This four-week poetry unit, geared to ninth and tenth graders, contains plans for 20 days of lessons and activities designed to capture the students' interest and expose them to a wide variety of poems. The characteristics of poetry and the techniques used by poets are emphasized in the unit. Six general objectives are listed followed by an overview of the unit with suggestions and directions to the teacher. Organization of the lessons includes topic, objectives, materials needed, and procedures for teaching. Included in the first twelve lessons are poems about sports, black poetry, story poems, symbolism in poetry, poetry on tombstones, concrete poetry, haiku, and the poetry of rock music. Three "browsing" days are provided for the students to explore poetry books and find a favorite poem to present to the class. Four days of "poetry seminars" are planned for the presentations. A four-page written test is provided for the last day. References are listed for books, films, and filmstrips used in the unit. Included in the appendices are a vocabulary list to be completed by students as they proceed through the lessons, some examples of concrete and haiku poetry, and student guidelines for preparing the poetry presentations. This document is part of a collection of materials from the Iowa Area Education Agency 7 Teacher Center project. (JW)