Tag: Janet Wong

Poetry Friday Goes to School

Inspired by the lively Poetry Friday community in the blog world, this year I decided to bring that magic into my work as a Literacy Coach in a K-3 school. 

Each Friday, I share a poem via email to our school community. Teachers can choose to share the poem on a screen or print it out so that children can illustrate it. To make it even better, the poem is read aloud each Friday during morning announcements!

The kick-off poem was “Circle of Sun” by Rebecca Kai Dotlich from the wonderful anthology HERE’S A LITTLE POEM. Last week it  was Deborah Ruddell’s “The Cardinal.” The week before, Molly Lorenz’s poem about making friends with a new kid was a big hit– “Lunch” from the book What is a Friend? (edited by Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell of Pomelo Books). 

Weaving poetry into the school day is academically sound, and good for the heart and soul… Happy Poetry Friday, everyone!

On Fridays, I love taking part in Poetry Friday when I can, where writers share resources about children’s poetry. This week, poet Buffy Silverman hosts the Poetry Friday Roundup today at her blog. Check out the celebration of poetry there today!

 

Feeling the beat, feeling the love

Poetry came to life when the very talented music teacher in our Cape Cod elementary school used my poem “Drum” in her exploration of percussion recently. What a delight to read my poem to our K-3 students, to hear children drumming, to listen to them beat out the rhythm of this poem on various types of drums.

Music class in a K-3 school

I was thrilled to collaborate with the music teacher in this effort, and to kick off this school year by celebrating the publication of the new middle-grade poetry anthology from Pomelo Books called WHAT IS HOPE? I made a video of myself reciting the poem so the music teacher could use it in her classes when I was not available to read it to each class in person. So I’ve been getting a lot of “I know your poem!” from children as I walk through the halls. 

I’m grateful to editors Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell for including my poem “Drum” in this lively and full-of-heart book. 100% of the profits from the book go to the IBBY Children in Crisis Fund. Where can you order it? Check here.

Happy Friday, friends!

On Fridays, I love taking part in Poetry Friday when I can, where writers share resources about children’s poetry. Check out the celebration of poetry on Matt Forrest Essenwine’s blog today. 

Hope is a Drum

Feel that drumbeat? School is starting.

A new school year fills me with hope– hope for fresh starts, open hearts, new learning. I’m back to work in my job as an elementary school Literacy Coach. How perfect to kick off this school year by celebrating the publication of a new middle-grade poetry anthology from Pomelo Books called WHAT IS HOPE? 

I’m delighted to have a poem included in this collection. “Drum” was fun to write, and I’m hoping to collaborate with the music teacher in our school to do something together with the students around percussion and this poem!

I’m grateful to editors Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell for including my poem in this lively and full-of-heart book. 100% of the profits from the book go to the IBBY Children in Crisis Fund. Where can you order it? Check here.

My wish for you is that this new school year, and this new season, starts with hope.

On Fridays, I love taking part in Poetry Friday when I can, where writers share resources about children’s poetry. Check out the Poetry Friday gathering at Amy Ludwig VanDerwater’s blog today!

 

Vitamin P: A Poetry Workshop for Teachers

This week I led a professional development session for teachers, “Vitamin P: Boosting the Use of Poetry in the Literacy Block.”

“Animal Talk” by Charles Ghigna

For three hours, we played with poetry! We talked about how to infuse poetry across the curriculum, find rich and meaningful poems, and present poetry in different ways– charts, slides, big books, and more.

THINGS WE DO anthology by Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell

The teachers perused a huge selection of poetry books and made poetry charts for their classrooms, choosing poems that were just right for their students. 

“All Kinds of Kids” by Elizabeth Steinglass
“My People” by Langston Hughes. Book illustrated by beautiful photographs by Charles R. Smith Jr.

It was joyful, creative, and energizing. And the teachers’ feedback was amazing…

“You are so passionate about poetry! It is infectious :)”

“It’s so exciting to reignite the power of poetry in the classroom, especially to spark SEL conversations.”

“I really feel that poetry helps to level the playing field for many struggling readers and kids who may feel unsure of themselves, as well as a powerful place for higher level thinking.”

“This filled my soul! I needed ‘permission’ to use poetry again!”

*****As a presenter, it was an exciting and delightful day.

As a poet, I was thrilled to reignite the poetry flame in many of the teachers.

We all left the workshop with an elevated dose of “Vitamin P!”

“Ask” by Janet Wong

On Fridays, I love taking part in Poetry Friday when I can, where writers share resources about children’s poetry. This week, check out the Poetry Friday Roundup here

Finding Poetry in Robotics? Yes!

WHAT IS A FRIEND? I am delighted to be a part of a new poetry book for middle graders that answers this question. It’s a collection of poems about all aspects of friendship– getting along, competing, trying out new ventures together. My poem, “Team,” is about a robotics team tinkering and figuring out together how to make things work. It’s dedicated to my friend Brian, who teaches Robotics in a high school on Cape Cod serving a very diverse and high-needs population. Here’s to all the robotics teachers, helping their students to “try, fail, adjust.”

WHAT IS A FRIEND? is edited by Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell of Pomelo Books; it was chosen as a Children’s Book Council “Hot Off the Press” Selection for October! It would be a great gift for a teacher you know, or a young reader in your life. You can order it from Amazon or Bookshop.org. Thank you, Sylvia and Janet, for the dynamic and thoughtful poetry books for young readers that you put out into the world. 

On Fridays, I love taking part in Poetry Friday when I can, where writers share resources about children’s poetry. This week, Sarah Grace Tuttle hosts the Poetry Friday Roundup today on her blog. Check out the celebration of poetry there today!

Poetry Friday: What’s “Poetry PLUS?”

