Module 3-2011 Poetry Book/LS 5663-20

Module 3-2011 Poetry Book
George,Kristine O.. Emma Dilemma. Boston: Clarion Books, 2011. ISBN 978-0-618-42842-7
“Mom, she is bothering me!”
“No, I’m not!”
“Are too!”
“Are not!”
This has been an argument heard at many houses all around the world and will continue as long as siblings strive to build relationships with each other. The relationship between sisters is a very special one. Many of us have at one time viewed our little sisters as pests and would like for them to leave us alone, instead of constantly interrupting us. The poems in this award-winning book do an amazing job to introduce the reader to the unique and often hard to understand relationship between sisters. The author, Kristine O’Connell George, uses her experience as a big sister to give a unique perspective in her writing.
The author uses the connection between Jessica and Emma to appeal to the emotions of the reader. Each person at one point in their life has seen their younger sibling as an ally, a playmate, but also as the enemy. Each of the poems has a natural cadence and rhythm, and are not written in rhyming format. This format would be excellent for choral reading. The language used by the poet can be easily understood by the reader and each of the poems, along with the illustrations by Nancy Carpenter, stimulates the imagination of the reader.
In the following poem, Emma Dilemma, the poet presents an interesting description of dealing with the frustrations of having a pesky younger sister.
Emma Dilemma
Sometimes Dad calls my little sister Emma Dilemma.
Dad says a dilemma is an interesting problem.
I know Dad’s joking but sometimes Emma is my dilemma.
Each of the poems included in this book share about different facets of the relationship between two sisters and help to reinforce the purpose of this book, which is to show the love and sometimes intense dislike between two siblings. As much as our siblings do things to drive us crazy, such as trying to copy each thing that we do or embarrass us in front of our friends, we still love them. The reader will feel many different emotions throughout the reading of this book, as the poems share Jessica’s daily struggles with her little sister, ranging from pride to intense sadness.
As a way of sharing this book, I would use this book as a way of introducing a study of family relationships. I would begin with the question, “How do you feel when your sibling does something to bother you?” Depending on the grade level, students may need to know what the word sibling means. After allowing students to verbally share how they would feel and writing these down on chart paper, I would share the following poem:
Trespass
Someone has been “shopping” in my room.
Someone has been playing dress-up with my clothes.
Someone has left the caps off all my new markers.
Someone drew a face on my soccer ball.
Someone is hiding and had better hope I never find her.
Students could complete a journal entry about their siblings. An example could be:
When my little sister(or brother) takes something of mine, I feel ________________________.
To extend this activity, I would have the students complete a home project sharing information about their family with different questions, such as what type of activities does your family like to do together, how many siblings do you have, and what makes your family special. This is an activity that my first grade students complete each year. Older students could write their relationship with a sibling.

Module 3-Verse Novel/LS 5663-20

Module 3-Verse Novel
LeZotte,Ann C. T4, A novel in verse. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2008. ISBN 978-0-547-04684-6
This verse novel shares a lesser known story of the atrocities inflicted during the Holocaust. T4, or Tiergartenstrasse 4 is the headquarters where the Nazi regime made it a priority to annihilate any mentally ill, or disabled person. The main character of the verse novel is Paula Becker, a deaf teenager faced with the frustration of trying to communicate with each of her family members and trying to survive in time when those who were “different” were done away with. The topic of the Holocaust is often a very difficult one to read about, however it is a topic that must be shared due to the historical significance.
Because of the subject matter, this verse novel stimulates the emotions of the reader. The character of Paula feels like she is an outsider in her own family due to her disability. Paula learns to communicate with her hands with the help of the local priest, who also plays a key role in her survival as she matures. It has been said that when one of our senses is taken away, the other senses become stronger. The poet uses sensory images to convey feelings. For example, in the following poem, What I saw, the reader views an increased awareness of the sense of sight.
What I Saw
My visual sense was so strong.
If a breeze shook the leaves on a tree
I would shriek with delight.
If people ran fast past me
It looked like a tidal wave.
Even the motion of a hand waving goodbye startled me.
Since the subject of the Holocaust is very emotional and difficult to comprehend, I feel that this book should be geared toward students in the intermediate age range. As a way of introducing this book, I would have the students discuss how they would feel if they were no longer able to hear anything, such as their music or the voice of their friends. Students of this age are dependent on their friends and are highly influenced by peers. Have them share their frustrations and fears and explain why they might feel this way. I would then ask them to share how they would communicate if they were not able to hear the voices of friends and family. Would they use texting or another means of communication? As my last question, I would have them put themselves in the place of Paula and ask how they would feel if they knew that the government didn’t think that they deserved to live because of their disability.

