Rainbow Witch - Being Who We Are

Rainbow Witch

Photo by Hope LV

Click the arrow to hear me read this poem to you.

Students - The origin of this poem is funny, as is the origin of many pieces of writing.  Our daughter Hope was waiting for a backpack to arrive in the mail, and when it did, the package seemed rather small for a backpack.  When she opened the package, she realized why.  There was no backpack at all!  Instead, the package contained the rainbow wig you see above.

Of course we all had to try it on, and I grabbed a witch hat from the coat tree for good measure.  When my friend Sue saw the look, she said, "I think 'Rainbow Witch' should be your next poem."  And so it is.  Sue, this one's for you.

Beginning to write this, the first lines came right away.  'Hat' and 'cat' are of course easy, natural witch rhymes.  But then I kept writing.  How should this small verse end? Hmmm... I wanted my witch to know that she was a little bit different.  And I wanted her to feel good about being different.  I love books where characters are strong enough to be their true selves.

by Megan McDonald

by Mary Whitcomb

When our children were small, they loved this book about a witch who wishes for a different kind of pet.  Actually, we all still love it.

by Arthur Howard

Do you have a favorite book about someone who stays true to him or herself even in the face of people who try to make him or her change?

For another Halloween poem, click here to read Moon on Halloween in The Poem Farm archives.  Scroll down past the first blue poem, and you will find it. It's orange!

There is still time to enter the giveaway for a pair of handknit (by me) handwarmers over at Friday's post.  Stop on by if you like reading about bean mosaics or if you imagine that you might have chilly hands soon.

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To find a poem by topic, click here. To find a poem by technique, click here.

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Sticky Hands and Shirley's Poets

Sticky Hand!

by Amy LV

(I will share an audio recording of this poem when my voice comes back!)

Students - It's clear to see that this poem is simply fun to read. That's why I wrote it...to have fun in my mouth. The verse is about a feeling I have every time I roast marshmallows (I like them burned, peeling each layer off, seeing how many layers I can eat). The word 'sticky' repeats so many times because this is how I feel when I'm licking my fingers clean.

I love poems that play with sound, poems such as: "Click Beetle Clack Beetle" by Mary Ann Hoberman, "The Pickety Fence" by David McCord", "Lemons" by Patricia Hubbell, and "Yellow butter, purple jelly, red jam, black bread" by Mary Ann Hoberman.  Find these, and read them aloud with a friend!

For today's Poetry Peek, I am so happy to introduce teacher and writer Shirley Thacker from Indiana.  I had the pleasure of meeting Shirley at All Write! this year, and it is a pleasure to welcome her sharing student work here at The Poem Farm.

I love the beginning of the school: new supplies, fresh ideas, and brand new composition notebooks. . . a home to exciting stories and heartwarming poetry. No matter if it is my looping classes (Grades 1 or 2) or my Composition Comp Camps--on the first day we always decorate our new notebooks with stickers or pictures to personalize them. I use Georgia Heard's AWAKENING THE HEART to have the students make a heart and fill it with topics that they are experts at for future ideas. I use Ralph Fletcher's HOW TO WRITE YOUR LIFE STORY to make a map to record the place/time they're most familiar with. . . themselves and their surroundings.

I begin my Poetry Study in Reading Workshop 2-3 weeks before I start it in Writing Workshop. Students will have read and enjoyed lots and lots of poetry before I ask them to write any. (Some will already be ahead of the game!) One of my favorite mentor texts is PEACH AND BLUE by Sarah Kilborne. It is rich with a variety of writing craft that I use for mini lessons. I had re read the section describing the pond when we talked about imagery. Bray wrote his piece about Rock Skipping.

Rock Skipping Pond

by Bray Wilson

When you skip your rock

A magic

Overwhelms you.

It feels so good.

PLOP, Plump, SPLASH.

As it sinks

The magic seems

To leave,

But really the magic

Never leaves.

That’s when you wonder . . .

What might

Happen next??

Sometimes ideas are generated from class discussions too. After reading SOMEDAY, by Allison McGhee, students paired up to discuss their somedays . . .which led to 'I Wonder' with some of them. Kingston wrote his 'I Wonder' for Comp Camp.

Why?

by Kingston Browning

Why do birds fly? Why can’t fish cry?

Why do we walk? Why can’t dogs talk?

Why do we pass away? Why can’t we stay another day?

Why don’t we live in ice and snow? Why do fibs just grow, grow, grow?

Why is the world so big and round? Why are things lost and found?

Why isn’t every day a sunny day? Why do pets run away?

Why are bugs so small? Why can’t we fit inside a ball?

