My Elephant Paints Pictures - A Poetry Break

INTRODUCTION
As I prepare for my upcoming storytime season one day I was diving into the world of amazing animals. One of them is the elephant. They are not just large grey animals with a silly, long nose. Like other animals, they are incredibly smart and caring animals. They can also be artists! Before you share this poem ask the children what they know about an elephant. What can it do? Then ask if they know that elephants can paint. It'll be fun to hear their answers!





POEM

My Elephant Paints Pictures
by Jack Prelutsky 

My elephant paints pictures,
Gems of color, shape, and line,
Aesthetically superior
To every one of mine.
His drawings are exemplares
Of fluidity and grace.
I scribble worthless doodles
I should probably erase.
He shapes exquisite statues
Using nothing but his trunk.
I sculpt atrocious eyesores,
Unadulterated junk.
Though I lack his native talent,
Nonetheless I'm sort of smart,
So I've started taking lessons
From my elephant ... in art.

CONNECTIONS

• Share this poem with the book Elephants Can Paint Too! written and photographs by Katya Arnold. 
• Show a video of an elephant painting. You should be able to find some on YouTube.
• Have the children try to paint a picture with either their paint brush held between their teeth or with their arm in front of them by their nose to simulate painting like an elephant. Or they can do bother methods! 

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Prelutsky, Jack. 2012. I've Lost My Hippopotamus. Illus. by Jackie Urbanovic. NY, NY: Greenwillow Books (HarperCollinsPublishers). ISBN: 9780062014573.