Each student has a job, and each job must be completed to achieve the end result. Peers can sometimes be more effective when it comes to obtaining results from the students. I like to think of it as positive peer pressure. My students also compile Poetry Anthologies during the spring. The anthology gives the students the opportunity to explore and locate poetry that connects with who they are or want to become.
Time is spent preparing and practicing reading selected poems aloud.
At the end of the unit, the students open a coffee house in my classroom. They will perform their readings here in front of the peers. Again, the class will come together to achieve the desired end result. What I am saying here is that it has helped my end of the school year anxieties by letting myself sit back, relax and watch my students drive themselves. After all I have been preparing them for this the entire school year.