Why?

Mentor texts: ALL THE PLACES TO LOVE by Patricia MacLachlan, OH, THE PLACES YOU'LL GO! by Dr. Seuss, or Mark Teague’s HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION are all great leads to the students’s special places. Madysin wrote about her desire to go to Hershey, Pennsylvania.

Hershey, Pennsylvania

by Madisyn West

Smells like Chocolate

Light Posts with Hershey Kisses on the top

In another state

Hershey Kisses on the pillows at night

I can’t wait to go there. . .

I know I will someday

I know it smells like Chocolate,

I know it is temperate,

I know it is sweet.

I can’t wait to go there. . . .

I know I will some day

Someday . . . Someday . . .

Out to the garden to pick green beans, listen to the birds, and watch the butterflies. Summer is good!

Much gratitude to Shirley and her young poets for joining us today with these delightful poems and suggestions.

This week, I shared a writing exercise at Kate Messner's Teachers Write! Summer Camp. You can read the exercise - and stunning writing in the comments - here and read my whole DEAR STRANGER letter here if you wish.

If you have not yet peeked into Linda Baie's notebooks, you may do so at my other blog, Sharing Our Notebooks, a place to highlight notebooks and notebook keepers of all kinds.

Michelle is hosting Poetry Friday over at Today's Little Ditty.  Visit her place to find all of the poetry goodness being shared in the Kidlitosphere today.

Please share a comment below if you wish.

To find a poem by topic, click here. To find a poem by technique, click here.

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Visit Sharing Our Notebooks to peek in all kinds of notebooks...

Baby Cereal and Fourth Grade Poets

Yum!

by Amy LV

Click the arrow to hear me read this poem to you.

Students - Today's poem is an older one, and it's from a whole collection of baby poems that I have written.  Since Mark and I have three children, we have lots of baby stories, and for a time, I thought that I might join my baby poems together into a book.  Now I don't think so.  I am working on different projects, and so the baby poems are sitting and waiting for another day, another month, another year.

You may have noticed that every line of today's poem begins with the same word.  I got the idea to try this from a poem titled Good Books, Good Times!,  from a book by the same name, by Lee Bennett Hopkins.  There's another interesting technique to notice too, another idea I learned from Lee's poem.  Can you find it?

To write this little poem, I used Lee's great poem, "Good Books, Good Times!" as a mentor poem.  This is a great thing to do.  Find a poem you love, notice something you find interesting about the writing, and then try that interesting thing yourself!  Stand on that poet's shoulders to attempt something new.

Today I am happy to host fourth grade teacher Nathan Monaco and his students from the Arcade Elementary in the Pioneer Central School District.  I thank them for sharing their poetry unit journey.  Welcome, Nathan and students...

This year my 4th grade classroom had fun with an author study unit about poetry using Amy VanDerwater’s writing.  She was generous enough to allow me to use her poetry and her artwork from The Poem Farm as freely as I wanted.  The unit wound up being 3-4 weeks long, and I combined Amy’s poetry with other themes I had learned about through writer’s workshop.

Aiden's Notebook

At the beginning of the poetry unit, my students were less than enthused to say the least.  They shared their malcontent about poetry in general and basically summed it up as boring.  I let them know that they had not been taught poetry by me yet and that they were going to be learning about a poet who they had never heard of.  Each student received a bound copy of a book that my teaching assistant and I had made.  This book contained some of Amy’s poetry split up into sections according to the "technique" sections (line breaks, question poems, mask poems, personification, etc.) on The Poem Farm website.

Before delving into the different types of techniques, my class spent one week learning about the 5 Doors of poetry by Georgia Heard, using each door to think about poems by Amy.  If you have never heard of Georgia Heard, she has a book titled Awakening the Heart: Exploring Poetry in Elementary and Middle School where the idea of the 5 Doors comes from.  

Available through Heinemann

I spent one day on each of Georgia Heard's doors:

• The Heart Door – things that you love, things that are important to you

• The Memory Door – memories from your life: happy, sad, funny, etc

• The Wonder Door – things that you are wondering about, questions you have

• The Observation Door – things that you observe in the world around you

• The Concerns About the World Door – things that concern you, or things that you are thinking about for the world, issues in the world.

One could also invent/introduce all kinds of other doors such as a humor door, but I decided to leave that out as 4th graders can take that too far and ruin the whole mojo of taking poetry seriously.

