For many years I have included poetry in my Spanish classes. Initially I included traditional rhymes from Hispanic American countries, then Haikus originally written in Spanish, and then I began to explore the poetry of the great Hispanic American poets trying to find poems that fit the themes and Spanish level of my students. Although I was able to find some poems that could be understood both in their external structure and their internal structure, I still felt that the students were not able to connect with the poetry as I expected.
I started writing stories and poetry when I was in fourth grade in elementary school, but I always did it as a personal and intimate exercise. My public writings have always been of a professional nature related to literature and the teaching of foreign languages.
One day it occurred to me that in addition to the amazing comprehensible stories we read in class, we could also read comprehensible poetry. This is how my first book of comprehensible poetry Corazón sin borrador was born. Today, two and a half years after the publication of my first comprehensible poetry book, I have published three more and I have had the opportunity to work on them in my classes with incredible results.
The books, in addition to being written in an comprehensible manner, also speak to students in their own language, meaning that in addition to using understandable grammar structures and vocabulary, they also deliver understandable messages that are interesting for young readers.
Poetry has the magic of concentrating meaning, experiences and messages in very few lines. This increases the student’s vocabulary since we can practically work on a different poem every day. Poetry has the magic of motivating students to write their own verses, to create with the second language.
April is National Poetry Month in the United States and I want to invite you to share my poetry with your students. Comprehensible poetry written with the Spanish students and their teachers in mind.
You can find all my books with their descriptions here:
FIND ALL MY BOOKS IN SPANISH AND FRENCH HERE
With much appreciation I share a poem from each book:
COMPREHENSIBLE POETRY IN SPANISH
Corazón sin borrador
Acuerdo natural
Nostalgia migrante
Poesía gramatical
COMPREHENSIBLE POETRY IN FRENCH
Mon coeur ineffaçable
Accord naturel
Nostalgie migrante
You can get my books with the following distributors:
For large orders please send me an email to diego@srojeda.com
All invited to visit my Teachable classroom where you will find courses for Spanish teachers, including materials for each one of the sections in the advanced Spanish language exam.
Access my classroom HERE
DIEGO OJEDA 