Florian Poetry - Insectlopedia

1. Bibliographic Citation
Florian, Douglas. 1998. Insectlopedia. San Diego: Harcourt Brace & Company. ISBN 9780152163358


 2. Summary and Review
 Florian’s Insectlopedia takes a fun and lighthearted look at many different insects and spiders through concrete and abstract rhyming poems. The circle shaped form of "The Whirligig Beetles" gives the reader the visual of the beetles spinning around. The staccato of the "Left, Right, Left, Right" in "The Army Ants" gives a very appropriate military feeling. 
I’m really no fan of insects or spiders, but Florian’s masterful word play and his whimsical watercolor with collage illustrations turned even a hater into a lover. My favorite poem/illustration pairing is “The Crickets” because I really hate crickets, but this poem and illustration made me laugh about them. The illustration (which is also the cover art) depicts three smiling crickets with violins for bodies playing their songs for free. As an avid concert goer, I can appreciate free shows.
 
The Crickets


You don’t need tickets
To listen to crickets.
They chirp and cheep for free.
They fiddle and sing
By rubbing each wing,
And never will charge you a fee.


This collection of humorous poems is sure to intrigue children and adults alike.

3. Awards/Reviews
 *Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee 1999-2000
*Beehive Award Winner 2002
*School Library Journal Book Review Stars April 1998
*Positive Reviews in Booklist and Kirkus Reviews

4. Activities
 This book would be a great companion for a unit of study on insects. The teacher could read aloud a poem or two a day before the actual science lesson.
This book could be read in conjunction with nonfiction books about the insects and spiders mentioned in the poems.
Students could use Florian’s concrete poems, “The Inchworm,” “The Termites,” and “The Whirligig Beetles” as inspiration to write their own concrete poems.

5. Related books
 *On the Wing by Douglas Florian ISBN 9780152023669
*Beast Feast: Poems by Douglas Florian ISBN 9780152017378
*Insects, Frogs, and Polliwogs by Douglas Florian ISBN 9780152017378

Multicultural Poetry - Confetti: Poems for Children

1. Bibliographic Citation

Mora, Pat. 1996. Confetti: Poems for Children. New York: Lee & Low. ISBN 9780329112806 

2. Summary and Review

In this collection of children’s verses, Mora has sprinkled Spanish words into the poems written in English. A helpful glossary of these Spanish words is included at the end of the book. An all-Spanish version of this book is also available. The poems, ranging from free verse to rhyming stanzas, all reflect Mexican American culture in the Southwest deserts of the United States, with many of the poems being about nature, itself. The poems seem to be written from a child’s point of view and can be easily read and understood by children. Enrique O. Sanchez’s bright, swirly acrylic illustrations really capture the eye and compliment Mora’s poetry. My favorite poem in the collection, “Abuelita’s Lap,” describes a little girl’s favorite time of sitting and talking with her grandmother. All children can relate to sitting with a loved one, feeling secure, and talking about their day.

Abuelita’s Lap

I know a place where I can sit

and tell about my day,

tell every color that I saw

from green to cactus gray.

I know a place where I can sit

and hear a favorite beat,

her heart and cuentos from the past,

the rhythms honey-sweet.

I know a place where I can sit

and listen to a star,

listen to its silent song

gliding from afar.

I know a place where I can sit

and hear the wind go by,

hearing it spinning round my house,

my whirling lullaby.

I also enjoyed “Castanet Clicks,” which reminds me of a Southwest version of “One, Two, Buckle My Shoe.” It would be a nice addition to a bilingual kindergarten class counting lesson.

3. Awards/Reviews

*Tomás Rivera Mexican American Children’s Book Award Nominee 1997

*Texas Reading Club List 2004

*Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature 1996 commended title

*Positive Reviews Kirkus, School Library Journal, Library Media Connection

4. Activities

The many poems about nature including “Sun Song,” “Can I, Can I Catch the Wind,” “Cloud Dragons,” “Leaf Soup,” and “River Voice,” can be incorporated into science lessons about climate and animals. For example, “River Voice” could go with a study on desert climates. The teacher could read it aloud each day before starting the daily science lesson. These poems could bring a little creativity into the fact driven subject of science.

