Animal Farm Creative Project

Animal Farm

The animals on the Manor Farm

were getting worked up,

By Old Major and his talk of a revolution,

and luck.

He talked of the animals

owning the farm,

kicking out the humans,

so they could no longer cause them harm.

The animals succeeded,

and renamed their new land Animal Farm.

The pigs soon took the role

as leaders,

running the barn.

They gave themselves the

higher benefits,

eating the apples and milk,

and making the other animals work harder,

telling them the pigs had

the brains for the supervising filk.

All of the animals decided

on a list of Commandments.

They followed these to the

extent.

And when the pigs started

changing them,

No animal was smart

or brave enough,

to stand up to the pigs and

their lents.

The pigs started living in

the farm house,

sleeping in beds,

eating at the table,

and wearing clothes.

No animal seemed to care

or care enough to complain.

But then the pigs learned to walk,

and thats when it all

took a change.

The pigs have neighboring farmers

over for dinner one night.

This is when the animals realize,

they can tell no difference

between the pigs and their

human guests under the

evening light.

My Poem

The poem I chose for Poetry Out Loud is "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost. I had already known of this poem before we started choosing, because I used it for an assignment in a poetry book I made last year. I knew that I really liked it, understood the meaning, and was able to relate to it. "The Road Not Taken" is literally about a traveler coming to two forks in a road, and choosing the one that less people had choosed. The deeper meaning is that sometimes in life you need to make a choice. You can choose the choice that all of your friends and family choose and be a follower. Or, you can make the other choice, and start your own path.

At the end of the poem it says that he chose the one less traveled by and how that made all the difference. This is talking about how choosing whatever the choice is you are making, the choice less chosen, that will make all the difference in your life, and could change the path your life is traveling. A way I can relate to choosing between two things in the same situation would be choosing to take drama or choir as my second elective. I could have taken choir with most of my friends, stuck with what I did in middle school. Except I enjoy acting more and I knew that, so I chose drama, which only a few other people I knew chose and in movies is typically the "nerdy" class. I am so, so glad that I chose drama. It has made a difference already with after school activites(like choosing to do the spring musical), and the new friends I have made.
To convey the meaning of my poem when I present it, there are different things I will do. I will pause when a dramatic affect is needed, such as deciding on which choice to make in the beginning. I will use happy facials when talking about the path I chose to show that I am happy with it. I will use hand-gestures when needed. I will also show content with my face and body posture when I read the last sentence of the poem. I feel like using these methods will help me best show the meaning of my poem to the audience.

Poetry Out Loud

Part One: Website Cruising
1. "Snowflake"
2. "Retired Ballerinas, Central Park West"
3. "The Man He Killed"
4. "Nude Descending a Staircase" and "Who Understands Me but Me"

Part Two: What do you think?
Of the five poems listed above, I liked all of them. I was able to understand each of them and see what the author was saying.
I liked all of them, so I didn't like none of them.
I am interested in using "Who Understands Me but Me" as my poem.
I personally connected with this poem by how it who understands him and what he thinks, better than himself? Which I feel that you know who you are, people can't tell you what you are and who you need to be, which is a similar idea.

Part Three: Scoring Criteria
The easiest of these criteria for me would be level of difficulty, since my poem is long, and accuracy, since I'm used to memorizing lines for drama.
I will have difficulty with voice and articulation, since I tend to talk fast so I won't have a natural pace. Also physical presence, since I don't usually like making eye contact so I won't be connecting to the entire audience.

Part Four: Videos
I watched "Frekerick Douglass". This is a successful performance because you could tell she understood the poem and was able to get into it without being overdramatic.
I also watched "Forgetfulness". This was a successful performance because his voice was very easily heard and clear, and he didn't just look at one person, he made a connection with the audience.

Part Five: Summary
I think the competition with be nerve-wracking, but not super tense. I think I will do good enough for a B since I'm used to performing and memorizing, but I will probably not be easily understood. I will memorize "Who Understands Me but Me." I choose it because I connected well with it and it is a good length. I think the website is very helpful for competitors.