MODULE 6: RESPONDING TO POETRY

SERIOUS POETRY

This Place I Know: Poems of Comfort

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Heard, Georgia, ed. 2002. THIS PLACE I KNOW: POEMS OF COMFORT. Ill. by eighteen renowned picture book artists. Cambridge, Mass: Candlewick Press. ISBN: 0763619248

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Georgia Heard compiled this collection after 9/11 by request from a superintendent of public schools in Manhattan. The request was for poems of comfort and solace that could be read to students who lived through the tragedy of September 11, 2001. Each poem is written by a well-known poet and is illustrated by an accomplished picture book artist. The poems are written by some late great poets like Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson, as well as contemporary poets like Eloise Greenfield and Karla Kuskin. At the end of the collection is a "About the Illustrators," section where either a short biography is provided, or in some cases, a description by the illustrator of his or her experience working with the poem and how their own memories of 9/11 informed their work.

I selected this book because after reading Georgia Heard's book this this class, I have grown to trust that she is a writer of great depth and wisdom, and I knew that she would choose poems that could touch and possibly heal many a wounded soul. In her introduction she explains, "I tried to choose poems that touch upon our feelings of fear and loss, remind us that we are not alone in despair, and assure us that dreams can be born even from tragedy."

Most of the illustrations are, like the poems, have a child-like sweetness and warmth; particularly Holly Meade and Hiro Nakata's paintings. As much as I admire Peter Sis's work, I don't think his illustration on the cover represents the tone and sweetness of the content of the entire book. Chris Raschka's watercolor of the harbor with the city's skyline in the backdrop would have been more fitting.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

The poems take the reader on a journey through the tragedy by acknowledging the pain in the first poem, by Eloise Greenfield entitled, " This Place," offering comfort and reassurance in Georgia Heard's poem, "Lullaby," and ending in many poems about hope and the power of love to heal. Walt Whitman's words could have been written for the event, the last two lines are profoundly appropriate: "A great city is that which has the greatest men and women,/If it be a few ragged huts it is still the greatest city in the whole/world."

These poems would work really well for exercises in self-exploration facilitated by questions that encourage the children to experience the poems on a personal level.

For example, the poem "Stars" by Deborah Chandra could be read by the teacher: "I like the way they looked down from the sky/And didn't seem to mind the way I cried./ And didn't say, "Now wipe away those tears,"/Or, "Tell us, tell us what's the matter here!"/But shining through the dark they calmly stayed,/And gently held me in their quiet way..."

The children can be asked facilitating questions like: "Have you ever felt comforted by being outside in nature?"or, "Does this remind you of anything you know about?" or, "When you're sad, what makes you feel better?"

JANECZKO COLLECTION

Worlds Afire

1. BIBLIOGRPAHY

Janeczko. Paul. 2004. WORLDS AFIRE. Cambridge, Mass: Candlewick Press. ISBN: 9780763634001.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Paul Janeczko's poems are fictional eye-witness accounts of a true event that happened on July 6, 1944 in Hartford Connecticut. Organized in three sections in which we experience the anticipation and excitement of the Circus coming to town, the horrendous fire that consumes 167 people, and finally the survivors and witnesses trying to recount and make sense of what happened. There is an amazing range of emotions portrayed in this brief account, that allows for a very complete and intense experience as a reader. Students new to poetry will have a world opened to them after reading this book, and will beg for more. What a great opportunity to introduce more poems that can tell a compelling story with simple but beautiful and powerful language like Keesha's House,by Helen Frost, Out of the Dust, by Karen Hesse, Learning to Swim, by Ann Warren Turner, and novels by Sonya Sones.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

Each poem's title is the narrator's name and occupation. In the poem, "Dr. Rose Beekman, Fire Expert, we get a sense of the power and force of the fire: "Surprised?/Oh, I'm sure/they were surprised that the fire spread so fast,/a runaway train./Roared like one, too./How fast did it spread?/Let me put it this way:/some didn't have time/to scream for help/before flames shot up/the side of the tent/like a dragon roaring to life./

Older students can select a historical event and tell the story in verse; at the very least they will come away with a greater appreciation for this poetic form and the artistry that goes into creating it.