“Castanet Clicks” could be used in conjunction with Mora’s Uno, Dos, Tres/One Two Three in a pre-k or kindergarten class during a counting lesson.

5. Related Books

*Mora, Pat. 1994. The Desert Is My Mother/El Desierto es Mi Madre. Houston: Piñata Books. ISBN 9781558851214 

*Mora, Pat. 1994. Listen to the Desert/Oye Al Desierto. New York: Clarion. ISBN 9780395672921

*Mora, Pat. 1993. Uno, Dos, Tres/One Two Three. New York: Clarion. ISBN 9780395672945

School Poetry - What a Day It Was at School!

1. Bibliographic Citation

Prelutsky, Jack. 2006. What a Day It Was at School! New York: Greenwillow Books. ISBN 9780060823375 

2. Summary and Book Review

This collection of rhyming poems is written from the point of view of a little boy, illustrated as a cat, whose mother asks him about his day at school on the first page. He tells her to read his journal full of all the silly poems he wrote about his day. We follow the little boy through his day at school from music class to PE to the cafeteria to the nurse’s office and through all of the subjects at school. Each page brings a new poem with cartoonlike acrylic illustrations that bring the poems to life. The majority of the poems are two stanzas long with the longest,
“Show-and-Tell,” at four stanzas long. Elementary school students will be able to relate to the subject matter in these poems, especially “My Backpack Weighs a Thousand Pounds,” “I Made a Noise This Morning” (we all know what that noise could be), or “I Know How to Add” in which the little boy just cannot master fractions. I can see these poems being used in a classroom as a fun introduction to various subjects throughout the school day. I do feel some poems are stronger than others, but students will enjoy this silly collection of school poems. One of my favorites is “I Wish I’d Studied Harrder” in which the little boy fails his spelling test and misspells many words in the poem itself too. The illustrations show him playing video games, eating ice cream, and playing soccer instead of studying.

I Wish I’d Studied Harrder

I wish I’d studied harrder

For our spellink test today.

I’m sorrie that I didn’t,

Now I’m feeling some dismaye.

I’d like to get a passing graid,

But don’t beleeve I will –

I think I got Whyoming wrong,

And Chyna, and Brazill.

Though I don’t want to make misteaks,

I make them awl the same.

It’s no one else’s fawlt but mine,

I have to take the blaime.

I tried to spell Cunneddykit,

But really, I just gessed…

If I had stoodied harder

Then I mite have passed this test.

3. Awards/Reviews

*Texas Armadillo Readers’ Choice Award Nominee 2007-2008

*Horn Book Starred Review 2007

*Positive reviews in Booklist, Children’s Literature, and Kirkus Reviews

4. Activities

This book could be used in a variety of ways in the classroom. I can see a teacher reading “I Know How to Add” as in introduction to the new concept of fractions in math class or reading “A Classmate Named Tim” before PE class. “I Wish I’d Studied Harrder” could be used as an editing activity in language class. The teacher could make copies of the poem for the students to correct the spelling mistakes. Finally, “I Have to Write a Poem for Class” could be used as an ice breaker to writing poetry. The little boy finally realizes that writing poetry isn’t as hard as it seems.

5. Related Books

*There’s No Place Like School: Classroom Poems by Jack Prelutsky ISBN 0060823380

*Frist Day Jitters and Last Day Blues both by Julie Danneberg ISBN 9781580890618 and 9781580891042

*Lunch Money and Other Poems About School by Carol Diggory Shields ISBN 9780140558906

Hopkins Collection - Amazing Faces

1. Bibliographic Citation

Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 2010. Amazing Faces. New York: Lee & Low Books. ISBN 9781600603341

 

2. Summary and Book Review

This collection of poems represents all the different ethnicities that make up the faces of American people. Each poem represents a man, woman, or child across America and the emotions that each experiences. The poems display that while we may all look different, or speak different languages, our feelings are universal. Each poem is presented on a two page spread with bright watercolor paintings by Chris Soentpiet illustrating all the many Amazing Faces portrayed in the poems. Poets included in this collection are Nikki Grimes, Jude Mandell, Jane Yolen, Janet Wong, Pat Mora, and Langston Hughes. One of my favorite poems in the collection is "Me X 2/Yo X 2" by Jane Medina. It is a celebration of being bilingual and is written in both English and Spanish. I read this collection aloud to my Bluebonnet Club, and my students really loved it. The repetition and rhythm make it feel familiar and the fact that the speaker of the poem is so happy to be bilingual can help to make bilingual students feel more confident.

