Poetry Friday - Heart to Heart

I'm reading lots and lots of poetry in preparation for National Poetry Month and my super secret poetry project. This week I fell in love with many of the pieces in Heart to Heart: New Poems Inspired by Twentieth Century American Art (2001). Edited by Jan Greenberg, the art selected includes works by Alexander Calder, Jackson Pollack, Grandma Moses, Jacob Lawrence, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Georgia O'Keeffe and others. Pieces include paintings, photographs, sculptures and more. An illustration from Faith Ringgold’s Tar Beach is even included. Each piece of art is accompanied by a poem it inspired.

One of my favorites is a pantoum by Bobbi Katz. Here is how it begins.

Lessons from a Painting by Rothko
How would you paint a poem?
Prepare the canvas carefully
With tiers of misty rectangles
Stacked secrets waiting to be told.

Prepare the canvas carefully
With shallow pools of color
Stacked secrets waiting to be told
Messages from some unknown place

Some of the poems in the book tell stories, while others speak from the artwork itself as the voice of the object or a person depicted within. Some describe the elements of the artwork, while others still explore the nature of art and the artist.

Here is an excerpt of a poem written by Jane Yolen. Can you guess which well-known painting it accompanies? (The title has been excluded for obvious reasons!)

Do not dwell on the fork,
the brooch at the throat,
the gothic angel wing
of window pointing toward
a well-tended heaven.

Read the entire poem. (Scroll down the page to poetry sampler.)

The ekphrastic poetry in this book is moving and lovely. In addition to those mentioned above, you'll find pieces by Kristine O'Connell George, X. J. Kennedy, J. Patrick Lewis, Naomi Shihab Nye, Carole Boston Weatherford and many other wonderful poets. If you haven't yet seen and savored this book, I highly recommend it.

The round up is being hosted by Anastasia Suen at Picture Book of the Day. Do stop by to take in all the great poetry being shared. Before you go, be sure to check out the personal ad poetry written for this week's poetry stretch.

Poetry Stretch Results - Personal Ad Poetry

The challenge this week was to write a poem in the form of a personal ad. Here are the results.

Jane Yolen left this poem in the comments.

Wanted for Single Gentleman

Need a house poet,
Somewhat shy--
I’m not a forward
Kind of guy—
To slip around
Our Amherst house
As quiet as
A wainscot mouse.

If she could bake,
That’s quite a plus,
I’m not a man to
Make a fuss.
I’m rather fond
Of gingerbread.
Or she could bake
Black cake instead.

A uniform
Would be just right.
Perhaps she’d always
Dress in white.
I’m not particular,
You see,
I just want me
An Emily.

--copyright Jane Yolen 2009

Marianne Nielsen at Patchwork Poetry shares a poem entitled Next!.

sister AE at Having Writ gives us the poem Wanted.

Laura Purdie Salas shares a photo and poem entitled Capt. Jack Sparrow: Single Beagle Looking for Love.

Elaine Magliaro at Wild Rose Reader wrote a poem in the form of a classified ad. It's called Fairy for Hire.

Jacqueline at Neverending Story shares a poem entitled A many splendid sacred thing.

Julie Larios at The Drift Record gives us a poem entitled Magician's Assistant?.

The first poem I wrote prompted this challenge and was about a frog looking for love. Here's my second.

I’m gray and so handsome—
my tail is quite curvy

Dancing in treetops
I’m really quite nervy

Leaping ‘cross branches
birds see me and scatter

I’m a talkative one
well known for my chatter

I’m looking for love
up high in the trees

or down on the ground—
I’m easy to please!

I’m crazy for berries,
acorns and bark too

If you’ll be my mate
I’ll go nuts for you!

It's not too late if you still want to play. Leave me a not about your personal ad poem and I'll add it to the list.

Harry Potter Movie News!

Hot off the presses!

Warner Bros. has announced the official release date for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part Two: it will be July 15, 2011. The studio has split Deathly Hallows, the final book in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, into two movies. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part One releases November 19, 2010.

Thanks to Children's Bookshelf for the news!

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince will be released on July 17th, 2009! That's a mere 134 days from today (just in case you were wondering).

Best Science Books of 2009 - Other Worthy Titles

As usual, the list of outstanding trade books for science published by the NSTA contains an amazing range of excellent titles. The criteria used in selecting books are:

• The book has substantial science content.
• Information is clear, accurate, and up-to-date.
• Theories and facts are clearly distinguished.
• Generalizations are supported by facts, and significant facts are not omitted.
• Books are free of gender, ethnic, and socioeconomic bias.