POETRY BY KIDS

Soft Hay will Catch You: Poems by Young People

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lyne, Sandford, ed. SOFT HAY WILL CATCH YOU: POEMS BY YOUNG PEOPLE. Ill. by Julie Monks. New York: Simon & Schuster.

ISBN: 0689834608.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In this collection of poems by children ages eight to eighteen, the reader experiences a profound connection that children make between the physical world and their inner world. Like Georgia Heard, Sandford Lyne is a poet, writer and a gifted teacher/facilitator of the process of teaching children to write. Like Heard, he went to the students, in his case, a town in Kentucky near his own childhood home, to facilitate a week long poetry writing workshop. The book's title and wonderful cover art by Julie Monk, entice the reader to open it! The poems are written in free verse and are divided into six sections with titles like: The Inward Fire: Poems about the search for self; or The World of Dew: Poems About the Soul's Journey and the Circle of Life. These are not exactly light-hearted poems, but Lyne has accomplished an amazing feat in his work with these children. In the introduction to the collection, Lyne explains his how his own relationship to poetry has helped him to understand and appreciate his students exploration of poetry: "But I had learned a long time ago to look beneath the surface of things and to believe i the treasures and lessons hidden in each life, to believe in the history of each smile and tear. As a poet myself, I knew that my own world of images and metaphors was grown in the deep topsoil and in the seed experiences of my childhood..."

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

This poem, entitled "Sad" is written by a 6th grade student and it gives voice to the thoughts of many children from broken homes: "I'm sad/ when I see/children with their grandparents./I'm sad when I see/kids with two parents,/not one./I'm sad/when I see/what I've missed." This is a profound feeling that I'm sure many kids couldn't even access. It brings to mind something Katherine Patterson once said about the purpose she hopes her writing fulfills and that is offering a place for children to lay their burdens down.

Students can select one or two to share with a small group, and then create their own in the style or tone from the section of their choosing.

MODULE 5: POETRY PERFORMANCE

Performance Poetry

Sweethearts of Rhythm: The Story of the Greatest All-Girl Swing Band in the World

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Nelson, Marilyn. 2009. SWEETHEARTS OF RHYTHM: THE STORY OF THE GREATEST ALL-GIRL SWING BAND IN THE WORLD. Ill. by Jerry Pickney. New York: Dial Books. ISBN: 9780803731875.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In this original collection of poems, Marilyn Nelson informs the reader of a sixteen piece all girl multicultural big band that was formed in the 1930's, and which performed through the 1940's. The girls were from the Piney Woods Country Life school in Mississippi, and they were truly a multicultural group with a Chinese saxophonist, a Hawaiian trumpeter, a Mexican Clarinet player and many African American musicians. We don't learn the story from the perspective of these amazing musicians however, instead we hear it from the instruments they played. The first stanza of the first poem reveals the setting, which is a pawnshop, after closing time. Nina De La Cruz's tenor sax begins the story. Each poem's title is the name of a popular swing standard. Nelson uses anapestic and dactylic meters which are meters found commonly found in songs. The poems don't always rhyme, and when they do it is not in the traditional way. But like the music of the era, the poems tell the story with a compelling swing. The story is about the musicians, the music, and the times,and the poems relate the essence of all of that in an artful and powerful way. Jerry Pinkney's watercolors and collages, reflect the story of the band as well as the story of the times; from the War to the internment camps, to the Great Depression. He explains in the Artist's Notes found at the back of the book, that the story has many layers and so it was appropriate to use a layering technique in the artwork. So he layers musical scores, newspaper clippings and road maps to create his version of the story.

The Author's and Artist's notes would serve readers better if they were placed at the beginning of the book instead of at the end. Readers would be more likely to stay with the poems if they get an explanation of the point of view and some background about the social, economic and politcal climate.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

This book could be used for a lesson in history, music, gender studies, race studies, art, socioeconomics,-the possibilites are endless. In the poem "Black and Tan Fantasy," based on Duke Ellington's composition, students will understand that the music served a very important purpose in the time of war. The civilians, the wives, children, parents and other family members of soldiers were experiencing the hardships of war as well:

"It was solace, then, that swing music gave those crowds?/You and your sweethearts were really "soldiers of music,"/living like a tumbleweed, bathless and underpaid,/To uplift the nation's fallen morale with acoustics?"

