Month: April 2019

April Book Recommendations

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I have some book recommendations for you! They aren’t grouped by a particular theme or genre; this month’s recommendations are books I’ve read this month and enjoyed.  They are also books I’ve book talked in my classroom and had many students read and like too.  Enjoy! The Pushcart War Author: Jean Merrill Genre: realistic fiction; satire This book was recommended to me by our library specialist and even though it was written decades ago, I thoroughly enjoyed the wit and humor.  If you haven’t read it, you’re in for a real treat. When The Sea Turned to Silver Author: Grace Lin Genre: fantasy Not only is this book beautifully written, but the artwork is amazing as well.  If you love mythology and folklore, you’ll love this book.  The author does a fantastic job weaving old Chinese tales into the larger plot structure.  (And the protagonist is a young girl!)  I could not put this book down. Hey, Kiddo Author: Jarrett Krosoczka Genre: graphic novel; memoir This is the first graphic novel I read and while …

Ideas to Teach Poetry to Students

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I love poems.  There’s just something amazing and profound that comes from such simplicity.  Perfect words, said succently. However, not everyone shares my enthusiasm and I get that.  When I first started teaching, I followed what I was taught in school–you learn poetry through a poetry unit.  After many years of lackluster participation and ho-hum student-written poems, I had a change of heart. If your students struggle with analyzing poetry, here are three tips to try. 1. Filter poetry in with a unit you are already teaching Now when I teach poetry, I filter it in.  Have a writing lesson working on figurative language and imagery?  Read and discuss a poem first.  They are filled with them.  Teaching a novel and finding evidence to support a theme?  Read and discuss a poem that focuses on the same theme.  (When my students read The Secret Life of Bees, we focused on the theme of social injustice.  I paired that theme with the poems “Harlem” and “I, Too,” by Langston Hughes, and “Alone” by Maya Angelou.  Students made …