Resources

by Tara Tandlich

Tara Tandlich is a fiction writer and a screenwriter. She is also a teaching artist with Teachers & Writers Collaborative, conducting creative writing residencies for special education students in New York City public schools, as well as professional development workshops for teachers.

Background

In working with autistic, mentally challenged, dyslexic and/or emotionally challenged students, I wanted to do a writing activity focusing on the night. I needed a picture book that would engage the students, something I could read to them as a prelude to the writing. Luckily, I found Imagine a Night by Rob Gonsalves, a captivating poem with a lilting cadence illustrated with M.C. Escher-like paintings by the author.

“Night” is an activity that guides students, using a loose structure, to produce vibrant work, all in one 45-minute period! “Night” can also be used for many different ages and populations.

The Activity

1. First, read all or part of Imagine a Night. Here’s an excerpt: “Imagine a night when you can’t sleep, and so you jump high enough to soar over a quilt of fields and forests. Imagine a night when the darkness of meadow and lake feels too quiet and deep, so you cut and stitch a city from the starry sky. Imagine a night when the space between words becomes like the space between trees: wide enough to wander in.”
2. While reading the book, you may want to ask a question or two about some (not all) of the pictures; for example: What is happening in the night in this picture?
3. After the reading, you may wish to lead a brief discussion and ask, What was this poem about? When did it take place? What was your favorite part of the night poem? (Just to make certain that they have grasped the “night” theme.)
4. At this point I tell the students, “Now it’s time for everyone to write their own ‘Night’ poem.” (For younger children, or more challenging groups, you may wish to write a group poem or have the class write a short group poem first before writing their individual pieces.)

Before we write, I hand out the examples and worksheet below and we read them.

Examples

In the night
I hear wolves howl.
I see stars fall.
I feel the wind.
I need the sun.
I wish to live on the moon.
In the night
I am a star.
In the night
I am not a planet.

—Joshua

In the night
I hear ten lions roaring.
I see owls with red eyes.
I feel a snake around my legs.
In the night
I am a good, white fox.
In the night
I am not a bad, silver fox.

—Jonathan

Worksheet

In the night…
I hear (add your writing)
I see (add your writing)
I feel (add your writing)
I need (add your writing)
I wish (add your writing)

In the night…
I am (add your writing)

In the night…
I am not (add your writing)

Note: I often tell students to close their eyes and “Imagine you are lying in bed. What do you hear? What do you feel, wish for, want?” I also encourage them to also use their imaginations. It doesn’t have to make sense. Then, a few minutes before the end of the period, I read the students’ poems out loud to the whole group.