Hopkins Poetry Award

Button UP! Wrinkled Rhymes

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Schertle, Alice. 2009. BUTTON UP! WRINKLED RHYMES. Ill. by Petra Mathers. New York: Harcourt Children's Books. ISBN: 97801520505504.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Here is a collection of poems written from the perspective of various articles of clothing! In this clever collection of 15 poems, we hear from Emily's Undies, Rick's Wool Sweater, and Bob's Bicycle Helmet, to name a few! Emily is an adorable mouse who is drawn staring up at a an assortment of her underware hanging from a clothesline. Rick is an ostrich decked out in a turtle neck! The watercolor illustrations are a perfect match for the text because they are as whimsical and as charming as the poems. The rhyming poems read like chants when read aloud. Toddlers and preschoolers will be drawn to the action packed illustrations, and elementary students will find these poems both silly and enchanting.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

My favorite poem in this collection is "Bob's Bicycle Helmet." The picture shows Bob, a dog, riding his bike on a grassy hill with a lovely cherry tree which is losing its blossoms to the wind. Bob's wearing a bright red helmet and is doing a wheelie down the hill.

"Bob's on his bike/and I'm on Bob/I'm Bob's helmet./I'm on the job./ Bob burns rubber./Bob climbs hills./Bob does wheelies./Bob takes spills."

Children could pick their favorite article of clothing and use their name to write their own poems from the point of view of their clothes. And how fun it would be to illustrate it!

FREE CHOICE

My Dog May Be A Genius

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Prelutsky, Jack. 2008. MY DOG MAY BE A GENIUS. Ill. by James Stevenson. New York: Greenwillow Books. ISBN: 9780066238623.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In this collection of over a hundred poems, Prelutsky and Stevenson collaborate to create another hilarious collection of poems and drawings that will appeal to both kids and adults. There are concrete poems, poems about animals and eccentric characters, food poems, school poems, poems about fears. In other words, there is something for everyone in this collection. The drawings compliment the text, and at times are part of the concrete poems. Prelutsky's poems are always readable his sarcasm is an example of his commitment not to talk down to children. It lends a sophistication that is captivating to the older reader. Yet, there are plenty of poems that won't go over the heads of younger readers. In the back of the book, readers will find and Index to titles as well as an Index to first lines. This collection seems to be giving a nod to Dahl and Blake with its irreverence and gumption.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

Prelutsky's poems can be a wonderful way to introduce new vocabulary to students and challenge them to use the words in fun and interesting ways. For example, in the poem, "My Current Situation," the narrator in the first stanza, offers up several words that will challenge kids to guess their meaning: "My current situation/is ostensibly unique./Alarming things are happening to alter my physique./I'm growing hooves, I have a tail,/my neck now sports a mane,/and I can hardly wait to graze/upon a grassy plain."

MODULE 4: POETRY ACROSS THE CURRICULUM

SCIENCE POETRY

Incredible Inventions

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hopkins, Lee Bennett. (Ed.). 2009. INCREDIBLE INVENTIONS. ill. by Julia Sarcone Roach. New York: Greenwillow Books. ISBN: 978006087246.

2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS
In the seventeen poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins, readers learn about the who, the when, and sometimes the why of various inventions through clever poems and a brief explanation in the back of the book. From the Ferris Wheel to Kitty Litter, a variety of inventions are illustrated with bright colors and playful paintings that creatively support the informative and entertaining text. The poetic styles include concrete, as in the poem about the invention of the straw, to couplets as in the poem, "Brushes Rule," to free verse as in the poem, "Basketball Seasons." The poems are presented in the chronological order in which they were invented, and a time line with a simple drawing of each invention is provided along the bottom of the last four pages. This is a book that children will enjoy because the poems are light-hearted yet informative, and they enlighten the reader about everyday things like Popsicles, fig newtons, hairbrushes and Velcro, to name a few! Hopkins invited an all-star cast of contributing poets like Kristine O'Connell George, Alice Schertle,and Marilyn Singer. Julia Sarcone-Roach's double-paged illustrations are lively and whimsical; a perfect match to the poems. My favorite is the illustrations for the poem, "Brushes Rule," by Constance Andrea Keremes. On a red and pink watercolor checkerboard, Roach painted heads with a variety of hairstyles alternated with hairbrushes of different styles and spray bottles of hair products which perfectly illustrate the poem: "Time was when fingers did the trick,/Pat this, part that, do it quick./ But hair's no simple thing today,/You have to get gel, highlight, and spray..."

