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Teacher to Teacher Ideas in the Top Teaching Blog | Scholastic

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Exciting lesson ideas, classroom strategies, teaching tips, book lists, videos, and reproducibles in a daily blog by teachers from the classrooms of extraordinary mentor

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Made with Shadow Puppet. Download free on the App Store.

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My Ss made Google poems today & shared in @Seesaw. Here's how we did it: https://t.co/cJbvWDJfuO #seesawchat

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My Ss made Google poems today & shared in @Seesaw. Here's how we did it: https://t.co/cJbvWDJfuO #seesawchat https://t.co/6W5Dr5gL44

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My Ss made Google poems today & shared in @Seesaw. Here's how we did it: https://t.co/cJbvWDJfuO #seesawchat pic.twitter.com/6W5Dr5gL44
— Julie Jacobs (@EdTechJulieJ) April 11, 2016

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My Ss made Google poems today & shared in @Seesaw. Here's how we did it: https://t.co/cJbvWDJfuO #seesawchat https://t.co/6W5Dr5gL44

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My Ss made Google poems today & shared in @Seesaw. Here's how we did it: https://t.co/cJbvWDJfuO #seesawchat https://t.co/6W5Dr5gL44

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My Ss made Google poems today & shared in @Seesaw. Here's how we did it: https://t.co/cJbvWDJfuO #seesawchat

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Wonderopolis + Seesaw Blackout Poetry App Smash

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Wonderopolis + Seesaw Blackout Poetry App Smash

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Great links to celebrate National Poety Month from Jama's Alphabet Soup

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Great links to celebrate National Poety Month from Jama's Alphabet Soup

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HAPPY NATIONAL POETRY MONTH!
Did you know that National Poetry Month is "the largest literary celebration in the world, with tens of millions of readers, students, K-12 teachers, librarians, booksellers, literary events curators, publishers, bloggers, and, of course, poets marking poetry's important place in our culture and our lives every April"? And 2016 marks the 20th Anniversary of NPM!

Visit poets.org for the full scoop on how you can participate, including 30 Ways to Celebrate National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day (April 21, 2016), Poem-a-Day, and especially for students and teachers, the Dear Poet Project. Check the state-by-state listings to find poetry-related events near you. And there's still time to order your free Poetry Month poster (designed by Debbie Millman)!

Now, here's a list of what some kidlit bloggers are doing. If you're also celebrating Poetry Month with a special project or blog event, or know of anyone else who is, please leave a comment here or email me: readermail (at) jamakimrattigan (dot) com, so I can add the information to this Roundup. Thanks!
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2016 KIDLITOSPHERE POETRY MONTH EVENTS
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🌺 Irene Latham at Live Your Poem has recruited 30 poets for her fifth annual Kidlit Progressive Poem. This is a wonderful community writing project where a poem travels daily from blog to blog, with each host adding a new line. Laura Purdie Salas will kick things off on April 1 at Writing the World for Kids. Here's the full schedule of participating bloggers:
April
1 Laura at Writing the World for Kids

4 Diane at Random Noodling

5 Penny at A Penny and Her Jots

6 Carol at Beyond LiteracyLink

7 Liz at Elizabeth Steinglass

8 Janet F. at Live Your Poem

9 Margaret at Reflections on the Teche

10 Pat at Writer on a Horse

11 Buffy at Buffy's Blog

12 Michelle at Today's Little Ditty

13 Linda at TeacherDance

15 Matt at Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme

16 Violet at Violet Nesdoly

18 Irene at Live Your Poem

19 Charles at Charles Waters Poetry

20 Ruth at There is No Such Thing as a Godforsaken Town

21 Jan at Bookseedstudio

22 Robyn at Life on the Deckle Edge

23 Ramona at Pleasures from the Page

25 Mark at Jackett Writes

26 Renee at No Water River

27 Mary Lee at Poetrepository

28 Heidi at My Juicy Little Universe

29 Sheila at Sheila Renfro

30 Donna at Mainely Write
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🌸 Irene Latham at Live Your Poem will also continue ARTSPEAK!, the poem-a-day project she started during 2015 in which she responds to images found in the online collection at the National Gallery of Art. This year all the art and poems will be on the theme of "Plant. Grow. Eat."
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🌼 Tricia Stohr-Hunt at The Miss Rumphius Effect will be spotlighting April holidays and celebrations with her special project:

"Inspired by World Rat Day: Poems About Real Holidays You've Never Heard Of (written by J. Patrick Lewis) and The Poetry Friday Anthology for Celebrations: Holiday Poems for the Whole Year in English and Spanish (compiled by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong), this time around I've decided to focus on daily, weekly, and monthly celebrations held during the month of April. In addition to information about each celebration, I'll offer up poems, books of poetry, children's books, and more."

