Poetry Break! Biographical Poetry

Introduction:
Use in context with a study of Egypt and its history. Begin by looking at a map of the important features such as the Valley of the Kings while also discussing the purpose of the pyramids. Read this book, with its connected poems, over a week while continuing the lessons on Egypt.


The Tomb of the Boy King (1)
by John Frank

Some thirty centuries later, a
determined archaeologist
named Howard Carter clutched a worn-
out map of Egypt in his fist.

Since nineteen hundred seventeen
he'd combed the Valley of the Kings,
pursuing treasures that he hoped
stayed hid from robbers' ravagings-

the fortune Tutankhamen, king,
was buried with inside a tomb,
to savor in the afterlife
when born again from death's dark womb.

A rich friend, Lord Carnarvon, paid
the bills for Carter's costly quest,
but then, in nineteen twenty two,
decided he should not invest

a penny more upon a search
that had, for years, borne no great find.
The stubborn archaeologist
resolved to change Carnarvon's mind,

and, seated in Carnarvon's home
(an English caste-stately,old),
he spoke his most convincing words,
the map of Egypt now unrolled.

"To hire a crew of me," he said,
"to labor in the desert sun
where nests of poisonous snakes abound
is not a task that's cheaply done.

"And there's one place we've not yet searched
along this portion of the Nile.
I'm certain that's where treasure awaits.
No scorpion, snake, or crocodile

"will keep me from this one last dig.
And if we locate riches, fame
will follow you throughout the world:
the fine will honor your good name!"

Carnarvon rubbed his chin, then said,
"I'll pay the bills one season more";
and Carter booked his passage back
by train and ship to Egypt's shore.


(from The Tomb of the Boy King by John Frank)

Extension:
Take students to see the Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of Pharaohs exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art. If unable to see the exhibit, combine this with other books about Egypt and King Tut in particular. Ask them to pick an item of interest to write about.

Reference:
Frank, J. 2001. THE TOMB OF THE BOY KING. Ill. by Tom Pohrt. New York, NY: Farrar Straus Giroux. ISBN: 0374376743.

Poetry Book Review: Social Studies - Heart to Heart edited by Jan Greenberg

Bibliography:
Greenberg, J. (ed). 2001. HEART TO HEART: NEW POEMS INSPIRED BY TWENTIETH-CENTURY AMERICAN ART. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, Inc. ISBN 0810943867.

Plot Summary:
The anthology Heart to Heart was created when Editor Jan Greenberg invited forty-three American poets to select a 20th century American artwork to base a poem upon. Kristine O’Connell George, X. J. Kennedy, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Jane Yolen are among the selected poets while some of the selected artists are Thomas Hart Benton, Stuart Davis, Jim Dine, and Faith Ringgold. The collection is divided into four sections entitled stories, voices, impressions, and expressions that respectively represent poems that tell an anecdote, speak for the artwork, represent the poet’s viewpoint, and reflect the nature of the artist. Biographical notes and a list of on both the poets and artists are included in addition to an index.

Critical Analysis:
This Printz Award Honor book is an anthology of forty-three poems by prominent American poets who have written poems influenced by American artists. Each poem is presented with its companion artwork which is printed in color and large enough to see the details of the artwork. The selected artworks are paintings, photographs, prints, and sculptures that vary in theme from figurative, landscape, and abstract. Under each artwork the artist, title, year, and media used are listed.

The poems range in format from sonnets, free verse, and rhymed verse while also using poetic devices such as rhyme, pattern, simile, metaphor, and more. The poems are best suited for older students even though there are some exceptions such as Deborah Pope's On Lichtenstein's "Bananas & Grapefruit" which is an irreverent and fun exploration of the graphic artwork that simplifies the fruit into thick black lines filled with vibrant yellow. She uses rhyme, rhythm, and alliteration to create a visceral experience for the reader. Pope writes "sluice of juices/squeezy teases/swelling lemon/jujubeezes" in a poem that undulates across the page.

This book is beautifully presented filled with an array of art in both visual and written form. An excellent text to use for creative writing, poetry breaks, or within an art classroom because it enforces the connections between image and word. It presents a different interpretation that alters how the artwork and poem are understood. Each item can stand on its own, but when combined the two forms of artwork transform each other.

Poem Excerpt:

A Word
by Gary Gildner

Give me I said to those round
young faces a round word
and they looked at me
fully puzzled until finally
several cried What do you mean?

I mean I said round round
you know about round
and Oh yes they said but
give us examples!

Okay I said let’s have a
square word
square maybe
will lead us to round.

And they groaned
they groaned and they frowned
every one except one
little voice way in the back said
Toast.

(about the painting That Red One by Arthur Dove)

Review Excerpts:

KIRKUS REVIEWS
“A beautiful volume that brings words and pictures together in wonderful tributes from artist to artist.”

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL
“If a picture book is defined as a marriage of word and art, then Heart to Heart is not only a wonderful poetry collection, but also a picture book of the highest quality.”

VOICE OF YOUTH ADVOCATES
“Anyone with an interest in art or poetry will be drawn to this delightful book that celebrates the connections between poet and artist and between reader and viewer. “

Connections:
The class can continue studying poets and/or artists.The class could also participate in a discussion about how different artworks are interpreted and if there is a correct interpretation. Students could also complete a similar assignment where they write a poem about a selected artwork.

Poetry Break! A Poem About Spring

Introduction:
Begin a discussion with the students about how they know the season is changing. Start with winter characteristics and then ask for signs that winter is ending. Ask students to keep those characteristics in mind as you read the poem.

waiting for music
by Ralph Fletcher

Tight buds loosen
and tiny fists bring
gifts: new leaves
pea green and shy.

