Poetry Month

We were all looking forward to our poetry unit last month after getting a big stack of poetry books from the library and being inspired to make a poetry tree (hanging poems from tree branches artistically arranged in a container).

Then we started listening to a couple of CDs by Sharon Creech (thanks, Katina!):

and listened to them again,

and again,

and yet again. 

We laughed along with Jack, a young boy, who thinks he can't write poetry but, with the gentle encouragement of his teacher, ends up writing all sorts of poetry.

Before I knew it both of my kids were racing home from activities (we listened to the cds in the car) to write down poems on bits and scraps of paper.  Matthew was begging me to read the poetry books with him and then help him get the right kind of paper for him to write his own poems on.

We didn't do any of the "formal" lessons I had planned on the different types of poetry and we never got around to our poetry tree (the poems didn't "fit" very well on the cards we were going to hang on the tree).  Thanks to Jack's inspiration, however, we experimented with alliteration, metaphors, similies and repetition.  What a delightfully natural way to enjoy poetry.

Some of my favorites from the "bits and scraps" of paper ....

Frog

by Matthew

Funny, floating frog

Resting

On a

Green lily pad.

The Storm

by Matt

Oh the

Pitter Patter

Of the rain

Sounds like music

   in the day

As the rain drops

   come out to play.

OH THE HEAVY CROSS

by Bekah

Oh the heavy cross on Jesus’ shoulders.

What a heavy cross on Jesus’ shoulders.

Too heavy to carry if you tried.

Oh, if you tried it would be too heavy.

But he all tired and weak,            

                carried the cross as a sign of defeat.

Waiting for his fate that would be very great for the world.

His fate would be great for the world

because he saved us from sin, our greatest enemy

He saved us from sin, our greatest enemy.

 Oh the heavy cross.