Click here for a list of topics to be covered.
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🌹 Jone MacCulloch will be sharing student poetry daily at Check It Out. She's also once again doing her annual Poetry Postcard Project, where Silver Star ES students send out illustrated poetry postcards to anyone requesting them. Sign up HERE if you'd like to receive one. This is a wonderful project - eight years running so far - I always enjoy receiving my postcard each April.
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"When Mom and I were sorting through a drawer full of old pictures last December, I was struck by the forgotten faces and the unknown stories that were captured on film. This April, I'll bring 30 of the photos back to life through poetry."

Check in daily with Mary Lee at her personal poetry blog, Poetrepository (poems will be cross-posted at A Year of Reading).
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🌻 Keep a song in your mind, heart, and step all month long with Heidi Mordhorst at My Juicy Little Universe. She'll be featuring Poetry-Music Match-Ups!Pairings will include original poems with music that goes with it, poetic song lyrics, poems written AS song lyrics, poems inspired by songs, songs written about poems, and favorite nursery rhymes. These will be Heidi's own match-ups as well as those submitted by other kidlit poets and bloggers.
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💐 Michelle Heidenrich Barnes has a very special month planned at Today's Little Ditty. She will be hosting the one and only, multi-award winning poet Marilyn Singer and her new book of reverso poetry based on Greek myths, Echo Echo. Festivities will begin on April 1 with a Spotlight Interview and writing challenge. Don't miss it!
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🍄 Look out! The Putrid Poetic Ponderings of Louis J. Pasternak, AKA Dr. Skullstench is coming your way! Laura Purdie Salas will be sharing her chapter book as a serial, one day at a time, at Writing the World for Kids. This story is part prose and part poetry:
It all begins when Louis' teacher, Miss Sweetmallow, tells the class they are going to write poems. To say Louis is unenthusiastic is an understatement. But then Miss Sweetmallow says the magic words: "You can write them about anything you want." Louis decides this might not be so bad as he shares his interest in blisters, head cheese, inappropriate hairdos, and more in 25 poems, each one an example of a particular poetic technique or form. Along the way, Louis (that's Dr. Skullstench to you) decides writing poetry isn't so bad, and he tries different platforms to share his work, from the morning TV announcements to the class talent show. But Miss Sweetmallow prefers a more lyrical approach to poetry and tries to sway Louis toward writing beautiful poems. Will she succeed? Will Louis share his gross vision of the world? Will the talent show go off without a poetic hitch? Find out in The Putrid Poetic Pondering of Louis J. Pastenak, AKA Dr. Skullstench.
Laura also has a cleanly formatted PDF of this funny read aloud available for download here, perfect for classroom sharing.
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🌺 Don't miss this year's Rhyming Picture Book Month (RhyPiBoMo) festivities hosted by Angie Karcher. Now in its third year, this month-long writing challenge is especially geared for children's writers aspiring to write rhyming picture books and to add poetic techniques to their prose. In addition to an awesome roster of guest posts by authors, agents, and editors, Angie has added a Classroom Challenge, where teachers and students try to read as many rhyming picture books as they can during the month of April. This year's guests include Margarita Engle, Linda Sue Park, Tricia Lawrence, Penny Parker Klostermann, Anika Denise, and Sylvia Vardell. Click here for all the details. Don't forget, you must register by April 8 to be eligible for daily prizes.
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🌸 Serena at Savvy Verse and Wit is hosting a National Poetry Month Blog Tour:

"This year, I'm hoping that I can get some wonderful blogs to participate in the 2016 blog tour for poetry. I would love to get some great new interviews, reviews, poetry readings, innovative poetry activities, and some visual artists interested in sharing some poetic renderings."

In addition to the blog tour stops, Serena will also be featuring her own posts each day this month.

Click through to sign up for the link-up any time during the month of April.
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🌺 Get ready to Wallow in Wonder with Amy Ludwig VanDerwater at The Poem Farm!

