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Sculpture of…? [15 Words or Less]
Hello, and welcome! This is 15 Words or Less Poems, a low-pressure way to wake up your poetry brain (guidelines here), and I’m very glad you’re here. At the Reykjavik, Iceland airport, this eye-catching statue dominates. I thought it was a berry, as I saw lots of berries on pillows and art while we were
Writing a Golden Shovel Poem: Day 3
[You can read day 1 and day 2 here.] Yesterday, I went to Valleyfair (theme park) with Randy and Maddie. It was a gorgeous day, high 60s and sunny, and the park was practically empty. No lines for anything–even the big coasters! We rode and ate and laughed–and I worked on my poem. Sadly, even
Writing a Golden Shovel Poem: Day 2
You can read Day 1 here. So, yesterday morning, I walked around a little pond. It was lovely, misty, and grey out, so nobody else was walking. That meant I could think about my poem and do a little brainstorming. I dictated possible lines into my poem based around this line: With swift, slow; sweet,
Summer Biopoem and Things to Do if You Are a Firework [Poetry Friday]
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) A couple of weekends ago, I spoke at the Minnesota Kindergarten Association annual conference. For an hour, I shared with 2–300 teachers why poetry matters, what the process is behind my poetry/science books, and other poetry books wonderful for K classrooms (fun to share so
Arc De Triomphe Stairway [15 Words or Less]
Hello, and welcome! This is 15 Words or Less Poems, a low-pressure way to wake up your poetry brain (guidelines here), and I’m very glad you’re here. Before we get to today’s picture, congratulations to Lauren McBride, longtime 15 Words or Less contributor, on her poem at YourDailyPoem.com. I subscribe to Your Daily Poem, and
Writing a Golden Shovel: Day 1
Our Poetry Princesses group is writing a golden shovel poem this month (Tricia chose this prompt), and I thought I’d try sharing the process here. I’ve never written one, and I’ve only read a few! I checked out this post by Michelle Heidenrich Barnes and this one by Laura Shovan (and make sure to follow
Pink Cow [15 Words or Less]
Hello, and welcome! This is 15 Words or Less Poems, a low-pressure way to wake up your poetry brain (guidelines here), and I’m very glad you’re here. Last week, I shared a picture of Mont Saint Michel. In the little village nearby, several shops/restaurants had cows decorated in different ways. This pink plaidish beauty caught
Things to Do if You Are a Minnesota Summer [Poetry Friday]
Happy Poetry Friday! Welcome, everyone! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) It’s the first Friday of the month, so it’s Poetry Princesses Friday! This month was my choice, and I chose the Things to Do form with a seasonal angle. (See page 4 here for a lesson plan.) This is the poetic form of
Mont Saint Michel [15 Words or Less]
Hello, and welcome! This is 15 Words or Less Poems, a low-pressure way to wake up your poetry brain (guidelines here), and I’m very glad you’re here. Although the day trip itself was dreadful, one of the most beautiful things we saw in France was Mont Saint Michel, an amazing ancient abbey built on a
No More Lying About Books
Happy Children’s Book Week! I love seeing all the energy and excitement around books at this time of year, with all the special Days, Weeks, and Months! It does make me think, though, that we can bring more joy to readers by sharing our own joy about the books we really love, not the books
A Black-Eyed Susan Video for Maryland Educators
I’m honored that Water Can Be… is a nominee for the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award in the picture book category with many other books and writers I love! A Maryland school librarian contacted me to ask if I could make a little video to the readers at her school for their reading celebration, which I
Drop of Water and Tree [National Poetry Month]
Here are today’s #wonderbreak poems. I have two left, so I’m sharing them both. Thanks, everybody, for following along this month. I struggled some days to find something small and concrete to focus on, and I really meant to not do quite so many nature poems. But it was a learning experience, and
Day 30 of the Kidlitosphere Progressive Poem!
Whee! It’s Day 30 of Irene Latham’s wonderful Progressive Poem (read more about this April tradition here). I will admit to being a bit nervous about being the last line. But last year, I got to be the first line, so…I figured turnabout was fair play. Plus, just like when I write group poems with
Yellow Umbrella [National Poetry Month] #moreforAKR
Perhaps you were as saddened as I was by the recent death of writer Amy Krouse Rosenthal. Today has been named More for Amy Krouse Rosenthal day in an effort spearheaded by Kirby Larson, another lovely, generous writer, who is encouraging people to share love, kindness, and joy–in the spirit of Amy. If you look
Dandelion [Poetry Friday]
Happy Poetry Friday! (Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Click here.) This Poetry Month, I’m sharing a brief poem daily celebrating little sources of wonder and joy in my life. Here’s today’s #wonderbreak [Want to learn more or join in?]: I always think it’s funny how avid gardeners or people with perfect lawns–people who despise dandelions–break
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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