Day 2 - The Wonder Door

by Evelyn

Day 2 - The Wonder Door

by Gabbie

After the week of comparing Amy’s poetry to the 5 Doors, we were ready to explore her techniques as described in her website.  We read her poetry aloud, discussed why her poems were organized in such a way, patterns the students saw, and of course we talked about the importance/unimportance of rhyming in poetry.  Only one technique was talked about each day, but we kept track of the different techniques on poster boards in the room.  If students were compelled to continue working with one technique, I allowed it, and as the unit went on there was always a technique that a student felt comfortable worked with.  The class spent one week on the different techniques as well.

Week 2 - Personification
by Cheyenne

Our  last week of this unit was spent publishing through a company called Studentreasures, a company that binds student work in hardcover for free.  The actual publishing process for the company is a little tedious, (it took a whole week to publish poetry), but it was completely worth it.

Published Book Cover
by Andrew

Published Inside Book Page
by Marissa

We completed our unit in late March/early April.  Now, in the beginning on June, I still have students choosing to create poetry during writer’s workshop time.  Some students have even created poetry journals, and I would be very confident saying that all students thoroughly enjoyed the poetry unit.

Thank you again to Nathan and his fourth graders for sharing their journey today.  I feel lucky to have had my poems included as part of their study.

All best to all of you for a beautiful week full of poetry and adventure!

Please share a comment below if you wish.

To find a poem by topic, click here. To find a poem by technique, click here.

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Lesson - Learning from Everybody

Hello Goodbye

by Amy LV

Click the arrow to hear me read this poem to you.

Students - In our old neighborhood, there lived a man who walked backwards.  Up and down the sidewalks he would go, fast and without talking.  We didn't know him, but we wondered about him.  Today, ten years later, I find myself still wondering about him. When I sat to write on a blank piece of paper, he appeared.  Why?  I'm not sure.  It may because we were talking about him the other day.  It may because I've been reading THE BIG ORANGE SPLOT by D. Manus Pinkwater, first published in 1977, aloud a lot lately. This book celebrates living in your own way, and I admire people who do that.

Sometimes when we see something different, our first reaction is to dislike it or to make fun of it or to turn away.  But if we think more deeply, we will often have a different reaction, perhaps one of admiration.

Do you know someone who may seem unusual in some way?  What can you find to admire?  What can you learn?  What can you write?  (Remember not to write something that will hurt someone else; words are powerful.)

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The structure of  this poem is quite simple.  It's written in a conversational style, almost as if the speaker is telling you a secret.  And there's a bit of rhyme too.  You may have noticed that the whole first part, the first nine lines, pretty much describe the backwards-walking-man. But as the poem zeroes in toward the ending, in those last four lines....you see the connection in the speaker's heart.

I am so happy to welcome Angela Stockman to Sharing Our Notebooks, my blog about writers notebooks, this month.  Visit here to take a peek inside her notebooks and leave a comment to be entered into a drawing to win one of her favorite books!

Please share a comment below if you wish.

To find a poem by topic, click here. To find a poem by technique, click here.

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A Pet Rock - Friend of All People

Buster in the Sunshine

Photo by Hope LV

Click the arrow to hear me read this poem to you.

Students -  For today's poem, I decided to just flip through photographs and choose one that made me smile.  How could a sunbathing rock not make me smile?  This is a photo of Buster, the pet rock belonging to our daughter Hope and her friends Julia and Delilah.  He has all kinds of outfits - you wouldn't believe!

This is a list poem with a lot of repetition.  You will notice that the whole first chunk of every line is exactly the same.  I wanted today's poem to just tell about all of the things that a pet rock cannot do...and then twist the end to show that pet rocks have their own certain charm.  I think they may be fun simply because they let us do everything!

What do you like to make and play with?  What do you like to pretend?  There are lots of great writing ideas hidden in your play and in your creative mind.

I remember when I was a little girl in the 1970s.  Pet rocks were all the rage, and they were the perfect pet for a girl like me who loved making small homes for things.  We always had a loving dog, but my rock was a great pet who put up with all of my caring antics.

If you wish to learn all about how to take care of a pet rock, you may want to watch this video by Marco Anders on YouTube.  This video is also fun for those of you who have written or plan to write how-to or procedural pieces.  One way to publish your how-to piece might be a video like this one!

You can also read and watch a video about caring for your pet rock here at wikihow.  And if you want to know the history of pet rocks, check out The Pet Rock Page or Wikipedia.

Or, just enjoy a short episode of Bill Nye's Pet Rock Theater.

You can order a pet rock and carrying box from the 1970's on eBay.  Or if you're smart, you can just go outside and find your own!

As one of my favorite Byrd Baylor books says....

