NPM Day 13: Thematic Poetry Day 3 - Fairy Tales

Today's thematic poetry list is fairy tales. Fairy tales are one of my favorite things along with poetry. 

• Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse by Marilyn Singer
• Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems
• Grumbles from the Forest: Fairy-Tale Voices with a Twist by Jane Yolen & Rebecca Kai Dotlich
• Sleep Tight, Snow White: 15 Bewitching Bedtime Rhymes by Jen Arena 
• Forgive Me, I Meant to Do It: False Apology Poems by Gail Carson Levine (not all of the poems are fairy tale themed, but there are a few)
• You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You: Very Short Fairy Tales to Read Together by Mary Ann Hoberman

Resources 

• Educator's Guide for the You Read to Me, I'll Read to You series on the publisher's website
• Consider using Fairly Fairy Tales by Esmé Raji Codell to create your own fairy tale poems. For example, Jack and the Beanstalk but with spaghetti. 
• In the introduction (pp. 18-23) to Forgive Me, I Meant to Do It, Levine gives advice about how to write your own false apology poems. You might also take a look at her two creative writing books, Writing Magic and Writer to Writer. 
• In a note to readers at the beginning to Grumbles from the Forest, the authors invite readers to try their hands at writing their own fairy tale poems from a different perspective. 
• At the end of Mirror Mirror, Singer introduces the reverso, a poetic form she created, and invites readers to try their hand at writing one. 

Links to My Reviews 

• Follow Follow: A Book of Reverso Poems 
• Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse
• Sleep Tight Snow White: 15 Bewitching Bedtime Rhymes
• Forgive Me, I Meant to Do It: False Apology Poems

NPM Day 12: Thematic Poetry Part 2 - Birds

Today's thematic poetry list is all about birds. I've found that keeping themed lists makes it easy for me to find poetry to share with children.

• Today at the Bluebird Café: A Branchful of Birds by Deborah Ruddell
• Hummingbird Nest: A Journal of Poems by Kristine O’Connell George
• On the Wing by David Elliott
• Superlative Birds by Leslie Bulion
• Feathers: Poems about Birds by Eileen Spinelli
• The Cuckoo’s Haiku and Other Birding Poems by Michael J. Rosen
• On the Wing: Bird Poems and Paintings by Douglas Florian 
• Snow Birds by Kirsten Hall 

You might also look at animal themed poetry collections to see if they have a bird section. 

• National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry edited by J. Patrick Lewis 
• The Beauty of the Beast edited by Jack Prelutsky
• Song of the Wild: A First Book of Animals by Nicola Davies 

Resources 

• Teacher's guide for Hummingbird Nest on the author's website
• Teacher's guide for Superlative Birds from the publisher's website
• Teacher and Parent Activity Kit for Snow Birds on the publisher's website

Links to My Reviews

• On the Wing by David Elliott
• Today at the Bluebird Café: A Branchful of Birds
• Snow Birds
• The Cuckoo's Haiku and Other Birding Poems 
• Song of the Wild: A First Book of Animals
• National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry edited by J. Patrick Lewis

NPM Day 11: Thematic Poetry Part 1 - Cats, Dogs, Pets

Over the next few days, I'll be sharing some themed lists of poetry books for children. I've found that keeping themed lists makes it easy for me to find poetry to share with children. The first list is for cats, dogs, and pets. 

Cats 

• Cat Talk by Patricia MacLachlan & Emily MacLachlan Charest
• The Maine Coon’s Haiku and Other Poems for Cat Lovers by Michael J. Rosen
• Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku by Lee Wardlaw
• Won Ton and Chopstick: A Cat and Dog Tale Told in Haiku by Lee Wardlaw
• A Curious Collection of Cats by Betsy Franco

Dogs 

• Little Dog Poems by Kristine O’Connell George
• Once I Ate a Pie Patricia MacLachlan & Emily MacLachlan Charest
• I Didn’t Do It Patricia MacLachlan & Emily MacLachlan Charest
• Name That Dog! Puppy Poems from A to Z by Peggy Archer
• A Dazzling Display of Dogs by Betsy Franco
• Every Day’s a Dog’s Day: A Year in Poems by Marilyn Singer
• The Hound Dog's Haiku and Other Poems for Dog Lovers by Michael J. Rosen 

Pets 

• The Pet Project: Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses by Lisa Wheeler 
• Who Named Their Pony Macaroni? Poems about White House Pets by Marilyn Singer 
• Bless Our Pets: Poems of Gratitude for Our Animal Friends edited by Lee Bennett Hopkins

Resources

• Teacher's guide for Won Ton on the author's website 
• Teacher's guide and activity kit for Won Ton and Chopstick on the author's website
• Teacher's guide for Little Dog Poems on the author's website

