Mr. Chippendale/ClassDismissed

  Mel Glen uses a unique, sophisticated way in bringing poetry to life.  In Who Killed Mr. Chippendale? the story is told through the perspectives of the students at Tower High.  How clever, creative, and captivating this tale was! Mel Glenn was able to capture the personalities of each individual student and their own personal thoughts/feelings about school, life, love, and of course Mr. Chippendale.
  The fact also that this is a mystery, keeps adolescents fully engaged and ready for more.  Mr. Chippendale is killed on the track one early morning, but no one knows who did it.  Through context clues, the boy in the red sweatshirt is Mike Curry.  On page 7, where we first read about Mike, it would be hard to pick up on him attached to the crime.  However, reading back over a second time, likes such as "Whaddya mean, where was I? Bathroom, man" and "Hey, maybe I'll make the ten o'clock news. Cool!"
Just these two lines alone can make the reader question- how will he make the news? and where was he really during the shooting?
Other important characters mentioned in this short book of poems are Angela and Leah.  ANgela is the guidance counselor, who mourns more than a colleague.  It is apparent they had a love affair at some point in time, and she is mourning a lost love.  It is ultimately she that discovers the murderer, just as the dream on page 24, Robert asked her to.
  I love the connections, the wittiness, and the sense of humor.  The twins on page 10 and 11 shows ow alike, yet so different, people can be.
  I really felt that the last two lines of each poem were really significant for each character because it always led you to know more about the storyline, about the character, or what was coming. Some that stood out:
"Learning about life is a painstaking task,
But it has to be done with
Relish." (28)

"I'm getting tired of cafeteria education,
Where they throw inedible courses at you.
I'm hungry for the open road again." (33)

"This is what America is like, I think,
All speed and violence and
No beautiful words." (87)

This lines can be taken as excerpts and just used as writing quick writes.  Tell me what you think this quote means to you.  (I do this often in eighth grade because expository writign on the NJASK usually asks to have them relate to a quote.  To me, these are beautiful excerpts to have students reflect, and share.  Overall, I think this is a fascinating book- I am happy to add this to my poetry collection.
  Also by Mel Glenn is Class Dismissed, which is a very similar style to Mr. Chippendale.  It is a collection of high school poems, and again, they are written from the perspective of the student.  How clever and concise Glenn is to captivate these young students as authors.  In free verse, it teaches students we are all writers of poetry- free verse allows the mind to think out loud.  Again, he uses the last two to three lines to really intrigue the reader.  Amy Pines, page 76 (Kindle version)

"Someone in class yelled out, 'Hey man, who died?"
Nobody.
Nobody except my formal self."

To me, just the way he figures the words on the page captivates me. (perhaps this is called cesura and enjambment?) The word nobody, left alone on a line of its own.  Beautifully done.
I woud use these poems in isolation- take one here and there and talk about it with students.  Get them to talk about writing and what each character is emotionally feeling.  It is a great way to have kids reflect.

Poetry is a way into a child's mind.  Like we were discussing in class, even the shortest poems can really 'pack the punch' with expression.  I intertwine poetry into teaching throughout the school year, because I do think it is important for kids to be exposed to.These two works by Glen are perfect resources to use and to allow kids to use freely for inspiration.