Where I'M From: Using Poetry To Expl Ore Your Identity

WHERE I’M FROM
USING POETRY TO EXPL ORE YOUR IDENTITY
Many people write poetry to express themselves. In a poem, you can use words
and rhythms to paint a picture of who you are. The “Where I’m From” poem is one
kind of poem you can use to show the world just who YOU are.
Professional poet and teacher George Ella Lyon wrote the first “Where I’m From”
poem. Since then, poets around the world have borrowed her format to express
their own unique voices. After reading Lyon’s poem (and a few examples from
other writers) you will have the chance to write your own.
Step by Step: Creating Your Own “Where I’m From” Poem
1. Begin by reading George Ella Lyon’s poem. As you read, think about the kinds of
details Lyon chose for her poem. How do these details help us get to know who she
really is? What kinds of details might you include in your poem?
2. Next, read some poems that were modeled after Lyon’s poem. Notice how each
author uses uniquely personal details to show who they are instead of telling who
they are.
3. Before you start your own poem, it may be helpful to brainstorm a list of details
that help show who YOU are. Jot down some thoughts on a piece of paper to get
yourself started. Some ideas you might include are family names, brands you prefer,
items you collect, hobbies, favorite foods, special memories, books or music you
enjoy, pets, family traditions, or people you love. The possibilities are endless!
4. Using ideas from your brainstorming, begin to construct your own poem by filling
in the blanks on the “Where I’m From” template. This is the foundation of your
poem.
5. Edit and revise your poem. You may decide to add, remove, or rearrange ideas.
As you work, think of ways that you can use ideas, word choice, and sentence
fluency to help your voice come through in your writing.
6. Create a final copy of your finished poem, typed or written neatly in ink. You may
choose to include a picture or other artwork to enhance the presentation of your
creation.
WHERE I’M FROM
BY GEORGE ELLA LYONS
I am from clothespins,
from Clorox and carbon-tetrachloride.
I am from the dirt under the back porch.
(Black, glistening
it tasted like beets.)
I am from the forsythia bush,
the Dutch elm
whose long gone limbs I remember
as if they were my own.
I am from fudge and eyeglasses,

from Imogene and Alafair.
I'm from the know-it-alls
and the pass-it-ons,
from perk up and pipe down.
I'm from He restoreth my soul
with cottonball lamb
and ten verses I can say myself.
I'm from Artemus and Billie's Branch,

fried corn and strong coffee.
From the finger my grandfather lost
to the auger
the eye my father shut to keep his sight.
Under my bed was a dress box
spilling old pictures.
a sift of lost faces
to drift beneath my dreams.
I am from those moments --
snapped before I budded --
leaf-fall from the family tree.
WHERE I’M FROM
BRAINSTORMING SHEET
Before you start your own poem, use this sheet to brainstorm details that help show who you are.
Make a list, a web, or whatever works best for you. You might include family names, brands you
prefer, items you collect, hobbies, favorite foods, special memories, books or music you enjoy,
pets, family traditions, or people you love. The possibilities are endless. The order doesn’t matter
(it will change a lot as you write and revise).
WHERE I’M FROM
WHERE TO GO WITH “WHERE I’M FROM”
While you can revise (edit, extend, rearrange) your “Where I’m From” brainstorming
into a poem, you can also see it as a corridor of doors opening onto further
knowledge and other kinds of writing. The key is to allow yourself to explore these
passages and rooms. Don’t rush to decide what kind of writing you’re going to do
or to revise or to finish a piece. Let your goal be the writing itself. Learn to let it lead
you. Look for these elements in your “Where I’m From” poem and see where else
they might take you.
 A place could open into a piece of descriptive writing or a scene from a

