POETRY BREAK: SCHOOL/LIBRARY/BOOKS

POETRY BREAK: SCHOOL/LIBRARY/BOOKS

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Marilyn Singer. 2008. FIRST FOOD FIGHT THIS FALL AND OTHER SCHOOL POEMS. Illustrated by Sachiko Yoshikawa. New York: Sterling.

ISBN 9781402741456

INTRODUCTION: Before reading one of the poems from the book begin by having the students recall their first day experiences—whether happy, sad, funny or somewhere in between.

The poems contained in this book are told by the twelve children introduced in the first poem. While each and every poem is delightful and fun the one I have chosen to highlight here is as follows:

SANDWICH TRADES by Max

Jake doesn’t like peanut butter and jelly,

egg salad, meatballs, any cheese that’s smelly,

bologna on a roll, tuna fish on rye,

chicken nuggets, nachos, even pizza pie.

But bean curd with sprouts or dandelion greens,

marinated mushrooms, oily sardines,

ripe avocado sliced on whole wheat,

and artichoke pate are things he loves to eat—

and what my mother makes!

So each day we exchange.

I’m glad to have a friend

whose favorite foods are strange!

EXTENSIONS:

Have students write and illustrate if desired their own poems about their first day of school experiences.

Some other poem books that have to do with school are:

Kalli Dakos. 1990. IF YOU’RE NOT HERE, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND—POEMS ABOUT SCHOOL. Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0689801165

Kalli Dakos. 2002. THE BUG IN TEACHER’S COFFEE: AND OTHER SCHOOL POEMS. Illustrated by Mike Reed. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 0064443051

Kalli Dakos. 1990. PUT YOUR EYES UP HERE: AND OTHER SCHOOL POEMS. Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 1416918027

Carol Shields. 1998. LUNCH MONEY AND OTHER POEMS ABOUT SCHOOL. Illustrated by Paul Meisei. New York: Penguin Group. ISBN 014055890X