3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS
Maria Fleming's "Velcro," is a good poem to dramatize: "Buttons? Bah!/Buckles? Please./Neither has/my strength, my ease./ I sneer at snaps./the lowly lace./They lack my lock,/my fierce embrace./Just try to name/a greater gripper./(Don't even think/of saying zipper.) This poem could be read aloud by the teacher and the children could be asked to guess what it is about. The poem Band-Aid would also work well as a sort of riddle: "Rosebud of blood/Bubbles and smears./I brush the mud/And dry my tears./Thankful I have that peace of tape/From Mom or Dad/For cut and scrape..."
Students could choose three common items of their choice to research and create poems and drawings similar to those in this book. Children could be asked to find examples of alliteration, rhyme and other poetic devices.

SOCIAL STUDIES POETRY

The Brothers' War: Civil War Voices in Verse.

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lewis, J. Patrick. 2007. THE BROTHERS' WAR: CIVIL WAR VOICES IN VERSE. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic. ISBN: 9781426300370.

2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS
J. Patrick Lewis wrote these poems using a variety of points of view with the intention of presenting the "emotional side" side of the war experience. To reach this end, there are poems written as sonnets, by the voice of a father fearful for his soldier son's life, and letter back from the son describing his harrowing experiences of the battlefield. There is a poem written from the point of view of the ex-slave and abolitionist, Frederick Douglass.
There are eleven poems, each accompanied by a photograph taken by a group of Civil War photographers hired by Matthew Brady, an established photographer who had gained notoriety by portraits he had taken of famous people. Lewis includes a section of notes on the photography where he explains Brady's project and the arduous process involved in capturing the photos. The book's design is fitting for the era and the photographs. Each poem is written on yellowed paper that is roughly framed. The typeset of the title words looks antique, lending an authentic quality to the poems.

3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS
The poem "I can make Georgia Howl: William Tecumseh Sherman on his March to the Sea. November 15-December 21, 1864," conveys Sherman's bravado and his unapologetic justification for destruction: "From Atlanta to Savannah/In a winter month or more/Was a march called devastation/Like they've never seen before./They called it a destruction/Razed by sixty-thousand blues/To the city of Savannah-/Righteousness's wrecking crews. Though by tactics were in question,/And I mapped a rugged route,/No one second-guessed the outcome/'Cause it never was in doubt..."
The accompanying photograph shows Union soldiers dismantling a rail line, with a brief explanation by the author about how Sherman made his men destroy buildings, railroads, bridges and crops as a strategy to weaken the enemy.
The poem, "Blood of our Fathers, Blood of our Sons," is narrated by a young soldier who fought in Bull Run and recounts a terrible scene in which a father and son face each other in battle. In the notes, Lewis explains that it was not uncommon for members of the same family to fight on opposing sides, and sometimes even face each other in combat. The young narrator of this poem says: "...By what outrageous powers of circumstance/Do men take arms against their very own?/
The Yankee sergeant's bullet snapped the bone./Roy Pugh, his Rebel son, had little chance./Distraught, the sergeant rolled him on his side./Roy whispered, "Father...Why?" before he died." the photographis a portrait of a very young man in uniform holding a musket.
This book, appropriate for middle school to high school students is an excellent introduction to the study of the American Civil War. The notes to the poems are very informative and the multiple points of view can give students a broader idea of how the war affected every American who died or lived through it.
Students can be asked to read Civil War diaries and write poems in the voice of a variety of people involved in the war like Union and Confederate soldiers, parents or wives of soldiers, slaves, maybe even from the perspective of an animal like a horse.