As with any "best of" list, one can always argue for the inclusion of additional titles. I read more than 100 science books published last year (not many in the grand scheme of things), most of which did not make the list. Using the same criteria and categories NSTA used, I am recommending the following additional 2008 titles as outstanding resources in science.

Archaeology, Anthropology, and Paleontology
Evolving Planet: Four Billion Years of Life on Earth by Erica Kelly and Richard Kissel - Written as a companion to the exhibit of the same name at Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History, this book provides an overview of the diversity of life on Earth throughout time. This comprehensive work also includes a glossary, pronunciation key, bibliography, and an index.

Biography
George Washington Carver, written by Tonya Bolden - Illustrated with photographs and historical artifacts, this book follows Carver's life from slave and orphan to his days at Iowa State College, and his later life and work in the field of agriculture.

Manfish: The Story of Jacques Cousteau, written by Jennifer Berne and illustrated by Éric Puybaret - Gorgeous illustrations and a lyrical text help tell the story of a man who believed "Il faut aller voir," or "We must go and see for ourselves." Young readers will be inspired by Jacques quest to breathe underwater and his development as a naturalist.

Earth and Space Science
11 Planets: New Views on the Solar System, written by David Aguilar - This book highlights each of the planets in the solar system, arriving at 11 by the inclusion of the 3 dwarf planets, Pluto, Ceres and Eris. Not to be missed is the section "Solar System in a Grocery Bag," which describes the planets in relation to common foodstuffs.

The Dirt on Dirt, written by Paulette Bourgeois and illustrated by Martha Newbigging - This book is an interesting mix of information and activities (labeled FUN with Dirt). In the categories of You and Dirt, Dirt Matters, Buried!, Building with Dirt, and Dirt for Gardening, readers learn everything under the sun about dirt. (Read my review.)

The Mysterious Universe: SuperNovae, Dark Energy, and Black Holes, written by Ellen Jackson and illustrated by Nic Bishop - What do astronomers do? Some, like Alex Filippenko and his colleagues (the High-Z Supernova Search Team) look for supernovae and related large-scale astronomical phenomena. This book provides a fascinating portrait of the work of these scientists.

Environment and Ecology
10 Things I Can Do to Help My World, written and illustrated by Melanie Walsh (Read my review.) - Simple text with cut-out illustrations provide an informative look at environmental responsibility for the youngest of readers.

The Brook Book, written and illustrated by Jim Arnosky - Arnosky takes readers by the hand and offers advice on how to interact with a brook, including how to safely explore the water, how to collect things, bird watching and sketching wildflowers at a brook , looking for animal tracks, and more. Included is a note to teachers on how to use a brook for educational purposes, as well as a list of titles for "brook explorers and naturalists."

How We Know What We Know About Our Changing Climate: Scientists and Kids Explore Global Warming, written by Lynne Cherry and Gary Braasch - Using real scientists and their work, Cherry introduces the methods the scientific community has used to document climate change. Readers also learn about the ways in which individuals and communities can work to help remedy the problem.

Science Warriors: The Battle Against Invasive Species, written by Sneed B. Collard III - This book, part of the Scientists in the Field series, focuses on four invasive species that have wreaked havoc on the environments where they have established themselves. Species examined include the brown tree snake, red imported fire ant, melaleuca tree, and zebra mussel. Collard describes how invasion occurs, as well successful and failed efforts to control these species. Back matter includes matter includes tips on helping to stop invasive species, a glossary, and web resources.

Trout Are Made of Trees, written by April Pulley Sayre and illustrated by Kate Endle - When a leaf falls from a tree into a stream it is eaten by bacteria, which are eaten by "shredders," which are in turn eaten by larger insects, which are eaten by trout. Using mixed-media collage, the pairing of text and illustration present a welcome introduction to the food chain.

Health Science
The Way We Work: Getting to Know the Amazing Human Body, written by David Macaulay with Richard Walker and illustrated by David Macaulay - The perfect marriage of text and illustration provides readers with a wealth of information about the human body.

Life Science
Flip, Float, Fly!: Seeds on the Move, written by JoAnn Early Macken and illustrated by Pam Paparone - From floating coconuts to tumbling tumbleweeds, Macken's lyrical text explains how a whole host of seeds travel before finding suitable places to germinate. (Read my review.)

