CCBC-Net Archives
Music & poetry
- Contemporary messages sorted: [ by date ] [ by subject ] [ by author ]
From: Vlasta Blaha <vblaha>
Date: Fri, 14 Apr 2000 14:46:40 -0500
Joyfully I read several notes mentioning Joyful Noise by Paul Fleischman. It is a favorite of mine and my elementary students. Using these poems is a great way to entice reluctant poetry readers into becoming active (very active) poetry readers and performers as well. This book is also a wonderful way to teach about insect habits and ties into science curriculum. What a terrific blend of pleasures.
When someone mentioned the kinship of music and poetry that is evident in the Joyful Noise poems, I was also reminded of the book Dance With Me by Barbara Juster Esbensen who is an NCTE award winner. The strong, distinctive rhythms created by the words in each poem definitely melds music with poetry. Descriptions of bubbles as "A dance of breath that has learned to fly!" surprise and delight us with the sound, feel and images from these words. My favorite poem is Gardener in which
"zinnias/daisies/pansies/grow/to the sunlit rhythm/of Mother's hoe. Clearly musical rhythms are extended to unexpected topics such as lightning dance, dancing with the wind, shadow dance, mirror dance, and flower ballerinas. Magnificent to read aloud!
Other books by Esbensen that I particularly enjoy are Echoes for the Eye: Poems to celebrate patterns in nature which has great tie-ins to science and math class in describing spirals, branches, polygons, circles, meanders, and Fibonacci series. Her book, Words with Wrinkled Knees: animal poems has unique descriptions such as "This big word has/springs/in its tail/and a trampoline/under its feet/ K A N G A R O O These descriptive word poems become a guessing game or riddle of sorts---lots of fun to share.
Vlasta
Vlasta Karol Blaha, Library Media Specialist Colby, Dorchester, & Unity Elementary Schools 202 W. Dolf Street Colby, WI 54421 715"3939 ext. 358 vblaha at colby.k12.wi.us
Received on Fri 14 Apr 2000 02:46:40 PM CDT
Date: Fri, 14 Apr 2000 14:46:40 -0500
Joyfully I read several notes mentioning Joyful Noise by Paul Fleischman. It is a favorite of mine and my elementary students. Using these poems is a great way to entice reluctant poetry readers into becoming active (very active) poetry readers and performers as well. This book is also a wonderful way to teach about insect habits and ties into science curriculum. What a terrific blend of pleasures.
When someone mentioned the kinship of music and poetry that is evident in the Joyful Noise poems, I was also reminded of the book Dance With Me by Barbara Juster Esbensen who is an NCTE award winner. The strong, distinctive rhythms created by the words in each poem definitely melds music with poetry. Descriptions of bubbles as "A dance of breath that has learned to fly!" surprise and delight us with the sound, feel and images from these words. My favorite poem is Gardener in which
"zinnias/daisies/pansies/grow/to the sunlit rhythm/of Mother's hoe. Clearly musical rhythms are extended to unexpected topics such as lightning dance, dancing with the wind, shadow dance, mirror dance, and flower ballerinas. Magnificent to read aloud!
Other books by Esbensen that I particularly enjoy are Echoes for the Eye: Poems to celebrate patterns in nature which has great tie-ins to science and math class in describing spirals, branches, polygons, circles, meanders, and Fibonacci series. Her book, Words with Wrinkled Knees: animal poems has unique descriptions such as "This big word has/springs/in its tail/and a trampoline/under its feet/ K A N G A R O O These descriptive word poems become a guessing game or riddle of sorts---lots of fun to share.
Vlasta
Vlasta Karol Blaha, Library Media Specialist Colby, Dorchester, & Unity Elementary Schools 202 W. Dolf Street Colby, WI 54421 715"3939 ext. 358 vblaha at colby.k12.wi.us
Received on Fri 14 Apr 2000 02:46:40 PM CDT