"For my 2016 National Poetry Month project, I will celebrate learning and writing from learning, writing poems from each daily Wonder at Wonderopolis. As I did with the Dictionary Hike in 2012, I am looking to surprise myself with a new inspiration daily. This year, such inspiration will show up in my inbox each morning. I will print it and carry each Wonder around all day...and in the afternoon or evening, I will write and post the poem for the next day."

Amy invites students, teachers, anyone - to play along. Simply leave links to your poems in the comments of her blog anytime during April and she will try to link to and/or share some of them at The Poem Farm!
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Unveiling of my winter gallery, Winter Wanderings (hopefully on April 1st at Poetry Friday to kick off National Poetry Month)

Hosting a global conversation, "April is Poetrylicious" at 3NYEDChat (Twitter Educational Chat) on April 11, 2016 at 8 p.m. EST. I am inviting all my poet friends to be part of the moderating crew. I will host the event with Paul W. Hankins as co-moderator and any other poets, writers, bloggers who are willing to participate for one hour. Colleagues and connected educators should be there for a lively conversation.

Announcement of my new gallery of artistic expressions, Spring's Seeds, that will start during National Poetry Month and run through the end of May.

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🌹 Mary Ann Scheuer at Great Kid Books will be celebrating Poetry Month by featuring some of her favorite poetry books + resources to help parents, teachers, and librarians share poetry with children and inspire them. Check out her top five rules for sharing poetry here.
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🌺 Diane Mayr will be doing Ekphrastic Mondays at Random Noodling again this year. Each April Monday she'll share a poem inspired by a work of art. This year she's using art pieces by Childe Hassam.
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🌻 Penny Parker Klostermann will be continuing her wonderful weekly series, A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt, at her blog all during April. On the second Friday of the month Penny will feature a poem she's written that's illustrated by her great-nephew Landon. Guest poets and artists will be featured on the other Fridays. Those of you following Penny's blog on Poetry Fridays know how delightful this series is with its awesome pairings. Click here to see the roster of previous Guest Episodes as well as Penny and Landon Episodes. 🙂
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"Beginning April 3, each week will be dedicated to celebrating a specific type of poetry. During each week, I will share favorite poems in each category, review at least one book, and invite guest poets to share their poems and/or inspiration with you."
Here's her schedule:
April 3 - 9: Concrete Poems

April 10 - 16: Animal Rhymes

April 17- 23: Free Verse

April 24 - 30: Haiku

Rebecca will be writing poems in these specific forms and sharing her favorites. She invites everyone to join her in this challenge by leaving their poems in the comments at the end of each week. Sounds like fun!
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🌵 Over at her Hatbooks blog, author Holly Thompson will be featuring "Notice Poems," verses related to her new middle grade verse novel Falling into the Dragon's Mouth (Henry Holt, 2016), which launches April 19, 2016. Set in Kamakura, Japan, this story follows Jason-sixth grader, orange belt in aikido, and big brother-as he struggles to cope with escalating bullying at school and encounters other outsiders and outcasts in his Japanese seaside community. Look for a new Notice poem each day this month. Click here to read the first one. Holly's also inviting others to write their own Notice poems and share them on Twitter: #NoticePoems.
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🌺 At Reflections on the Teche, Margaret Simon will be writing daily poems inspired by images and tweeting to #imagepoems. She's kicking things off with a poem about April Fools Day.
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🍄🍄 Tammy and Clare at Teachers for Teachers will be blogging about poetry all month long. They'll immerse themselves in poems, study the craft of some mentors, and even try writing some poems themselves. Their first post features a sample poem from J. Patrick Lewis's National Geographic Book of Nature Poetry.
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🌸 Linda Kulp Trout is doing her very first Poetry Month Project this year at . She will post five-minute daily reflections about her progress as she tries to shape the daily snippets she wrote for Renee LaTulippe's February writing challenge into a collection of poems. Check in with her this month and cheer her on!
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🌷 Doraine Bennett is doing a unique poem-a-day challenge at called "Feet in the Creek."

"For each day I have chosen a favorite poem, a favorite poet, or a favorite friend. I will look at the work, decide what draws me to it, what makes it resonate for me, and then write my own poem about the creek [in my back yard] with those techniques in mind. These are first drafts, so nothing will be especially polished, but they will be starting points for revision after the month is done. Feel free to follow along or join in."