Ice Bears, written by Brenda Z. Guiberson and illustrated by Ilya Spirin - Follow a mother polar bear and her cubs from birth as they make their way out of their den in spring and face the harsh environment of the Arctic. There is a subtle message about global warming and its impact on the environment that everyone needs to understand. (Read my review.)

Marvels in the Muck: A Day in the Salt Marsh, written by Doug Wechsler - Salt marshes are the wetlands found near ocean beaches and the mouths of rivers. Wechsler provides a fine introduction to this habitat and the creatures that live in it. Back matter includes information on tides, suggested readings and web sites, a glossary and an index.

Our Three Bears, written by Ron Hirschi with photographs by Thomas Mangelsen - This book introduces readers to the three types of bears found in North America--black, grizzly and polar. Short paragraphs accompanied by gorgeous color photos explain the hibernation patterns, habitats, diets, size, and population estimates for each species.

Sharks: Biggest! Littlest!, written by Sandra Markle with photographs by Doug Perrine - Large print text and striking photographs introduce readers to "big" and "little" sharks, as well as those with some interesting physical features, like a hammer-shaped head or unusually long tail. Readers will find a full-color world map noting the location of each shark in the text, a glossary, and list of additional resources.

Sisters and Brothers: Sibling Relationships in the Animal World, written by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page, and illustrated by Steve Jenkins - Illustrated with Jenkins' signature paper collages, the authors provide a wealth of fascinating facts about all kinds of animal siblings. Back matter provides additional facts about each species highlighted.

Wolfsnail: A Backyard Predator, written by Sarah Campbell with photographs by Sarah Campbell and Richard Campbell - This book for the younger set uses stunning photographs and clear, concise language to introduce readers to a predatory snail. Back matter includes facts about wolfsnails and a glossary of snail words.

Have you seen a science book published in 2008 that you believe should be on this list? Please leave me a note and let me know about your favorites.

Writing Way Cool Science Books

The most awesome Fiona Bayrock is blogging over at the Charlesbridge blog Unabridged. Check out her post entitled Cool science, where are you?.

You can find Fiona blogging more regularly at Books and 'Rocks. You may also want to check out her web site.

Outstanding Science Trade Books - 2009

I've been working on my list of best science books published in 2008 for a while now, but this year, NSTA beat me to it. Here is an excerpt from the introduction to their list.

Today’s classrooms have no real walls! Students explore the world on field trips, during virtual journeys on the world wide web, and through the books they read. These pathways help them fly to the ends of the universe to satisfy their scientific curiosity.

Again this year, the professionals of the NSTA/CBC Review Panel for Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K–12 have been pleased to serve as travel guides, identifying the best in trade books for student explorations.

Here is the list of books. You can read the full annotated list at Outstanding Science Trade Books - 2009. You can also read expanded reviews at NSTA Recommends. Titles marked with asterisks are those that individual panel members responded to with particular enthusiasm.

Archaeology, Anthropology, and Paleontology

• Bodies From the Ice: Melting Glaciers and the Recovery of the Past, written by James M. Deem. (2009 Sibert Honor book)
  
• Sabertooth, written and illustrated by Patrick O’Brien

Biography

• **A Life in the Wild: George Schaller’s Struggle to Save the Last Great Beasts, written by Pamela S. Turner
  
• **Emperors of the Ice: A True Story of Disaster and Survival in the Antarctic, 1910–13, written by Richard Farr
• Farmer George Plants a Nation, written by Peggy Thomas and illustrated by Layne Johnson

Earth and Space Science

• Life on Earth—And Beyond: An Astrobiologist's Quest, written by Pamela S. Turner
• Moon Landing, written by Richard Platt and illustrated by David Hawcock
• Over the Rivers: An Aerial View of Geology, written by Michael Collier

Environment and Ecology

• **Animal Tracks and Signs: Track Over 400 Animals: From Big Cats to Backyard Birds, written by Jinny Johnson
• Animals on the Edge: Science Races to Save Species Threatened With Extinction, written by Sandra Pobst
• **Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai, written and illustrated by Claire A. Nivola (2009 a Green Earth Book Award winner in the picture book category)
• **Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story From Africa, written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter (Read my review.)
  
