SUMMER SHORT READINGS - POETRY
Summer is a busy time with lots of physical activity, such as riding bikes, playing and swimming but it is so important to remember to Read Aloud to your children 15 minutes a day. even after they can read to themselves.
Try Summer short readings, using poetry. They stop for a minute to rest and you read a short poem and maybe just maybe they might stay around long enough for a second one.
BE PREPARED
Gather together all the poetry books you have around the house, buy poetry books from Garage Sales, from used book stores or buy a couple of new Children’s Poetry Books from a book store. Locate and save poems on the internet.
Choose some poems you think they will like to hear.
Mark the page or have copies conveniently laying round. For instance if you have a swimming pool put some books by the pool. You know they will come out to rest or lay on a towel in the sun, you could say “ Hey listen to this “ Then read the poem.
Post a copy of this poem where your children will see it.
Discussion of the poem
Help them to think about what this poem could mean to them in their life.
Share your feelings and thoughts,
Most important is to keep any discussion light and airy and have fun with it.
Favorite Poetry
One of my favorite poetry books is Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein and one of my favorite poems is Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout Would Not Take the Garbage Out and guess what I found Shel Silverstein himself reading this poem and some of his other poems. What a delight. Just search Shel Silverstein on the internet and his poetry and other info about him. What a good short read for a child during the busy summer months. https://youtu.be/-104x-t85G4
When I was a 6th grade teacher, I divided the Sarah Cynthia Sylvia stout poem into different reading parts and we did a class readers theater. Every member of the class had parts. Try this with your children and they each could have two or more parts depending how you divide the poem. Give them some practice time so they have a good experience.
Connects with something you are doing
As I read this poem I thought of my little 5 year old great granddaughter, Chloe. She loves to ride her bike and she comes over and says“Grandma Grape, will you come ride bikes with me.”
Walk with Grandma
I like to walk with Grandma,
she takes small steps like mine.
She never says "let's hurry-up!
she always takes her time.
I like to walk with Grandma,
her eyes see things like mine.
Shiny stones, a fluffy cloud,
stars at night that shine.
People rush their whole day through,
they rarely stop to see.
I'm glad that God made Grandmas
unrushed and young like me!
Author: unknown
Sometimes you find a poem that connects with something happening or important to them. You can even go a step further and model the writing of a poem about them. Now I’m not a poet but I tried as we expect them to try. They love to hear written words about themselves
.
I like to ride bikes with Chloe,
We ride round the circled driveway.
We ride slow, we ride faster, then we go slow
Round and round the circle we go
by Jylene Morgan
Nursery Rhymes and Simple Songs
If you have young children make sure you include Nursery Rhymes in your short reads. Nursery Rhymes are important to young children they help the children develop an ear for our English language. As they listen, the rhyme and rhythm of the nursery rhymes helps highlight the sounds and syllables which prepare them for reading. In other words they are developing pre reading skills.
Repeating the Nursery rhymes is good for brain development. They develop inferencing skills for learning new words and reading comprehension. The Nursery Rhymes have short patterns which make them easy to memorize.
Here is a small list of Nursery Rhymes:
Humpty Dumpty
Little Miss Muffet
Baa Baa Black Sheep
Jack be Nimble
A Diller A Dollar
Simple Songs fit right in with Nursery Rhymes and have the same benefit for young children.
Itsy Bitsy Spider
3 little Monkeys Jumping on the bed
I’m a little teapot
Ring Around the Rosy
I am going to close by sharing some poems that I love.
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.
By Langston Hughes
Two favorite poems of mine by Robert Frost
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
( 2 stanzas not included)
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
The Road Not Taken”
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
( 2 stanzas not included)
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
The last line says it all: “And that has made all the difference.” Maybe what made all the difference is that he made the first choice to be a farmer, but did not abandon the second, instead his poetry was written from his observation of the land, the seasons and the work on the farm. He actually made both choices. He was truly a success because of his second choice, that of being a great poet, And that has truly made all the difference.
Notes about me:
Jylene Morgan is a retired educator. She is passionate about the importance of reading aloud to children from top quality children’s books. Writing about her life experiences she captivates her audience by telling the tales of her family’s adventures. The first several books are written about funny exchanges that occur when human and wild animal’s lives come together.
To read more about me, my passion for reading aloud to children and my books go to www.jylenemorgan.com. Make sure you join our mailing list so you can be the first to know when Jylene's next book, BUMMER and the Nanny Goat, is available.
