For Today’s project we will be writing our own Blackout Poetry! Join us as we scour books and magazines for the words we want to say and add illustrations to give meaning to old texts. Blackout poetry is a method of writing a poem using only words collected from the page you want to work on and blacking out, or drawing over, the rest. Poetry on its own has thrived in America and has been a source of creativity for many people including Black artists as early as the 1700s. Poets like Lucy Terry, John Hammond, and Phillis Wheatly wrote of their experiences during the time of slavery and the American Revolutionary war. The first poem published and written by a Black poet was Lucy Terry’s “Bar Fight,” 1855. John Hammond’s poetry served as a guide for others in his writings on religion and morality. And Phillis Wheatley wrote about liberty and patriotism that led to the American Revolution. Later, poets like George Moses Horton, Frances E.W. Harper and James M. Whitfield wrote out against slavery and the wrongs in their society. Now it’s your turn to create your own Blackout Poetry. First, chose a 5” x 7” section of text from a book or magazine (we will be using old encyclopedias) and use your pencil to circle the words, sentences, or phrases you would like to keep to write your poem. Next, grab your marker and black out, or draw and color over all the words that you did not keep. You can get creative and draw in imagery that illustrates your poem. Now, on a blank 5” x 7” piece of cardstock, write out the poem you wrote through blackout in your own handwriting. Afterwards, glue your finished poems onto an 8” x 10” piece of cardstock paper, place one on the front and one on the back. Lastly, give your poem a title above where you glued it onto the page. Don’t forget to sign your artwork / poetry!
Free