BIOGRAPHICAL POETRY

A Wreath for Emmett Till

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Nelson, Marilyn. 2005. A WREATH FOR EMMETT TILL. Ill. by Phillipe Lardy. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN: 9780618397525.

2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Marilyn Nelson, in the introduction to this poem explains how focusing on the strict form of the poem "became a kind of insulation, a way of protecting myself from the intense pain of the subject matter..." The form is called a crown of sonnets which is a sequence of fifteen interlinked sonnets; the last sonnet is made up of the first lines of the preceding fourteen. The first letter from each line in the last sonnet spells "RIP Emmet L Till."
The subject matter of this poem is Emmett Louis Till, a fourteen year old boy who was savagely beaten and lynched in 1955 in Mississippi, by white men. To use the word intense to describe this book is a vast understatement. Paired with rich and disturbing images by Phillipe Lardy, the poems have an almost other-worldly power that evokes a primal awareness of evil. Thankfully, both the author and illustrator provide detailed notes which, in the author's case, explain the many literary and historical references made in the poems. There are references to the Trojan War, Jesus Christ, Shakespeare, FDR, Billie Holiday, the World Trade Center, and many more. The artists explains her use of color to "emphasize the contrast between the delicate and decorative natural elements, such as flowers, with the sheer horror of the crime." Indeed the red is disturbing and the "interludes of green" have a soothing or calming effect.
This is a book for upper middle school students through adult. It is a sophisticated and devastating piece that makes this tragedy, which remains unknown to many, hauntingly unforgettable. Students will be interested to learn that Emmett Till's murder and his killers' acquittal, happened just months before Rosa Park's bus incident.

3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS
This book would pair well with Nikki Giovanni's book, Rosa, because it will be the first time many people will learn about Emmett Till in the context of the Civil Rights movement and the emotional climate that was created by his death. The first sonnet reads:

"Rosemary for remembrance, Shakespeare wrote:
a speech for poor Ophelia, who went mad
when her love killed her father, Flowers had
a language then. Rose petals in a note
said, I love you; a sheaf of bearded oat
said, Your music enchants me. Goldenrod:
Be careful. Weeping Willow twigs: I'm sad.
What should my wreath for Emmett Till denote?
First, heliotrope, for Justice shall be done.
Daisies and white lilacs, for Innocence.
Then mandrake: Horror (wearing a white hood,
or bare-faced, laughing). For grief, more than one,
for one is not enough: rue, yew, cypress...."

This book could be used to study the Civil Rights movement. Students can be asked to research newspaper articles written about the incident and the events that took place that led to the beginning of the civil rights movement.
Students could select one historical or literary reference from one of the poems and research it's origin and meaning.
The song, Strange Fruit, sung by Billie Holiday, could be used to introduce the book and illustrate how another poem was written about the horrors of lynching using the metaphor of trees and plants.

MODULE 3: KINDS OF POETRY

HAIKU

If Not for the Cat. by Jack Prelutsky. Ill. by Ted Rand

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Prelutsky, Jack. 2004. IF NOT FOR THE CAT. Ill. by Ted Rand. New York: Harper Collins/Greenwillow. ISBN: 0-06-059677-5.

2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Ted Rand's mixed media paintings are so striking and captivating, that one may forget about the text! But that would be a shame because the poems are the riddles and the pictures are the answers! Experts in the field say that Haiku is one of the least popular forms of poetry for children; -but surely putting this book in the hands of children could change this! A delight to read and a delight to view, the poems in If Not for the Cat, describe in seventeen syllables the essence of the animal it is about.

3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS

As an exercise in listening closely to the poems, ask the children to guess what animal the poem is describing without looking at the pictures. Some could guess after the first two lines of these short, but succinct Haiku: "How foolish I am./Why am I drawn to the flame..." or "Boneless, translucent/we undulate, undulate..." A challenging exercise that introduces new vocabulary as well as emphasizing the strict structure of this poetic form.