Dori kicks things off with her poem "after," inspired by and modeled after Ralph Fletcher's poem "soon."
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🌷 Looking for a lovely way to celebrate International Haiku Poetry Day on April 17? Check out "Queens Writers Read in the Garden," which features a Haiku Workshop (1-2 p.m.) and a Nature Poetry Reading (2-4 p.m.) at the Queen's Botanical Garden in New York. Aspiring kidlit author Amy Losak, daughter of Sydell Rosenberg (charter member of the Haiku Society of America), will be sharing her mother's haiku/senryu during the workshop and her mother's other poetry during the nature reading, which features Queens Poet Laureate Maria Lisella. Both events are suitable for both adults and children and are free with admission to the gardens, but registration is required. Click here for more info.
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🌺 Meanwhile, Donna Smith at Mainely Write is having a grand old time serving up "A - Z on a Plate" as part of the annual A-Z Blogging Challenge. She's been photographing vanity license plates this year and will be writing poems inspired by them - a different letter of the alphabet every day except Sundays, when she will share poems left by commenters during the week. This is a fun and unique challenge and Donna invites everyone to join her in taking poetic license this month!
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💐 As has been her practice for the last 8 years or so, Liz Garton Scanlon will be writing a haiku every day this month. This is a good opportunity to see how this gifted writer approaches haiku as a form of meditation.

"[Haiku] are about pausing purposefully, noticing mindfully, taking a full breath and being totally present to a moment. In that way, writing a haiku every day for a month becomes a truly meditative practice. There is so much more going on in each poem than 17 syllables."
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🌷 Are you up for a little April Poetry Madness? Katie at The Logonauts and her class are compiling lists of their favorite poetry books for children up to age 5, and will conduct bracket-style voting to determine winners in two categories - "classic" poetry books published before 2010, and newer poetry books (2010+). They would like input from any interested students, teachers, and poets. Submit the titles of your favorites by filling out the Google form at Katie's blog. First round of voting begins April 13.
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🌷 🌷 🌷 Here at Alphabet Soup, in addition to our usual Poetry Friday fare, our menu will include some uncommonly talented and good looking hotTEAs of Children's Poetry. We can't think of a better way to keep the fires of inspiration lit all month long. This special deliciousness will be served up twice a week, so be ready to raise your mugs in celebration. 🙂
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Finally, don't forget to check in with April's Poetry Friday hosts to see what other bloggers are sharing in the kidlitosphere:
April
1 Amy at The Poem Farm
8 Laura at Writing the World for Kids
15 Michelle at Today's Little Ditty
22 Jama at Jama's Alphabet Soup
29 Buffy at Buffy's Blog
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♥ I'll continue to update this Roundup throughout April, so do check back! For your convenience, a link to this Roundup can be found in the sidebar of this blog.
Wishing you a thoroughly nourishing, inspiring, productive, interesting, and enlightening Poetry Month!
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Copyright © 2016 Jama Rattigan of Jama's Alphabet Soup. All rights reserved.

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2016 National Poetry Month Kidlitosphere Events Roundup

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HAPPY NATIONAL POETRY MONTH! Did you know that National Poetry Month is "the largest literary celebration in the world, with tens of millions of readers, students, K-12 teachers, librarians, booksellers, literary events curators, publishers, bloggers, and, of course, poets marking poetry's important place in our culture and our lives every April"?

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This is "Poetry Club" by Tim Saunders on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

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Great way to reflect on what poetry means to you...

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Great way to reflect on what poetry means to you...

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Allan Wolf http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/book/immersed-verse#cart/cleanup

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Top 10 Tips to Get HS Students (All Students) Interested in AND Excited about Poetry OR What I Learned from Hanging with Kwame by JoEllen McCarthy

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If you are a nerdy fangirl (or fanboy), you will get why the next sentence sounds so surreal. I have had the pleasure of knowing author, poet extraordinaire, and Newbery winner, Kwame Alexander for many years. Recently, Kwame asked me to join him at a high school visit here on Long Island.

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Great resource for MS and HS

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Welcome to Poetry 180. Poetry can and should be an important part of our daily lives. Poems can inspire and make us think about what it means to be a member of the human race. By just spending a few minutes reading a poem each day, new worlds can be revealed.

Poetry 180 is designed to make it easy for students to hear or read a poem on each of the 180 days of the school year. I have selected the poems you will find here with high school students in mind. They are intended to be listened to, and I suggest that all members of the school community be included as readers. A great time for the readings would be following the end of daily announcements over the public address system.