The leaves will become
unaccountable chimes
played and replayed
by the rustling wind.

Listen to the earth’s first
music, lovely and common
like the beating of the rain
or the beating of hearts.

(from Ordinary Things: Poems from a Walk in the Early Spring by Ralph Fletcher)

Extension:
Challenge students to take a walk when they get home (with a family member) and write a poem about the experience for the next class. If feasible, allow class time to work on the poems. Share the poems when completed. Collect them into a booklet for the students.

Reference:
Fletcher, R. 1997. ORDINARY THINGS: POEMS FROM A WALK IN EARLY SPRING. Ill. by Walter Lyon Krudop. New York, NY: Atheneum Books for Young Readers. ISBN 0689810350.

Poetry Break! Poetry That Does Not Rhyme

Introduction:
Begin by talking about insects - ask students what they like/dislike about bugs. If you feel like acting, pretend to see a bug and then begin the poem (be careful of scaring students).

Cockroach
by Valerie Worth

Of the may creatures
That wriggle and creep
And make some people
Shudder, I don’t mind
Snakes or mice or
Caterpillars or worms-

Though I don’t quite
Care for ants-but
One that I can’t
In the least abide
Is the cockroach: not
So much that it scuttles

And bristles, and glues
Its slippery eggs in
The cracks of books, but
That it looks so clever:
As though it knows
My particular horror,

And plots to stalk
And startle me better-
Today I dart from
Behind the sugar, tomorrow
I skulk in her sneaker
And twiddle her toes...

(from Animal Poems by Valerie Worth)

Extension:
Bring a cockroach for the students to observe. Discuss the poem with the students - do they see similar characteristics from their own observations?

Reference:
Worth, V. 2007. ANIMAL POEMS. Ill. by Steve Jenkins. New York, NY: Farrar Straus Giroux. ISBN 0374380570.

Poetry Book Review: Verse Novel - Frenchtown Summer by Robert Cormier

Bibliography:
Cormier, R. 1999. FRENCHTOWN SUMMER. New York, NY: Delacorte Press. ISBN 0385327048.

Plot Summary:
During the summer of his twelfth birthday, Eugene explores what it means to grow up in Massachusetts after World War I as he experiences his first job, first love, and first loss. Throughout the thirty poems Eugene interacts with family, friends, and enemies as he attempts to understand their lives and motivations.

Critical Analysis:
Through his experiences as a paper delivery boy, his first love, the death of a family member, and the ever evolving relationship with his father Eugene’s story recreates a distant past while still maintaining emotional relevance for teen readers. The relationships created in the novel convey the love, fear, hate, power, confusion, and joy that a young boy experiences while trying to understand his surrounding world.

The book is filled with vivid descriptions of life in Eugene’s tenement. The banal details of daily life come alive when Cormier provides glimpses into the secret world of an individual. One example is when he watches Mrs. Cartin yearn to follow the blue shirt she has dropped from her third-floor window. Another is when he is experiencing his first love with Sister Angela. Cormier describes the “delirious” joy which he contrasts with the terrible lows through the following lines, saying Eugene was “...Mute in her presence,/tripping on the carpet’s edge./I was a pathetic lover” (pg. 52).

The author uses precise wording and placement to create the most impact. The novel is not driven by plot, but as a remembrance of a long ago summer made up of moments. Robert Cormier creates an affecting novel that explores a past time period without losing the emotional intensity to connect with today’s readers.

Poem Excerpt:

23: The Bald Spot

“I saw that spot of baldness,
whiter, wider now,
his hair thinner,
revealing his pale scalp,
and I fled the tenement,
clattered down the stairs,
to sudden rushing panic
running to-
where?-
I was blinded
by the knowledge
that there was
no safe place
to run to.”

Review Excerpts:

BOOKLIST
“Cormier finds the universal in the small, sometimes mysterious moments of unsung lives. Heartbreak becomes heart ease, as Cormier continues to demonstrate his unrivaled power to dazzle and delight his readers.”

LIBRARY JOURNAL
“In taut verse, Eugene provides verbal snapshots of his town, the enigmatic adults around him, and his own growing sense of self. A lyrical tour de force that packs an emotional wallop.”

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL
“It is a sensitive, superbly crafted story of a boy's journey into self-awareness.”

Connections:
Continue reading other verse novels. Listed are some recommended read-alikes:
Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse, Foreign Exchange by Mel Glenn, Stop Pretending by Sonya Sones, and The Braid by Helen Frost.

Poetry Break! A Poem Unusually Formed

Introduction: Begin by introducing the idea of concrete poems and using the description by P.B. Janeczko who says that “the arrangement of letters or words on the page, the typefaces chosen, and the way space is used, add meaning to the poem beyond that contained in actual words” (pg. 1). Read the poem. Ask students what shape they would make the poem - show the illustration.

Popsicle
by Joan Bransfield Graham

Popsicle
Popsicle
tickle
tongue fun
licksicle
sticksicle
please
don’t run
dripsicle
slipsicle
melt, melt
tricky
stopsicle
plopsicle
hand all
s
t
i
c
k
y

(shaped like a popsicle on a stick - from A Poke in the I by P.B. Janeczko)

Extension:
Provide students with a selection of books containing concrete poems. Give students time to browse and add new poems to their personal collection. Allow interested students to share out loud. Another alternative is to give students time to write and illustrate a concrete poem about a favorite activity, toy, or person.

Reference:
Janeczko, P.B. 2005. A POKE IN THE I: A COLLECTION OF CONCRETE POEMS. Ill. by Chris Raschka. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press. ISBN 0763606618.