Poetry Day

In teaching Eastern Civ. I used to dread Japanese poetry day. While some of the students enjoy reading poetry, others have a strong distaste for it, and it was always the most difficult topic for stimulating discussion. After a few semesters of pain, I decided to make it into a fun day where we have green tea and Japanese snacks and the students read traditional poetry aloud and then write their own poetry according to the traditional renga format. They then read their poems aloud to the class and the students vote, with the winning group getting an extra credit point for the day. This year it was nice enough to do this outside, simulating hanami.