Students played word games that centered around sound and creative syntax, before delving into Kevin Young’s poem of altered cliché’s, Errata. ‘Errata’ means an error in a written text. ‘Syntax is identity,’ says poet Li-Young Lee. We make the noise that only we can make. It helps us get to a language that is uniquely based on ourselves.
Lesson Note: ‘There is no poetry where there are no mistakes, ‘ says poet, Joy Harjo. Author Neil Gaiman adds: ‘Go and make interesting mistakes, make amazing mistakes, make glorious and fantastic mistakes. Break rules. Leave the world more interesting for your being here. Make good art.’ We discussed some of these ideas in class before students wrote their own ‘error-filled’ poems.
Mr. Telles, 9th Grade
Period 1
Errata
Josie M.
Little bothers
toungue and all
Beach loan a halve of my cart
Gittle mothers
naive and serious
What will I do when you show up?
When you are no longer bottlers
When your innocence is lattered and tripped
I can’t protect you morever
Brittle brothers
drumming out of lime
Do not forget how much I love Lou
Errata
Anders J.
mice cream of what a meat
Penny flavors to beat
Hitch one will bit be?
Bell bat depends on bee!
Mice steam is bare in the splinter months
Because the bold would cause repair
But in the bummer it Hives
Oh what breat rimes!
Mr. Telles, 9th Grade
Period 5
Errata Cliche Poem
Vanessa R.
The wass is always feener
on the mother tide
Other lives look wetter
than our flown
Hook over were!
That is something I could only cope to clone.
I say as I sit rear
with my unlucky wife
Why do they save it
lo much better than pie?
Their frass leener
mouse digger
Nalary tetter
but Line?
No bat tall.
Errata
Caitlin M.
I dove mats.
They cake me fell.
larm and wuzzy
Invide
They doddle and
clay with you,
They dove everything
you do.
I dove how they
are all anique
and dove their leople
no watter what.
I dove mats
and I wont lide ht.