Listening to poetry can encourage students and other learners to become members of the circle of readers for whom poetry is a vital source of pleasure. I hope Poetry 180 becomes an important and enriching part of the school day.

Billy Collins
Former Poet Laureate of the United States
Learn more about Billy Collins

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Poetry 180 | Poet Laureate Projects | Poet Laureate | Poetry & Literature | Programs | Library of Congress

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In an effort to make poetry an active part in the daily experience of American high school students, this project, launched in 2002 during Billy Collins' tenure as Poet Laureate, gives students a chance to read or listen to a poem on each of the 180 days of the school year.

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Wonderful Mentor Texts & Resources

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The Poetry Friday Anthology® series helps teachers and librarians teach poetry easily while meeting the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and the Texas TEKS for English Language Arts (ELA)/Poetry and Science & Technology. Celebrate Poetry on Fridays-and any day-with The Poetry Friday Anthology®!

PET CRAZY: A Poetry Friday Power Book is a story in poems and a writing journal that contains twelve PowerPacks with creative activities to get your children (K-3) thinking, drawing, reading, and writing about cats, dogs, lizards, rabbits, and more! Resources for children (as well as parents, teachers, and book club leaders) include "Hidden Language Skills" to sharpen language learning even further, recommended reading lists and websites, tips for reading aloud and writing, talking points, and places to publish. The book features the work of the dynamic team of Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong, illustrator Franzi Paetzold, and 12 poets: Kristy Dempsey, Helen Frost, Janice Harrington, Eric Ode, Laura Shovan, Eileen Spinelli, Elizabeth Steinglass, Don Tate, Padma Venkatraman, April Halprin Wayland, Carole Boston Weatherford, and Tamera Will Wissinger. This book will get your kids barking up the WRITE tree!

What People Are Saying about PET CRAZY:

" Children will be able to use their personal experiences with pets as a springboard for writing- you can't beat that! " -Becky Calzada, Library Services Coordinator, Leander ISD

" Rich with resources . . .and the story thread ties it all together for young readers." -Susan Polos, School Librarian, Bedford Central School District

"Entirely accessible for young children . . . a wonderful fit for elementary students." -Marion Rocco, Bilingual Librarian, Professional Resource Library, Austin ISD

"The resources are amazing! I loved the Hidden Language Skills! " -Paige Bentley-Flannery, Community Librarian, Deschutes Public Library

PET CRAZY: A Poetry Friday Power Book is a Children's Book Council "Hot Off the Press" selection and is available now for pre-order and mid-August delivery at QEP Books (call 800-323-6787). 124 pp. Grades K-3.

HERE WE GO: A Poetry Friday Power Book for Tweens & Teens

HERE WE GO: A Poetry Friday Power Bookfor children, tweens, and teens, features 12 PowerPack sets that combine: 1) diverse anchor poems; 2) new original response poems and mentor poems by Janet Wong; 3) PowerPlay prewriting activities; and 4) Power2You writing prompts.

The twelve anchor poems for HERE WE GO were written by: Naomi Shihab Nye, Carole Boston Weatherford, Joseph Bruchac, David Bowles, Ibtisam Barakat, Eileen Spinelli, David L. Harrison, Kate Coombs, Robyn Hood Black, Michelle Heidenrich Barnes, Renée M. LaTulippe, and Margaret Simon. Their poems are joined together with twenty-four new poems by Janet Wong that form a story featuring a diverse group of kids who are concerned about social justice and work together to fight hunger with a walkathon and school garden. Sylvia Vardell's inventive PowerPlay activities make it easy for writers to get inspired, while her Power2You writing prompts extend the learning. Vardell also created extensive back matter resources for readers and writers. A ges 8 and up.

Note: This is the second book in the Poetry Friday Power Book series and was selected for the NNSTOY Social Justice Book List. Book 1 in the series, You Just Wait: A Poetry Friday Power Book, was published in September 2016 and was selected as a 2017 NCTE Poetry Notable.