memory.
 Your parents’ work could open into a memory of going with them, helping, or
being in the way. It could be a remembered dialogue between your parents
about work. It could be a poem made from a litany of tools they used.
 An important event could open into freewriting all the memories of that
experience, then writing it as a scene, with description and dialogue. It’s also
possible to let the description become setting and directions and let the
dialogue turn into a play.
 Food could open into a scene at a table, a character sketch of the person
who prepared the food, a plethora of different experiences with it, a process
essay of how to make it.
 Music could take you to a scene where the music is playing. Perhaps it could
provide you the chance to interweave the words of the song and words you
might have said (or a narrative of what you were thinking and feeling at the
time the song was first important to you – “Where I’m Singing From”).
 Something someone said to you could open into a scene or a poem that
captures that moment. It might be what you wanted to say back but never
did.
 A significant object could open into a sensory exploration of the object –
what it felt, sounded, smelled, looked, and tasted like -- then where it came
from, what happened to it, a memory of your connection with it. Is there a
secret or a longing connected with this object? A message? If you could go
back to yourself when this object was important to you, what would you ask,
tell, or give yourself?
Remember, you are the expert on you. No one else sees the world as you do; no
one else has your material to draw on. You don’t have to know where to begin. Just
start. Let it flow. Trust the work to find its own form.
WHERE I’M FROM TEMPLATE
USE THIS TEMPLATE TO HELP SHAPE YOUR POEM
I am from ______________________ (specific ordinary item), from

______________________ (product name), and ______________________ (another
component or something related to the item).
I am from the ____________________________________________ (home description:

adjective, adjective, sensory detail).
I am from the ______________________ (plant, flower, natural item), the

______________________ (plant, flower, natural detail).
I am from ______________________ (family tradition) and ______________________

(family trait), from ___________________________________________________________
(family name).
I am from ______________________ (description of family tendency) and

______________________ (another one).
From ______________________ (something you were told as a child) and

______________________ (another).
I am from ______________________ (representation of religion or lack of it). Further

description ____________________________________________ .
I’m from ______________________ (place of birth and family ancestry), from

______________________ (two food items representing your family).
From ____________________________________________ (specific family story about a

specific person and detail), the ____________________________________________
(another detail), and the ____________________________________________ (another
detail about another family member).
I am from ____________________________________________ (location of family pictures,

mementos, archives, and several more lines indicating their worth.)
WHERE I’M FROM
STUDENT EXAMPLES
I am from couches and CRT TVs, i am from the pool

from Computers with fans that hum quietly from chlorine and burning eyes
throughout the night. i am from popsicles
I am from the trees and grass that surround the old from hot summer days
house. that seemed endless
I am from the fair, filled with delightful smells and i am from basketballs
colors that bring the Summer life. from cheap hoops in the driveway
I’m from the tents of green,
from the crowd of khaki. i am from all a’s
from school dances and missing work
I’m from the dungeon masters, i am from snowballs
and the non-promers. from getting yelled at by teachers
From the redheads and pale skin. for throwing them at each other on the playground
I’m from the church nearby, i am from loneliness
with new and old from being surrounded by people
and with my family all about. but still feeling alone
I’m from Texas sheet cake, i am from bad grades
pumpkin bread and pie. from sitting anxiously looking at incomplete
schoolwork
From the love of my grandparents
To my own, i am from late nights
Who will never let me down. from stressing over things not being good enough
Pictures line the walls i am from bad jokes
They decorate the house from making others laugh when i can’t make myself
Each tells of a time of happiness laugh
Each shows growth i am from late night phone calls
An understanding of family from tired mornings
A bond to never be forgotten after staying up to make sure someone was okay

Where I'M From: Using Poetry To Expl Ore Your Identity

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Where I'M From: Using Poetry To Expl Ore Your Identity

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Where I'M From: Using Poetry To Expl Ore Your Identity

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

WHERE I’M FROM

USING POETRY TO EXPL ORE YOUR IDENTITY

Step by Step: Creating Your Own “Where I’m From” Poem

I am from fudge and eyeglasses,

I'm from Artemus and Billie's Branch,

 A place could open into a piece of descriptive writing or a scene from a

I am from ______________________ (specific ordinary item), from

I am from the ____________________________________________ (home description:

I am from the ______________________ (plant, flower, natural item), the

I am from (family tradition) and

I am from ______________________ (description of family tendency) and

From ______________________ (something you were told as a child) and

I am from ______________________ (representation of religion or lack of it). Further

I’m from ______________________ (place of birth and family ancestry), from

From ____________________________________________ (specific family story about a

I am from ____________________________________________ (location of family pictures,

I am from couches and CRT TVs, i am from the pool

You might also like