Joan Bransfield Graham’s “Buckaroo Bees”

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: Avis Harley

Next up: JOAN BRANSFIELD GRAHAM

Setting the Stage: Ask the kids if they have ever seen bees near flowers. What do the bees look like? What are they doing? Why might the poet (Joan Bransfield Graham) here describe a bee’s legs as “saddlebags”?

Poetry Performance: To bring Graham’s “Buckaroo Bees” poem to life, divide the larger group into four small groups or ask for four volunteers. The first group or volunteer reads the first two lines. The second group or volunteer reads the third and fourth lines. The third group or volunteer reads the fifth line only. The fourth group or volunteer reads the sixth and seventh lines. Practice multiple times to get the staccato delivery just right.

Just for Fun: Join the kids in researching what a magnolia blossom looks like, where it can be found, where the pollen is located in the blossom, etc. If possible, bring a real or artificial magnolia flower to share. Since the poem is very short, see if you can write each line of the poem on a separate petal of the (artificial) magnolia flower (in order, if possible).

Poem Links: Here are key words that connect this poem with other poems in the PoetryTagTime collection:
Bees
Flowers
Wind
Body
Bugs

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

Next up for PoetryTagTime: David Harrison


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

Nikki Grimes’ “Prairie Friend”

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: Joyce Sidman

Next up: NIKKI GRIMES

Setting the Stage: Invite the kids to discuss what kinds (or colors or shapes) of flowers they see in their communities. What do they look like? Where are they located? How do they appear in the sun, in the wind, in the rain?

Poetry Performance: Nikki Grimes’s poem, “Prairie Friend,” is full of language that suggests motions for pantomiming: shimmies, leap, bow, dance. After reading the poem aloud once, ask for volunteers to act out the poem using simple movements and gestures while the rest of the group reads the poem out loud.

Just for Fun: Grimes mentions that her poem comes from a collection of poems she wrote about state flowers. Challenge the kids to look up which state has the sunflower (of this poem) as its state flower. Can they find other poems about other (state) flowers? They might also consider creating a new, original poem about a flower special to their own state, region or community.

Poem Links: Here are key words that connect this poem with other poems in the PoetryTagTime collection:
Wind
Flowers
Sun
Body
Dance
Friends

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

Next up for PoetryTagTime: Alice Schertle

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