Tuesday Poetry Stretch - Zeno!

Okay, in my excitement over the launch of National Poetry Month and my poetry project, I forgot to post our stretch! *SIGH* Multi-tasking is not my forte these days.

Since my first post of the month was about Z and the zeno, and since Kate Coombs has already gotten us started, let's write a zeno! A zeno is a 10-line verse form with a repeating syllable count of 8,4,2,1,4,2,1,4,2,1. The rhyme scheme is abcdefdghd. You can read some examples Pat Lewis wrote at Poetry A-Z: Z is for Zany, Zoological, and Zeno.  

I haven't been writing round-up posts of these poems in some time, so be sure to come back (or subscribe to the comments) and see the wonderful pieces folks are sharing.

Poetry A-Z: Y is for Yolen and Youthful

Why oh why did I start at the end? Perhaps because these were some of the most challenging letters and I thought I should get them out of the way. Silly me!

When I began my research I couldn't help but think of Y as a boyish letter. After all, without that Y chromosome we'd have a world of girls. But alas, the letter Y didn't seem to lend itself to any particularly boyish adjectives or poems. It did, however, keep leading me to a woman of particular note in writing circles (poetry and otherwise). So let's start today with Yolen.

JANE YOLEN - WRITER AND POET OF SOME NOTE!

Jane Yolen has written more than 300 books in an amazing array of genres, succeeding wildly in each one. Many of her poetry books will make an appearance over the course of this month, but the ones I want to highlight today focus on one of my favorite poets.

THE EMILY SONNETS: THE LIFE OF EMILY DICKINSON is a collection of sonnets that tells Emily’s story from the points of view of Emily herself, her sister Vinnie, her niece Mattie, her friend Thomas, an unknown critic, and Yolen. Additional information and anecdotes are found throughout the pages. I savored the sonnets on my first read, lingered on the extensive end notes, then re-read the poems with renewed enthusiasm. Yolen lovingly captures and portrays Emily and shows readers quite clearly how much Emily was admired and loved by those around her.

MY UNCLE EMILY is a picture book that tells the story (part fiction, part real) of Emily Dickinson's nephew Gib. This one begins:
"One day when we were in the garden, choosing flowers for the table, my Uncle Emily gave me a dead bee and a poem for my teacher. Sometimes Uncle Emily is like that, as if she wants me to see the world one small bee and one small poem at a time."
Gib worries about the reaction of his classmates (rightly so!) to the poem. At recess a boy makes fun of his Uncle Emily, so Gib defends her and slugs him. When Gib goes home with a limp, he doesn't tell his family the whole truth about the day's events. This is a wonderful little story about honesty that may just interest readers in learning more about Dickinson.

YOUTHFUL - typical or characteristic of young people

I have a fairly tattered copy of a poetry book from childhood. I can't remember what I loved so much about it, but I imagine it appealed to me the way much of poetry for the very young does today. Preschool poetry often gets trapped in the traditional (not that there's anything wrong with classic rhymes), but there are a number of recent collections that tap into the joy of childhood and the exuberance of the really young.

A LITTLE BITTY MAN AND OTHER POEMS FOR THE VERY YOUNG, written by Written by Halfdan Rasmussen, translated by Marilyn Nelson and Pamela Espeland, and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes, is a volume of poems originally written in Danish. Though a small collection (only 13 poems) is filled with whimsy and rhymes that sing like the best of Mother Goose. This volume is perfect for the littlest readers as much for the appropriateness of vocabulary as the perfectly sweet selections.

HERE'S A LITTLE POEM: A VERY FIRST BOOK OF POETRY, collected by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters and illustrated by Polly Dunbar, is filled with sweet and silly rhymes that fairly sing. The book is oversized and heavy, but it's well worth picking up and sharing with little ones. Organized into the categories Me, Myself and I, Who Lives in My House?, I Go Outside, and Time for Bed, there is a poem here for most important and everyday events in a child's life. There are also nonsense poems, tongue twisters, animal poems, and more! Since the poems in this volume have been collected from across the English-speaking world, the retention of regional spelling and usage may have you needing to explain some things to young readers. In the back you'll find the contents indexed by poem and poet. Every reader, young and old alike, will find something to love here.

