We are continuing to write poetry in these last few weeks of school.  Last week, we experimented with acrostic and cinquain poems.  This week, we returned to free verse poems which allowed us to focus on using our senses and describing words by writing a poem about making and eating popcorn.  Just like we walked in the garden to prepare for our garden poems, we made popcorn to prepare for our popcorn poems!

I took small groups of students into the kitchen to take notes as we made popcorn on the stove.  Many students had made popcorn in the microwave or with an air popper, but only a handful had made it on the stove.  I bought multi-colored (organic!) popcorn which gave the students that much more opportunity to describe what they saw.

We put a little bit of vegetable oil in a heavy, lidded pan and turned the heat onto medium-high.  Then, we added a layer of kernels to the bottom of the pan and put the lid on.

The students described the sound of the pan and kernels moving across the burner as I shook the pan back and forth.  While we waited, we talked about why popcorn kernels pop when heated. (Each kernel contains a small amount of moisture which, when heated, turns to steam, expands, and explodes from the kernel.) We began to smell the oil heating up and, finally, we heard a pop!  The students reacted with excited giggles and we had to refocus so that we could listen carefully to the sounds.  Some students described the popping as rain-like, while others imagined acorns hitting the sidewalk.

When the popping began to slow, we counted 5 seconds between pops to know that the popcorn was ready.  We took off the lid, added a touch of salt, and dished up our snack, paying attention to our sense of taste and touch.

Tomorrow, we will use our notes to write poems about popcorn.  Be sure to check back to see how they turned out!