River Poetry (3 pieces from Steve Pratchett)
-Rationale for the River Poetry Activity
-River Poetry tasks for Teacher Education Students
-Case Study 7: ‘River Poetry’ the children’s work
Rationale for the River Poetry Activity
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
William Henry Davies
The children in the ‘River Poetry Activity’ spent an hour after their packed lunch sitting at their chosen, favourite place on the bank of the Cherrybrook River on Dartmoor. Here they took time time to sit and “stare”. They absorbed the stimuli of their place using their five senses and recorded their feelings, wonderings and musings. They also used cameras and oil pastels to record their impressions.
"Sensory fieldwork, as the name suggests, encourages children to engage their sense and emotions in relation to the environment. Children can think about colours, sounds and textures and link their feelings to create expression." (Grimwade et al 2000:53)
In the article that follows, there is some pupil guidance, which was given to the children on a laminated card to help them gather and organise their feelings and multi-sensory observations. This is an extract from that guidance:
You will be drafting a poem which is built around the structure of:- by/above the river
- on the surface of the river
- beneath the surface of the river
You could jot down words and phrases for things you see, hear, touch, smell, etc., ‘by/above’, ‘on the surface’ and‘beneath’ the river in turn and then keep repeating this sequence.
Option 2:
You could group these jottings into a stanza on ‘by/above’, the next on ‘on the surface’ and the next on ‘below’
Guidance:
- Try and avoid words ending in “ing”. People think that to be poetic involves lots of “ing” words (glistening, gushing, gurgling, etc.)
- Observe closely and use all your senses:
- Listen to the sounds you can hear.
- Look at the colours, textures, reflections, shapes, patterns, movements, etc.
- Touch to feel textures, temperatures, movements, etc.
- Smell the aromas in the air: pick up objects and see if they have a smell, etc.
Consider the occasional use of metaphor and simile in your writing.
Images:
You might like to take photos of some features above, on and beneath the water to include into the design of your poetry page, should you want to finish it off at home.
Included in the ‘Statement of Values by the National Forum for Values in Education & the Community’ (1999:149) in the NC Handbook for Primary Teachers in England is a section on “valuing the environment both natural and shaped by humanity, as the basis of life and a source of wonder”. Children cannot begin to value and wonder unless they are given quality time to immerse themselves in the natural environment, to “stand and stare”.How does this communing with nature, thistaking “time to stand and stare’ fit into education for sustainable development? Gray-Donald (2008:26) claims that “Chawla’s (1998) meta-study draws together 20 years of research on significant life-experiences and shows that, despite weak and faulty methodologies, there is general agreement in the research findings; namely, that education is of lesser significance (in the formation of environmentalists) than experience of natural areas.” In addition, there is a current concern, expressed by Moss (2009:39) that, “today’s generation…. are suffering from what one American writer has termed ‘Nature Deficit Disorder or NDD”. He argues that they are more likely to be cooped up at home, ferried back and forth to school, play computer games and watch TV in their free time and only experience the natural world through formalised encounters. He further argues that,
“The key to solving NDD is sending children out into the world and getting their hands dirty. As soon as they leave the familiar environment of home,children begin to experience nature – from birdsong to the feel of the wind on their face.”
Selby (2008:70) looks at definitions and concepts of sustainability literacy and begs the question “we may wonder where awe, enchantment, mystery, reverence, wonder, the oceanic and spiritual sense of connectedness we feel when we climb a mountain or weave the waters of a difficult river in a canoe, have gone?” He borrows from Jane Austin with the observation “too much sense and not enough sensibility” and argues for a restoration of environmental sensibility a dimension that “given the current abandonment in education, will initially feel startlingly counter-cultural.”
"The term ecological understanding has been used for years, but it is also ecological feeling that we seek. If ecology is the study of an organism's relations with its surroundings then for us a significant part of that relationship must include the affective dimension." (Van Matre 1990:93)
It could be argued that this form of emotional literacy is a vital element in the relationships we build with our planet and it is hard to conceive how children can build such a relationship with their environment unless they spend time in communion with it. Feelings that teachers should aim to foster by children’s sensory exploration of their world include awe, wonder, joy, reverence, kinship, delight, respect, concern and indeed love. "There are four primary feelings we want people to hold: a joy of being in touch with the elements of life, a kinship with all living things, a reverence for natural communities and a love for the earth." (Van Matre 1990:120). Aesthetics can also make a contribution in the affective domain by helping children to make value decisions about what may be considered beautiful in the environment and to respond to this beauty with feelings. Hence, in the ‘River Poetry Activity’ sitting and “staring” is linked to responding through art. Educating the emotions also becomes paramount if children are to engage with the ‘action domain’.
