Out of Season; haiku

baseball breaks ice, originally uploaded by Andi Sibley.

winter cold snap -
he's still at batting practice
breaking ice

-Andromeda Jazmon

Enjoy more poetry this weekend at the roundup hosted by Elaine at Wild Rose Reader.

Winter birds; haiku for Friday Poetry

cardinal pair 3, originally uploaded by Andi Sibley.

one cardinal pair
huddled against a cold wind;
their fortress of twigs

-Andromeda Jazmon

I've been holed up inside today, peering out the windows at the birdfeeder and listening to the wind howl around the corners of my house. Glad my house is not made of twigs like this couple of cardinals!

I am back to posting daily photos at my 365 Photo Blog Sandy Cove Trail. You are welcome to follow me there. If you have a photo blog please send me a link so I can build up my linklist.

The Friday Poetry roundup is Tara at A Teaching Life today. Enjoy!

Friday Poetry: Sonia Sanchez

This week writer/playwright/poet/activist/ Sonia Sanchez was appointed official Poet Laureate of Philadelphia. It's the first time we've had one, and I am so glad it's her. She has had a brilliant career with and extensive list of published works, awards and accomplishments. (Bio here). I have listened to her read her work over the years, as she has been a professor at Temple U., where she is still Poet in Residence. She has a powerful voice, speaking beautifully of justice and the strength of her people. Her recently published book Morning Haiku includes tributes to Emmitt Till and Eugene Redmond. I quoted one of her haiku poems back in 2008 on this blog and included a video of her reading.

One of my favorite poems of hers is this one:

Ballad
by Sonia Sanchez
(after the spanish) forgive me if i laugh you are so sure of love you are so young and i too old to learn of love. the rain exploding in the air is love the grass excreting her green wax is love and stones remembering past steps is love, but you. you are too young for love and i too old.

...the rest is here. 

 
Another of my favorite poems of hers is this one:

Personal Letter No. 3

nothing will keep
us young you know
not young men or
women who spin
their youth on
cool playing sounds.
we are what we
are what we never
think we are.

... the rest is here.

I seem to be on an old folk's love poem track these days. Go figure.

You can read more about Sanchez and the Poet Laurette program here in the Philadelphia Inquire article. Today's Friday Poetry round up is hosted by Julie at The Drift Record. Enjoy!!

Girft Books for Boys

I'm enjoying a trip to my local indie bookstore to pick up a few beginning chapter books for my first and third grade boys for Christmas gifts. Here's what they're getting:

Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls... Written by Lenore Look, Illustrated by LeUyen Pham. I got a couple Alvin Ho books because they are such fun adventure stories about a quirky second grader with just enough anxiety balanced by  creative problem solving.

Duke Ellington's Nutcracker Suite (with Audio CD) by Anna Harwell Celenza, illustrated by Don Tate. I've heard so much about this book! I am really looking forward to sharing it with my 9 year old, who is always asking for more biographies.

Zac Power books: Poison Island and Deep Waters, by H. I. Larry. Exciting spy kid with super crime fighting powers! A fun website with games and parent-friendly forums! Total boy appeal!

Freddie Ramos Takes Off and Springs Into Action by Jacqueline Jules. A kid with superpower sneakers - what fun! "An ordinary boy in a city neighborhood learns how to use his new-found powers for good.  Illustrations by Miguel Benitez lend just a touch of comic-book style to this chapter book adventure." (Author's website quote).







And to balance the reading material I've made some Japanese fabric balls called Temari. Perfect for playing keep-away, indoor soccer, or hoops in the upstairs hall when the weather outside is frightful. I learned how to make these in the book omiyage by Kumiko Sudo. If you are handy with a needle and thread they are quick and easy, all made from scraps and so fun to stuff in a stocking.

Reading the Winter Solstice with Kids

The First Day of Winter by Denise Fleming. Henry Holt & Co. 2005. This was a delightful gift my boys received a couple years ago. What better way to celebrate the coming of winter than to sing a song to a snowman as you create him? Magical. Check out the author's webpage for a sock snowman activity.





And of course, we have new mittens all ready for the snow!

Edublog awards; Teaching poetry sites

This week the 2011 Edublog Awards were announced. I have spent some time browsing all the greatest educational blogs and have found a few new-to-me winners. In the interest of Friday Poetry I would like to highlight a favorite of mine: A Media Specialist Guide to the Internet (because you never know when you will need a cybrarian!). I've been reading this blog for a while and always find it rich with ideas and resources. This week blogger Julie Greller posted a wonderful list of 34 Websites for Teaching Poetry. If you are teaching poetry or just enjoying it with children and young people you will want to check out these wonderful poetry websites!

I am having fun playing with this linked site, among others. Magnetic Poetry for Kids (here's my current draft of a short poem:)

She's also linked to the Library of Congress Poetry Web Guides, listing all sorts of poetry lessons.

Now please don't forget to save some time to check out all the other poetry related sites rounded up this weekend by Kate at Book Aunt.

Cheers!

Paper Chains for the Christmas Tree

One of the activities in our Advent Calendar this week is to make paper chains for the Christmas Tree. I remember making them as a child in red and green construction paper. I've made them as a teacher with first grade classes for many years. It is a great joy to introduce them to my own two boys, who had never made them before.



I consider myself privilaged and honored to be the one who teaches them this! It's such a simple craft but so satisfying to watch the chain grow. I'm keeping a copy paper box full of cut paper strips (left over from one of our other gift projects) and glue sticks out, and they add to the chain in random minutes morning and evening. As it grows they discover some intuitive math activities that warm a teacher's heart. We made patterns, measured the table with it, and I anticipate them measuring themselves and the length of the dining room before we wind it around the tree. If you haven't done this with children for a while, or ever, I suggest you indulge in it soon!

And here's a book we are reading this week that compliments the "simple gift" theme - Ezra Jack Keat's Little Drummer Boy. Offering ourselves and our joyous passions to the Christ Child and to each other; the delights of this season!