Welcome to this Lesson:

One Minute in Time Poems

using onomatopoeia and The Cure to inspire a free-verse poem from your students

This lesson was created by NNWP Teacher Consultant Dena Harrison. Check out all of Dena's online writing lessons by clicking here.

This writing prompt inspired by

The Cure's song "10:15 Saturday Night"

Click here to do a Google search for the lyrics.

Four-Sentence Overview of this Lesson:

After updating my I-pod with some of my favorites 80’s hits, I realized that The Cure’s song “10:15 on a Saturday Night” might inspire some great poetry from my students.  This song explains what happens in one slowed-down minute as the singer is waiting for an important phone call, while also utilizing some catchy onomatopoeia to emphasize the seconds ticking by.  Students will choose their own moment in time to slow down and use onomatopoeia to emphasize the passing of time as they write their own free-verse poems. If you know Barry Lane's book, the Reviser's Toolbox, you can teach this lesson alongside his "Explode a Moment" resources. Teachers: Click here to see the entire lesson plan.

6-Trait Overview for this Lesson:

The focus trait for this lesson is idea development; after hearing the song and looking at the published model, students will be inspired to create their own memorable details to include in their own free verse poems.  The support trait for this lesson is word choice; after identifying and learning the meaning of onomatopoeia, students will enjoy selecting just the right sounds in their poem to mimic the passing of time.  

Recipient of the NNWP's
Excellent Writing Lesson Award:

Because of the quality of its resources and ideas, this WritingFix lesson was selected by the Northern Nevada Writing Project as June 2010's Writing Lesson of the Month. It was e-mailed to thousands of teachers who are members of the NNWP's Writing Lesson of the Month Teacher Network.

To access all past lessons, click here to visit the NNWP's webpage. You can start receiving all the new ones my creating a profile on-line at our site-sponsored Ning.