First Day of Autumn! - To Each His Own - A Poetry Break

INTRODUCTION
Autumn can be peaceful and wonderful season to watch the world around you change. When reading this poem aloud, read it slowly then reactant to the actions of the leaves that are falling in the poem. Mimicking the actions of the leaves in the poem will add the touch of action and realism to the poem that the listeners will appreciate. Share this poem with Hines' other poem "Ode to a Rake" from the same book.


POEM

To Each His Own
by Anna Grossnickle Hines

..When the leaves fall
....some float
..............lasily
...................wavily
....and taking all
....................daysily
...........................drift
....to the ground.
Some flutter
.............skuttering
......................wuttering
.....audibly uttering
........................whispers
.................................of sound.
When the leaves fall
......some
..........come in bunches
..............................swirling
..................and whirling
.............twisting
.....and twirling
.................round
....................about
.................round.
Some
.......skip-a-dip
................bippity
......................floppity
.............................flippity
......................toppity
................tippity
.......plippity
..............down.
And some
.......just drop
.............flop.

EXTENSION
After read this poem have a little field trip outside so that the children and experience and witness the real falling trees. Ask them if they see the leaves that are being described in the poem. Have them describe in prose or poetic form how the leaves fall down from the trees at school or at home. If Autumn hasn't sprung and the leaves are falling in your area, bring a bag of faux leaves and have them flutter inside.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Hines, Anna Grossnickle. 2001. Pieces: A Year in Poems & Quilts. NY: Greenwillow Books (HarperCollins Publishers). ISBN: 0688169643.

My Favorite Pencil - A Poetry Break

INTRODUCTION
Everyone has their favorite pencil or pen that they like to use when writing homework or doodling. This poem provides three different students and their description of their favorite pencil. Prepare the poetry break by writing your own poem about her favorite pencil (or pen) and sharing it with the class or group of kids. Be sure to show your favorite pencil so they can also see it!

POEM

My Favorite Pencil
by Kalli Dakos

JENNIFER:
My
favorite
pencil
is
long
and
thin
and
has
an
eraser
where
it
beings.

SYLVIA:
My favorite pencil
Is short and fat
And has an eraser
For a hat.

SANTOS:
My favorite pencil broke in two,
and I tried to fix it up with glue.

EXTENSION
Invite the children to write their own poem about there favorite pencil. Let them describe it in anyway that they view their writing instrument. It will be fun to see what characteristics and personification that they see in their pencils! Also, share other poems about school supplies, like Lee Bennett Hopkin's School Supplies: A Book of Poems.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Dakos, Kalli. 1995. Mrs. Cole on an Onion Roll and Other School Poems. Illus. by Joann Adinolfi. NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. IBSN: 0027255832.

The Eraser Poem - A Poetry Break

INTRODUCTION
This poem is meant to be seen and to be heard aloud as it wonderfully uses both senses. A creative way to present the poem is to write it on a chalk board or a white board. Write the entire poem as "The eraser poem" and as you read the poem aloud you can erase one letter as you go. Also bring supplies, whether paper and pencil, or chalk or markers for the boards, so the listeners can try.

POEM

The Eraser Poem
by Louis Phillips

The eraser poem.
The eraser poem
The eraser poe
The eraser po
The eraser p
The eraser
The erase
The eras
The era
The er
The e
The
Th
T
.

EXTENSION
Let the children create a poem that is erased. Let them do the erasing randomly to see what will become of the poem then have the do it again but think about what they are going to erase. Compare the two versions and see to see which one they like better. It will be fun to see the difference between all of the students, and not only will the poem become something interesting to share aloud, but also become visually intriguing at the same time.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Hopkins, Lee Bennett, sel. 1996. School Supplies: A Book of Poems. Illus. by Renee Flower. NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 0689804970.

For Me?

BIBLIOGRAPHY
van Straaten, Harmen. 2007. For Me?. Trans. by MaryChris Bradley. NY: NorthSouth Books. ISBN: 09780735821637.

BOOK REVIEW
When Duck discovers that someone had left him a rose and a note with only a heart drawn on it he takes it to his friend Toad. Toad as well as their other friends and neighbors, Otter and Hedgehog, also got the same mysterious doorstep gift. "What do you think it means?" they all ask and they begin to theorize that who the giver is and that perhaps one of them is in love. It is only until a someone arrives at the house do they find out who had given them the presents and why. Harmen Van Straaten's watercolor illustrations that have a combination of subtle color changes to the background and the characteristics of the four friends add touches of whimsy and charm to this all ready lovely story. Young readers will especially like Duck's hat. For Me? is a fun book about friendship that would appeal to all readers.

CONNECTION
*Ask the children how they would say "Hi" to their new neighbors when they just move to a new home.
*What would they think if they received a single flower and a note on their doorstep?

