Every Thing On It.... and much more!

What better time to celebrate Shel Silverstein then this month when a new collection of previously unpublished poems has just been released.  The book is Every Thing On It and it includes poems that he felt did not fit into his other collections of poetry and therefore were never published.  The links below will bring you to the official Shel Silverstein Website, a great review of the book on NPR's Morning Edition and additional information on the book from Google Books. Get to your library and check this book out!

In the meantime, here's one of my favorites from his book, A Light in the Attic.

Put Something In
Draw a crazy picture,
Write a nutty poem,
Sing a mumble-grumble song,
Whistle through your comb.
Do a loony-goony dance
'Cross the kitchen floor,
Put something silly in the world
That ain't been there before.

Shel Silverstein Website

NPR's Morning Edition coverage of the book. 

Every Thing On It

A Dot-ty Celebration

Thursday, September 15th was International Dot Day. Over 14,000 students from around the world were registered for the event! Dots have been pouring in from around the world. Visit the FableVision Dot Day Web page for more details.

One day was not enough for us; and, I knew I couldn't reach all of my students, so we've been continuing our celebration here in my library. Each Thursday, during our special grade level release days, we've been having our own Dot Celebration. Each week we read the story and explore the book's messages.  The students readily identify with Vashti and easily make self to text connections.  It is heartening to witness their empathy and support for Vashti as well as their excitement at her self discovery.  Inspired, they eagerly set off to "Make their Mark!"

 Here's this week's. Enjoy!

 

Connecting the Dots

Thursday, September 15th was International Dot Day. Over 14,000 students from around the world were registered for the event. The first grade students at my school shared Dot Day with the first grade students across town. Using Skype, the students had a shared reading experience of the dot by Peter H. Reynolds. They then took turns reflecting on the story and built a shared understanding of the message. Students in each school then went off to create their dots. Toward the end of the lesson, the students shared their finished art work through Skype once again. We hope to keep this working relationship going this year and have these students share and collaborate on many projects.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My favorite season....

Autumn, the year's last, loveliest smile."
~~William Cullen Bryant

September Book Pick!

Check out the monthly book pick from the Children's Poet Laureate, J. Patrick Lewis

Roots and Blues: A Celebration
by Arnold Adoff.

This book celebrates the history and influences on the uniquely American form of music, the Blues.

Children's Poetry : The Poetry Foundation