This past Monday at Howe, we merged poetry & rap with their intuitive collaborator — basketball. We began by defining poetry — getting creative with words to express emotions. Then we explored other places where words are used creatively, quickly landing on music! As corny as it may sound, music is an incredible avenue to explore what we already know about form & structure (verse, chorus, bridge), wordplay (lyrics, rhymes, double-entendres), and style (genre)! Students named their favorite rappers and found themselves with an awesome list of poets.
The theme of the day: Rhyme. With a basketball, we stood in a big circle, picked a word to rhyme with, and passed the ball to each other, with every catcher adding a new word. It was highly competitive and included some very virtuosic throws. Afterwards, we listened to Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind”, and the students wrote their own versions, with one group penning “Chicago State of Mind.”
Howe After School
2nd – 7th Grade (Monday)
“Chicago State of Mind”
by Terrence, Kaiden, Tydell, and Amare
I’m on the South Side
Riding with my friends
I’m in Oak Park
Eating at Pete’s 10/10
I’m in O-Block chilling with my homies
It’s so ghostly
I go to the gas station
Grab some snacks and go on vacation
I go to school and go to my cousin’s graduation
I’m at Howe School of Excellence getting my education
Lil Durk, Chuckyy, Raq baby, BAK Jay
Lil Jeff, Tupac, SoFaygo, Rod Wave
Michael Jordan is the best basketball player
Chicago is the best city, we love her
