This past Wednesday, Steven Ratiner, our Chinese poet in residence, visited our classroom for the first time. After giving the children an overview of Ancient China, he explained how we will be borrowing poetic techniques from Ancient China, and will practice writing poems which will paint vivid images in the reader’s mind.
After hearing about events that often inspired the Chinese poets, we moved our lesson to the outdoor classroom overlooking the river. Each child was instructed to find their own special spot. This spot will become their area of retreat throughout the year. Whenever we return for poetry or journal entries, each child will mark their special spot with a stone which will eventually become a small cairn. Focusing on this spot, the children will write about the changes they notice throughout the seasons. This is similar to what Henry David Thoreau did at his cabin on Walden Pond.
At an assembly earlier this month, Steven discussed the theory of the open bowl. Using a singing bowl and wooden mallet from Tibet, he explained that when they are preparing to write poetry, their minds should be open bowl. When the mind is open bowl, they become much more observant about the world around them and ready to write. While the children waited quietly in their spot with their eyes closed, Steven rubbed the wooden mallet around the rim of the bowl, making it sing. Once the ringing stopped, the children opened their eyes, ready to see the world around them in a new way, and began writing poems about whatever inspired them at the moment.
