Seeing Emily by Joyce Lee Wong

Lee, Wong Joyce. Seeing Emily. New York: Amulet Books, 2005. ISBN: 9780810992580

Author Joyce Wong has written an engaging and rich book in the form of prose, and weaves together the story of a Chinese-American teen, Emily, as she is coming of age in two different cultural expectations. As Emily’s memories of youth are colliding with her present teenage angst, the imagery used by Wong is often point blank, lyrical and arranged beautifully. In a passage from the free verse titled, Sleepover, the reader see’s a glimpse of Emily’s maturity as she analyzes her friends after a tear-jerking discussion about family.

Suddenly,

watching the wavering spots

dance and slowly begin

to fade away into the light,

it occurred to me

That I hadn’t

really been seeing

my friends

fully  before.

I’d always considered them

from only one perspective,

my own,

but there was so much more

to each of them

than I had realized.

Along with the typical teen issues of friends, boys and parents, Wong dives deeply into Art and Emily’s way to use art as a form of self exploration. During the course of the novel, Emily works on her own art, class art and a mural for the school. These opportunities give Emily a way to communicate her inner self to the outside world in a creative way. A trip to her parents homeland, Taiwan, allows her to explore her own mothers early art and native art, deepening her appreciation of her roots.

Metaphors are used throughout the passages and are what makes the novel radiate poetry. Often Emily compares her feelings to that of animals.

I imagined I was a cat,

her eyes shining

as she watches a goldfish

that shimmers on the floor.

Her relationship with a boy from school also plays out in metaphors.  Her relationship is often depicted through the mural she is creating where a monkey and tiger represent her and Nick.

With the rustle of leaves

And a graceful leap

To another tree,

The monkey swings herself away,

Disappearing in to the green.

Even after she’s gone

Her screams echo back

So raucous and wild

They startle

A flock of birds.

The above passages are in response to her feelings after Nick refers to her in a derogatory way- his Geisha.

To begin a lesson about immigrants and immigration to America, I would share the below excerpt. I would find a picture as close to the description to display as the poem, Sailing for America, was read.

The young woman
in the photograph
wore a rose-colored qi-pao,
a long Chinese dress
with a slit at the ankles.
Looking
at this picture
I was struck by her features and expression
and I saw how much
she looked like me…

I could almost feel the salt breeze
teasing her dark, wavy hair,
styled like Au-de-li Hepburn’s in Roman Holiday.
Perhaps that day
the ship’s captain,
a friend of my grandfather,
passed her a red-cheeked apple he’d saved…

How did that apple taste
as my mother bit through the smooth,
shiny skin and crunched into sweet,
white meat? Perhaps
she licked a stray drop of juice
from her knuckle,
tasting ocean
and in that moment
of sweetness and brine
my mother looked out
over the endlessly waving sea
scattered with diamonds of light
and imagined the shores
of America.

We then would discuss the reasons for immigration. I would then have students create a mock passport to be used as journals, to be used in research about immigration to America, Ellis Island and their own family research. Passports would be used to write responses, take notes and hopefully, develop their own poem about their own travels.

Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors by Joyce Sidman.

 Sidman, Joyce, and Pamela Zagarenski. Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Book for Children, 2009. ISBN: 9780547014944

A Caldecott Honor book for 2010, Red Sings from Treetops is an attractive book of poetry that takes the reader through a delightful literary journey through the seasons and the colors identified during that time. Sidman uses alliteration along with vibrant adjectives to make her poems come to life. Joyce Sidman uses colors to explore each of the four seasons through imagery, metaphor, personification and a variety of other delightful techniques that beg for the poems to be shared and read out loud. A beautiful example of personification can be found in the poem Fall.

Fall

In FALL,

Green is tired,

Dusty,

Crisp around the edges.

Green sighs with relief:

I’ve ruled for so long.

Time for Brown to take over.

Brown,

fat and glossy,

rises in honking flocks.

Brown rustles and whispers underfoot.

Brown gleams in my hand:

A tiny round house,

dolloped with roof.

The vocabulary throughout each selection is challenging enough to maintain the interest of older readers yet playful enough to keep the younger students involved as well. Regardless, any age will find delight in this book.

This is the second time Sidman and illustrator Pamela Zagarenski have teamed together to develop magnificent works of art, either through the use of words or illustrations. Using the same style of artwork from their first collaboration This Is Just to Say (another wonderful example of two voices), Zagarenski uses mixed media paintings of collages, wood and computer illustrations to develop images fitting each poem. Crowns adorn the triangular shaped people as the reader sees them interacting with the poem on each page. A little white dog can be found on each page which gives the book a “Where’s Waldo?” type of appeal as small children clamber to be the first to spot the pooch.

When using this book in a lesson plan, I would make sure to show the cover to students up close and discuss the four trees pictured. I would ask students to describe the characteristics of the trees and how those descriptions describe the four seasons. I would want to spend some time on the art work as well, because it is just too beautiful to overlook!

After reading the book to students I would go back to the poem, Green Is New in Spring, reread it and have students share their ideas of personification.

Green Is New In Spring

Green is new

in spring. Shy.