WEE RHYMES: BABY'S FIRST POETRY BOOK, written Jane Yolen and illustrated by Jane Dyer, is my new go-to baby shower book! While a few of the poems come from Mother Goose, most are Yolen originals. Here's an excerpt.

HUGS

Mama's hug is gentle,
Daddy's hug is long.
Grandad's hug
Is warm as a rug.
And Grandma's comes with a song.

There's a lovely blend of playfulness, sing-song treats, and happy rhymes. This one is perfect for the littlest and newest poetry lovers.

That's it for Y. See you tomorrow with some X inspired poetry ponderings.

Poetry A-Z: Z is for Zany, Zoological, and Zeno

Z is a wonderful letter. It's zippy and zig-zagged and fun! Before we begin, join me in a little song.

Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay

My, oh my what a wonderful day!

Plenty of sunshine heading my way

Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay!

While I've never been a fan of the movie this comes from (Song of the South), I've always liked this song. In fact, I could often be heard whistling or singing it while washing dishes in our first house (you know, one of those older homes with lots of charm and no dishwasher).

Now that the mood is set, let's look at today's poetic potluck inspired by Z.

ZANY - amusingly unconventional and idiosyncratic

I wouldn't normally call poetry zany, but the book ZORGAMZOO by Robert Paul Weston fits this definition nicely. Who wouldn't call a 280+ page book written entirely in rhyming couplets zany? I could also call this one zippy, as the rhythm and rhyme pull readers along at an energetic pace. Weston has created something special here. 

Katrina Katrell lives with her guardian Mrs. Krabone (whom Katrina calls Krabby). Krabby does nog appreciate Katrina's natural curiosity or propensity to explore and daydream. One day while waiting for the subway, Katrina sees a large, hairy creature walking in the underground tunnel. Convinced that Katrina is lying, Krabby decides she needs to contact her friend Doctor LeFang to complete a lobotomy. When Katrina runs away she finds Mortimer Yorgle, the creature from the subway, and the adventure truly begins.

ZORGAMAZOO is a novel in verse that begs to be read aloud. I'll admit the first time I read it I was so enthralled with the words and craft behind Weston's writing that I got a bit lost. I had to read it a second time to more thoroughly enjoy the story. Kids will love this one and so will you.

Check out this trailer. 

Intrigued? Now read the first chapter. Better yet, check out the book's web site to learn more.

ZOOLOGICAL - of or relating to animals

This is actually an impossible adjective because there are an enormous number of poetry books about animals of all kinds. I could actually write for each of the 30 days of April about animal poetry and not reach the bottom of a very large barrel. This means that zoologically oriented posts will abound in the coming days. But this begs the question, where do I start? How about this year's Claudia Lewis Poetry Award winner and Cybils poetry finalist?

THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BOOK OF ANIMAL POETRY: 200 POEMS WITH PHOTOGRAPHS THAT SQUEAK, SOAR, AND ROAR!, compiled by J. Patrick Lewis, contains the photos we've come to love from National Geographic, accompanied by one and sometimes two poems from classic (Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson) to more modern poets (Betsy Franco and Jane Yolen). The book categorizes the poems under the headings “the big ones,” “the little ones,” “the winged ones,” “the water ones,” “the strange ones,” “the noisy ones,” and “the quiet ones.” This is THE book to put in the hands of kids curious about the natural world. It's also the one book that may spark a bit of poetry interest in reluctant readers and writers.

If you are looking for idea for the classroom, download the Teacher's Guide. In the meantime, take a look at these gorgeous photos and listen to our current Children's Poet Laureate read an excerpt.