VERSE NOVEL
Learning to Swim. by Ann Turner

1.BIBLIOGRAPHY
Turner, Ann. 2000. LEARNING TO SWIM: a memoir. New York: Scholastic Press. ISBN: 9780439528313

2.SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In this first person account, Ann Turner, in the voice of the child that she was at the time this occurred, relates the tragic experience of being sexually molested by an older neighbor boy. Written in vignettes, entitled, "Sailing," "Sinking" and "Swimming," the narrator describes the excitement of learning how to swim in the pond at her summer house, then the repeated assaults, and finally, releasing the secret and beginning the healing process. It is amazing that in 113 short pages, Ann Turner is able to convey the tragedy of the loss of innocence, the girl's (her own) fear and shame, the courage to tell and the power of parental love to replace rebuild trust. This book does for victims of molestation, what Laurie Halse Anderson's, Speak, does for victims of rape: give children and teens the power of voice. Turner says, "By taking something so painful and transforming it into words, rhythm, and images, the experience changed inside. It became a gift instead of a tragedy."

3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS

The Last poem in this book gives this book wings and a halo, in my opinion! "...but pulling the words up/and out, spilling them/across the floor, the table,/dropping them into someone's surprised face that/is what matters/and after this time/and the next one day/you will feel so/light and airy/your stomach will uncoil/your face/unclench/and you will feel like yourself/again."

This poem can be used in a health or sociology or psychology class to encourage a discussion about the terrible dynamics of abuse.

FREE VERSE

A Rose that Grew From Concrete. by Tupac Shakur

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Shakur, Tupac. A ROSE THAT GREW FROM CONCRETE. New York: Pocketbooks. ISBN: 9780671028459

2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This collection of poems, written by rapper, Tupac Shakur, is an intimate expression of a very young man's passions. Tupac Shakur was murdered at the age of twenty-five and the poems were published posthumously. The poems are reproduced from his notebook in his handwriting, accompanied by a typewritten version. The handwritten poems seem like illustrations to the typewritten text in that they reinforce his youthful and naive voice. The love poems are not deep or profound, but purity of the expression is what stands out. The fact that this young man, who grew up under so much duress, was so engaged in the act of writing poetry, is what stands out in this collection. The later poems speak more about his experience as a black man in a racist society. This is when his voice becomes more powerful and the writing less indulgent. He continues to use numbers and letters as abbreviated words: "u taught me to be strong/but I'm confused 2 c u so weak...." , but the writing gets more sophisticated in the last two sections. This collection would be appealing to teens who write poetry or keep a journal.

3.POEM AND CONNECTION

In the poem How Can We Be Free, the reader gets a glimpse of Tupac, the rapper: "Sometimes I wonder about this race/Because we must be blind as hell/2 think we live in equality/while Nelson Mandela rots in a jail cell..."

This book could be used as an introduction to song writing in a music class.

This book would pair well with Nikki Giovanni's Hip Hop Speaks to Children: a celebration of poetry with a beat, because like Giovanni's collection, this book shows the power of rhythm in expressing universal experiences like love, oppression, joy, and redemption.

MODULE 2: MAJOR POETS AND AWARDS

Friendly Four. By Eloise Greenfield. (1997 NCTE Award Winner)

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Greenfield, Eloise. 2006. THE FRIENDLY FOUR. Ill. by Jan Spivey Gilchrist. New York: HarperCollins Publishers. ISBN 9780060007591.
2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This collection of poems written for multiple voices features four friends; Drum, Dorene, Louis and Rae, introduced in that order. Drum is anticipating a boring summer and is pleasantly surprised by three new friends who move to the neighborhood. The poems are mostly about the good times and the easy rapport that develops between the friends. But as the book progresses we see that the friendship offers a haven from family problems and worries. The poems are a playful and poignant portrait of the power that friendship provides to help kids lay their burdens down and seek safety and solace in each other's company. The watercolor paintings are not effective in enhancing the depth and sweetness of the friendship, but may appeal to young children.
3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS
These poems are written for multiple voices and their subjects,- imaginative play and verbal banter,- is accessible to children. A reader's theater activity around this books would be a lively and meaningful experience. Not all of the poems are playful. In "Someone," Louis finally finds the motherly love he has craved:

" Louis: My new mama really looks at me.
not at all like the other two,
who looked past me into nothing.
My new mama's eyes turn soft,
when she sees me,
like the eyes of someone
I think I knew......"

