When Daddy Prays by Nikki Grimes

Bibliographic Citation: 

Grimes, Nikki. 2002. When Daddy Prays. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 0802851525

Review:

When Daddy Prays by Nikki Grimes is a compilation of poems that explain a father's prayer throughout everyday life. The poems are written from a little boys perspective and you can sense how much he looks up to his father by the word choice and underlying meaning. The experiences that are shared vary from church to baseball games and even finding missing car keys. All of these events are very down to earth and are easy for kids to relate to. Some of the poems are a little emotional, but for the most part are lighthearted and easy going. 

The poems are very descriptive and easily paint mental images when reading them. The sound and rhythm of the poems help the reader understand the words and encourage them to keep reading. Ladwig's illustrations were very realistic in color and went along well with the poems. The pictures give the reader a better sense of explaining the poems meanings, and even add in a hint of humor to some. 

Spotlight Poem:

Lost and Found

He felt inside his pockets,
He checked the dresser drawer. 
He peeked beneath the sofa 
and felt around the floor.

I offered my assistance
when I found him on his knees
muttering to himself about
a set of missing keys

So why did he start laughing
when I told him what to do? 
"Ask God to help you find it-
like you always tell me to."

Activity: 

One quick activity that you could do after reading this poem, is to have the students share a time when their parents have given them advice. The students can create  problem solution poetry, by listing issues on one side of the paper and their parents solution (advice) on the other side. At the end, they can even mix up their problem and solution poems and have other students try to match the problems to the correct solution. 

Alphathoughts by Lee Bennett Hopkins

Bibliographic Citation:

Hopkins, Lee Bennett. 2003. Alphathoughts. Honesdale, PA: Wordsong. ISBN: 1563979799

Review:

Alphathoughts is a book of poems by the author Lee Bennett Hopkins. It is a great introduction to poetry for young readers. This book consists of 26 short defining poems for each letter of the alphabet. The topics of this book varies from gymnasium to zoo to teachers. The length of the poems are very appropriate for elementary students and is a fun read. 

Students will enjoy looking for the hidden words and thinking about the meanings behind Hopkins poems. All of the poems are lighthearted and will even allow them to experience a few aha moments. The poems are very consistent with the title and reinforce the authors purpose, to create a definition poem about an object or person that starts with each letter from the alphabet. The illustrations are bright and airy. They tie in nicely with the poems and accurately describe what the poem is about in a dreamlike way. 

This book has a great combination of light poems and poems that have a deeper meaning. For example when Hopkins explains that a alphabet is a list of 26 letters that make up every English word in the dictionary, I had to stop and think about the cleverness in this line. Most students would not think about that when asked about the alphabet, and I think this book would be a great stepping stone for many rewarding activities. 

Spotlight Poem:

J

Jelly

A 

jolly

peanut-butter

playmate

Activity: 

As I read the Jelly poem, I really liked how Hopkins used jelly's opposite "peanut butter" when defining the word jelly. A fun activity to get kids excited to write poetry, would be to have them list about 10 words and either that words counterpart or opposite. Then you could challenge the kids to create a poem where they have to define the first word by using the second word. For example; I could write the word librarian and book. My definition could be, L-Librarian-a lover of books. After students complete their definition poems, you can have them share their definitions and have other students guess their word. This activity would be both engaging and fun for students of all ages!

What A Day It Was At School by Jack Prelutsky

Bibliographic Citation: 

Prelutsky, Jack. 2006. WHAT A DAY IT WAS AT SCHOOL! New York, NY: Green Willow Books. ISBN: 9780060823351

Review: 

Young students will love this book. The poems are written just for kids and will be sure to make them laugh out loud. This book is full of poems all about school, and are all written by Jack Prelutsky. All of the experiences that he writes about are very familiar and will leave the older readers with feelings of nostalgia and something that younger readers can really relate to. The poems throughout the story share all of the embarrassing/silly things that go on in schools every day, which reinforces the title of the book What a Day it was at School!

All of the poems are silly and playful and will leave the reader in a lighter mood. The short  poems are easy to read and have a great rhyme to them. When you are reading the poems, you can’t help but read them quickly and with a lot of voice. The words within the poems create a strong mental image and would be a great book to use when teaching mental images to children.

The table of contents is creatively used with this book. It resembles a little boy’s journal from school, with each poem serving as a different topic in his journal.The illustrations are bright and charming. They went along great with the playful poems and are sure to make kids smile. 

Highlighted Poem

I Wish I’d Studied Harder

I wish I'd studied harrder

For our spellink test today. 

I'm sorrie that I ddin't, 

Now I'm feeling some dismaye.

I'd like to get a passing graid,

But don't beleeve I will-

I think I got Whyoming wrong,

And Chyna, and Brazill.

Though I don't want to make misteaks,

I made them awl the same.

It's no one else's fawlt but mine, 

I have to take the blaime.

I tried to spell Cunneddykit,

But really, I just gessed...

If I had stoodied harder

Then I mite have passed the this test. 

Activity

A great way to share this poem would be to start off asking students if they have ever had a time where they wished they would’ve made a different choice. I would allow the students to share those times with their classmates. After they share their thoughts, I would then read the poem to them and show the words on a document camera. 

After the reading, I would ask the students what they thought about the poem and why he wrote the poem. By listening to the student’s answers, I will make sure that they understand that the boy in the poem wishes he would’ve studied harder for the spelling test because he is not a strong speller and will get a bad grade. I will then challenge the students to write a poem about a time when they made a choice/decision and wish they would’ve made a different choice. For example: I wish I would’ve wiped my dogs paws off when he came inside, before he jumped on my bed and got paw prints all over it. 

Coming soon!!!

Coming soon to Isbell! On January 29th, Ben Hatke will be visiting the students at Isbell! He will be talking with each grade level during specials about his writing process. The Isbell Students can't get enough of the Zita the Spacegirl series and will be excited to meet him! Stay tuned for pictures of the event! 

Learn more about Ben by visiting his website: http://www.househatke.com/