• **When the Wolves Returned: Restoring Nature’s Balance in Yellowstone, written by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent with photographs by Dan and Cassie Hartman
• The Wolves Are Back, written by Jean Craighead George and illustrated by Wendell Minor

For further information about the books on Yellowstone's wolves and Wangari Mathaai, read this post.

Health Science

• All About Sleep From A to Zzzz, written by Elaine Scott and illustrated by John O’Brien
• Dr. Frankenstein’s Human Body Book, written by Richard Walker
• Food as Foe: Nutrition and Eating Disorders, written by Lesli J. Favor
• Outbreak: Science Seeks Safeguards for Global Health. Charles Piddock

Life Science

• A Platypus’ World, written and illustrated by Caroline Arnold
• African Critters, written and photographed by Robert B. Haas
• Eggs, written by Marilyn Singer and illustrated by Emma Stevenson (Read my review.)
  
• Elephants of Africa, written and illustrated by Gail Gibbons
• Fabulous Fishes, written and illustrated by Susan Stockdale (Read my review.)
  
• Face to Face With Cheetahs, written and illustrated with photographs by Chris Johns
• Face to Face With Elephants, written and illustrated by Beverly and Dereck Joubert
• Face to Face With Lions, written and illustrated by Beverly and Dereck Joubert
• Finding Home, written by Sandra Markle and illustrated by Alan Marks
• Genetics: From DNA to Designer Dogs, written by Kathleen Simpson
• How Many Ways Can You Catch a Fly? written by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page and illustrated by Steve Jenkins
  
• **Looking for Miza, written by Juliana Hatkoff, Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff, and Paula Kahumbu with photographs by Peter Greste
• Monarch and Milkweed, written by Helen Frost and illustrated by Leonid Gore
• **Nic Bishop Frogs, written and photographed by Nic Bishop (Read my review.)
  
• Praying Mantises: Hungry Insect Heroes, written by Sandra Markle
• Predators, written by John Seidensticker and Susan Lumpkin
• Sharks, written by Beverly McMillan and John A. Musick
• Wings, written by Sneed B. Collard, III and illustrated by Robin Brickman
• Winter Trees, written by Carole Gerber and illustrated by Leslie Evans

Physical Science

• Car Science, written by Richard Hammond

Technology and Engineering

• Cool Stuff Exploded, written by Chris Woodford

A number of the books on this list were titles in the 2009 Cybils awards. Nic Bishop Frogs was the winner in the Cybils nonfiction picture book category. There are many great titles here. I hope you get a chance to check them out.

Snow Day!

Need I say more?

Monday Poetry Stretch - Personal Ad Poetry

How do you know when you’re addicted to poetry? For me, it’s when a poem or idea for a poem pops into your head in the most unlikeliest of times and/or places. Yesterday it was during 8:30 mass. I know, I should have been paying attention, but my mind wandered and voila! I was thinking poetry.

Here’s what came out.

Winter sleeper
spring peeper

champion hopper
eyes copper

log squatter
loves water

eats flies
swimming prize
winner

This needs a lot of work but it got me thinking, wouldn’t it be fun to write a personal ad about your favorite animal or historical figure? I have lots of ideas swimming around in my head, and now, I hope you do too.

So, your challenge for the week is to write a little personal ad poetry. Leave me a note about your poem and I’ll post the results here later this week. Have fun!

Interview with Joseph Bruchac

I'm crazy about the work of Joseph Bruchac. You can learn more about him at Motivating Young Readers: An Interview with Famed Children's Book Author Joseph Bruchac. Here's an excerpt from the introduction.

In honor of NEA's Read Across America, I'm posting an exclusive interview with celebrated children's book author Joseph Bruchac, who for over 30 years has captivated millions of young readers with his more than 70 books. His writing often draws inspiration from his Abenaki Indian heritage and offers a strong corrective to what Bruchac sees as widespread and damaging stereotypes about American Indians.

Bruchac spoke with me about strategies for motivating children to read.He offered ideas for helping struggling readers, resources parents and teachers can use to combat stereotypes in children's literature, thoughts on the promise and perils of the internet, observations the shortcomings of standardized assessments, and a preview of his forthcoming books.

It's a wonderful piece. Do take a few minutes to listen to it.

The Dog and the Novel

I buy a lot of used (out of print) books through AbeBooks. Every so often they have articles and interviews on topics near and dear to my heart. Today you can find a piece entitled The Dog and the Novel: Loyal Companions. Here's an excerpt from the introduction.

