Lesson Plan Title : Act It Out

Age Range: Grade 3 through Grade 5 (Elementary Level)

Overview and Purpose : The poetry of Shel Silverstein is funny, quirky and whimsical. Students will enjoy putting his words into action!

Objective: The student will be able to work with a group of three or four other students to act out a poem.

Resources:

Shel Silverstein's book Where the Sidewalk Ends

Props that relate to the poems chosen

Activities:

Discuss the poetry by Shel Silverstein. Have the students talk about their favorite poems. Divide the class into groups of three or four. Have the groups choose a poem from the book to act out. Give them time to rehearse their skits and then have them present them to the class. Ask the class to try and figure out what each group's poem is about.

Closure:

Have students re-write one of Shel Silverstein's poems as a homework assignment. Encourage them to keep at least one of the basic ideas of the poem, but allow them to change it however they want to. Give the students the option to share their poems in class the next day.