Links to My Reviews 

• A Curious Collection of Cats
• A Dazzling Display of Dogs
• Won Ton: A Cat Tale Told in Haiku
• The Pet Project: Cute and Cuddly Vicious Verses
• Who Named Their Pony Macaroni? Poems about White House Pets
• I Didn't Do It

NPM Day 10: Poetry Programs for Kids

Outreach Visits to Elementary Classrooms 

• 2012: Animal Poetry (In the Wild by David Elliott, If Not for the Cat by Jack Prelutsky) and Riddle Poetry (If Not for the Cat by Jack Prelutsky, Spot the Plot: A Riddle Book of Book Riddles by J. Patrick Lewis, Butterfly Eyes and Other Secrets of the Meadow by Joyce Sidman) 
• 2013: Selections from I've Lost My Hippopotamus by Jack Prelutsky, The Underwear Salesman and Other Poems for Better or Verse by J. Patrick Lewis, and Please Bury Me in the Library by J. Patrick Lewis. See full details here. 
• 2015: Bird Poetry (On the Wing by David Elliott and Today at the Bluebird Cafe by Deborah Ruddell)
• 2018: Selections from Something Big Has Been Here by Jack Prelutsky, World Rat Day by J. Patrick Lewis, and If Not for the Cat by Jack Prelutsky
• 2019: Selections from some of my favorite poets (Deborah Ruddell, Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, and Joyce Sidman). See full details here. 

Poetry Programs for Private School Classes and Homeschool Groups 

• 2016 and 2017: Poetry Egg Hunt, Book Spine Poetry, Lemonade and Other Poems Squeezed from One Word by Bob Raczka, Poetry Tag, Acrostic Name Poem, and Riddle Poems
• 2012: Poetry Introduction for 1st-3rd grade. See full details here.

Poetry Special Events

• Poetry Break Storytimes
• 2011: Animals. See full details here.
• 2012: It's Raining Cats and Dogs. See full details here.
• Poetry Picnic (2024): Food theme poems and snacks. See full details here.

Resources

• Activities for Forest Has a Song on the author's website
• Activities for With My Hands on the author's website
• Reader's guide and activity guide for Red Sings from the Treetops on the author's website
• Reader's guide for Ubiquitous on the author's website
• Reader's guide for Butterfly Eyes on the author's website

Links to My Reviews

• Forest Has a Song
• Read! Read! Read!
• With My Hands: Poems about Making Things
• Lemonade and Other Poems Squeezed from One Word
• In the Wild
• On the Wing
• The Popcorn Astronauts and Other Biteable Rhymes
• Today at the Bluebird Café: A Branchful of Birds
• A Whiff of Pine, A Hint of Skunk: A Forest of Poems
• Spot the Plot: A Riddle Book of Book Riddles 
• The Underwear Salesman and Other Jobs for Better or Verse
• If Not for the Cat
• I've Lost My Hippopotamus 

NPM Day 9: Using Poetry on a Flannel Board or with Props

List poems are great to adapt for use on a flannel or felt board. You can approach this a couple of different ways. You can put all the pieces on and them point to them as you recite the poem or you can put them on one piece at a time as you recite. You can also handout pieces to the children so they can put them on. 

Here are the poems I've turned into felts sets. Links are to my blog posts about them. 

• "Gopher in the Garden" by Jack Prelutsky from Zoo Doings
• "I Planted a Whistle" by Jack Prelutsky from I've Lost My Hippopotamus 

• "I Made My Dog a Valentine" by Jack Prelutsky from It's Valentine's Day 
• "Goodnight Mummy" by Roger Stevens from Switching on the Moon: A Very First Book of Bedtime Poems collected by Jane Yolen & Andrew Fusek Peters 
• "I Made Myself a Snowball" by Shel Silverstein from Falling Up
• "Who Is Tapping At My Window?" by A. G. Deming from A Child's Book of Poems by Gyo Fujikawa 

You can also use poems in storytime with props. Inspired by Anne who blogged at So Tomorrow, I use "Shadow Wash" by Shel Silverstein from Where the Sidewalk Ends. You just need two different size shadows cut out of felt and small bucket or bowl that you can't see through. 

In March 2024, I created some picture cards to go along with "Percy's Perfect Pies" by Jack Prelutsky from It's Raining Pigs and Noodles. The images I used were mainly from free clipart sets on Teacher's Pay Teachers or clker. I shared the poem during a pie themed storytime and the picture cards definitely added interest for the younger kids. Prelutsky has more poems that would work well with picture cards: "Gloppe's Soup Shoppe" from A Pizza the Size of the Sun and "Bleezer's Ice Cream" from The New Kid on the Block. 

Resources 

• Jack Prelutsky's website
• Teaching guide to The World of Jack Prelutsky on the publisher's website
• Activity guide to Celebrate National Poetry Month with Jack Prelutsky on the publisher's website
• Jack Prelusky Interview on the publisher's website
• Shel Silverstein's website (Be sure to check out the Learning Resources tab!)