"This interactive book and the abundance of resources provided will motivate students to take action through words and ideas to make their world a better place- a must have for today's classrooms." -Lynne Dorfman and Rose Cappelli, Authors of Mentor Texts, Nonfiction Mentor Texts, and Poetry Mentor Texts

" I absolutely love this book! The invitations are inspiring and offer opportunities to think about the world and respond both personally and critically." -Mary Napoli, Associate Professor of Reading, Penn State Harrisburg

"This book will allow all sorts of emotions and thoughts to bubble forth, including difficult and painful ones . . . and that will be a source of healing." -Ed Spicer, Educator and literacy expert

"Really glad and excited that this book will be in the hands of young people." -Jeana Hrepich, Core Faculty, Antioch University Seattle

You Just Wait: A Poetry Friday Power Book for Tweens & Teens

YOU JUST WAIT: A Poetry Friday Power Book for tweens and teens, features 12 PowerPack sets that contain five elements: 1) a PowerPlay prewriting activity; 2) a previously-published Outside Poem (in this case, from The Poetry Friday Anthology for Middle School); 3) a new original Response Poem; 4) a new original Mentor Text poem; and 5) a Power2You writing prompt. PowerPacks = a fun and inspiring approach for a wide variety of readers and writers. Curious? Take a look!

The twelve Outside Poems from The Poetry Friday Anthology for Middle School (an NCTE Poetry Notable) were written by Robyn Hood Black, Joseph Bruchac, Jen Bryant, Margarita Engle, Julie Larios, Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, Charles Ghigna, Avis Harley, Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, Charles Waters, and Virginia Euwer Wolff. The way they are joined together here with twenty-four new poems by Janet Wong, they form a story featuring Paz, an Asian-Latina soccer player with dreams of stardom in college, the Olympics, and ultimately the World Cup; Lucesita, her feisty movie-loving cousin; and Joe, an older brother with dreams of the NBA. Sylvia Vardell's inventive PowerPlay activities make it easy for writers to get inspired, while her Power2You writing prompts extend learning. Vardell also created extensive back matter resources for readers and writers.

What People Are Saying about YOU JUST WAIT:

"Imagine a completely original way of writing verse novellas . . . Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell have once again broken barriers with their bold, innovative approach to teaching poetry. I am thrilled to be included!" - Margarita Engle, Newbery Honor-winning author of The Surrender Tree

" YOU JUST WAIT is a must-have resource for middle-school teachers, the perfect invitation for teens to explore text-to-self connections through poetry. Comprehensive tools for implementation accompany excellent Poetry Friday selections, and Janet Wong's brilliant connective tissue provides wonderful mentor pieces." - David Bowles, Pura Belpré Honor-winning author of The Smoking Mirror

"Great spirit! Great fun! Let's write!" - Pat Mora, Author of Dizzy in Your Eyes: Poems about Love; Founder of Día: Children's Day, Book Day / El día de los niños, El día de los libros

"Every poem tells a story. Every page invites connection. Young readers will find their fingers itching to respond to these verses and to add their own poems and stories." -Carol Jago, Longtime English teacher & Past President of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)

Hooray for holidays! The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Celebrations features poems in English and Spanish by 115 poets for 150+ holidays and celebrations, including: Random Acts of Kindness Week, Children's Book Week, World Laughter Day, National Camping Month, International Literacy Day, Global Hand Washing Day, and more! It's available in a Teacher/Librarian Edition and a Children's Edition. Check it out at PoetryCelebrations.com! (And listen to a FREE audio sampler at SoundCloud featuring 35 poems from the book read by David Bowles & Friends!)

Poets include: Jack Prelutsky, J. Patrick Lewis, Joyce Sidman, Margarita Engle, Marilyn Singer, Nikki Grimes, Alma Flor Ada, F. Isabel Campoy, Ibtisam Barakat, Uma Krishnaswami, Francisco X. Alarcón, Linda Sue Park, Jane Yolen, Kenn Nesbitt, Jorge Argueta, Grace Lin, Joseph Bruchac, Douglas Florian, Laura Purdie Salas, Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, and 95 others. See our terrific list of contributors here!

Target audience: PreK - Grade 5; for Public Librarians, School Librarians, K-8 Classroom Teachers, Reading Specialists, and ELL Teachers, and Children (ages 4 and up). Available in a Teacher/Librarian Edition and a Children's Edition; order at Amazon or QEPBooks.com!
"A bubbly and educational bilingual poetry anthology for children." -Kirkus "If you are looking for Spanish language material to use with children in class or at home, you are going to love this book!... I guarantee you will find material to fit your curriculum." -Spanish Playground

Poetry + the Common Core (CCSS)

On Poetry Friday and any day: Integrate the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) for English Language Arts (ELA) into your curriculum with poetry. Poetry allows you to start small. You can address CCSS requirements in just five minutes with The Poetry Friday Anthology ®!