"Love for the planet and its richness of life probably represents our best hope. Why love? Because when you love something you will give things up for it and that is what we must do for the earth. We must sacrifice our appetites on behalf of the future. Why love? Because people are more likely to make rapid and lasting changes for emotional reasons than for rational ones. Why love? Because people fight for what they love much faster and much harder than for what they merely know." (Van Matre 1990:129)
In addition to the arguments presented by the educators above there is growing research evidence from neuroscience that giving children first-hand exposure to rich multi-sensory environments helps them extract patterns and meanings Through such empiricism children construct their own meanings, their own ways of cognitive and affective knowing, through experiential learning.
"The argument for fieldwork has been dramatically strengthened in the past few years by neurological studies of the brain. We learn best, it seems, from rich, multi-sensory environments that provide a range of messages and meanings. Our brains are particularly good at extracting patterns from real life situations where information comes in a variety of modes and there is immediate feedback." (Scoffham 2000:17)
Steve Pratchett (2011)
References
Gray-Donald, J. (2008) in Gray-Donald, J. & Selby, D. (Eds) Green Frontiers Environmental Educators Dancing Away from Mechanism, Rotterdam: Sense Publishers.
Grimwade, K. Jackson, E, Reid, A. & smith, M. (2000)Geography and the New Agenda - Citizenship, PSHE and Sustainable Development in the Primary Curriculum. p.53. Sheffield: Geographical Association.
Moss, S. (2009) ‘Why Children Need Nature’ in Natureworld Spring 2009 Wildlife Trusts UK.
Scoffham (2000) 'Fieldwork that is right up your street ', in TES Curriculum Special, p. 17. London: TES.
Selby, D. (2008) ‘The Firm & Shaky Ground of Education for Sustainable Development’ in Gray-Donald, J & Selby, D. (Eds.) (2008) Green Frontiers Environmental Educators Dancing Away fromMechanism, Rotterdam: Sense Publishers.
The National Forum for Values in Education & the Community (1999)‘Statement of Values’in DfES (2009) The NC Handbook for Primary Teachers in England. London QCA & DfES.
Van Matre, S. (1990) Earth Education a new beginning. USA, Illinois: Earth Education Institute.
River Poetry tasks for Teacher Education Students
First read these extracts of river poetry by 10-11 year-old children from Estover Primary School(Teacher: Steve Pratchett)
Your River poetry tasks
You will be drafting a poem which is built around the structure of:
- by/above the river
- on the surface of the river
- beneath the surface of the river
Option 1:
You could jot down words and phrases forthings you see, hear, touch, smell, etc., ‘by/above’, ‘on the surface’ and‘beneath’the river in turn and then keep repeating this sequence.
Option 2:
You could group these jottings into a stanza on ‘by/above’, the next on ‘on the surface’ and the next on ‘below’
Guidance:
- Try and avoid words ending in “ing”. People think that to be poetic involves lots of “ing” words (glistening, gushing, gurgling, etc.)
- Observe closely and use all your senses:
- Listen to the sounds you can hear.
- Look at the colours, textures, reflections, shapes, patterns, movements, etc.
- Touch to feel textures, temperatures, movements, etc.
- Smell the aromas in the air: pick up objects, see if they have a smell etc.
Metaphor:
Consider the occasional use of metaphor and simile in your writing.
Images:
You might like to take photos of some features above, on and beneath the water to include into the design of your poetry page, should you want to finish it off at home.
Jot down words and phrases, not lines of poetry!e.g. stones reflect the light; trees like feathers
notThe myriad jewels of light reflecting on the stones
orFeathery branches are brushing the sky
When you have a collection, begin to improve them.
Don’t say ‘trees’ say ‘beeches’ or ‘hawthorn’. Don’t say ‘a bird’ say ‘a skylark’
Make the verbs stronger (does the water trickle, or would it be more interesting to say ‘sneak’? Is the sun shining/beaming, or would it be more interesting to say it ‘leaks’ round the clouds?)
Stones reflect the light
Water glistens
Birds dart
Insects hum… / Could become
By the river…
Stones, a collection of lost tokens,
are piled, abandoned by the bank.
Brown water, like dregs in a cup,
leaks over gravel islands…
Case Study 7: ‘River Poetry’
© Steve Pratchett (1997)
"The afternoon sun was getting low as Rat sculled gently homewards in a dreamy mood, murmuring poetry-things over to himself and not paying much attention to Mole".
(Kenneth Grahame 1908 The Wind in the Willows. Puffin, 1983)
Introduction:
The children who wrote the poems in this case study were 10-11 years old. They did so as part of a river studies project involving collaboration between Barbara Howland & Mark Wiggins, (class teachers at EstoverPrimary School, Devon) and Steve Pratchett, (Senior Lecturer at The University College of St Mark & St John, Plymouth).
