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An Audience of One #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) I’m trying to deepen my poetry practice in 2021, and one thing I’m doing is a book study of Mary Oliver’s A Poetry Handbook. In last week’s practice, I chose a poem to imitate. One way I want to stretch myself poetically is to imbue
Write a Snowperson List Poem #ClassroomConnections
If you live in a cold climate, it’s prime snowman-building time! That makes it a great time to talk about the states of matter and how snow and ice are forms of water. Here’s a printable .pdf students can use to write a snowman list poem. It’s one of a handful of materials (including water
Winter Song #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) We had a white Christmas, and that filled my heart with joy. I don’t love winter without snow. I do love winter with snow. It’s pretty much that simple. Here’s a draft of a poem. I feel like it needs a third stanza to tie
Year’s End and a Bit of Bradbury #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) And Happy New Year! Thursday morning, my Word for the Day from Gratefulness.org was by Ray Bradbury: “We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out.” –Ray Bradbury A little meandering
In the Bleak Midwinter — Beauty in Stark Times #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) And Merry Christmas to all who are celebrating! This week, I’m sharing two different things. First up is a pair of wistful haiku, which was our Poetry Princesses prompt this month. (I’m updating this post on my phone, as we lost internet during our Minnesota
Chimney Smoke or Wireless Fires #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday, friends! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) I haven’t been writing much new poetry recently. My days are filled with copyediting and passage writing, and I’m grateful for the work. I also have some internal plans for poetry “continuing education” in the new year:>) For now, though, I’ll probably be resharing
I’d Rather Stick With You #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) How is it possibly December? Yowza. Last week, Irene Latham shared a lovely gift guide post, pairing gift ideas with her books. Love that…and stealing the idea. Here are some of my books from the past year or two, along with a few ideas to
Letter to a Thief — AKA Gifts from 2020
Happy Poetry Friday! Welcome, everyone! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) And Happy Thanksgiving to all my U.S. friends! This post almost didn’t happen, so this will be quick! Our Poetry Princess challenge was hindsight, examined by revising or responding to an earlier poem. I didn’t really follow that direction (guilty look here). I
A Flossing Day Poem #ClassroomConnections
I bet you thought this Friday was just a shopping day. Wrong! It’s Flossing Day (no, not the dance). So grab your dental floss and review good techniques…and celebrate with this poem from In the Middle of the Night. Bet you didn’t know dental floss had so much fun without us! I had a good
When Hope Is Not Easy #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) I’m sharing a poem I wrote shortly before the election four years ago. (It was a Poetry Princess prompt then.) For the first time in four years, I feel hopeful about our country. While personal things have been emotional this past week (MORE surgery for
Sing and Share for National Family Week #ClassroomConnections
National Family Week is coming up later this month (Nov. 21–27). Talking about families with your students? Check out these two activities from the teaching guide that goes with my book Meet My Family. This first one’s a song–no materials needed! And this one lets your students share and celebrate their own family and
Qualities I Love in Art Forms and How They’re Reflected in What I Write
I was so honored to be part of the SCBWI/Smithsonian Nonfiction Conference! I was on a panel Saturday about The Personal Journey to Nonfiction. (It started right after Biden’s win was announced, and I was positively shaking with excitement and relief!) The panel was based on Melissa Stewart’s fabulous new anthology, Nonfiction Writers Dig Deep.
Winter Is the Warmest Season #PoetryFriday
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) I love winter, even though I don’t do any winter sports. It’s just a time of beauty and renewal for me. But this year, for the first time in so many years, I’m not looking forward to it. I guess it’s because my connections with
They Have Their Uses, But… [Poetry Friday]
Happy Poetry Friday! Welcome, everyone! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) Last week, I shared a Halloween poem (just in case you’re looking for spoooooky! :>) So, this month, our Poetry Princess challenge was “Oct 30: A naani poem, theme is foresight again (or autumn, or both).” A naani is 4 lines, between 20
The Power of Water
November 10 marks the anniversary of the 1975 sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, a Great Lakes freighter that went down in a storm in Lake Superior. (You guys know how much I’m fascinated by Great Lakes freighters, right? Some good publishing news on that coming up soon!) I’m grateful for water in so many ways,
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Are You Looking For?
Go to my Poetry page for:
- National Poetry Month projects through the years
- Small Reads Roundups (poems grouped by topic)
- Introductions to several favorite poetry forms