Green pecks from buds,

trembles in the breeze.

Green floats through rain-dark trees,

and glows, mossy-soft, at my feet.

Green drips from tips of leaves

onto Pup’s nose.

In spring,

even the rain tastes Green.

Yellow slips goldfinches

their spring jackets.

Yellow shouts with light!

In spring,

Yellow and Purple hold hands.

They beam at each other

with their bright velvet faces.

First flowers,

first friends.

After reading and discussing the use of personification in this work I would ask students to share their thoughts on what colors they associate various items and tastes.

What color does cake taste like?

What color does coffee smell like?

What color is loud thunder?

What color does mad look like? Sad? Happy?

From those ideas I would group students to work on personification in a color poem of their choosing. 

Messing Around on the Monkey Bars and Other School Poems for Two Voices by Betsy Franco

 Franco, Betsy, and Jessie Hartland.  Messing around on the Monkey Bars and Other School Poems for Two Voices. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press, 2009. ISBN: 9780763631741

Author, Betsy Franco, has put together a collection of 19 performance style poems that tells about events in a school day. From the classroom to the ride on the bus, each poem is an energetic highlight of school life. Franco includes, at the beginning of the book, an explanation on how to read the poetry aloud. Each poem is divided into “voices” and is coded in bold or italic print to distinguish each person’s part for recital. While the poems can be enjoyed alone, they are obviously meant to be enjoyed as a performance to make them more of an impact.

 

My favorite poem, of Franco’s, includes a wonderful musical rhythm when performed with two students or when a basketball is used for the “bounce” parts.

Backboard Rap

bounce, bounce
bounce, bounce Dribble, dribble,
bounce, bounce Pass to Trish.
bounce, bounce Shoot a basket.
bounce, bounce Hear the swish!

bounce, bounce Dribble, dribble,
bounce, bounce Pass to Vin.
bounce, bounce Hit the backboard.
bounce, bounce Up and in!,

bounce, bounce Dribble, dribble,
bounce, bounce Take a shot!
bounce, bounce There’s the buzzer.
bounce, bounce Yeah! We’re hot!

bounce, bounce
bounce, bounce
bounce

Several of Franco’s poems require noise, onomatopoeic style. Poems include taps, snorts, grumbles, bounces, vrooms and boings. These playful uses of words/sounds add to the appeal.

Illustrator Jessie Hartland’s illustrations add to the whimsy of the poems. Her drawings look like those created by elementary students with the use of bright colors, misshapen forms and over-sized heads on petite bodies. These drawings let you know right away this book is fun and perfect for young students.

Along the lines of the above poem, ones that encourage physical activity would be great for any recess/P.E. class. Jump Rope Jingle is an excellent choice to encourage physical activity through jump rope chants.

Have jump ropes available and ask students to share any jump rope chants they know. Have them demonstrate how they work with a jump rope to model for students who may not be familiar with them.
On large poster-board or chart paper, post Jump Rope Jingle somewhere visible so that students may read through it, first on the floor for practice and then introduce it as a double-dutch activity. It will take practice, but rest assured the students will love it!

Voice 1
Voice 2
Chorus voices

Jump Rope Jingle

Come on in.
I'll jump with you.
It's double fun
to jump with two.

Jump, jump,
spin around.
Jump, jump,
slap the ground.

Turn to the east.
Turn to the west.
Choose the one
you like the best.

Jump, jump,
A, B,
C.

Jump, jump,
1, 2,
3.

Turn in circles.
Keep the beat.
Feel the rhythm
in your feet!

Encourage students afterward to develop their own jump rope jingles to share!

Chatter, Sing, Roar, Buzz: Poems about the Rain Forest by Laura Purdie Salas

Salas, Laura Purdie. Chatter, Sing, Roar, Buzz: Poems about the Rain Forest. Mankato, MN: Capstone Press, 2009. 9781429617055

As soon as you pick up and open this picture book, you are pulled into the highly colorful pictures depicting life in the Rain Forest. The visuals include full and sometimes double page photographs that accompany each poem. The design itself makes the content of high interest to the reader. Poems are written in a fun large font, often in varying colors.

The poem collection itself is comprised of 16 poems about things found in the rainforest: the land, people, wildlife, etc. The poems are simple enough to share and easy to memorize which makes them appealing for reading and sharing out load. They are written in diamante, short free verse, haiku and cinquain which makes them a simple flow for young readers. Students will enjoy seeing and reading about the beard of a wild hog, the chain-saw jaw of an ant and a poisonous tree frog along with a slew of other notable characters and icons associated with the rainforest. An example:

To the Banana

Thick skin forms

a rain proof seal

You’re a fruit

with great appeal

I pack a lot

of things for lunch

But you’re my favorite

of the bunch!

The picture book also helpfully provides sections at the end titled “The Language of Poetry” that explains simply, poetry terms and various forms. A “Glossary” of unusual words that students may stumble across is also included along with suggestions for read-a-likes and internet sites for future exploration.

I found Chatter, Sing, Roar, Buzz a refreshing, visually stimulating, informational poetry picture book that would be a wonderful addition to any classroom.

