Grounded in craft, this book was composed on three premises: That the study and modeling of great poems is integral to understanding poetry and learning to write poems, that scaffolded learning builds a writer’s and a reader’s confidence and knowledge base and increases learning, and that teachers and facilitators of poetry can and should build learning environments we call “our hearts in a safe place.” Each chapter contains an introduction to a main focus, new terms, a model poem, an explication, short prompts heuristic to each chapter’s focus, and a model exercise. Student poem samples are included in each chapter. The last chapter discusses syllabi, portfolios and alternate grading. A Heart’s Craft differs from other poetry” how to books” because it combines art with pedagogy in a unique and effective fashion.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 - Some Initial Thoughts on Poets and Poetry, Workshopping Poems, and the Creative Process Learning from Master Poets or Masterful Poems What is a Strong Poem? Portfolios: Preserving and Sharing Work The Concept of Modeling Welcoming the Muse A Journaling Idea Workshopping Advice: Our Hearts in a Safe Place Some Helpful Ideas about Workshopping Poems Workshop Guidelines to Share with Participants The Model Exercise: If You Stare At Something Long Enough… Sample Student Poems Chapter 2 - Beyond the Ordinary: Witnessing the World as a Poet Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication The Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 3 - Imagery—Getting to the Heart of It Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Sample Student Poem Chapter 4 - Metaphors and Symbols—Finding and Using Creative Analogies Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Chapter 5 - Line Endings, Turns, and Epiphanies—More Essentials Elements of Craft Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students Alternate Model Poem Alternate Model Exercise Chapter 6 - The Speaker and the Reader: A Dialogue The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Modeling Exercise Chapter 7 - Narrative Poetry—Poems that Tell Stories Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Alternate Model Poem The Explication Alternate Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 8 - Communicating Emotional Truths and Avoiding Melodrama Terms Used in This Chapter Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 9 - Writing in Other Voices Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise The Alternate Model Poem Alternate Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 10 - Sound Devices Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 11 – Punctuation – A Surprisingly Creative Tool Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 12 – Effective Titles—Hints at Theme The Model Poem A The Explication The Model Poem B The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 13 – Nature as Muse Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication The Model Exercise Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 14 - The Prose Poem: A Revelatory Form Terms Used in This Chapter The Model Poem The Explication Model Poem B The Explication Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Alternate Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 15 – Writing in Various Forms Terms Used in This Chapter Model Sonnets The Villanelle Model Villanelle Exercises for Students The Model Exercise Sample Student Poems Chapter 16 – Portfolios, Presentations, Aural Modeling, and Syllabi: Portfolios Literary Magazines Aural Modeling Syllabi and Other Types of Workshop Organization Sample Syllabus Displaying Portfolio Sharing Alternate Week 16 Alternate Week 17: Celebration & Presentation