Literature has long had a love affair with dogs. Granted, in January, an AbeBooks bestseller was Vicki Myron's Dewey, a tale about a library cat, but by and large, dogs in literature must outnumber their feline counterparts 10 to one.

. . .

And truth isn't a factor - fiction lovers can't get enough dog stories, either. From the small but brave Toto from L. Frank Baum's Wizard of Oz, to the courageous collie in Lassie Come-Home, authors and audiences are enchanted by the adventures of their furry, four-legged, canine subjects.

With that in mind, we spoke to Dr. Bryan Cummins, professor, collector, author and Ontario-based expert on dog books. He's been a bookseller with AbeBooks since March 1999, and kindly agreed to offer his insights into the world of dog books.

We've also compiled a list of some of the best-loved fictional dog books available, from collectible, to children's, to fiction for adults, to help you discover more about man's best friend.

It's a lovely little article that brought back some fond memories of some of my favorite stories. And yes, I'm proudly a member of team dog. (Sorry all you kidlit cat people!)

In Love With Lincoln - Kalman Style

Maira Kalman's In Love With A. Lincoln. Now that I've seen her work, I've got a bit of a crush myself. Head on over to her blog And the Pursuit of Happiness to see what I mean.

Poetry Friday - On the Receipt of a Familiar Poem

Yes, I'm still reading Dunbar. I hope you haven't tired of him yet. I'm finding that some of his poems call me back again (and again) for another read. Here's one on poetry.

On the Receipt of a Familiar Poem
by Paul Laurence Dunbar

To me, like hauntings of a vagrant breath
From some far forest which I once have known,
The perfume of this flower of verse is blown.
Tho' seemingly soul-blossoms faint to death,
Naught that with joy she bears e'er withereth.
So, tho' the pregnant years have come and flown,
Lives come and gone and altered like mine own,
This poem comes to me a shibboleth:
Brings sound of past communings to my ear,
Turns round the tide of time and bears me back
Along an old and long untraversed way;
Makes me forget this is a later year,
Makes me tread o'er a reminiscent track,
Half sad, half glad, to one forgotten day!

The round up is being hosted by Karen at Mommy's Favorite Children's Books. Do stop by and take in all the great poetry being shared. Before you go, be sure to check out the macaronic verse written for this week's poetry stretch.

Guess Who's Turning 40?

No, it's not me. Been there, done that. However, knowing that this literary staple is marking a major milestone makes me feel just a wee bit old. Who is it, you ask?

It's Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar. On March 20th, Philomel is launching The Very Hungry Caterpillar Day. You can download an activity kit which includes a commemorative poster and a booklet with lesson plans, book lists, and art projects. You'll also be interested to know that a special edition of the book in pop-up format will be released in March.

You can read more about this at School Library Journal and at Eric Carle's web site.

I use TVHC to introduce math (counting, days of the week) and science (life cycle, metamorphosis) concepts, though there are many other ways to use it in the classroom. Here are some additional ideas and resources you may find helpful.

• Ideas for using TVHC in the classroom.
• Lesson ideas and reproducibles for TVHC.
• Emergent reader booklet (pdf) for TVHC.
• Story sequencing with TVHC.
• TeacherVision lesson plan for TVHC.
• Art activity on where butterflies come from (metamorphosis activity).
  

Poetry Stretch Results - Macaronic Verse

The challenge this week was to write in macaronic verse, a form which includes two or more languages. Here are the results.

Jane Yolen left this poem in the comments.

Carrying On Carrying On

When life is a blevit of failure and grief
We carry on carrying on.
When life is so tres, even nothing’s relief,
We carry on carrying on.

When things of the future are things of the past,
When death is before us and first is the last,
When everything comes as a TNT blast,
We carry on carrying on.

When all the mananas are dwindling down,
When slips on bananas are tattered and brown,
When it’s too hard to smile and much simpler to frown
We carry on carrying on.

I’ll carry on you, if you’ll carry on me
On a tres filled with sorrow, and crackers and brie.
And the only thing tres-er is so tres jollie
That we carry on carrying on.

Julie Larios from The Drift Record also left a poem in the comments.