Available through Amazon

Nina Crittenden is my guest at Sharing Our Notebooks this week.  Stop by and see the types of notebooks she uses and how she continues to create.  (You will also have a chance to be entered into Nina's generous drawing of a book and pocket notebook.)

Please share a comment below if you wish.

To find a poem by topic, click here. To find a poem by technique, click here.

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Peacock - A Couplet Poem

Magic!

by Amy LV

 

Click the arrow to hear me read this poem to you.

Students - Today's poem started as an assignment as it started with couplet I wrote for Irene Latham's celebration of her new book, DON'T FEED THE BOY.  Irene is hosting Poetry Friday today and she invited many of us to write animal couplets to celebrate the book. You can read the collection of animal couplets at Live Your Poem.

Irene's idea is a fun one and one you might enjoy trying with your friends.  All you need to do is think of a topic that is easily broken up, a topic like school, or pets, or favorite foods.  (There are endless possibilities here!)  Then, each person write one couplet.  Once you gather them all up, decide on an order and title...and you've got it!  If anyone tries this, please let me know.  I'd love to host a collaborative couplet poem here.

If you would like to learn more about peacocks, visit National Geographic.  I am thinking that I might want to write a nonfiction peacock poem to go along with this one.

Speaking of animals and National Geographic, if you have not yet seen National Geographic's new BOOK OF ANIMAL POETRY, edited by Children's Poet Laureate J. Patrick Lewis, and full of gorgeous poems and photography, do not miss it.  I just checked it out of the library, and I'm in love.  This book is on my order-right-away list!  As you read, you will recognize many wonderful classics, and you'll be happy to find lots of your current Poetry Friday friends too.

Available through the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC Store

Nina Crittenden is my guest at Sharing Our Notebooks this week.  Stop by and see the types of notebooks she uses and how she continues to create.  (You will also have a chance to be entered into Nina's generous drawing of a book and pocket notebook.)

Happy Poetry Friday!  Head on over to Live Your Poem to celebrate Irene Latham's new book, DON'T FEED THE BOY, and to see all of today's Poetry Friday posts.

Please share a comment below if you wish.

To find a poem by topic, click here. To find a poem by technique, click here.

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The Saddest Part - Writing from Goodbye

 

Georgia as Petronella - March 2, 2012

Photo by Amy LV

Students - have you ever been in a play or seen a play that moved you to tears?    Last Friday, I saw my daughter perform in Newbery Award winner GOOD MASTERS! SWEET LADIES! VOICES FROM A MEDEIVAL VILLAGE by Laura Amy Schlitz.  This beautiful series of word-portraits of children from Medieval times is by turns funny and sad, poignant and hopeful.  The poems are incredibly beautiful, and the characters made me think about the struggles of that time and also how today's struggles are similar.  

Throughout the performance, my heart felt choked up, and I walked around holding those characters inside all weekend.  It was an exquisite play, and the actors were thrilled to receive a letter from author Laura Amy Schlitz right after eating their medeival feast of meat pies, fruit, root soup, and honey sweets.  She wrote about many of the characters, about writing the play, and about winning the Newbery.  The students were tickled and moved, and Georgia read her letter to us all right away!

That night, as I tucked Georgia in, she said, "The hard thing about being in a play is forgetting all of your lines when it's over."  Hope replied, "Yeah, I don't remember any of my lines from last year's play."  I remembered this same feeling from plays I have performed in, and a couple of days later...on Sunday...this poem grew.  Sometimes poems or other pieces writing come from a feeling of losing something, a bit of sadness at goodbye.  Can you think of any goodbyes that might make for good writing?  You might consider big goodbyes like the death of a beloved person or pet or smaller goodbyes such as the end of a good book or play.

Thank you to Laura Amy Schlitz for writing such a gorgeous book and for her generosity in writing back!  Highly recommended as a play, reader's theatre, or silent reading.

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Poetry Friday - A Birthday Tree

Cherries Against Sky

Photo by Hope LV

Hope Picking Cherries

Photo by Amy LV

Earlier this week, we visited my friend Trish and her family for dinner.  Trish is a serious canner and food person, always making photo-worthy and tasty dishes and giving them to friends.  As we cut eggplants for grilled eggplant Parmesan, Trish raved about picking blueberries.  "Every time I pick blueberries or strawberries or raspberries or cherries or any fruit," she marveled, "I am always amazed.  This plant made FRUIT!"

A person cannot spend much time with Trish without wanting to pick fruit oneself.  And fortunately, Hope's birthday cherry tree is simply dripping with cherries this week.  Yesterday, the two of us got out there and filled two buckets.  We picked and picked, almost unable to believe how many cherries her tree had produced.  Later yesterday evening, Henry went out to see the dent we'd made.  "It doesn't look like anyone picked anything," he noted.