The Geography and English National Curriculum Context
The river poetry activity is a good example of integration between National Curriculum English and geography.
"In looking at landscape features it is important at all levels to begin by asking the children for their own descriptive words - wiggling, winding, bending, turning twisting and snaking give just as clear a picture of the course of a river as 'meandering' does, and the opportunity to build up a list of synonyms in this way not only develops general vocabulary but also reinforces the meaning of the more specific term when it is eventually introduced".
Lewis & Watts (1995:35)
Herein lies the greatest value of the poetry activity. Yes it develops children's vocabulary and skills in English but it is also good geography because the synonyms help to reinforce key geographical concepts and terminology.
In the following poem written by Kyleigh Williams (age 11), we can not only see language used expressively to describe visual images and evoke mood but it also draws on geographical vocabulary e.g. "meanders through the moor collecting water from its tributaries":
The Cherrybrook river
"As I watched the glistening river,
Flowing and splitting past the rocks
I looked down to see
Water boatmen skating past me.
I followed them down stream,
To a place like my dream
Where the fish swim in clear waters allat peace.
While blowing on the barbed wire
I see sheeps fleece.
The river meanders through the moor
Collecting water from its tributaries
On its long and winding journey to the
SEA."
(Kyleigh Williams)
The Key Stage 2 English National Curriculum states:
1a "Pupils should be given opportunities to write for varied purposes, understanding that writing is essential to thinking and learning and enjoyable in itself".
As will be seen from the quality of the poems, the act of writing while sitting on the banks of a river for half an hour observing your "favourite spot" was not only a very enjoyable experience for the children but led to intense concentration and quiet contemplation and reflection.
1c "The forms in which they write should include imaginative writing, e.g...... poems"...... They should be taught to use features of layout and presentation".
1b "Pupils should be given opportunities to write for an extended range of readers, eg. the class, other children, adults in the school and community, imagined audiences.”
The class teacher encouraged the children when back at school to design the layout for a page in a poetry book. This page was to integrate their field work sketches, aphotograph of the spot in the river that they had been observing, and the text of their poem configured in such a way as to convey something about the river and its atmosphere. The extended range ofaudiences for this poetry book were parents, their peers, children in other classes, students at a teacher training college and submission for publication to the Primary Geographer journal.
The National Curriculum also places stress on pupils being taught to: "plan, draft, revise, proofread and present." (2b). The class teacher ensured that the children went through all these stages which helped to refinetheir words and phrases recorded on the river bank and hone their presentation skills.
The activity:
"As the afternoon sun was getting low" and after a busy afternoon of geographical field work, the children chose their favourite spot on the CherryBrookRiver bank to "murmur poetry-things" to themselves like Rat in 'Wind in the Willows'. Some sat on large boulders in the middle of the river some sat on the bank itself. Both the teacher and I used careful questioning to encourage the children to refine their observations. They were encouraged to make sketches as well as to record words and phrases that expressed the sights, sounds and smells.
"The importance of talking - describing, questioning, discussing - as support for drawing cannot be overemphasised. It is through talk as much as through looking that children come to see the world about them more clearly and perceptively."
(Clement 1986 p. 115.)
The class teacher also took photographs of each child's chosen part of the river which they used back in the classroom to help with recall and the revision of their work. The children also incorporated their photographs in the design of their poetry page.
The poems:
It is not possible to include the full text of all the poems so the following extracts have been chosen to give a flavour of the children's observations and reflections.
The visual references made by the children:
"Sitting and watching
the river flow,
Then all of a sudden
the wind starts to blow,
The river cascades and
twirls into shape
To avoid the colourful
rocks in the way...... "
(Jennifer Phelps)
Rocks and sand smooth
gentle weeds, light from
the sun shining down
on to the river...... "
(Mark Wane)
"Slowly the bubbles flow
down river
to the deep blue sea".
(Geoffrey Cutts)
"water eating at the edges
currents in the river...... "
(Mark Wane)
(" Eating at the edges"- a nice anthropomorphic allusion here to the river eroding the river banks e.g. the concept of corrasion -the process by which the material, carried by the water, abrades the river banks undercutting them and causing collapse).
"The water gleams as the sun beams
Down on it...... ".
(Kaleigh Glynn)
"I can see the colours in the rocks, yellow, green and black...... "
(Melanie Laming)
"The stones on the river bed
are more colourful,
As they glisten in the sun"
(Karlie)
(An astute observation that colours are more vibrant when stones are wet rather than dry).
"Wet stones glistening in the warmth
of the sun"......
(Richard Prior)
"The river shines and shimmers in the sun.
One boulder sits in the middle of the
river all alone.
The river bed is full of rainbow colours.
Small fish swim around the pebbly bed.