I’ve learned so much about what it takes to put together a poetry anthology by taking classes from Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell. “Poetry PLUS” is one aspect of the art and craft of assembling an anthology that fascinates me as a poet and an educator.

Sylvia Vardell & Janet Wong

On the Pomelo Books website, Janet and Sylvia define it this way:

We believe in “Poetry Plus”—poetry PLUS writing, poetry PLUS language arts mini-lessons, poetry PLUS curriculum connections for social studies and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math), poetry PLUS mindfulness and movement, and poetry PLUS lots more fun!

There is even a packed page of Poetry PLUS treasures on their Pomelo Books website!

Janet and Sylvia’s latest anthology, THINGS WE DO, is a beauty. I may be biased since I have a poem in this collection! THINGS WE DO is an alphabetic book of playful poems bursting with children in action– from Ask to Zoom! Each spread in this book features a vivid photo of a child doing something active, accompanied by a poem such as Invent, Dance, Fly, and Type.

But beyond those 26 poems, there’s more! This is where the PLUS comes in. There is a section for parents, caregivers, and educators called “Tips for Readers” that details “strategies for sharing poetry with children” such as using props and “echo reading.”

The “Fun Activities to Try” section features suggestions on extending the poetic experience with movement, learning letters, writing poetry, reading a poem at breakfast time, and sharing with special family members. 

But there’s even more to the PLUS! So many gems are highlighted in the web resources, including Reading Rockets and We Need Diverse Books. And finally, there is an “About the Poets” section, with a tidbit of info about each of the poets. 

I have a poetry collection out on submission now (fingers crossed!), and I included “Poetry PLUS” by featuring juicy facts, almost like side-bars, to add some nonfiction heft to each poem. That’s one way to add more “Plus” power to poetry. But THINGS WE DO has inspired me to consider other ways of adding to the poetry experience for readers. 

What might you add to your poetry? Or what have you included? STEM connections, craft activities, maps, timelines, or something more? The possibilities are exciting! Thanks to Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell for the inspiration.

On Fridays, I love taking part in Poetry Friday when I can, where writers share resources about children’s poetry. 

THINGS WE DO- a playful A to Z book of poems for children!

It’s publication day for a very special poetry anthology for young children. THINGS WE DO is an alphabetic book of playful poems bursting with children in action– from Ask to Zoom! Each spread in this book features a vivid photo of a child doing something active, accompanied by a poem such as Invent, Kick, Jump, and Clap. Published by Pomelo Books, THINGS WE DO is now available by ordering from QEP Books, and will soon be available on Amazon. It’s perfect for PreK through first grade.

Many poets contributed to this A-Z collection, including some very well-known poets! My poem, “Type,” is inspired by my work as a K-2 Literacy Coach. Each day I get to see children making letters, then their names, then words… it’s a magical process that made its way into my poem. I can’t wait to share it with the first graders I work with each morning!

Poet Janet Wong and poetry expert Sylvia Vardell assembled this anthology, and they are a joy to work with. It was a revelation to be part of their Anthologies 101 and 201 classes and to watch how they encourage and guide poets in the creative process. Vardell and Wong are donating all the profits from THINGS WE DO to the IBBY Children in Crisis Fund. You can see their fun video about the book here (and you can also see why they are a delight to work with!).

THINGS WE DO has been selected as “Hot Off the Press” books for October by the Children’s Book Council! (along with Janet Wong’s  brand-new book Good Luck Gold & MORE)

THINGS WE DO is a beautiful and playful book of poems, perfect for the young child or teacher in your life. Be sure to add it to your holiday shopping list!

On Fridays, I love taking part in Poetry Friday when I can, where writers share resources about children’s poetry. This week, Jama Rattigan hosts the Poetry Friday Roundup today at her blog Jama’s Alphabet Soup. Check out the celebration of poetry there today!

 

Teaching teachers: Poetry in the early childhood classroom

When you get to combine teaching with a topic you’re passionate about– that’s the sweet spot! I just finished teaching one of my favorite courses at the community college, “Poetry in the Early Childhood Classroom.”

In this class, we dove deep into poetry: how to infuse it throughout the curriculum, how it can foster social-emotional growth, how a poem can be a window, mirror, or sliding glass door for a child.

One of the assignments of the course is “Author Study of a Poet.” This summer, my students (who all teach in early childhood) focused on Nikki Giovanni, Janet Wong, and Douglas Florian, among others. They also completed Poetry Portfolios to use in their classrooms, and made big beautiful poetry charts for shared, choral reading.

It was a creative, fun class, and their final reflections show that! Here are some of their postings:

**My view on poetry in the preschool classroom has changed dramatically.  Prior to this class I would have considered myself not a fan at all.  I had no idea how helpful the addition of poetry could be to introducing and elevating the curriculum in the classroom.  I love the idea of adding connections to the subject at hand by utilizing poetry to enhance the topics.  I am also intrigued by the humor that can be added by selecting the right poem. I love to make the kids laugh.

**I never really took the time to read poetry, but now after taking this class, it has really opened my eyes to all the different ways poetry is useful. Especially tonight’s class and listening to Mary explain how poetry can be used, like as a dipstick to see what children know, or to preview a topic. I like how poetry can also be used as an emotional rehearsal. Things can always be related to poems or vice versa.

**The same way I sometimes underestimate the power of a walk through nature is the way I can “overlook” the power of poetry in the classroom.

**I will definitely take away from this class the idea of servicing through teaching in a new light.  The idea of helping a child with transitions by utilizing poetry and books as windows hit me in a whole new way.  I also will take away the positive impact that poetry can have on speech development and shyness.

I had that hit of “mission accomplished” as I read these comments, and I hope they inspire any teachers who read this to add more poetry to their teaching.

Happy summer, everyone!