Writing Parodies Across the CurriculumAuthor(s): William P. BintzSource: The Reading Teacher, Vol. 64, No. 7 (APRIL 2011), pp. 511-514Published by: Wiley on behalf of the International Reading AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41203441 .

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Writing Parodies Across the Curriculum William P. Bintz

"How Do I Measure Thee?" How do I measure thee? The U.S. customary way. I measure thee volume and capacity, not height and

weight. My volume is filled 3D space, length, width, and

height. For capacity is the volume held when containers full. I measure thee in gallons when the liquid is large. Four quarts equal a gallon, check the milk jug. I measure thee liquids, two pints are a quart. I measure thee fluids, two cups are a pint. I measure thee water, eight ounces a cup. In my kitchen I bake, sixteen tablespoons a cup

makes. I measure thee tiny things, three teaspoons are a

tablespoon. With my new skills, I measure thee U.S. customary

way. Gallons, quarts, and even pints! - and if I choose, I shall learn to measure thee in metric, too.

people hear the name Elizabeth Barrett Browning, most don't think about measurement. They think about a

Victorian poet who wrote lyrics about love and na- ture, as well as political and social issues of the time. "How Do I Measure Thee?" is a parody of Browning's poem "How Do I Love Thee?" and was written by a fourth-grade teacher who was enrolled in my gradu- ate course, Survey of Children's Literature. One of my goals for the course is for students to experience in- structional strategies that integrate reading and writ- ing across the curriculum. I developed a lesson that invited students to write parodies across the curricu- lum. I describe that lesson and share results in this article.

I begin with an introduction to parody. Then, I describe theoretical background for the lesson, ma- terials and procedures used, and completed student samples. I end with thoughts on integrating parodies. Although I used this strategy with graduate students, my hope is that elementary teachers will use it in their classrooms to help younger students experi- ence the power and potential of parody.

What Is Parody? According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, a parody is "a literary or musical work in which the style of an author or work is closely imitated for comic effect or in ridicule." Encyclopedia Britannica Kids notes that the word comes from the Greek paroidia, meaning "a song sung alongside another." A parody is a respect- ful yet critical satire, takeoff, or spoof of an original. In literature, a parody is when a person imitates an author's style or work to ridicule or provide humor. Parody isn't hurtful but respectful. It requires writ- ers to appreciate and respect the work they ridicule. The following parody is based on "At the Sea-Side" from A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson.

"At the Library" When I was at the library A quiet voice she gave to me To whisper to my friends. The noise was empty like a cup. In every thought my voice came up Till I could hold it no more.

The original tells of a child who digs holes in the sandy shore and watches the sea fill them up until it could not come any more. The parody was written by a library media specialist who describes her frustra- tion with children talking loudly in the library.

Parody challenges the authority of author and text in a playful way (Pantaleo, 2007). Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith's The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales plays with literary conventions, their Squids Will Be Squids plays with spinoffs of tra- ditional fables, and their The True Story of the Three Little Pigs plays with different perspectives on fairy tales.

Parody is also a tool to teach and learn across content areas. Math Curse by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith deals humorously with mathematics in every- day life while their Science Verse parodies the styles of poets such as Joyce Kilmer, Edgar Allan Poe, Lewis Carroll, and Robert Frost. Scieszka and Smith's Seen

The Reading Teacher, 64(7), pp. 51 1-514 © 201 1 International Reading Association DOI:10.1598/RT.64.7.4 ISSN: 0034-0561 print / 1936-2714 online

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firci ^r^ describes one boy's search for / ̂ ^^^^^^k 3g£Sr his friend Art, and his subsequent j ̂ ^^HHHH E3P. . journey of art appreciation. Brian 'яИг1аЯ| Ж* P. deary's Give Me Bach My W^ -^Wl Äfe; Schubert uses rhyming verse Г^^^ЕЯшм sffw and musical puns to tell the ^^mJEEMEß 1Л? story of a boy who tries des- «BS| |Щтс perately to run from a piano ^^^^^^| SB» lesson. ^W

Д& Background ^Ej Parody is a variation of copy change. jSg* Copy change is an instructional strategy in which SjS students use an author's patterned text as a model Я^ for their own writing (Rasinski & Padak, 2000). It is

Е^Б also called literary borrowing (Lancia, 1997), author

¿ШЬ apprenticing (Fletcher, 1999), and borrowing a pat- Sffig tern (Short & Harste, 1996). It posits that "texts lend I» themselves to being rewritten in which the original ■HP book serves as a model for a new book" (Kasten, ffifcl Kristo, McClure, & Garthwait, 2005, p. 171) and that 3SS1*» understanding and using text structures can improve КДО}. writing skills and enhance reading comprehension в?£ (Dymock, 2005). ■J&tn Copy change enhances student writing by jBWJZ highlighting models of a writer's craft (Hickman &