To introduce a science lesson about rainforests I would begin with background rainforest sounds playing as students enter to help set the mood. I, myself, would dress similar to the rainforest scientist depicted in the picture book. After everyone is settled and had time to enjoy the sounds for a few moments I would introduce the lesson with the below poem:

Treetop Scientist

My lab is high among the trees

I scramble up and down with ease

I climb to work and that is why:

I’m doing science in the sky

Boots are sturdy, helmets tough

I’m in the field, I’m living rough

I dangle free, enjoy the breeze

Because I’m high among the trees

I would then discuss the poem line by line with students checking for understanding and having them describe what each sentence means in relation to the work a scientist might do in the rainforest.

I would then have students trace each other on large sheets of butcher paper and create a depiction of themselves as scientists and what types of scientific work they are interested in and the work they would be conducting.

The Poet Slave of Cuba by Margarita Engle

Engle, Margarita, and Sean Qualls. THE POET SLAVE OF CUBA: A BIOGRAPHY OF JAUN FRANCISCO MANZANO. New Work: Henry Holt, 2006. ISBN: 9780312659288

Margarita Engle pens a stirring account in the free verse biography of a Cuban slave, Juan Francisco Manzano. Using poetic devises, Engle tells of Manzano and his ability to memorize and recite poetic verses which made him a plaything of sorts to his mother’s owner Dona Beatriz and would often have him entertain and show off his talent to visiting guests. Later, Mazano secretly learned to read and write, and began developing his own poems about courage and the noteworthy things around him. At the young age of 6, Manzano’s mother was given her freedom and was promised that Juan would gain his when Dona Beatriz died. This did not happen for Juan. Upon her death his ownership was transferred to La Marquesa de Prado Ameno a mean, cruel, mentally ill woman who often subjected Juan to beatings and confinement.

Juan

Now I’m shackled, chained, trapped

twenty-five lashes of the whip

in the morning

my breakfast of screams

twenty-five more lashes at noon

instead of lunch

I taste my tears

I eat shame

Engle writes the biography in a multi voice format with each person in Juan’s life having their own say within the pages. Readers will hear from his mother, owner, Juan himself and others who shaped Juan into the notable man he became. These individuals are the ones that were instrumental in Juan’s course throughout life…whether in a positive or negative way.

Accompanying several pages are black and white illustrations, a plain and compelling depiction of Manzano’s life as a Cuban slave.

The Poet Slave of Cuba is the winner of the 2008 Pura Belpre Medal for Narrative and a 2007 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

 

To introduce an art lesson about art being used as an expression for human emotions, I would book talk The Poet Slave of Cuba and share this excerpt told in Juan’s voice.

Juan

My mind is a brush made of feathers

     painting pictures of words

     I remember

     all that I see

     every syllable

     each word a twin of itself

     telling two stories

     at the same time

     one of sorrow

     the other hope

Students would discuss types of emotions and what those emotions look like to others.

Students should use an artistic media of their choice to depict a human emotion of their choice.

Other lessons involving art and emotions:

http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/high/hs-emotions.htm

http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/elem/Colleen-poetry.htm

Remember the Bridge: Poems of a People by Carole Boston Weatherford

 Weatherford, Carole Boston. Remember the Bridge: Poems of a People. New York: Philomel Books, 2002.  ISBN 0399237267

Weatherford’s collection of African American history gives a rich poetic and photographical representation of the challenges faced by the race. The book encompasses poetry covering African American history spanning over 400 years including prominent people from Harriet Tubman to Dr. Martin Luther King. Also included are works depicting farm work, basket weaving, quilt making and the book's namesake, a bridge, metaphorically made of people “leaving paths of memories.”

Poems, within the book, are told in stanzas with poetic meter, with several told in rhyme. An example would be from this excerpt of Bronze Cowboys

When bison roamed the wild, wild west

dark riders rode the Pony Express

over the mountains, across the plains,

past coyotes, bobcats and wagon trains.

The sing-song rhyming pattern of many poems helps to lighten the somber, and often striking, images (a beaten slave) that accompany the literary work.

Pictures included with each poem are either illustrated by engravings or an actual photograph depicting its accompanied literary work. Images do not include captions but are cited at the end of the book.

To introduce a Food Science and Nutrition lesson about Ethnic Foods, I would recite the poem below.

Soul Food

Black-Eyes peas, collard greens,

dirty rice and pinto beans,

brown sugar glaze on smokehouse ham,

pickled beets and candied yams;

chicken and dumplings, turkey and stuffin’,

buttermilk biscuits and corn bread muffins.

Grandma rose early to prepare this spread,

to bake pound cake and gingerbread,

to shell peacans for Derby pie

and clean a mess of fish to fry.

She asked a blessing before we ate

and always set an extra plate

for an unexpected visitor.

Her home, like her heart, an open door.

Displaying the poem on the overhead, I would ask students to list foods mentioned in the poem and spend time discussing what makes them considered soul food and what significance did  some of those food items play in the African American culture.

A tasting of soul food would also add to the lesson.  Pickled beets, yams, dirty rice and other dishes would be available for tasting during the unit.