So far we have 12 jars of sour cherry jam and one fresh cherry crisp.  Today the children will fill more buckets.  More buckets!  More jam!  More crisps indeed!

Last week, Mary Lee's Poetry Friday post was titled "Seeing Instead of Just Looking."  Her photo and the poems she shared, coupled with Trish's joy in fresh fruit has me thinking about small daily and seasonal rituals.  

Students - what things do you do each day?  Each season?  This poem is about observing a tree each year and that moment of surprise when one realizes the tree is growing up.  This week I plan to write a series of poems about rituals, things that we do over and over again that give our lives meaning and goodness.

Speaking of rituals, I went through pages of cross outs before I finally arrived at the simple ending of today's poem.  Revision takes a lot of patience, just like pitting cherries or anything worthwhile.  Similar to pitting cherries, revision sometimes leaves me wondering, "Did I get everything?  Should I check one more time?  Will someone break a tooth on this?"

I love this Richard Jones poem about cherries - "Cherries in the Snow."  And Judy Collins sings a beautiful rendition of the traditional nativity ballad, "The Cherry Tree Carol" here.

If you don't know the book CHERRY PIES AND LULLABIES by Lynn Reiser, don't miss it.  It's not a poem, but it is very poetic and generational picture book.

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Today's poetry bounty is served by Mary Lee herself over at A Year of Reading.  May your whole week be full of fresh fruits, vegetables, and words in every color and shape!

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First Assignment - Explosions!

Experiment Ingredients!
by Amy LV

Students - have you ever watched a person have a blast with a project of their own making?  Well, this summer it's been loads of fun to witness our son Henry's experiments, many of which include baking soda and vinegar.  He's sent all sorts of things flying across our yard, and so far all people and pets are safe (though our one-eyed Mini cat did look a bit nervous this afternoon.)   I wrote this poem from my own pleasure of watching Hen have such a super time exploring science.

Are you looking for summer projects which could be more exciting than world travel?  If yes, don't miss this book, Henry's recent inspiration and go-to manual.  It is full of directions for everything from a "Frankenstein's Hand" to "Dancing Mothballs."

If you're on the hunt for a good gift, consider this book along with a gallon of vinegar and a large box of baking soda!

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Parents and teachers - I encourage you to take a peek at this TED talk by Tinkering School founder, Gever Tully, all about the "5 Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Children Do."

Elaine Magliaro, word and science lover extraordinaire, is hosting today's Poetry Friday at Wild Rose Reader.  Head on over to her place to see what kind of words she is experimenting with today.

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What Does Your Cat Do At Night?

One Life

Photo by Georgia LV

Students - yes, another sleeping kitty picture!  After I showed today's poem to Mark, he said, "You're not telling that your cat beats up the neighborhood cats at night, are you?"  For the other day, one of our neighbors told us that our cat Mini has mixed it up in the evening with their cat a few times.  Now that we know, we can keep him in after dinner.

This is something I've often wondered: what do cats do at night?  Many times, Sarah or Mini will come home and meow at the door come morning.  Where have they been?  Who have they visited?  Cats have secret night lives, and this wondering and daily happening opened up a world into today's little verse.

Sometimes when you sit down to write, you will not know what you want to write.  That's good.  Let something float to the surface - it will.

If you are a cat lover...or a poem lover...or both...be sure to read Betsy Franco's A CURIOUS COLLECTION OF CATS, full of fun in word and picture!

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Andi is hosting today's Poetry Friday over at a wrung sponge.  Swing on by the sponge for more poetry celebrations!

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Fireflies are On! Fireflies are Off!

Look!

by Amy LV

Students - sometimes a writer is enchanted again and again by the same thing.  And this is how it is with me and fireflies.  Those battery-powered ballerinas send a glow through my heart.  Last evening, looking out of our living room window, I saw the first firefly of summer.  At least it was the first one to me.

Sometimes writers sit and write in honor of an occasion.  This occasion may be something that everyone recognizes, or it may be something just for you.  I'm celebrating a first firefly, a bit of brightness on a black blanket of sky. 

Byrd Baylor writes about personal celebrations in her beautiful book, I'M IN CHARGE OF CELEBRATIONS,  You might know this book if your teacher reads it at your class's writing celebrations.  Nature, words, admiration...what could be better?

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What are you celebrating today?  You may say, "Nothing."  Well, look around, and find something.  Open your eyes.  Listen with the deepest parts of your very soul.  After all, it is much easier to find celebration-moments when we are looking for them.  I promise that you will find something.  And when you do...maybe your own bit of earth will inspire you to write.