Module 3-Poetic Form/LS 5663-20

Module 3-Poetic Form
Mora,Pat . Yum! MmMm!Que Rico!: America's Sproutings. New York: Lee & Low Books, Inc., 2007. ISBN 978-1-58430-271-1
Everyone is drawn in by the appeal of food. Pat Mora has taken several of the foods that are native to America and stimulated our tastebuds, as well as our love of language. Each of the haikus shared in the book used language in a unique way, giving vivid descriptions of each of the foods represented. The traditional haiku poetry form is written in a way that the reader can almost taste each of the foods represented. The illustrations done by Rafael Lopez enhance the writings and enrich the history of the vegetables. In addition to the haiku, the author has given a brief summary of the history of each of the fruit or vegetables. The haiku traditionally consists of 17 syllables in lines of 5, 7, and 5 syllables respectively, and the author uses this form to share descriptive, colorful, and even tasty writing. Pat Mora introduces the reader to poetry about foods that they may enjoy on a daily basis, foods that only the adults, in their families will eat, and even foods that they have never even heard of.
In order to fully appreciate this book, I would provide a sample of several of the foods represented in the book.* I would focus on the following poems,
1.Chocolate
Fudge, cake, pie, cookies
Brown magic melts on your tongue
Happy, your eyes dance.
2.Cranberry
Marsh-floating hard bead
Simmers then POPS! In hot pot.
Scarlet fireworks.
3. Papaya
Chewing your perfume,
We taste your leafy jungle.
Yum! Juicy tropics.
I specifically chose these three foods, since many people enjoy chocolate, many parents enjoy cranberries and very few of my student have never tasted papaya. *I would have the students taste each of the food samples. After tasting each sample, I would have the students share descriptive words about each of the foods. I would encourage each of the students think about each of the senses, depending on how the foods taste, sound, feel , look and smell. After each of the foods are tasted, the descriptive words could be used to write a class haiku about the favorite sampled food.
*(Prior to the tasting of each of the foods, I would obtain permission from each of the parents and check for food allergies.)

Module 2-NCTE Award Poetry/LS 5663-20

A jar of tiny stars: poems by NCTE award-winning poets. Bernice E. Cullinan. Honesdale, Pennsylvania: Boyds Mill Press, Inc., 1996. ISBN 1-56397-087-2
This book is a collection of NCTE award-winning poets. Each poet shares a source of the inspiration for their work. At the end of the book, not only do the award-winning poets share about their sources of inspiration, information is given about their life accomplishments. Many of the poems share about familiar childhood experiences, such as selling lemonade or the birth of a new puppy. Each of the poems were chosen by children and the poems consistently show evidence of the high quality of writing.
The following poem would be a great introduction to a poetry study.
How to eat a poem
-Eve Merriam
Don’t be polite.
Bite in.
Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that may run down your chin.
It is ready and ripe now, whenever you are.
You do not need a knife or fork or spoon or plate or napkin or tablecloth.
For there is no core
Or stem
Or rind
Or pit
Or seed
Or skin
To throw away.
As a way to introduce this poem, I would have an assortment of fruit and talk about what happens when you eat a piece of fruit. Does juice run down your chin? Do you hear a crunch? Is the fruit soft, hard, squishy, or firm. As the students are sharing, I would have them brainstorm as many words as possible to describe the fruit. After the students eat a piece of fruit, I would read the poem and have the students think about what happened as they ate their piece of fruit. I would then have the students writing a line for a class book using the sentence starter, When I bit it my apple(or whatever their fruit is), the fruit was__________. If possible, I would use shaped -writing paper and have each student choose the shape closest to the fruit that they sampled. This activity could be also be used for a unit on the food pyramid and healthy eating habits.

Module 2-Multicultural Poetry/LS 5663-20

Module 2-Multicultural Poetry
Alarcon,Francisco X.. Laughing tomatoes and other spring poems/Jitomates risuenos y otros poemas de primavera. San Francisco, CA: Children's Book Press/Libros para ninos, 1997. ISBN 0-89239-139-1
Francisco Alarcon uses the concept of springtime and different vegetables to stimulate thoughts and emotions of special times with family, such as meal times or cooking with family. Many memories are evoked by a certain smell or by eating a certain food. The illustrations bring the words to life and the language used gives the reader such elaborate descriptions of foods often found in the Hispanic culture. I would love to be able to read, and verbalize the Spanish language in order to truly appreciate the gift of words given by the poet. Any of the poems in this book would be amazing to share during Hispanic Heritage Month(September) or during Cinco de Mayo. I would love to have parents come in an share the favorite moments while cooking with their parents, and possibly read the following poem:
My Grandma’s Songs
Would follow the beat of the washing machine
Turning our kitchen into a dance floor
Consoling the chairs placed upside down
Delighting the family portraits on the walls
Putting to sleep the sheets on the clothesline
Giving flavor to the boiling pot of beans
The songs my grandma used to sing
Could make the stars come out
Could turn my grandma into a young girl
Going back to the river for water
And make her laugh and cry at the same time.
The familiar childhood experiences described in several of the poems bring back memories and for all that read the poems, drawing the reader to a time of simplicity and innocence. The writings use imaginative, descriptive words to enlighten the reader about topics shared in the Hispanic culture.

Module 2-Florian Poetry/LS 5663-20

Module 2-Florian Poetry
Florian,Douglas. Insectlopedia. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1998.
ISBN-10: 0152013067
Douglas Florian does an amazing job of introducing the reader to insects that can usually cause one to cringe, scream or run away in fear. The topics of insects is naturally appealing to younger children and this book of poetry would be an excellent resource when doing a thematic study. The tone of each poem is light and playful, making one feel as if they are outside in the garden watching the bugs play and crawl around.
Florian presents each of the insects poems in a fresh and imaginative way. For example, in the poem, The Whirligig Beetles, it is written in a circular pattern to simulate their whirling and twirling in circles.
As an introduction to an author study on Eric Carle, I would began the unit with the following poem,
The Crickets
You don’t need tickets
To listen to crickets.
They chirp and cheep for free.
They fiddle and sing
By rubbing each wing,
And never will charge you a fee.
After reading this poem, I would have the students share what they know about crickets and share what information that they would like to find out about crickets. I would then read The Very Quiet Cricket by Eric Carle. After reading the book, I would have the students work on retelling the story by sequencing the different animals that the cricket encounters throughout the book.