ZENO - a poetic form invented by J. Patrick Lewis

In October of 2009 I was lucky enough to debut a poetic form invented by Pat Lewis. Here's Pat's explanation.

I've invented what I had called a “hailstone," after the mathematical "hailstone sequence." It has nothing to do with Mary O'Neill's Hailstones and Halibut Bones, but it would no doubt instantly be confused with it. Hence, "hailstone" is problematic. So I call the form a "zeno," so named for Zeno, the philosopher of paradoxes, especially the dichotomy paradox, according to which getting anywhere involves first getting half way there and then again halfway there, and so on ad infinitum. I'm dividing each line in half of the previous one. Here's my description of a zeno:

A 10-line verse form with a repeating syllable count of 8,4,2,1,4,2,1,4,2,1. The rhyme scheme is abcdefdghd.

Pat was even kind enough to send along a few examples.

Sea Song
A song streaming a thousand miles
may sound like a
fairy
tale,
but it’s only
love’s bulk-
mail
coming out of
the blue...
whale. 

Why Wolves Howl
Gray wolves do not howl at the moon.
Across a vast
timber
zone,
they oboe in
mono-
tone,
Fur-face, I am
all a-
lone.

Telephooone
The great horned owl sits in the tree
answering each
local
call—
swivel-neck and
big-eye-
ball
operator
of night-
fall.

Poems © J. Patrick Lewis. All rights reserved.

There's one more Z that's not in the title, and that's Zimmer. Tracie Vaughn Zimmer is a teacher, author and poet. She has written three collections of poetry, SKETCHES FROM A SPY TREE (2005), STEADY HANDS: POEMS ABOUT WORK (2009), and COUSINS OF CLOUDS: ELEPHANT POEMS (2011). She's also written two verse novels, REACHING FOR SUN (2007) and 42 MILES (2008). REACHING FOR SUN was awarded the Schneider Family Book Award in 2008. This award "honors an author or illustrator for a book that embodies an artistic expression of the disability experience for child and adolescent audiences."

I'm quite fond of COUSINS OF CLOUDS: ELEPHANT POEMS. You can see a bit of it below.

That's it for Z. See you tomorrow with some Y inspired poetry ponderings.

Poetry A-Z: Just Around the Corner

The kickoff of my National Poetry Month project dubbed Poetry A-Z is only 2 short days way. Each day in April I'll share books, poems, poetic forms, and other poetry-inspired topics. The posts may seem a like a potluck of poetry, but that's exactly what I'm going for. I've tossed in a little of this, a little of that, some things old, some things new, and all things fun!

Since I'm a lefty in a right-handed world, I tend to approach many things in life from a different angle. This project will be no different. What that means is that instead of starting at the beginning, you can look forward to commencing this journey with Z and winding down to A. 

I can't wait for Monday! I hope you'll stop by to see what I've thrown together.

Monday Poetry Stretch - The Unexpected

Today is March 25th and we had a snow day in Richmond, VA. Talk about unexpected! I am so ready for spring. This is the second Monday in a row that we've had snow. My son was thrilled about this turn of events, me not so much.

How about we write about the unexpected this week? The unexpected event, turn of a phrase, ending to a book or movie, etc. What have you found lately that was unexpected? Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.

Pi Day is Tomorrow! But Should We Celebrate It?

All you math lovers out there should know that tomorrow is Pi Day. But should we celebrate pi or tau? Don't know what I'm talking about? Take a look at these two videos.
 

Learn more about Tau by reading The Tau Manifesto by Michael Hartl.

Plans for National Poetry Month

Last year my plans for National Poetry Month were put on hold by an unexpected death in the family. It was the first time I'd missed celebrating in several years of blogging. I'd like to say I have something elaborate planned this year, but I'll be traveling during two different weeks to conferences so I have scaled back a bit.

This year my theme is Poetry A-Z. For the first 26 days of the month I'll be highlighting poetic forms, specific poems, books of poetry, and poets according to letter. For the last 4 days I've created a set of "acrostic" themed posts with some additional thoughts on poetry.