Last year this time also brought thoughts of fireflies.  In June 2010, I wrote Fireflies and Hope.  Will I write about fireflies again next year?  What about next week?

Anastasia is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup over at Picture Book of the Day.  Celebrate with her and the rest of the KidLitosphere as we blink on and off for poems!

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Poetry Friday is a Full Buffet Today!

Happy National Poetry Month!  At the bottom of today's post you will find many links to poetrylove in the Kidlitosphere.  All are welcome to leave links and words in the comments, and I will add to this post all day with great glee.  

Now that My Poem Writing Year is finished (though poems will continue to grow), I will spend April revisiting poem-idea strategies and techniques, one per day.

Poems about Poems

Students - all of us who have been to birthday parties know that it is customary to bring a gift.  Gifts, however, do not need to be things that we buy at the store. Because today begins National Poetry Month, I would like to offer three poems about poems from this year.  During one writing stretch, I wrote thirty of these poempoems on Fridays.  Here are a few of them to help usher in beautiful April.

The Poem Fire

If I Were an Octopus

Poemmittens

Students - if you are writing poems this month, consider writing a poem about poems.  Then, hang it up somewhere or make lots of little copies and give them to your friends.  Let's all make poems feel welcome in the world.  If you write a poempoem that you would like me to share here on this blog, please just ask your teacher to help you type it in the comments!

In addition to being April Fool's Day and the first day of National Poetry Month, today is the International Edible Book Festival, so consider eating some words. 

April 1 also brings a very special launch of PoetryTagTime, brainchild of Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong.  This e-anthology holds thirty poems by thirty different poets, each of whom wrote a poem inspired by the one before.  For .99 you can download this book to your Kindle, other e-reader, or computer and read the poems as well as brief descriptions of how each poet found a way to write from the words that came before.

The PoetryTagTime list of poets (in tag order) includes: Jack Prelutsky, Joyce Sidman, Nikki Grimes, Alice Schertle, Lee Bennett Hopkins, Betsy Franco, Douglas Florian, Helen Frost, Carole Boston Weatherford, Calef Brown, Rebecca Kai Dotlich, April Halprin Wayland, Leslie Bulion, J. Patrick Lewis, Avis Harley, Joan Bransfield Graham, David L. Harrison, Julie Larios, Ann Whitford Paul, Jane Yolen, X.J. Kennedy, Bobbi Katz, Paul B. Janeczko, Laura Purdie Salas, Robert Weinstock, Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, Tracie Vaughn Zimmer, Pat Mora, Mary Ann Hoberman, and Janet Wong.

To top it all off, you can find daily tips and teaching ideas for each poem over at PoetryTagTime Tips.  I can't wait to read the poems or the tips!

Click Here to Visit!

With a full heart and open arms, I welcome and thank second grade teacher Bonnie Evancho and her students from Pinehurst Elementary in the Frontier Central School District.  They generously offered to open April's door with some original haiku.

Our class of second graders really enjoyed Andrew Clements's book DOGKU.  DOGKU is a picture book written in haiku.  It is about a dog who shows up one day at a family's doorstep.  After taking care of this new guest, the family has to decide whether or not to let their guest stay long-term.  We loved the story and couldn't resist creating our own haiku and haiku stories like Mr. Clements!  Ideas came from near and dear topics like favorite hobbies and family pets as well as new-found interests such as the American Revolution.

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My dog is the best

He plays with me all the time

My dog barks too much.

-Elizabeth E.B.

The sunshine is bright

The sunshine is hot and big

When it's gone it's cold.

-Jack D.

A beautiful place

Newfoundland is wonderful

Cold but not too freezing cold

Whales, dolphins you see

Boat rides are wonderful times

Really big iceberg

Beautiful houses

Where my mom used to live once

Wonderful Newfoundland place.

-Kaitlyn E.

I love my puppy

My puppy is the best dog

My dog is funny.

My dog makes me laugh

Nalah is sad when I leave

Nalah runs to the door.

-Courtney F.

Big means big, so big

Big means giant, big

Trees, Grand Canyon, doors.

- Logan F.

My fish are awesome!

How I like to talk to them!

They do not listen.

Nemo - our baby - 

Baby fish doesn't listen

Like the other fish.

-Madison F.

I love my sister

The best sister in the world

Her name is Bailey.

-Reigan G.

I like basketball.

I shot a point for my team.

And I won the game.

-Hunter G.

Fish, super big eyes.

Fish stare at me and people

They just swim around.

- James H.

Reading is super fun

Reading is very fun

Reading is the best!