These editions of The Poetry Friday Anthology® are tailored to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for Poetry. Poetry allows you to start small; address the Poetry TEKS and prepare your students for the STAAR in just five minutes every Poetry Friday!

The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Science was designed to align with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) as well as the science standards of individual states, so the Teacher Edition and The Poetry of Science: The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Science for Kids can be used nationally. For Texas teachers, The TEKS Guide is a supplement with charts that show connections to the Science TEKS, Technology TEKS, and Poetry TEKS at a glance.

A NEW COVER for the Teacher/Librarian Edition!

NEW! An illustrated KIDS edition with 30 Bonus Poems!

"A treasury of the greatest science poetry for children ever written, with a twist!"

"If you only buy one book this year, this is the book you should buy. "

"Vardell and Wong have again provided an outstanding resource for classroom teachers!"

-IRA's Reading Today

"You will find information and guidance for linking poetry to the Common Core State Standards or the TEKS . . . This is a lot of resource and professional development for $29.99!"

- The ALSC Blog

Looking for an e-book? Many of our books are also available in e-book editions. You can load an e-book onto a large screen or Smartboard for the whole classroom to see, or download our e-books on your iPad or other Kindle/compatible device.

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Pomelo Books | Publisher of The Poetry Friday Anthology Series

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The Poetry Friday Anthology® series helps teachers and librarians teach poetry easily while meeting the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and the Texas TEKS for English Language Arts (ELA)/Poetry and Science & Technology. Celebrate Poetry on Fridays-and any day-with The Poetry Friday Anthology®!

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Kim Doele on Poetry Rockstar Visits

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Steven Layne writes in Chapter 9 of his book, "Author visits are exciting! Hosting an author can expose students to the wonders of reading and writing in a unique way, one they may have never considered before. When authors come to speak to young people, they often inspire them to want to read great books and to write with more consideration for their audience. There's no denying that preparing for author visits is a lot of work, but in my experience, the benefits have always been worth the effort."

I agree with Steven Layne! W riting a grant and planning for an author visit can be daunting

but a visiting author experience provides children with an important and influential event, one that will be felt for years. Layne continues in chapter 9 to describe the process of arranging an author visit, preparing students, ordering and autographing books, publicizing and creating excitement, providing hospitality and many extra helpful tips. Make sure to read this chapter if you find yourself in charge of planning an author visit.

I was fortunate to hear Steven Layne speak last summer at the Michigan Reading Association Children's Literature Conference on Mackinac Island. I paid particular attention to his words about hosting an author as I had written a grant for our school to host poet, Amy Ludwig VanDerwater in February 2015. I was excited and churning with anticipation but after listening to Steven Layne, I realized in order for students to feel this same level excitement, there were some things that would need to be done. By helping students make a connection to our author and her work, long before the visit, we were more apt to feel the excitement and magic during her time with us.

When school began in the fall I introduced Amy Ludwig VanDerwater at a staff meeting by sharing her website,"The Poem Farm," a of her reading, and her book, Teachers were encouraged to read poems from her site and to allow older students time to explore the site on their own. I challenged my third graders to choose their favorite poems after spending time reading on her site. They loved sharing these with the class and making recommendations for friends, based on their special interests. When we met with our Kindergarten Reading Buddies we often brought our Chrome books to read poetry from "The Poem Farm." Brothers talked to sisters, children talked to parents, and teachers began talking to one another, all sparked by Amy's poems.

By November interest was building and for those who had not tried writing poetry with their students, it was time to begin. At a staff meeting I shared an easy method of writing free verse poetry, Poet Each grade level team was given a copy of and Laura Salas offers on her website called, "15 Words of Less" (or 15 W.O.L.) in which you write from a photo image. I think teachers were amazed at what they created and were excited to try the process with their students.
The Poetry Friday Anthology
by Sylvia Vardell
Janet Wong to inspire ideas on sharing and writing poetry with their students. A basket full of some of the most beautiful poetry books, recently written, was shared and made available for circulation. Some of these books were anthologies which contained Amy's poems. How, some of you may be wondering, were these books funded? A generous P.T.O. and a dynamic principal who is always willing to find funds for a worthwhile endeavor. In January, a few weeks before Amy's visit was to take place, my very enthusiastic principal jumped in wholeheartedly by producing a video each day for teachers to share with their students. He called it, "The Poetry Parade" and chose three poems each time to read to the students. He offered that they might want to write in response to a poem they had heard, visit the Poem Farm to read, or send him suggestions of poems they felt should be read in future Poetry Parade episodes. Later he invited guest readers to come and read some of their own poems. The building was abuzz and poetry was the topic!

