Poetry Program Ideas

National Poetry Month is almost upon us. A recent ALSC blog post has some great ideas to try with the kids and youth you work with..

She writes: "April is National Poetry Month! Many people find poetry intimidating. Between meter, rhyme scheme, teachers overly focused on anything written prior to 1900, and words like “troche” and “anaphora,” the language of poetry can seem complex. But it is not too late – or too hard – to unlock your inner poet. Consider adding one of the following poetry programs to your calendar. They all use common library or household supplies, take no special knowledge or skill to lead, and can be put together in an hour or less. Gather ye thine quills and parchment!"

Stop here to read the full post with ideas. [Poetry Programs for the Reluctant Poet. Roos, Chelsea. ALSC blog. March 12, 2023]

Oceans of Poetry for Summer

Do you need some wonderful fishy, oceany, watery ideas for poems to share with kids this summer in your programs?  Look no more! 

In this wonderful booklist blog post, North Carolina's Bridget Wilson shares some of her go-to books for poems of the sea and it's creatures. 

Swim on over and read it here. [Ocean Poetry for Summer Events. Wilson, Bridget. What is Bridget Reading blog. June 6, 2022.]

Throw It Thursday - For the Love of Weeding

Ashley Borman, Technical Services Librarian at the Clintonville (WI) Public Library and YSS board member, is back with her monthly column and was moved by poetry and sense of fun to share her take on weeding via rhyme!

Happy National Poetry Month! This month, rather than dumping more thoughts and information on you, I thought I’d do something a bit more fun. So enjoy a couple of poems I wrote on weeding.

There’s a book that is falling apart

It just doesn’t look very smart,

The librarian reviewed it

And then she withdrew it,

It’s time for this book to depart.

*******

When a book is no longer used

Everyone in the library sings the blues.

Except for me, I sing with glee because

Discarding is my favorite thing!

Ink blots that block out whole pages?

Nasty food stains that have been there for ages?

Gross looking books, I spare no more looks

Instead of keeping them I throw them away!

Sorting through stacks of books unrelated, I keep

Finding things that are outdated.

Uh-uh, not here! I can’t be any more clear

Now get off of my shelves right this minute!

Where to Find Free Poetry Resources for Kids Online

April is National Poetry Month and with so many grown-ups looking to enrich their child's quarantine time, here is a great article from Book Riot listing online poetry resources: https://bookriot.com/2020/04/06/free-poetry-resources-for-kids/

April is National Poetry Month!

 

This April marks the 20th anniversary of National Poetry Month, which was inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996.  Over the years, National Poetry Month has become the largest literary celebration in the world with schools, publishers, libraries, booksellers, and poets celebrating poetry’s vital place in our culture.

The month includes programs such as Poem in Your Pocket Day and Poem-a-Day. 

The main hub for all things National Poetry Month is National Poetry Month, Poets.org.  Check out the site, which includes resources for educators, 30 ideas for celebrating, and more.

Poetry Picnic

I found a fun post by YSS member Laura Damon-Moore on the Library as Incubator blog about a Poetry Picnic, held at the Eager Free Library this summer.  Some terrific ideas to try for a program any time of year, including

Block Poetry (made out of old duplo blocks)
Black-out Poetry
Typewriters (hard to go wrong with old typewriters)
A stop on the Type Rider II Poetry Tour

I wish I could go to an event like that!

April Read On Wisconsin Titles

Combination of showers and flowers for April...

Thanks to the CCBC's Emily Townsend for this month's Read On Wisconsin titles! There are lots of ways to highlight these books--consider a display as an easy starting point!

April seems to be a busy month for themes. It's National Poetry month. And, I certainly can't resist exploring all the Spring time themes in story hour in April. I just learned that April is Mathematics Awareness Month, National Autism Awareness Month, and School Library Month as well. Amazingly, I think we have you covered for themes with our titles this month -- except, sadly, mathematics. Check out our monthly titles and resources below.

For projects, resources and activities throughout the month follow us on Twitter and Pinterest. As always, discussion questions for the books are available on our website and resources for the titles and authors can be found at TeachingBooks.net as well as on Read On Wisconsin's Pinterest and Twitter. Finally, check out Whitehorse Middle School’s trailer for Outcasts United.

April titles for Read On Wisconsin:

Babies, Toddlers and Preschoolers

Who Likes Rain? By Wong Herbert Yee. Henry Holt, 2007

underGROUND by Denise Fleming. Beach Lane Books / Simon & Schuster, 2012

Poems:

“Rain” by Spike Milligan, pp. 72-3

“April Rain Song” by Langston Hughes, pp. 74-75

“Mud” by Flanders and Swann, pp. 76-77

From from Here's a Little Poem: A Very First Book of Poetry edited by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters. Illustrated by Polly Dunbar. U.S. edition: Candlewick Press 2007.

Primary (Grades K-2)

                Step Gently Out by Helen Frost. Photographs by Rick Lieder. Candlewick Press, 2012

Laughing Tomatoes and Other Spring Poems / jitomates risueños y otros poemas de primvera by Francisco X. Alarcon. Illustrated by Maya Christina Gonzalez. Children’s Book Press, 1997

Intermediate (Grades 3-5)

The Arrow Finds Its Mark: A Book of Found Poems by George Heard. Illustrated by Antoine Guilloppé. Roaring Brook Press, 2012

               

Middle School

Outcasts United: The Story of a Refugee Soccer Team That Changed a Town by Warren St. John. Delacorte Press, 2012

Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World by Sy Montgomery. Houghton Mifflin, 2012

High School

October Mourning: A Song for Matthew Shepard by Lesléa Newman. Candlewick Press, 2012

My Book of Life by Angel, by Martine Leavitt. Farrar Straus Giroux, 2012

               

Thanks to everyone who completed our survey! The responses are helping us shape Read On Wisconsin for the future. We're working on some ways to include kids more directly in Read On Wisconsin. Along with the student-made book trailers on our website, we will be piloting a blog with student reviews of Read On Wisconsin reviews and projects. If you are looking for a project for a book club or your class or kids, contact us about workingwith us to test this aspect of the blog. We are still committed to Twitter chats and/or Skype interviews with authors and illustrators. Please contact me if there isa Read On Wisconsin author with whom you think your library kids or your student would like to chat.

National Poetry Month

What are you doing for Poetry Month?

• Try this fun project that Marge and I did: book spine poetry.
• Put a poem in a pocket: make some paper pockets to hang around the library and tuck poems inside.
• Enjoy riddles in your rhymes? Print out some Hink Pinks to display.
• Check out the Favorite Poem Project. If you have a handheld video camera, make your own project and put it on your library's website!

Be sure to leave a comment with the programs you're going to try!