Л^С Cullinan, 1989). Young writers notice authors' crafts

5K4J (Lancia, 1997). Professional writers do, too: rHfrf n^&ii Like any other craftspeople, professional writers know JHHC that to learn their craft, they must stand on the shoul- ď^B ders of writers who have gone before them. Copy ЗЩ change is a way young writers can stand on the shoul- ЯНВ ders of professional writers. (Ray, 1999, p. 11)

jl Creating a Lesson ^^K This lesson helped students write parodies across ]^Л the curriculum and has three stages. Stage 1 is intro- ■^B ducing parody. I developed a text set on parody in-

^S eluding Because I Could Not Stop My Bike and Other ИСТ? Poems and / Must Go Down to the Beach Again and EjŽ Other Poems, both by Karen Jo Shapiro, A Kick in the Pta Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms by Paul B. Bag, Janeczko, Pitiless Parodies and Other Outrageous HgS Verse by Frank Jacobs, and The Taking Tree: A Selfish

ESjnc Parody by Shrill Travesty. I read aloud three to four

^ES¿ poems from different books and discussed how they Kftr connected to parody. ш

^^^^^^^^^^^^L ' Stage 2 is exploring ^^^^^^^^^^^^^A potential poems. I in-

^^^^^^^^^^^^B ' vited students to browse И^^^^^Нр^^^Н/ through the text set to

^^BBBI^Sw get a deeper understand- 8М11иМШ1ш1^^# ing °f parody. I also invit-

^Ше^шЯРШ^ШШШ ed them to record original ^^^^Ш^^^^^Г poems that they could use

Ш^^^^Ш^^^г to write parodies. Stage 3 is

^^^^^p^^ writing and sharing parodies. Students selected three poems and

wrote and illustrated a parody for each. Each parody was based on a different content area.

After writing, students selected one parody to read to the class.

Samples of Parodies Language Arts This parody was written by a third-grade teacher. She used a phonics program at her school that is de- signed to help struggling readers learn how to pho- nemically sound out words while reading. Each year her students struggle to learn digraphs, especially the /sh/ sound. She wrote this parody to help them learn this concept.

"Her Tongue Is Being Terrible" (based on "My Tongue Is Tasting Terrible" from It's Raining Pigs and Noodles by Jack Prelutsky) Her tongue is being terrible I can't imagine why, For all she says is shh, shh, shh, In all her words, oh my. She wishes she washed shiny shoes, And ocean seashells too! I hope it's not from dinner, My dish of sharky stew.

She tried a bit of sharky stew, The contents is quite weird, A cup of shrimp and shellfish, Shiitake mushrooms seared. After that came the dessert, Marshmallow creamy pie, Her tongue is being terrible, I can't imagine why.

Mathematics This parody was written by a fourth-grade teacher to help her students understand the difficult yet impor- tant concept of angles in the math curriculum:

ÇH The Reading Teacher Vol. 64, No. 7 April 201 1

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"Amazing Angles All Around Us"

(based on "Dave Dirt Came to Dinner" by Kit Wright)

Amazing angles all around us And there are three different kinds. We study in math And we remember in our minds.

And the first one is right In the corner forms a square, Look at a box or a table You will see they really aren't rare.

The next angle is called obtuse It will be LARGER than a right, Look at the hands when it's four o'clock It is really quite a sight.

And the last angle is acute It is smaller than a right, It doesn't make it less important Just look on a kite.

Social Studies This parody was written by a music teacher at an el-

ementary school and was inspired by David Catrow's book We the Kids: The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States. The book is a hilarious yet informa- tive parody. The teacher wrote it to connect social studies to one of his school duties:

I spend 85 minutes each day supervising the cafete- ria. In the past, we have had a few teachers make the rules for the cafeteria, and they seem to change several times a year. If my principal and colleagues agree, I'd like to use this parody as a prompt to have students en-

gage in a rule-making experience that would simulate the Constitutional Convention of 1787. Students would submit ideas for rules. Then, each would elect a del-

egate to represent them. A convention would be held in which the delegates vote to adopt the rules. The

experience would be both a civics lesson and could also be a language arts lesson if students were to sub- mit their own parodies of the Preamble that could be voted on as well.

"We the Students" (based on the Preamble to the United States Constitution)

We the students of Campbell Elementary School, in order to have a safe and enjoyable lunch period, feed

everyone, to keep the lunch line moving, keep the room reasonably clean, provide for friendly conversa- tion, and secure a positive dining experience for all students, do ordain and establish these Rules for the

Campbell Elementary School Cafeteria.

Science This parody was written by a fourth-grade teacher. The teacher wanted to use this parody in science class to introduce the planets.

