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Read the poems and complete the Student Packet Worksheets for “Auction Street,” “Incident,” “John, Who Is Poor,” and “Your World.”

Bring in a copy of your favorite book or movie to show to the class. Briefly tell students what the book or movie is about. Then, ask students to share their favorite book or movie with the class and describe what the book or movie is about.

will explain that the books or movies we have just discussed all have a main idea. I will explain that just like books or movies have a main idea, poems also have a main idea. I will define a poem’s main idea as what the poem is about. To fully understand a poem, a reader must first figure out its main idea. I will explain that to find the main idea of a poem, a reader must read through the entire poem first. I will read aloud “John, Who is Poor” to identify the poem’s main idea. Note: You may want to write the poem on chart paper or the board before the lesson so students can refer to the lines of the poem.

First, I will think about the subject of the poem—who or what the poem is about. Sometimes, a poem’s title gives readers a clue about the poem’s subject, but a title may or may not tell who or what the subject of the poem is about. Good readers read the whole poem, with their title clue in mind, before determining the main idea. For example, the title “John, Who is Poor” tells me that the poem has something to do with a person named John who may be poor. But it doesn’t tell me the exact main idea. The title could be a metaphor for something else, like someone who is rich. I will explain that good readers consider a title when trying to figure out the main idea, but also read the whole poem to determine the main idea. After reading the poem, I will identify who or what the poem is about. The first line of the poem mentions little children and a boy named John. As I continue to read, I get a better picture of John. So far, I can tell the subject of the poem is a little boy named John. I will write this information on Main Idea Chart 1.

Next, I will find out what happens to the subject of the poem. I will underline words or phrases that describe the action. The first stanza of the poem gives me information, such as John is lonely and alone because his mother works all day and his father is dead. The next stanza tells me that John is hungry and poor. I will write all of this information on Main Idea Chart 1. 

Using information I’ve identified about the subject of the poem (including what happens to the subject and what it is like), I can draw a conclusion about the poem’s main idea. I can conclude that the main idea of “John, Who is Poor” is there are children who are poor and hungry. I will write this on Main Idea Chart 1.

Ask: "How can I figure out the main idea of a poem?" Students should respond that you should look at the title, and then read the poem aloud to find who or what the poem is about. Next, students can look for information about what happens or the actions of the subject. Finally, students can use information about the subject and the action to draw a conclusion about the poem’s main idea.

will identify the main idea of “Primer” on Main Idea Chart 2. Note: See Main Idea Chart 2 for specific examples. You may want to write the poem on chart paper or the board before the lesson so students can refer to the lines of the poem.

We will first look at the title for clues about the poem’s main idea. Ask: "Does the title “Primer” give us a clue about the subject of the poem?" (Encourage students to brainstorm about information the title might give.) Next, we will read the poem together and look for information about the poem’s subject. We will answer the question: Who or what is the poem about? We will answer this question on Main Idea Chart 2. We will then look for information that tells us about the action of the poem. We will answer the question: What is happening in the poem? We will write this down on Main Idea Chart 2. Finally, we will use information about the poem’s subject and the action to draw a conclusion about the main idea. We will write the main idea on our Main Idea Chart 2.

will read “Human Family” and write information about the poem’s title on the Main Idea Mania Worksheet in your Student Packet. (See page 6 in the Student Packet.) You will then read the poem aloud to identify the subject and the action of the poem. You will record this on your Main Idea Mania Worksheet. You will draw a conclusion about the poem’s main idea and record it on the Main Idea Mania Worksheet.

will come together to share our findings about the main idea of the poem.