POETRY!

My assignment for this week is poetry!  I had to read books from a specific list and then select five that would work with my focus group (K-3rd grade).  I love poetry so that wasn't hard - I did have some difficulty finding the exact books listed in the textbook but I was able to find similar books by authors that were listed.  But first - one of my favorite poems by Shel Silverstein -- The Snowball.

I made myself a snowball

As perfect as could be.

I thought I’d keep it as a pet

And let it sleep with me.

I made it some pajamas

And a pillow for its head.

Then last night it ran away,

But first– – it wet the bed.

Now - on to the books!

Lewis, J. Patrick, pictures by Victoria Chess. A Hippopotamusn’t

Dial Book for Young Readers   1990

A timeless book of animal poems!  It made me smile.  I liked the fact that he used all different types of poetry – couplets, free verse, poems in the shape of the animal, limericks, and Haiku, to mention a few.  This would be a good introduction to poetry for the K – 3 group, picking simpler poems for the younger crowd while using the entire book with the older ones. 

Hughes, Langston; photographs by Charles R. Smith Jr. My People Atheneum 2009

Few people write more eloquently than Langston Hughes.  I have long been a fan of his which is why I am including both books.  This short poem (only 33 words) was written in the late 1920s during the Harlem Renaissance, a complex time for blacks.  Hughes wrote it to celebrate the pride he had for his race.  This book would be used with 5 and 6 year olds – we would read the book and then create a bulletin board with our own photographs.

Hughes, Langston; illustrated by E. B. Lewis The Negro Speaks of Rivers Disney/Jump at the Sun 2009

This one would be for the older end of my focus group.  Langston Hughes wrote this poem – connecting the history of black people with rivers – when he was only 17 (or 18) years old!  E. B. Lewis does an amazing job with his illustrations – which will help the seven and eight year olds interpret the poem for themselves. I would have a world map up on the wall so that, after reading the poem, we could identify the rivers and countries mentioned - and explore why Langston Hughes chose those examples.

Nelson, Kadir.  He's Got the Whole World In His Hands. Dial: 2005

I would use this book in conjunction with "My People" by Langston Hughes.  The world would be a good centerpiece for all the photographs. 

Prelutsky, Jack with paintings by Ted Rand. If Not for the Cat Greenwillow Books 2004

Not your typical Prelutsky – this is a delightful collection of 17 Haiku, each one a riddle about an animal.  Ted Rand has painted delightful double page illustrations, one to accompany each 17 syllable poem and reveal the answer to each riddle.  I would use some of the haiku in this book with 1st graders as a sort of mystery guessing game.  The vocabulary in some of the haiku is quite simple while in others it is more complex – this allows you to use a variety of haiku with different age groups.  For 2nd and 3rd graders, I would use the entire book as a unit to introduce haiku.  It could be used in an English class, a science class, and/or an art class –  it could easily be adapted to a variety of curriculums!   Or, in the library, you could have an entire month devoted to poetry (April, for example) and use this book to introduce Haiku for one of the sessions.  Then the kids could create their own Haiku or copy one of these and illustrate it.  

Sidman, Joyce illustrated by Paul Allen Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night

Houghton Mifflin books for Children 2010

A collection of poems about the night, again using a variety of poetry styles.  This book would be for the older, more accomplished readers in my group.   Mr. Allen’s illustrations were created by the process of relief printing using linoleum blocks.  There is a description of the printing process at the beginning of the book.  Accompanying each poem is a detailed description of the subject of the poem – for example, I learned that a baby porcupine is called a porcupette.   Wouldn't it be fun to do potato or vegetable printing to give the kids an idea of the process Mr. Allen used to create the pictures in the book?

Sidman, Joyce pictures by Beth Krommes Swirl by Swirl:  Spirals in Nature

Houghton Mifflin Books for Children October 4, 2011

This second Sidman collection could complement the Dark Emperor book by appealing to the younger children in my focus group.  It is a wonderful introduction to nature and, though not in a traditional rhyming poetry form, it is lyrical.  The author explores all the different places one can find spirals in nature.  There is further explanation at the end of the book.