Children could create a poem similar to the ones in the book featuring themselves and their friends.

19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East. By Naomi Shihab Nye. (Multicultural) National Book Award Finalist

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Nye, Naomi Shihab. 2002. 19 VARIETIES OF GAZELLE:POEMS OF THE MIDDLE EAST. New York: Greenwillow Books. ISBN 0060097655.
2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Nye is an Arab American whose love for the land and the people of the Middle East is beautifully expressed in this collection of sixty poems written and collected after September 11th. In her introduction she relates her experience of turning to poetry for solace after the tragedy of 9/11. She writes, "Poetry slows us down, cherishes small details. A large disaster erases those details." The small details of life in the Middle East are beautifully articulated in Nye's poems that give the reader a sense of the aromas of the earth and fruits, the sound of Arabic music, and visions of the land untouched and ravaged by conflict.
Nye was born in the United States but has spent a lot of time in the Middle East. She says," All my life I thought about the Middle East, wrote about it, wondered about it, visited it, lived in it, loved it." These poems are an expression of love and sorrow for the land and the people.
3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS
The poem, "My father and the fig tree" is about her father who we learn earlier, came the United States after being forced from his home in Jerusalem after in 1948. The poem is light-hearted, but at the same time relates the powerful hold that the memory of home has on her father. The poem begins with the poet remembering how her father would insert a fig tree into any story he told her as a child and ends with her father, later in his life, finally owning a house with a fig tree in the yard:

"The last time he moved, I had a phone call,
my father, in Arabic, chanting a song
I'd never heard. "What's that?"
He took me out to the new yard.
There, in the middle of Dallas, Texas,
a tree with the largest, fattest,
sweetest figs in the world.
"It's a figtree song," he said,
plucking his fruits like ripe tokens,
emblems, assurance
of a world that was always his own.
(excerpt from the poem, My Father and the Figtree, p6)

The poems in the book are a like a meditation of the Middle East, each one a deep exploration into the the effects that the land and the tragic events have on the lives of the people.
This would be a good book to use in an ESL middle or high school class. Students could write poems about their memories of home.




Bow Wow meow meow: it's rhyming cats and dogs. By Douglas Florian

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Florian, Douglas.(2003). BOW WOW MEOW MEOW: IT'S RHYMING CATS AND DOGS. San Diego: Harcourt. ISBN 0152163956
2. SUMMARY AND CRITICAL ANALYSIS
The design of this book's cover paired with its title make it immediately appealing. From the eye catching bright pink cover with a cat, mouth wide open, holding a dog, bone in mouth, upon its tongue! Douglas Florian could convert anyone who claims to hate poetry into a poetry zealot. The twenty-one poems, all about cats or dogs and illustrated with the breed featured in the poem, are funny and have such strong cadence and rhythm that they make you want to dance, except you would be too captivated by the pictures! The concrete poems are fun, particularly "The Poodles," where the words are arranged in curls with lines like: "Poodles have oodles and oodles of curls," or "The curls may have whirls, while the whirls may have swirls." The pictures are the perfect compliment to the poems.

3. POEM AND CONNECTIONS
In the poem, "The Dachshund," Florian's watercolor of a dachshund bus with it's passenger fleas will surely make the reader giggle. Short up front/And short behind/But so long in-between/The fleas all ride/Upon my side/In my s t r e t c h limousine.
This book has so much potential for learning opportunities. Any child who has ever owned a cat or dog, or even loved one from afar, could create her own poem and picture. A fun activity would be to hold up a picture of a pet and ask the children to write a rhyming poem about the animal.

MODULE 1: INTRODUCING POETRY

Stampede!: Poems to Celebrate the Wild Side of School

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Salas, Laura Purdie. 2009. STAMPEDE!:POEMS TO CELEBRATE THE WILD SIDE OF SCHOOL. Ill. by Steven Salerno. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN: 9180618914883.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In this collection of eighteen poems about kids and school, the author and illustrator are expertly paired. The poems, in first person rhymes, feature kids at school who are compared to various animals. The pictures, in bold primary colors mirror the playfulness of the text. The text is amusing and accurately captures some classic elementary school antics, like a playground swarming with busy kids (bees), and how maze-like a school can feel to a new student, (mouse), or the student (turtle) who didn't do his homework and wants to disappear before the teacher calls on him. Each poem is a short, light-hearted, portrayal of kids at school that any elementary student will find familiar and amusing.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

My pencil scrapes across the paper/I'm such a lousy letter-shaper/My hand's as clumsy as a claw/My letters land like scattered straw/Erasing leaves a dusty patch/My writing looks like chicken scratch.