At this same time, I worked closely with our brilliant art teacher to create projects connecting to some of Amy's poems. Students at each grade level worked on a special piece of art to hang in a hallway display with one of Amy's poems. I chose the poems and she designed the projects. Below are samples of our displays.

Kindergarten Display

What Will You Be?
You know what I'll be when I grow up?
The one who puts sprinkles on cookies and cakes.
I'll be the one with jars full of rainbows.
I'll be the one who sings as he shakes.
I can't wait to sprinkle each leaf and each heart.
I'll turn sugar rain into small works of art.
And people will travel by air and by sea
to nibble wee cookies- sprinkled by me!
By Amy Ludwig VanDerwater

"Steady Stripes"
Illustrated by two students

We also created a large piece to display as a welcome for Amy, highlighting one of her poems. Each child contributed a word to make a "word blanket" imagined from her poem by the same title. You can imagine how excited children were to find their word on the "word blanket." All we needed now was the poet. And she did arrive one snowy morning.

Amy's visit consisted of large group presentations, tailored to the various needs of each age group. We combined grades K-1, 2-3, and 4-5 for these sessions. They were held in our school library.

Over the three days, time was also scheduled for Amy to teach a mini-lesson during a writing workshop for grades one through 5. The three classrooms at each grade level were split into two groups to make this possible. A highlight for most of the children was having the opportunity not only to confer with Amy but also to read aloud their work during a share time.

Steven Layne recommends that every visiting author have a guide for the day.
He says, "The most hospitable thing that you can do is to have one person, someone who knows the school well, serving as host/hostess for the day."
My principal served as host, touring the building and directing our guest to classroom visits. Our school has three floors and this was important not only to help Amy feel more comfortable but also to keep to a tight time schedule.
Another thing to consider is making sure meals are in place for your author. Coffee, bottled water, and lunches should be available for your guest. Make sure to inquire as to any food concerns beforehand. Hosting a lunch for the author to spend time with the staff is also something Steven Layne suggests. On the first day of Amy's visit. our PTO set up a table with delicious salads and sandwich choices.
On the second day, Amy was the guest of honor at Poetry Club. I offer Poetry Club once at week at lunch time, for third and fourth grade students to come and read and write poetry. We had a pizza lunch with Amy and students had a chance to talk with her as a group and also individually. My principal also scheduled a half hour time period for the club to meet with Amy. Club members had decided earlier that what they really wanted to do with this special time with Amy, was to each have the opportunity to read her one of their poems. This is what we did. Amy allowed them to ask questions and offered tips for revision work. It was an incredible experience.

We offered two opportunities for students to purchase Amy's book and some of the anthology collections containing her work. I arranged for a local independent book seller to provide preordered books for purchase as well as an after school sales table. On the second day of her visit children and their families were able to meet Amy and have their books signed.

Steven Layne advises," It is a fact that several students will fail to preorder books. Then, they will get very excited the day of the visit and come asking to order books now. You should anticipate this and congratulate yourself. What this really means is that a student who thought having an author come would not be a big deal now thinks that it is a big deal and wants to read!"
It is important to offer both opportunities for this reason.
Throughout the experience I posted our events on Twitter and Facebook. I would suggest doing this not only for the school community but also for the author, and education in general. Everyone has the chance to glimpse the wonderful work that is happening in schools. Posting on social media offers potential ideas for other schools who may not realize the influence and inspiration hosting an author will have for students. (More this topic )
Steven Layne leaves this chapter with...
The Day After
"Have a discussion about the event. Ask for feedback. How could it have been better? What did you learn? Start planning your next visit! "

This is exactly what we are doing!

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Steven Layne writes in Chapter 9 of his book, "Author visits are exciting! Hosting an author can expose students to the wonders of reading and writing in a unique way, one they may have never considered before.

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Playing with poetry

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Poem Farm

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Poetry and lessons for children of all ages by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater for classrooms or homeschools to teach literacy and writing workshop instruction