Helen Frost’s “Winter Window”

Reminder: PoetryTagTime is the first ever electronic-only poetry anthology of new poems by top poets for children. You can purchase the book for 99 cents at Amazon and read it on your Kindle or through the downloadable Kindle platform for your computer, cell phone, etc.

Previously: Douglas Florian

Next up: HELEN FROST


Setting the Stage: If a window is nearby, invite the kids to join you in observing from the window for a few minutes. What do you see? What do they usually see out of their bedroom windows (if relevant)? How does the scene change depending on the seasons, weather, and other factors?

Poetry Performance: Read Helen Frost’s poem, “Winter Window” with multiple small groups by dividing the whole group into three smaller groups. The teacher or librarian begins by reading the first two lines which frame a question. Group 1 reads the rest of the first stanza. Group 2 reads the second “bird” stanza and Group 3 reads the third “animal” stanza. Group 1 finishes the poem by reading the final stanza aloud.

Just for Fun: Is there a window in your classroom or library? Use it as the backdrop for a poem display (or simply create a “faux” window with large, blue craft paper framed by strips of brown paper to create the effect of a window). Then add (spray) snow and cut outs of the birds mentioned in the poem: a blue jay, nuthatch, cardinal, starling, finch, and wren, as well as the poem’s other animals: squirrel, rabbit, chipmunk, skunk, and mouse.

Poem Links: Here are key words that connect this poem with other poems in the PoetryTagTime collection:
Snow
Birds
Sun
Moon
Questions
Color
Night
Winter
World

Buy the book now, so you can share each poem along with the ideas and activities that follow here.

Next up for PoetryTagTime: Carole Boston Weatherford



Posting (not poem) by Sylvia M. Vardell © 2011. All rights reserved.