Poem in your Pocket Day!

April 29th is Poem in Your Pocket Day

Don’t forget to put a poem in your pocket and your child’s pocket on Thursday, April 29th in celebration of Poem in Your Pocket Day. Share it throughout the day with your family and friends.Sharing poetry with your child is both fun and rewarding. Doing so can brighten up the morning walk to school or provide a soothing end to the day for both you and your child.Come to your child's class on Thursday, April 29th to share your favorite poem.

Tips for Families:

Enjoying Poetry with Your Children
Ideas inspired by Bernice E. Cullinan from her book entitled, "Read to Me: Raising Kids who Love to Read".

Reading Poetry Together
For younger children, Mother Goose nursery rhymes and lullabies are good choices. There are also many beautifully illustrated collections of poetry for families and for the very young. Read just a couple of rhymes, poems or lullabies each night and enjoy the “sing-song” quality of the rhymes, the language and the word play. You might even clap or tap out the rhythm on your child’s back as you calm him/her to sleep.With older children, you may want to read fewer poems, maybe selecting just one or two to read, recite together, and talk about. Encourage children to talk about the feelings they have after hearing the poem, and share your own. What words helped them to see images or pictures in their minds? What part of the poem did they like or dislike and why? Listen, discuss, engage in conversation, but resist the urge to “teach” here. You’ll just want to share your ideas and feelings about the poetry with each other.

Fill in the Rhyme
When reading poetry and verse that rhymes aloud, you may want to play this “Fill in the Rhyme” game. Read the first line of the poem and read all the phrases of the next line, up until the rhyming word. Then, stop and encourage your child to supply the word that rhymes.

Family Poetry Night:
Family members may want to have a “Family Poetry Night,” where everyone chooses a favorite poem and then spends a week either memorizing or rehearsing a reading of it. Help your children find a “just right” poem that speaks to them. On the designated evening, share your poems with each other. Start with the quirky, funny poetry of Jack Prelutsky, Shel Silverstein, Michael Rosen, Jeff Moss or Douglas Florian, among many others. Use your voice to emphasize the key words of the poem, the emotions of the poem, or even the shape of the poem. Have fun with it! Encourage your child to bring home one of his/her favorite poetry books from class for nightly reading. (Remember to return the book to class the next day!)

For Reluctant Poetry Readers:
If you have a reluctant poetry reader in the house, try a collection that revolves around a “theme” you know your children love. There are so many books to choose from: collections of poetry about food, sports, play time, family, just to name a few. Many picture books are written in verse form as well. City Dog by Karla Kuskin, Come on Rain by Karen Hesse and Harlem by Walter Dean Myers are just a few great examples. For older kids, you might try novels written in verse: Love That Dog by Sharon Creech is a good start.

Family Choral Reading or Reader’s Theater:
Try a family choral reading of a favorite poem or a group recitation of a favorite. Or, try a poem where each family member takes a part and do a dramatic reading. Reading poetry aloud should be as much fun as reading a picture book or a chapter from any of your family’s favorite books.

No Time for Poetry?
If there’s too little time in the day for a full-fledged poetry reading, try sticking a short humorous poem or limerick in your child’s lunchbox or backpack. Chant jump-rope or nursery rhymes, or other favorites with a strong beat on the way to school or while you wait for the bus or train in the morning (Try “Rope Rhyme” in Honey, I Love by Eloise Greenfield.). Remember, too, that older siblings might enjoy reading the poetry they’ve learned and studied in class to younger brothers and sisters. These influential poetry fans will be excellent role models for the little ones – and the attention will be great for their self esteem, as well.

Writing Poetry Together
As your children begin writing poetry in school, you might try your hand at writing a poem in a similar form. You might also respond in poetry to a poem addressed to you. Poetry magnets for the refrigerator can be fun, and make it possible to experiment with word choice and line breaks as you leave poetic messages for each other.

Write a Poetry Acrostic
List each letter of your child’s name down the side of a sheet of paper (e.g. K-A-Y-L-A). Encourage your child to think of words that would describe himself or another family member. Write and illustrate a poetry acrostic for each member of the family. Send them as gifts, or make a card.

Celebrations
Remember to celebrate the “published” poems and personal poetry anthologies that your children bring home as they complete their poetry unit of study in school.

Finding Poetry

To find poetry books, ask your children’s teachers and school librarian; check out your local library shelves, used bookstores, “stoop sales” and of course, your local bookstore. In April, check displays of poetry books celebrating April is National Poetry Month in the libraries and bookstores.