-Michael H.

Fishing is awesome.

I love fishing with Eric.

He is a good friend.

Awesome at fishing.

He caught a perch once.

Caught a perch with a jig head.

Minnows to catch bass

Catch bass a lot behind house.

Friends for a long time.

-Matthew H.

Read

Reading could be fun!

I love chapter books a lot.

I won't stop reading.

When I'm bored I read.

Reading always makes me smile

Read everywhere, fun.

When I flip the pages,

A new page for me to read.

I hear a voice now.

Mrs Evancho

"Now fill out your reading log."

Awwww!! I said to me.

-Riley I.

The Revolutionary War

King George raised taxes.

Colonists didn't like it

So they started war.

The British were shocked.
British had protected them

But still they had war.

Would they be loyal?

Would they not be loyalists?

It's so hard to chose.

The war wound down.

The war had its big finish --

The colonists won!

King George stopped taxes

They were happy to be free

Colonists were glad

No more King Georges

Not even a king

But a president!

-Emily J.

Bailey

I love Bailey

Brother sleeps with her all night

We all love her so.

-Evan K.

Oreo-Ku

Oreo our dog

A happy dog, but not sad

And she is a girl.

She likes to play ball

And she eats dog food she loves

And she drinks water.

And when she wakes up

We are right by her side.

Petting her softly.

Pets, hugs, dogs love it.

Oreo loving just right

She's staying with us.

We love Oreo

Loving, sweet, cunning and special

And she loves us too!

-Cameron L.

My chickens lay eggs

I love them so much, I do

And they make me laugh.

-Reichen M.

Mrs. E teaches

She is awesome all day long.

Mrs. Evancho.

-Ainsley P.

I love my fish so

They all help me go to sleep

All night, so quiet.

-Dominic S.

I love my mom so

I kiss her so much

And I get ice cream.

The ice cream was good

Didn't go to school next day

Then I went to school.

-Ty V.

I want a doggie.

My mom says to keep my room...

"CLEAN!" to have a dog!

-Madelyn S.

Thank you so much, young writers, for joining us today on this first day of the April.  I feel grateful to have you here.

 And Now For The Links!

April Halprin Wayland shares a Book Spine poem and Writing Workout over at Teaching Authors.  Plus, she will treat us again to a daily poem all month at her poetry blog.  Today's poem, "I Heard My Cat Cry" includes an interesting story and challenge too!

At Deo Writer, Jone MacCulloch is again writing a fresh poem each day, just as she has done for the past four years.  NaPoWriMo!

Charles Ghigna transports to the sea with an original poem, "Sea Scape" over at Bald Ego.

Brimful Curiosities introduces a "Kids' Poetry Challenge" where families read poems together and children are invited to draw pictures based on their thoughts and inspirations from the poems.  Today's selection is Brimful's daughter responding to "The Fairy Dew Drop" by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Travis brings us the 2011 Book Spine Poem Gallery at 100 Scope Notes.  Warning: this will make you want to rearrange books all day.

At Rasco from RIF, Carol Rasco shares a review of A PRIMER ON THE FLAG, a picture book poem by Marvin Bell and illustrated by Chris Raschka.

Susan Taylor Brown offers an original poem-a-day for for the whole month once more.  And while last year's poems centered on her relationship with the father she never knew, this year's poem-inspiration will grow from Susan's artistic play and learning all through March.

Gregory Pincus is back with another month of 30 Poems in 30 Days over at GottaBook.  This month begins with Douglas Florian's "April is the Coolest Month."

Tabatha Yeats celebrates the gifts of parenting with her original poem, "Eye Sight, Mother and Child" at The Opposite of Indifference.

Over at A Year of Reading, Mary Lee Hahn celebrates not only their author visitor, J. Patrick Lewis, but also a whole school-full of poets with her first NaPoWriMo poem.  You can also learn about her funmysterious and soon-to-be-here PoetQRy QResponse game.

Laura will bring us Maryland poets and school-friendly writing prompts all month over at Author Amok.   Today's poem is "X-Men" by Dennis Kirchbaum along with his upper grade prompt about superheroes and memory.

A Teaching Life with Tara celebrates two poems by New Jersey poet Maria Mazzioti Gillan.

Starting today at The Small Nouns, Ben will share a new-to-him poem each day of April.  The month begins with, "Sutra" by Marilyn Krysl.

Heidi Mordhorst begins a game of MiniPoetryTag and wishes Daisy a "Happy Birthday" over at My Juicy Little Universe.

