William Carlos Williams
Lesson plans and teaching ideas

The Academy of American Poets - William Carlos Williams
Biography, selected bibliography, links to a few poems, and links to other WCW exhibits.

In the Poet's Shoes: Performing Poetry and Building Meaning
"Through the use of dramatic reading and the exploration of Internet resources, sixth- through eighth-grade students build a greater understanding of poetry and the poet's voice. Further, the experience requires students to analyze and develop their own interpretation of a poem's meaning and representation through performance. Extension activities involve students giving an oral poetry performance of their own poetry writing."

Just what does depend on that old wheelbarrow, anyway?
An essay on poetry and links to poems.

Literary Parodies
Students use "This is Just to Say" and other poems as models for parody.

Painting Poetry: Using Visual Representation as a Response to Literature
Students create graphics to help them interpret poems.

So Much Depends Upon... sixteen-word imagery poems that inspire longer stories
This lesson uses Love That Dog by Sharon Creech. Students write 4 16-word poems.

"This is Just to Say"
Click on "Launch Lesson." Listen to the poem; follow links to a paraphrase, analysis, and reflective writing prompts. Under "Points to Ponder" find a response written by the poet's wife.

"This is Just to Say"
Students analyze a poem by William Carlos Williams, then compose one of their own, using Williams's style.

Visual Imagery in Poetry
Students explore the imagery in selected poems and then write their own.

William Carlos Williams
Follow the links to hear the poet read his own works.

William Carlos Williams
Suggestions for approaches to the poems, including comparisons to poems by other writers.

William Carlos Williams
Biographical timeline.