Links to My Reviews 

• I've Lost My Hippopotamus 

NPM Day 8: Using Poetry in Storytime

I use poetry in storytime often and in a few different ways. Today, I'll be highlighting how I use poetry to inspire storytime and how I add poetry to a storytime theme. 

First, you need to know the poetry books in your collection. A library online catalog can be particularly helpful if the record lists all the poem titles within a collection. For me this has been true for Shel Silverstein's collections and a few larger collections. Table of Contents, Index to Titles, and Index to First Lines in the physical books are also helpful. Also of note is Sylvia Vardell's The Poetry Teacher's Book of Lists. Published in 2012, it lists poetry books in a variety of lists. Find it on Amazon. 

When I review poetry books on my blog, I make note of contents (list of animals, for example) and my favorite poems within. My review of If This Bird Had Pockets: A Poem in Your Pocket Day Celebration by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater is an example of this. I also make notes of the various ways you can use the collection. My review of Delicious: Poems Celebrating Street Food Around the World by Julie Larios is an example of this. This turns into a helpful reference for me. If you aren't a blogger, you can keep notes like these in whatever manner works best for you. 

In the Wild by David Elliott, On the Farm by David Elliott, several collections of bird poems, haiku and several collections of seasonal poetry have all inspired storytime themes. Using the collections by David Elliott, I read the entire collection as my first book and add one or two picture books to round out the storytime. With the thematic collections, I read several poems from multiple collections throughout the storytime. Sometimes, I read a few poems from a collection as my last and shortest storytime book. I did this most recently with a bugs storytime in March when I shared four poems from Insectlopedia by Douglas Florian. See all my poetry storytimes here. 

I have added poems to so many storytime themes: apples, bears, bees, birds, bugs, butterflies, camping, dinosaurs, fairy tales, farm, forest, frogs, love, polar animals, seasons, spiders, teatime, and zoo animals. A recent example is adding “21 Things to Do with an Apple” from The Popcorn Astronauts and Other Biteable Rhymes by Deborah Ruddell to an apple themed storytime last fall. 

Resources: 

• Book Activities and Educators Guide for If This Bird Had Pockets on the publisher's website
• David Elliott's website
• Teacher's guide to David Elliott's poetry series on the publisher's website
• Storytime by Bridget Site

Links to My Reviews

• If This Bird Had Pockets: A Poem in Your Pocket Day Celebration
• Delicious! Poems Celebrating Street Food Around the World
• In the Wild
• On the Farm
• The Popcorn Astronauts and Other Biteable Rhymes

NPM Day 7: Poetry Breaks, Fridays, Teatimes, and Picnics

Today I want to talk about a few ways you can share poetry with children in your classroom, library, or home. 

Poetry Break 

This is something I came up with as a way to share one of my favorite things with the students during classroom visits. After reading 2 or 3 books, we'd take a poetry break. I'd select a few kids to pick a number. I would then read the poem on the corresponding page in the Jack Prelutsky poetry collection I'd brought. After several classroom asking for 10, 25, 50, or 100, I decided to make numbers that the kids would draw out of a basket. I'd use the same poetry collection until we used all the numbers. I pick the kids by asking who has a birthday this month or next month. You could also do first initials or shirt colors. Larger collections work well for this. In addition to Jack Prelutsky, you could use Shel Silverstein, the National Geographic poetry collections, Kenn Nesbitt, and Karma Wilson. 

Poetry Fridays

Poetry Friday is two things. It is a weekly blog roundup. Bloggers post about poetry for children and teens on Friday. Find more out here from Renée LaTulippe. Poetry Friday is also a series of anthologies edited by Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell and published by Pomelo Books. Wong and Wardell created these anthologies to make it easier for classroom teachers to share poetry with their students. Find out more here. 

Poetry Teatime 

Poetry Teatime was created by Julie Bogart from Brave Writer as a way for homeschooling families to incorporate more poetry into their learning. The official website has a Quick Start Guide, Poetry Books for Every Age List, Themed Teatime Ideas, Poetry Prompts, and Learn about Poets. Poetry teatime could be used by teachers, families, or librarians with students who are schooled publicly, privately, or at home. The possibilities are endless! 

Poetry Picnic

An idea from a stay-at-home mom who Blogs at Read-At-Home Mom: read poetry with your kids outside. Add snacks to make it a picnic. See all of Katie's poetry picnic posts here. Katie's poetry picnic posts and ideas for book tastings lead me to create a Poetry Picnic program in 2024. Read all about it here. 

Links to My Reviews 

• What's the Weather Inside? 
• Hard-Boiled Bugs for Breakfast and Other Tasty Poems
• I've Lost My Hippopotamus 
• My Dog May Be a Genius
• National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry edited by J. Patrick Lewis
• National Geographic Book of Nature Poetry edited by J. Patrick Lewis