Me X 2

I read times two,

I write times two,

I think, I dream,

            I cry times two.

I laugh times two,

I’m right times two,

I sing, I ask,

            I try times two.

I do twice as much

            As most people do.

‘Cause most speak one,

            But I speak two!

Yo X 2

Leo por dos.

Escribo por dos.

Pienso y sueño

            Y lloro por dos.

Yo río por dos.

Grito por dos.

Canto, pregunto,

            Intento por dos.

Hago mucho más

            Que hacen todos ellos,

Porque yo hablo dos:

            Lo doble que aquellos.

3. Awards/Reviews

*Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee 2011-2012

*Publishers Weekly Book Review Stars

*Positive Reviews in School Library Journal, Library Media Connection, and Booklist.

4. Activities

As a follow up activity, students could read the poet's stories behind the poems included in this collection found on Lee & Low's blog. Students can then begin to brainstorm ideas for a poem that they would like to write about themselves that illustrates something that represents them.

 http://blog.leeandlow.com/2010/05/25/amazing-stories/ 

5. Related Books

*Days to Celebrate: A Full Year of Poetry, People, Holidays, History, Fascinating Facts, and More by Lee Bennett Hopkins ISBN 9780060007652

* Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match/Marisol McDonald no combina by Monica Brown ISBN 9780892392353

*I Am America by Charles Smith Jr. ISBN 9780439431798

*I Like Myself! by Karen Beaumont ISBN 9780152020132

African American Poetry - In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall

1. Bibliographic Citation

Steptoe, Javaka. 1997. In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall: African Americans Celebrating Fathers. New York: Lee & Low Books. ISBN 9781413108460

2. Summary and Book Review

This beautiful collection of poems is compiled and illustrated by Javaka Steptoe, son of children’s book illustrator John Steptoe.  It is a collection of thirteen poems written by African American poets about their fathers and, in one case, a grandfather. The poems vary in length and form and include free verse, rhyming, and haiku. The poems themselves are outstanding but the breathtaking collages created from found items, paper, pastels, and much more really bring the poems to life. Poets included in this collection are David A. Anderson, Angela Johnson, Sonia Sanchez, and Carole Boston Weatherford. The book’s namesake and first poem in the book titled “in daddy’s arms” by Folami Abiade is about feeling safe, secure, and tall in her daddy’s arms and is a nice beginning for what is to follow. Here is an excerpt:

in daddy’s arms

in daddy’s arms i am tall

& close to the sun & warm

in daddy’s arms

in daddy’s arms

i can see over the fence out back

i can touch the bottom leaves of the big magnolia tree

in Cousin Sukie’s yard

in daddy’s arms

Another stand out poem is David Adedjouma’s “Artist to Artist,” a free verse poem about a father who longs to be an artist but is forced to work the night shift at the post office sorting mail. A stark contrast to the somberness of some of the poems is Dakari Hru’s sing-song, rhyming “Tickle Tickle” about how much he loves it when his father tickles him. This collection of poems with its magnificent illustrations is highly recommended.

3. Awards/Reviews

*Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award Winner 1998

*Texas Bluebonnet Award Nominee 1999-2000

*Booklist Book Review Stars February 1998

*Positive Reviews in Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, and Children’s Literature

4. Activities

With its beautiful illustrations, this book could be used as inspiration in creating collages in an art class. Students could gather found materials and combine them with paper and pastels to create collages similar to those in the book.

This book could also be used at the end of the school year as a Father’s Day inspiration. Students could write a poem for their fathers or grandfathers to be given to them on Father’s Day.

5. Related Books

*The Dad of the Dad of the Dad of Your Dad: Stories About Kids and Their Fathers by Jeff Moss ISBN 9780345385918

*Pie in the Sky by Lois Ehlert

*To Dad: (You Poor Old Wreck): A Giftbook Written by Children for Fathers Everywhere by Helen Exley ISBN 9781850158455