In this poem entitled "Printer Problems," the boy on the page seems to have a beak! This is a great example of an extended metaphor, as well as alliteration. A great book for teaching metaphor and simile. I would use this book to facilitate a discussion about the various emotions and anxieties that are common in a variety of school situations.

City I Love: Poems

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 2009. CITY I LOVE: POEMS. ILL. by Marcellus Hall. New York: Abrams. ISBN: 9780810983274.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Lee Bennett Hopkins celebrates city life in this collection of eighteen poems. A dog with a backpack and a little blue bird are shown in each picture traveling the globe and visiting various cities identified in the pictures, by their famous landmarks. It is interesting to note that the text does not mention the name of any particular city, the poems are about city life in general. So the illustrations add another dimension to the book, not only is it about city life, but it is about specific cities around the world. The poem, "Winter," if read outside the context of the book, makes no reference to cities or city life. Within the context of the book, however, the illustration depicts the city of Moscow in winter. The brush and in watercolor illustrations have a retro look to them and the endpapers show an illustrated map with the various cities that are featured in the illustrations throughout the book.
This book is kind of an "ode" to city life, and any child who lives in a city will connect with these poems and maybe even gain a deeper appreciation for her surroundings.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS

The poem, "Sing a Song of Cities," reads like a song with a chorus or chant that repeats, "Sing a song of cities/If you do/Cities will sing back/ To you." Like most of the poems in this collection, this poem is a short rhyme that demonstrates the author's enthusiastic love for cities.
This collection would work well for a geography lesson. Students could match pictures of city landmarks like the Eiffel Tower with its location on the map.

Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of Poetry with a Beat

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Giovanni, Nikki, editor. 2008. HIP HOP SPEAKS TO CHILDREN: A CELEBRATION OF POETRY WITH A BEAT. Naperville: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky. ISBN: 9781402210488.

2. SUMMARY & CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Nikki Giovanni, in her introduction to this one of a kind collection, defines hip hop as "poetry with a beat," "the language of the people,... language that is spoken on the porches and street corners of cities around the world," in the same way that opera told the everyday stories of people's lives in the city squares. The introduction gives a brief history of how rhythm and poetry sustained people throughout history and how it was and is an integral part of the human experience. She discusses how the African drum songs served as a means of communication between the slaves, and how when drumming was outlawed hamboning was born. She explains that hip hop was born as a result of the economic hard times of the 1970's, the "era of meanness," as she puts it, when the budget for music and art programs was slashed and kids "struck back" with break dancing and hip hop music.
The book includes over 50 poems and songs and the CD has 30 tracks, some read and performed by the authors. An amazing variety, from Langston Hughes, to Kanye West, this book and CD ranges from the whimsical "Dat Dere" about a child's crazy curiosity of the word around him, to the deep and somber poem by Claude McKay entitled, "If We Must Die. Langston Hughes introduces his poem, "Dream Boogie," and explains that it is inspired by Be Bop music of the 1940's. Each poem or song is illustrated by one of the six illustrators who contributed to this book. The illustrations are bold, playful, dark, happy, sad, depending on the poem.
Giovanni provides a brief biography of each contributor, including the illustrators, in the back of the book.

3. POEM & CONNECTIONS
The poems in the collection can be a lesson in rhythm, American history, poetry, music,
contemporary urban culture, to name a few. I read the poem "Books," to preschoolers on a library visit to spark their enthusiasm for BOOKS! "I've got/books on the bunk bed/books on the chair/books on the couch/ And every old where..."
This book could also be used to teach the oral presentation of poetry.

http://poetryforchildren.blogspot.com/2009/07/poetry-friday-is-here-today