Marked - House of Night Series

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cast, P.C. and Kristin Cast. 2007. Marked. NY: St. Martin’s Griffin. ISBN: 9780312360269.

BOOK REVIEW
Changes in life can be hard, especially if you are unexpectedly “marked” as a fledgling vampyre and have to change schools. Leaving her friends, boyfriend and not-so-nice family behind, Zoey begins her new life as a fledgling at the House of Night to learn to become an adult vampyre. Of course, that is if she makes it through the change, which not all do. On top of a new school and making new friends, Zoey discovers that she has been chosen to have a special connection with the vampyre Goddess Nyx and rapidly develops new powers that fledglings normally don’t have. Life at the House of Nights gets mysterious when she discovers that the leader of the Dark Daughters is misusing her powers and she must set things right. As a mother and daughter team, P.C. and Krisitn Cast’s writing has the exciting and humorous touch of how teenagers would speak and think. Along with the usual dramas of teenage life Marked is also includes with mysteries and great action. The unique touches to the vampires themselves, especially the tattoos they develop as an adult vamp (or in Zoey’s case when the Goddess Nyx is pleased with her actions), their history, and bloodlusts that develops when feeding on others, adds to the new views of vampires in literature. Set in their hometown of Tulsa, OK, the authors also include well-rounded characters who are friends, or enemies, of Zoey and allow references to pop culture to make them more real to the readers. Being the first book of the currently five-book House of Night series about Zoey’s life and continuously unique drama that is full of twists and turns, Marked is growing in popularity and competition among the ranks of vampire literature and is an extremely welcomed addition to the subgenre and will draw the readers in.

CONNECTION
*Continue to follow Zoey’s story with the other books in the House of Night series: Betrayed, Chosen, Untamed, Hunted and Tempted (coming October 2009).
*Have a House of Night event and let the participants create their own tattoos.

Grumpy Cat

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Techentrup, Britta. 2008. Grumpy Cat. NY: Boxer Books. ISBN: 9781905417698.

*A 2009 Texas 2x2 Book*

BOOK REVIEW
Cat is grumpy. He sits between his trash cans alone, he eats alone, and he sleeps alone. However, Cat is also a lonely cat as he doesn't know how to join the other cats to play. Then when night, during a thunderstorm that leaves him wet and cold, a Kitten appears. Despite still being grumpy and trying to lose her, all of the brown and black stripped Cat is constantly followed by his new and unwanted friend Kitten. The orange and brown stripped kitten tries to play with him, wiggles her tail under his nose, pulls his tail and shows him her soft tummy. However, Cat is still grumpy until Kitten nearly falls out of a tree. This is a short and simple story of how a friendship is formed that young readers will like. The illustratrions are a combination of bold and soft and are graphically tectured what brings to mind that of other artists like Eric Carle, though less bold and colorful and more realistic. The young readers will like the grumpy look of Cat and the playfullness of Kitten. With the combination of the oversize bookform, lovely illustrations, and the clean text, young readers are sure to enjoy.

CONNECTION
*Ask the readers if they were ever grumpy until one of their friends came to visit or when a new friend came a long.

Dinosuar Starts School

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Edwards, Pamela Duncan. 2008. Dinosaur Starts School. Illus. by Deborah Allwright. Morton Grove, Ill: Albert Whitman & Company. ISBN: 9780807516003.

BOOK REVIEW
It's the first day of school and Dinosaur, a bright orangey-red Stegosaurus, is full of worry and doesn't want to go. However, his little human companion offers him reassurance. The story is cleverly written through a series of "What if..." questions like "What if you were painting pictures of the sun but Dinosaur made a big mess? What if his bight dinosaur eyes filled with tears and he began to cry?" and "What if it was time for lunch but Dinosaur said in his worried dinosaur voice, 'They might give us something yucky to eat.'" All the while, his friend offers answers to all the questions and makes Dinosaur at ease until they meet new friends another boy with a Triceratops who also are struggling with the first day of school. The illustrations are colorful and charming. All the children wear an array fun, retro style clothes and are an mixture of skin tones and hair styles (the young friend of dinosaur has a cool up-swoop hairdo). The pages are filled with color and action that will equally entertain the readers. This is an endearing story of the first-day-of-school jitters that many children will relate to, especially to those who love dinosaurs or have an imaginary animal friend. This is a must for all public and school libraries and is perfect for a storytime.

CONNECTION
*Ask the children if they had a dinosaur who started school, what would you tell them if they were scared? What type of dinosaur would it be?
*Do a dinosaur craft.
*Other stories about going to school like Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes and How do Dinosaurs Go to School? by Jane Yolen and illus. by Mark Teague.