I know I haven't been around much, but I do hope you'll join me.  

Wednesday Poetry Stretch - Fear

Yes, I'm two days past Monday, but in my defense I was traveling and had little time for online pursuits. I suppose I could always post early, but stretches tend to be inspired by circumstance. I'm not sure it would be much fun to post 52 stretches for the year and just let them launch on their own.

The anniversary of my sister-in-law's death is approaching and we're all facing it with more than a bit of trepidation. Suicide is such a difficult thing. We're still trying to make sense of something that just can't be understood. 

I've been writing a lot these days about darkness and fear, so I guess now is as good a time as any to tackle this topic. Are you afraid of flying? Failure? Heights? Spiders? Something more sinister? Let's write about that this week.

Win Some Poetry Books!

Over at my math and science blog I'm celebrating the fact that my Pinterest site has nearly 10,000 followers. I'm a bit shocked to tell you the truth. Pinterest has been a fabulous way for me materials related to elementary instruction. Where I once used Google Sites and Weebly, I now use the boards on Pinterest. I can't emphasize how important the visual aspect of this has been. Instead of reading through lists of bookmarks and site descriptions, I can actually SEE what things look like. To say this has revolutionized the way I organize ideas and resources is an understatement.

In honor of closing in on the 10,000 follower milestone, I am giving away copies of a few of my favorite science poetry books. Here they are.

  
 

Head on over to Bookish Ways in Math and Science for a chance to win.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Climbing Rhyme

It's been nearly two years since we visited climbing rhymes, so I think it's time to try again.

Climbing Rhyme is a form of Burmese poetry containing a repeated sequence of 3 internally-rhymed lines consisting of 4 syllables each. Since Burmese is monosyllabic, this works well, but in English this might be difficult. Instead of 4 syllable lines, let's try writing in lines of 4 words. (If you're feeling brave, go ahead and try four syllables!)

The rhyme scheme for climbing rhyme is internal. That means the position of the rhyming word changes. The rhyme appears in the 4th word of line one, 3rd word of line 2, and 2nd word of line 3. The pattern continues as a new rhyme appears in the 4th word of line 3, the 3rd word of line 4, and the 2nd word of line 5. This continues on, giving a stair-step feel to the poem, hence the name climbing rhyme.

For those of you who need to see this visually, here it is. Each x stands for a word. The letters stand for rhyming words. Just remember the 4-3-2 pattern.
x x x a
x x a x
x a x b
x x b x
x b x c
x x c x
x c x x

What kind of climbing rhyme will you write? Leave me a comment about your poem and I'll post the results here later this week.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Celebrations

My son was 12 on Saturday. It was a happy occasion, but these milestones make me sad when I reflect on how quickly he's growing up.

I've written him a poem every year on his birthday, though I've never read or given them to him. I'm saving them for some time in the future. I suppose I've always wanted someone to write me poems on my birthday, and that's why I write for him. Or perhaps I do it just because I'm a sentimental sap!

What do you do to celebrate birthdays an other special occasions. Do you write poems? Do you have a celebratory poem to share? What kind of poem would you like to receive on your birthday? Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.

Congrats to the 2012 Cybils Winners!

I'm thrilled that BookSpeak!: Poems About Books is this year's Cybils winner in the poetry category. Go Laura!

There are many other very deserving winners. Check them out at The 2012 Cybils Awards.

To see the shortlists from which the winners were selected, check out  Cybils Finalists Flyer.

Congratulations to all the finalists and winners, and thanks to all the hardworking Cybils folks for making it happen.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Limericks

It's Tuesday, not Monday! I've learned it's awfully hard to read a blog post when you hit save instead of publish! That's what I get for trying to do seven things at once. As I age I seem to be getting worse at multi-tasking.

I've been a little down-in-the-dumps, so I believe some limericks might cheer me up. I'm currently trying to finish this one:

There was a young woman from Bath

Who loved nothing better than math

     She ...