"The Planets" (based on the poem "The Pig" from Roald Dahl's Dirty Beasts)

In Cleveland once there lived a boy A brilliantly young special boy. To everybody it was plain, That young boy had a thoughtful brain. He knew each of the planets' names, Each one is different he proclaims. He knows Mercury is the first, And Neptune is furthest from sun's burst. He knows all this and much, much more, But one question seemed more like four. He really could not figure out, What planets could not do without? Why is Venus smaller than Earth? And what made Mars red at its birth? All of his thoughts went a flutter, And he could not make another. Until one night it all came clear, He sat up in bed with a cheer. He got up quick to make a call, And he exclaimed, "I know it all!" "Mercury is quite near the sun, Then Venus is the brightest one." "Plus we live on Earth," he hollers, "Mars' name comes from its red color. And gas is what Jupiter brings, Saturn is best known for its rings. Uranus looks like it is blue, With colored bands hidden from view. Eighth from the sun Neptune is it, Pluto is now a dwarf planet." Such thoughts as these were quite designed, To give the boy great peace of mind.

Integrating Parodies This lesson enabled students to write parodies across the curriculum. One student, a special education teacher, had a different perspective:

"Messy Desk" (based on "Messy Room" by Shel Silverstein)

Whosever desk this is should be ashamed! His folder is hanging open, bent and torn. His pencils broken to pieces might even be Lisa's. His papers are falling onto the floor all tattered and

worn. His workbook is missing its cover. Pieces of his art box are all over the floor. His books are all jammed in the back of the desk.

Writing Parodies Across the Curriculum

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jr He wouldn't recognize his work if it were hanging on Ü the door. r A half-eaten sandwich is squished to bottom. i , His art shirt has been left in the hall. I. His homework could use a file clerk. 1 And his missing jacket has been hanging on the wall. Í Whosever desk this is should be ashamed! ¡* Will or Bill or Matt? f Huh? You say it's mine? Oh dear. r I knew it looked familiar.

I Her students have messy desks, and she is always L asking them to keep their desks clean and organized.

However, instead of ridiculing her students, she ridi- I cules herself after discovering, much to the surprise ^ and delight of her students, that she is as messy and ¡r disorganized as they are! í Writing a parody like "Messy Desk" can be hum- ¿' bling. Parodies can also be entertaining, enjoyable, ¿ and, when focused on content area material, infor- *- mative and instructive. This lesson integrated all of I these potential outcomes. I hope this experience en- | ables teachers to start new conversations, generate ^ new questions, and develop new lessons that help щ them and their students write parodies across the i curriculum.

f References [** Dymock, S. (2005). Teaching expository text structure awareness. Í "

The Reading Teacher, 59(2), 177-181. doi:10.1598/RT.59.2.7 f ' Fletcher, R. (1999). Live writing: Breathing life into your words.

к New York: HarperTrophy. г Hickman, J., & Cullinan, B.E. (1989). Children's literature in fe the classroom: Weaving Charlotte's web. Norwood, MA: I Christopher-Gordon.

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Kasten, W.C., Kristo, J.V., McClure, A.A., & Garthwait, A. (2005). Living literature: Using children's literature to support reading and language arts. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Lancia, P. (1997). Literary borrowing: The effects of literature on children's writing. The Reading Teacher, 50(6), 470-475.

Pantaleo, S. (2007). Scieszka's "The Stinky Cheese Man": A tossed salad of parodie re-versions. Children's Literature in Education, 38(4), 277-295. doi:10.1007/sl0583-006-9037-x

Rasinski, T., & Padak, N. (2000). Effective reading strategies: Teaching children who find reading difficult (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.

Ray, K.W. (1999). Wondrous words: Writers and writing in the el- ementary classroom. Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.

Short, K.G., & Harste, J.C, (with Burke, C). (1996). Creating classrooms with authors and inquirers. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Literature Cited Scieszka, J., & Smith, L. (1995). Math curse. New York: Viking.

Bintz teaches at Kent State University, Ohio, USA; e-mail wpbintz@gmail.com or wbintz@kent.edu.

IRA Journal Articles ■ "Fibbin With Poems Across the Curriculum" by

William P. Bintz, The Reading Teacher, March 2010

■ "Singing Across the Curriculum" by William P. Bintz, The Reading Teacher, May 2010

■ "Using Copy Change With Trade Books to Teach Earth Science" by William P. Bintz, Pam Wright, and Julie Sheffer, The Reading Teacher, October 2010

t i^ppp^- |ťs National Poetry Month I April is National Poetry Month in the United States, I with activities organized by the Academy of L* American Poets and other organizations. * Get great suggestions for celebrating poetry | in your classroom at ReadWriteThink.org, the

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IRA-NCTE website of lesson plans and Jh^^^ resources. Visit www.readwritethink ■^Tv5' .org, and navigate to Calendar Activities ■ £ ''''m under the Classroom Resources w**"10^ ^ heading. ^^^еЕ^^Л

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15^ The Reading Teacher Vol. 64, No. 7 April 201 1

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