From Haikus to Soundscapes: Kennedy Third Graders Bring Poetry to Life

At Kennedy Elementary, music teacher Christian Bonner and his third grade students are diving into advanced literary concepts, using a poem by a local Wisconsin artist to build critical reading skills early.

Bonner’s effort is a part of the Wisconsin Arts Celebration Project, which awarded two grants totaling $1,300 to Kennedy to support cross-curricular learning between music and literacy.

The project includes students writing original haikus and creating music inspired by the poem “Yellow Birds of Morning,” a piece penned by UW-Whitewater professor Nicholas Gulig.

“Students have taken the poem and turned it into a soundscape, an art piece and a presentation,” Bonner said. “It’s a way that we can integrate music and literacy that gets the kids into it right away.”

To start, students read the poem, which focuses on how words and music connect people to the world around us. After reading it as a group, students dove deeper to fully unpack the text — analyzing its structure and literary elements while linking the poem to their own experiences with sound and nature.

Once students had a solid foundation, they took their knowledge and created new art, starting with an original haiku.

Next the class moved outdoors, where students were tasked with finding inspiration to drive the rest of their project. Whether that was finding the music in wind blowing through tree branches, or snapping a picture of birds chirping while looking for food in the grass, creativity abounded.

“Moving students out of a traditional classroom setting helped keep them engaged because it allowed them to learn in a number of ways,” Bonner said. “Even if a student might not be as confident with their written work, they might really engage in the music or art pieces.”

To create their soundscape, students took their haiku and their outdoor observations to create a jam with the same tune. They could experiment with anything in the music room, ranging from traditional instruments like a piano to electronic beats on a computer.

By offering a broad array of options Bonner made sure that every student could connect with the source material.

“My goal was to set these students up for success when they study poetry in fourth grade,” Bonner said. “Beefing up their speciality knowledge a year early will help them connect with their work on a deeper level next year.”

The project wrapped up with a “living museum” where students presented their poetry, artwork and music with families from the entire grade.

While the project may be wrapping up at Kennedy, its impact will soon be felt statewide. As a part of the grant Bonner is sending his lesson plans to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction to inspire teachers and students across the state.

“This is what my job is really about — as much as I love teaching what quarter and eighth notes are — I want to teach students how music exists in our world,” Bonner said. “Seeing students make those connections on their own has been amazing.”

Studies show that students who get involved in the arts early on in their life perform better on standardized tests, are four times as likely to be recognized for academic achievement and three times more likely to win an award for school attendance.