I am stuck at the moment, but I promise a rousing finish.

What limerick will you share this week? Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Amazed and Humbled

I've been spending time reading admission files for the University. Every year I'm simply amazed at what these applicants have done and accomplished, most before the age of 18.

There are other things in this world that amaze me. Have you seen this video on underwater astonishments?

Nature amazes me, usually on a daily basis. Last week I walked out into the snow in the early morning hours to hear a woodpecker tapping away. It made me laugh and marvel at the world at the same time.

The sky still amazes me, no matter how many times I look at the moon or stars. I also find it to be quite humbling.

While I continue to read applications and wander through my week in wonderment and appreciation, I thought it might be fun to write about what amazes or humbles us. Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Snow

We've had a snow day and an early dismissal in the last week due to "snow." I quote snow because as someone who grew up outside of Rochester, NY and lived, worked and went to grad school in Buffalo, I do know a bit about snow. This stuff in Virginia ain't it!

In celebration of seeing a bit of the white stuff, my son and I have been reading books about the science of snow--how it forms, it's shapes, symmetry, etc. I'm focused on hexagons and the number six. If I were insanely creative, I'd invent a poetry form related to snow crystals, but alas, I've tried and come up with nothing. So instead, let's write about snow. 

Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.

(You can see more snowflake images like the one above at SnowCrystals.com.)

Nonfiction Monday - The Science of Snow

In the last week we've had a snow day and an early dismissal for snow. It's only been a few inches, but it has been most welcomed by the kids around me. In anticipation of and celebration of snow, we've been reading a few of our favorite books on the subject. 

The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter's Wonder, written by Mark Cassino with Jon Nelson  - Mark Cassino is a fine art and natural history photographer. Jon Nelson is a teacher and physicist who studies ice crystals and clouds. Together they have given us a stunning volume on the formation of snow. A perfect mixture of art and science, Cassino's photographs are accompanied by clearly written text that explains a very complex process in terms kids will understand. Readers will learn what snow is made from, how it forms, what shapes it takes, and more! Photos of snow crystals are included with a comparison of the enlarged images to a snow crystal of actual size. 

In the back matter you will find directions on how to catch snow crystals and examine them. For more ideas for extending the text, download a teacher's guide for this title at the Chronicle web site.

Snowflake Bentley, written by Jacqueline Briggs Martin and illustrated by Mary Azarian - This Caldecott Medal winner tells the true story of Wilson Bentley, a farmer who spent the better part of his life studying and photographing snowflakes. It begins this way.

In the days
when farmers worked with ox and sled
and cut the dark with lantern light,
there lived a boy who loved the snow
more than anything else in the world.

Willie's story is told from his childhood through his death. Accompanying the biography are a series of sidebars that contain additional facts about Bentley. The last page of the book contains a photo of Bentley at his camera (the same one at the top of the Wilson Snowflake Bentley home page), a quote about his love for photography, and three of his renowned snowflake images.

This is the story of a remarkable man who pushed the limits of science and technology to create groundbreaking images of snowflakes. If the book inspires an interest in further study, you can view a number of his amazing photographs at The Bentley Snow Crystal Collection.

The Secret Life of a Snowflake: An Up Close Look at the Art and Science of Snowflakes, written by Kenneth Libbrecht  - The author of this book is a physicist at Caltech known for his passion for snow crystals. In this book aimed at 9-12 year olds, but appropriate for a much broader (and older) audience,  Libbrecht teaches readers what snow crystals and snowflakes are, where they come from, and how these amazing structures are created out of thin air. His own photographs beautifully complement the text.

All snowflakes begin with water vapor in air, but as they begin their journey toward the ground, changes in temperature and humidity determine their exact and unique shape. Libbrecht answers questions that many children (and adults) are apt to ask, such as "Why is snow white when the crystals that comprise snow are clear?" 

Libbrecht's web site, SnowCyrstals.com, provides a wealth of images and even more information for those readers who finish the book and want to learn more. I recommend starting with the Snowflake Primer and the Snow Crystal FAQs.