At Writing the World for Kids,  Laura Purdie Salas shares "Jumping for Joy," a haiku from her book Fuzzy-Fast Blur: Poems about Pets. Laura's invitation to write a 15 Words or Less poem sparks us with a photograph of raindrops.

Tanita Davis offers us "Te Deum" by Charles Reznikoff over at [fiction, instead of lies.]

Join a month-long poetry party over at Live. Love. Explore! where Irene Latham will share "poetry quotes, trivia, craft tips, publishing resources, and free books!"  Today she tempts us with a book recommendation.

Linda Kulp welcomes spring and poetry at Write Time, beginning today with with Linda Lee's poem, "Foal."

Shannon has gathered her previous poetry reviews and other poem-related posts for a poetry celebration at Hope is the Word.

Jama Rattigan will continue to feed us this month at Jama Rattigan's Alphabet Soup.   Today you can nibble on the Potluck Poets menu, John Mole's "The Banquet," and news about a poetry book giveaway.

Random Noodling, with Diane Mayr, brings us an original haibun titled "Rally for New Hampshire." Kurious Kitty speaks to April Fool's Day with a bit of Shakespeare, and Ted Kooser is up at Kurious K's Kwotes.

At Wild Rose Reader, Elaine talks with Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong about today's newly launched PoetryTagTime, an e-book anthology of children's poets tagging each other with poems.  At Blue Rose Girls, Elaine shares an original acrostic for April.  Once again, Elaine has generously herded up and now offers her list of National Poetry Month Resources for 2011, and you can learn about her NaPoMo poetry book giveaways here.

The Florian Cafe shares "To Anna Blume," a poem by Kurt Schwitters Merz on the occasion of his new show at Princeton.

"Thanks," by W.S. Merwin, ushers in April over at Pentimento.

Ruth brings us the hopeful words of Emily Dickinson's "April" at There's No Such Thing as a God-forsaken Town.

Two haiku written by seventeenth-century Japanese woman poets grace Robin Hood Black's blog today.

Jennie reviews Helen Frost's verse novel, The Braid, today at Biblio File.

At Fomagrams, David Elzey is in with his annual launch of twitku (daily tweeted poems) and what he calls Burma Shave poems.  You can follow these on Twitter at @delzey.

At Views from a Window Seat, Jeannine Atkins shares her thoughts about and a peek into Eavan Boland's memoir Object Lessons: The Life of the Woman and the Poet in Our Time.

Across the Page brings us Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Land of Counterpane" in honor of a sick child at home.

For the fourth year running, Andromeda Jazmon will post an original haiku and photo each day at a wrung sponge.  This year, she is extending the challenge into a daily haibun.  As a part of today's haibun, Andromeda shares a inspiring student project called "Paper Cranes for Japan."

Books, Dogs, and Frogs shares "Love These Dogs," an original dog-celebration poem inspired by Sharon Creech's LOVE THAT DOG.   May this first-original-poem-since-grade-school be the first of many!

At Book Aunt, Kate Coombs is in with an original poem about listening to rain as well as the Kidlitosphere poetry links collected by Irene Latham for National Poetry Month.

Doraine Bennett offers Lucy Maud Montgomery's "An April Night" at Dori Reads.

Blythe Woolston thanks her poet friends for helping her "recover her poetic license" with a poem that has "a haikuish bent."

At Liz in Ink, Liz Scanlon will for the third time share one haiku each day for the month of April.  This year, though, she will post haibun.  Today's haibun is about a hiding cat...and so much more.

Janet Squires shares Wings on the Wind: Bird Poems, collected and illustrated by Kate Kiesler, over at All About the Books.

To kick off National Poetry Month 2011, The Write Sisters have a poem about poems by Archibald MacLeish.

Over at The Blog with the Shockingly Clever Title, Karen Edmisten has posted links to George Meredith's "The Lark Ascending" and a Ralph Vaughan Williams song which it inspired.  Karen recommends listening and reading at the same time.

Martha shares an original poem about one tough winter over at Martha Calderaro.

Over at The Drift Record, Julie Larios offers a feeling of longing with "White Cat," a poem by Romanette, a Seattle second grade.

Mozi Esme is joining in with the "Kids' Poetry Challenge" introduced by Brimful Curiosities.  And the first drawing is up - a response to Richard LeGallienne's "I Meant to do My Work Today."

At Carol's Corner, Carol shares a found poem from this month's issue of Oprah, which focuses on poetry.   Her poem, "Poetry," was found in a piece by Mark Nepo.

As a part of her research for her next novel (a middle grade historical fiction set in 1548 Flanders), Nicole Marie Schreiber offers a poem she found called "Lacemaker's Prayer."

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