Halloween Rehearsal

I am so glad to have stumbled upon Susanna Leonard Hill's 9th Annual Halloweensie Writing Contest. It provided me with a bit of seasonal inspiration and it was a delight to write again.

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Halloween Rehearsal

Cobweb-woven spider-dreams

Goblins practice silent screams

Potions perk and cauldron steams.

Soon comes Halloween.

Catch a newt and hairy eye.

Train some bats to pierce the sky.

Rattle bones so bare and dry.

Here comes Halloween.

Dragons run their shiny scales

Black cats hunch and quiver tails

Ghosts fan out unfurl like sails

Close to Halloween.

Last glance in the mirror, quick.

Fix your hat and grab your stick

Candy bag should do the trick.

Now it’s Halloween.

Pocket Poems Activity with A Sock is a Pocket for Your Toes

I have to confess I have not been keeping up very well with National Poetry Month.

Probably because my school celebrates poetry in February, but no matter!

Every month is poetry month!

Yesterday I did an activity with my second graders that, um, I did with them last year as first graders.

They were very forgiving and hey, they came up with some new pocket poems.

I always enjoy reading them - they are so clever!

Start by reading A Sock is a Pocket for Your Toes:  A Pocket Books by Liz Garton Scanlon.

Then, copy and cut these strips, having the students create their own pocket poems.  

Here are some great examples from my second graders:

A Desk is a Pocket for Your Pencil 

A Body is a Pocket for Your Life

A Book is a Pocket for Your Learning

A Head is a Pocket for Your Brain

 &

A TV is a Pocket for Your DVD

It's the End of the Year As We Know It!

We're back from Spring Break and it is totally incredible how little time we have left before the end of the school year.  Well, yes, some days will seem long, but the time 'til the end of the year will seem to fly by, especially with almost three weeks of Standards of Learning (state) testing.

It's been a busy week; I cannot believe it was only a four-day one!!

After much gnashing of teeth and a little help from my Twitter friends, I created a Virginia version of "Over in the Meadow" and "Down East in the Ocean:  A Maine Counting Book" using the wild animal suggestions from my kindergarten students.  I'm thinking of spiffing it up and actually submitting it to an agent for review.  Of course it would be dedicated to my Kinders!  But ah, I'm getting ahead of myself! 

: )

With my first and second graders, I used the book "A Sock is a Pocket for Your Toes:  A Pocket Book".  Then we created our own pocket poems.  My students ROCKED it!!!  Some of the poems made me laugh, some made me say "Awwwww!", and one darn near made me cry!!  The format was simply:

A ________________________  is a pocket for your _____________________.

Try it with your primaries!  

Fourth grade continued with their Voki projects and thanks to @sducharme , the process went like a dream.  Here is one example of their Voki-ness:

MVP**
Voki by B.P.

So many other things went on in the Library this week, I've just about lost count.  Not to mention a County-wide librarians meeting and a staff meeting!  How was your week!?


Until next time,


Amy

From the Home Office: Poetry Picks

I'm finally feeling like my old self and just in time, since Winter Break is officially over!

As if to buffer ourselves against the winter chill, many of my grades are beginning poetry units.  I've found several ideas that I will be trying with my first, second and third graders.

This year I will once again create "Spine Poetry" with my third graders.  I can no longer remember who suggested this idea, but it's a lot of fun.  Students roam the fiction shelves in search of three or four books to stack  - forming a poem in the process.  Here are some pictures of last year's poems:

Here's a great website to use for composing poetry on the fly, especially if you are lucky enough to have an interactive Smartboard!  Use this to reinforce sight words too!

And finally, I was intrigued by this idea of Paper Bag Poetry.  I may have my students compose their poems directly onto a brown paper lunch bag. 

How are you fending off the winter blues with a poem or two?