The Snowflake: A Water Cycle Story, written by Neil Waldman - While ostensibly not a book about snowflakes, this water cycle book does begin and end with a snowflake. I like this book because it makes understandable the idea that resources on Earth are finite. Kids have a hard time with this notion, but Waldman makes this message clear as readers learn that the water we drink, wash in, and play in is part of an amazing cycle that repeats itself over and over and over again. 

Water takes many different forms, but it's the form of snow in which this journey begins. In January a snowflake lands on the peak of a mountain. Over the course of year the snowflake changes both location and form. In February it's blown into a mountain pond, where it melts in March. This tiny droplet sinks into an underground stream where it continues its journey. That water drop travels to a farm and evaporates into the clouds before it comes back down to the ground to travel even further. Eventually it becomes a snowflake once more.

This post was written for Nonfiction Monday. The round up is being hosted by Laura Salas. Do stop by and check out all the wonderful books being shared today.

100th Day Booklist

I looked at the calendar late last week and realized I missed Monday's poetry stretch and a whole host of other things I meant to do.

As I work back into book reviews, I have posted a new thematic list on the 100th day of school over at my teaching blog, Bookish Ways in Math and Science.

For some ideas on books to read and activities to try, check out the post 100th Day Books and Ideas.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Firsts

Today is the first day of the spring semester. As I wonder what this term will bring, I've started thinking a lot about firsts--first day of school, first kiss, first time on a plane, first time jumping out of one, etc. I've had a lot of firsts in my life, so this seems like a fine time to write about them. What first do you remember fondly? Or with great horror? Let's write about firsts. 

 Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Homes and Habitats

Hello All! Remember me? It's been five weeks. Where did the time go? I'll admit that I checked out with the end of semester work and holidays. 

I am back at work now and happily ensconced in the work of getting ready for a new semester. I did a lot of reading and reviewing over the break. One of the books I read was Marilyn Singer's A STRANGE PLACE TO CALL HOME. The poet in me loved the use of varied forms (free verse, triolet, villanelle, terza rima and more), while the scientist in me was thrilled with a text that introduced readers to oddities in the natural world. Here's an excerpt from one of my favorite poems. 

DOWN IN THE DEPTHS 

tube worms

Life is hard--it gets intense

          by deep-sea hydrothermal vents.

Superheated water rising,

          spouting out from tall, surprising

chimneys built on the ocean floor.

Yet there live giant worms galore

          in tubes that shield them from the heat.

Since reading this I've been thinking a lot about the places where we live. A recent trip to Manhattan had me thinking about living in cities and teeny tiny apartments that cost outrageous amounts of money, but I digress. Let's write about homes, habitats, or other places humans or animals might live. Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.

Monday Poetry Stretch - Opposites

I picked up a couple of books  by Richard Wilbur at our fabulous used bookstore last week. One was THE POEMS OF RICHARD WILBUR (1947), and the other was MORE OPPOSITES (1991). Here's a bit of info from the jacket flap of the latter.

"Richard Wilbur, his wife, and their four children used to play a rather unusual game around the dinner table. One member of the family would suggest a word, and then everyone would join in a lively quarrel about its proper opposite." 

Wilbur's first book based on this game, OPPOSITES, was published in 1973. The poems in both volumes are a bit nutty, thoroughly entertaining, and downright clever. Here's one from MORE OPPOSITES.

The opposite of kite, I'd say,
Is yo-yo. On a breezy day
You take your kite and let it rise
Upon its string into the skies,
And then you pull it down with ease
(Unless it crashes in the trees).
A yo-yo, though, drops down, and then
You quickly bring it up again
By pulling deftly on the string
(If you can work the blasted thing).

Here's a nice video of Wilbur reading a number of opposite poems.
So, your challenge for the week is to write on opposites. Leave me a note about your poem and I'll share the results in time for Poetry Friday.