Wishes, Lies, and Dreams: Teaching Children to Write Poetry (Paperback)

~ (Author), Ron Padgett (Author) "Last winter and the spring before that I taught poetry writing to children at P.S. 61 on East 12th Street between Avenue B and Avenue..." (more)
Key Phrases: primary graders, funny trip, collaborative poems, New York, Marion Mackles, Charlie Brown (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I wish every grade school teacher would run out and read Kenneth Koch's Wishes, Lies, and Dreams. If many of them took Koch's advice seriously we would have at the very least a poetry revolution, not to mention the possibility that a lot of kids would start having a good time in school." -- Allen Wiggins, Cleveland Plain Dealer

"Perhaps the best book I have read portraying the joy and excitement young people experience when writing in a happy place where people care about their works...The ideas Koch uses are good. I've tried them with my writing classes, and they work." -- Herbert Kohl, Saturday Review

"There are enough ideas in the book, all laid out in good detail by Koch, and with great respect for his fellow artists, the students, to give other teachers a workable plan for teaching poetry...Koch has helped people discover joy in words, and that is what the love of poetry is all about." -- Virginia Quarterly Review

Product Description

The classic, inspiring account of a poet's experience teaching school children to write poetry

When Kenneth Koch entered the Manhattan classrooms of P.S. 61, the children, excited by the opportunity to work with an instructor able to inspire their talent and energy, would clap and shout with pleasure. In this vivid account, Koch describes his inventive methods for teaching these children how to create poems and gives numerous examples of their work. Wishes, Lies, and Dreams is a valuable text for all those who care about freeing the creative imagination and educating the young.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Harper Paperbacks (October 6, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060955090
• ISBN-13: 978-0060955090
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #156,058 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Every teacher should read this - and use it!, September 5, 2003

By	Bradley R. Cook (Castle Rock, CO United States) - See all my reviews

I was first introduced to this marvelous book as a sophomore in an advanced placement English and History class in high school. An older graduate of the program had gone on to study poetry under Kenneth Koch at Columbia University, and returned to share what he had learned.

Now, with Bachelor's Degrees in both English and Elementary Education and a Master's in Language, Linguistics and Culture, I still consider WISHES, LIES, AND DREAMS to be the single best book on teaching writing that I have ever read.

Koch does not waste time with "assessment" of students' skills, collecting data, or any of the other peripheral matters that clutter most writing "methods" texts. This book is about WRITING, about inspiring students to write, about focusing the talents students already have but might not know that they possess.

I first used this book as a teacher when I was student teaching with a class of recalcitrant fifth graders who had been taught strictly by the text throughout their elementary school years. They almost unanimously declared that they hated writing. Employing Koch's ideas and combining them with the District-required skills lessons, I successfully taught these students what they needed to know - and they loved it!

After I began teaching in my own classroom, I used WLD with my students in bilingual third grade classes. Again, we were successful, even with second-language learners. Years later, when I began teaching second grade, and last year, when I worked with first graders, this book was an essential part of our writing program.

Having been an elementary school teacher now for eleven years, I have come to the conclusion that the best teachers begin with the students' interests and talents, then direct this energy toward teaching the students what they don't know.

Even though the subtitle is "Teaching Children to Write Poetry", the ideas Koch presents serve as a starting point for introducing children to other forms of writing. While the book is directed primarily toward elementary school students, I cannot imagine that high schoolers and even college students could not benefit from it.

Best of all, Koch himself takes up little space explaining to us, telling us how to teach, or - as so many methodology text writers tend to do - ramble on for page after page stating the obvious. Most of the book is filled with examples of writing from the STUDENTS Koch worked with in the New York City Public Schools. These brief poems provide students with a concrete example of what children before them have written, and inspire them to write their own poetry.

The Six-Traits writing process hadn't even been invented (or at least hadn't been named that) when this book was published over thirty years ago, but I found it easy to find examples of good use of Voice, Word Choice, Conventions, Ideas, and Sentence Fluency throughout the book.

No matter what program your school district requires, WLD will help provide inspiration. Teachers can easily supplement skills and grammar lessons in addition to Koch's marvelous ideas, and will probably think of millions more.

If you're not a teacher, sit down with your children and read this book together, read the children's poems, and try some of the ideas. You'll probably end up recommending WLD to your child's teacher - and he'll be glad you did.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth its weight in gold, April 13, 2000

By	Amy H. Sacha "poetry teacher" (Southwest Michigan) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is one book I can't do without. I was introduced to Kenneth Koch's work when I was at the University of Wisconsin-Madison taking a workshop from an author who had taught with Koch. It has been my "writing Bible" ever since. I have used almost every exercise at one time or another with elementary school children, with fantastic results. Along with Koch's "Rose, Where Did You Get That Red?", this is a classic.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A superb introduction to the art of writing poetry, May 30, 2007

By	William Timothy Lukeman - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Some 35+ years after its initial publication, this remains one of the finest books about writing poetry -- and not just for children, either! Kenneth Koch walks a delicate & difficult line here, trusting in the experiences & imaginations of children, yet also emphasizing (in an unforced but gently firm manner) the need for work & craft. Most of all, it demystifies poetry without stripping it of its wonder & magic, making it accessible to all who are willing to meet it halfway. There's never a note of condescension here, just a genuine love of poetry & the expectation that any aspiring poet will give his or her all in creating poems. Most highly recommended!