El Dia de la Wedding
(for Fernando)

We were just kiditos,
babycitios, me
in my wedding dress,
you looking so Si,
Senor! in that tuxedo
and white tie, your hair
jet black, your face blanco
and your eyes scared. Muchacho,
I loved you mucho (still do) but
what was the hurry, me
wet behind the ears, and you
just this side of a wetback? How
did we know what it meant, "I now
pronounce you"? Did we think wishes
were horses? Sure, we knew how
to kiss in Spanglish. And maybe
that was enough, baby mio,
but for el love of God,
que idiotas, riding roughshod
over common sense, our day
scented with orange blossoms,
our parents praying for rain.

Jane Yolen came back with another poem! (Lucky us—two poems in one week!)

Casa Dia: A Big Macaronic Poem

Casa dia,
one day with cheese,
perhaps macaronic,
smelling like old shoes,
zapatals and sandals,
ripe from walking in the sun.
I like the blander, blender kind,
but sometimes a soft brie
blowing through the hair
is just the thing to make the day
a little bit cheesy.
Am I crackers?

Jone at Check It Out shares a poem entitled Pourquoi.

Candace Ryan from Book, Booker, Bookest left this poem in the comments.

I have a lingua for lengua.
I got a schwa for bar mitzvah.
But not even I
Can use mein old eye
For decoding Joyce's Wörte.

Jacqueline at Neverending Story shares a poem entitled Vamos Embora Para Praia (Let’s hit the beach).

Elaine at Wild Rose Reader gives us the poem The Exterminator’s List of Things to Do or A Typical Workday for Tom Delay.

Schelle at Brand New Ending shares an untitled verse.

My poem this week is entitled For the Love of Latin.

It's not too late if you still want to play. Leave me a comment about your macaronic verse and I'll add it to the results.

Super Secret Poetry Project - A Little Poetic Math

24 new books (probably more!)

+
10 winners and honorees of the Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award
+
3 recipients of the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children
+
2 winners of the Américas Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature
+
2 recipients of the IRA Lee Bennett Hopkins Promising Poet Award
+
1 Newbery Medal honoree
+
1 Pura Belpré honoree
+
1 Children’s Poet Laureate
=
One grand surprise for National Poetry Month. RIGHT HERE! In 33 days.

Mark your calendars and prepare to get your poetry on.

Artfull Bras

Okay, I know this has absolutely nothing to do with children's literature, poetry or teaching, but I just had to share this creative idea for a worthy cause.

Members of Quilters of South Carolina have created one-of-a-kind bras for Breast Cancer Awareness. The exhibit consists of fifty original works of art which are unique, entertaining, humorous, and beautiful to make the public aware of breast cancer, to memorialize those lost to the disease, and to honor survivors.

This exhibit will tour SC until Oct '09 at which time individual Artfull Bras will be auctioned and the proceeds donated to the Best Chance Network, a program to provide care and treatment of uninsured women across the state who are diagnosed with breast and cervical cancer.

Visit the Artfull Bras Project to see these amazing creations. My favorites are Buttons and Bows and Boobs (p. 1) and Look at Them Melons (p. 2). Which one(s) do you love?

Blog Tour for Literacy

If you haven't heard already, the Share a Story - Shape a Future event will kick off on Monday, March 9th. This blog tour for literacy will feature a group of bloggers writing each day around a particular theme. I'll be participating on the first day, where the focus is raising readers. (Yup, I've got one!) Here's the schedule for that day.

Day 1: Raising Readers
hosted by Terry Doherty at Scrub-a-Dub-Tub, the Reading Tub blog

• Finding Time at Home - Tricia Stohr-Hunt @ The Miss Rumphius Effect
• Making Time in the Classroom - Sarah Mulhern @ The Reading Zone
• Helping a Reader in Need (remedial readers) - Sandra Stiles guest post on Scrub-a-Dub-Tub
• It's Bigger than the Book: Building Strong Readers at any Age with a Daily Dose of Read Aloud - Cathy Miller interview on the Share a Story - Shape a Future blog
• Keeping Gifted Readers Engaged - Donalyn Miller @ The Book Whisperer

Day 2 will focus on selecting reading material.
Day 3 is dedicated to read aloud.
Day 4 looks at visiting libraries.
Day 5 is all about the future of reading and the role of technology.

You can see the entire schedule at the Share a Story - Shape a Future blog.

I find it a bit ironic that I'll be writing about finding time for reading at home on one of the few days I won't actually BE at home reading with my boy. Even so, I'll have some great ideas to share. I do hope you'll stop by and join in the conversations.

