Oral Poetry Reading Responses

Students listened to the poem "Table Manners" by a fellow English Iowa teacher Kurt Straube. Kurt wrote the poem during our summer session of the Iowa Writing Project.

As they listened to the poem, students participated in a PiratePad discussion. Students paid special attention to VOICE, TONE, and STYLE. Students used PiratePad to record thoughts on a live document, where they were also able to see their classmates thoughts and feelings. Students then had a few minutes to respond to others on the PiratePad document.

English 11
English 9
English 10 



The poem, in its entirety, follows.

Table Manners

Kurt Straube

Dear Father–

Dad–

you'd be so proud

of me tonight, here

with a girl–maybe even

The girl–at the Pizza Ranch

on University,

not because I've picked

the seediest dive in town

with the most engorged patrons and loudest brats

at which to impress the one

I've been seeing for almost a year now

but because at this moment

I am not sucking up stray kernels 

of corn from the corners of my plate

with nothing but my tongue.

That was, after all, the one

trait you said a man should

avoid, so long ago–my 

nine-year-old bare feet dangling

carelessly below my seat

at the dinning room table–

"Whoever she is, she won't love

you if you eat your corn

like a vacuum sucking lint."

Such poignant advice

from the man who once offended

my mother with horseradish-

breath, only to immediately shower,

shave, and brush his teeth...

all for the sake of her kiss.

So, Dad–Father–Man

to whom I may credit all

my finest and lowliest traits

thank you

for the advice, and

as always, for knowing

that the ones who are worth it

hate boys that suck.

A special thanks to Kurt Straube for sharing this poem.