For the Love of Latin

My Monday poetry stretch participants (Hi Julie! Hi Jane!) have kept me thinking and writing since I posted the challenge to write macaronic verse. Here's my contribution.

For the Love of Latin

We enter the room and silently take our seats.
“Good morning, class!”
“Salve magistra.”
“Quid agis?”
We raise our hands to respond.
Here I am Ceres, goddess of agriculture.
There are several Venuses, but I did not believe
myself deserving of such a name.
I wanted wisdom, but Minerva was taken
before Mrs. Shillington got to the S’s.
“Ceres, quid agis?”
I reach for a word other than very well,
but how do you say lousy in Latin?
“Bene, Magistra.”
She turns to the weather.
“Quinem es tempestas hodie?”
This daily ritual is a finely rehearsed play,
performed each day
for a language no longer spoken.

We open our books to translate.
I despise Virgil. He’s fine in English,
but getting there is no picnic.
“Arma virumque cano,”
I sing of arms and a man . . .
For years I have endured this. Why am I here?
Sometimes I forget, but in science class I remember.
I am reminded again when I beat my mother at Scrabble,
and the day I take the SAT.
I love words, their meaning and origins,
the way they feel on my tongue and sound in my ears.
Four years spent studying a long dead language
that invariably lives on.
Veni! Vidi! Vici!
Well, perhaps not Virgil, but high school.

I hope you're thinking about this challenge and writing some macaronic verse of your own. I'll be posting all the results here later this week.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Macaronic Verse

The Handbook of Poetic Forms defines macaronic verse in this fashion.

Macaronic verse is a peculiar, rare and often comic form of poetry that sometimes borders on nonsense. It is a mixture of two (or more) languages in a poem, in which the poet usually subjects one language to the grammatical laws of another to make people laugh.

You can read more at Wikipedia and learn a bit about the history of this form. You can also read something by an academic (c'mon, don't let that stop you). I was interested to note that the Carmina Burana (which I sang eons ago in high school) is a fine example of this.

So, your challenge for this week is to write a poem that uses more than one language. If you don't know another language, make one up. Pig Latin, anyone? Leave me a comment about your macaronic verse and I'll post the results here later this week.

Nonfiction Monday Is Here!

Check out this week's cool reads in nonfiction.

100 Scope Notes has a review of First Science Encyclopedia by DK Publishing.

Mark and Andrea at Just One More Book!! podcast their thoughts about Cybils nonfiction picture book winner Nic Bishop Frogs.

Jama Rattaigan at Jama Rattigan's Alphabet Soup has a tasty review of George Crum and the Saratoga Chip. Yum!

Anastasia Suen at Picture Book of the Day has a review of Owney: The Mail Pouch Pooch.

Over at the Scholastic site Kid Lit Kit, Anastasia shares some books and resources on dental health.

Camille at Book Moot shares a review of Are You Afraid Yet?: The Science behind Scary Stuff.

Lori Calabrese at Lori Calabrese Writes! has a review of Buffalo Song.

Shirley at SimplyScience Blog has a review of Wangari's Trees of Peace and some activity ideas.

Abby (the) Librarian shares a review of The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West.

Jone at Check It Out has an interview with Kirby Larson, author of Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship and Survival, and Hattie Big Sky (a 2007 Newbery honor book).

Jennifer at Jean Little Library shares a review of Sophie Skates.

Amanda at A Patchwork of Books has a review of Organic Crafts: 75 Earth-Friendly Art Activities.

Cari at Book Scoops shares a review of Wanda Gag: The Girl Who Lived to Draw.

Meredith at Sweetness and Light has a review of The Usborne Art Treasury.

The ACPL Mock Sibert blog is looking for comments/reviews of One Beetle Too Many: the Extraordinary Adventures of Charles Darwin. If you've read it, do stop by and let them know what you think.

Infant Bibliophile reviews a number of books on baby signing (that's sign language for the wee folk).

Valerie at Living the Good Life on Not Enough Acres Farm shares a review of the book Cow by Jules Older.

Sarah at In Need of Chocolate highlights the book The Deep: The Extraordinary Creatures of the Abyss.

Jennie at Biblio File has reviews of two books, We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball and Ain't Nothing but a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry.

Wendie at Wendie's Wanderings shares a review of Money Madness.

Fiona Bayrock at Books and 'Rocks shares a few of her favorite nonfiction blogs.

It's not too late if you still want to participate. Leave me a note about your review and I'll add it to the list.