Laura Purdie Salas

Writing the World for Kids

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A Poem for Read Across America Day! #ClassroomConnections

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March 2 is Read Across America Day! Here’s a poem to start off your storytime. When I read this poem with kids, I act out the poem using simple motions that they can mimic. Give it a try! Calling All Readers I’ll tell you a story. I’ll spin you a rhyme. I’ll spill some ideas— […]

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“Hello” to a Magazine Merit Honor

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I had a lovely message a few weeks ago about my poem “Good-Bye, Hello!” It’s a back-to-school poem that appeared in Highlights magazine last year, and it is the runner-up for SCBWI’s 2015 Magazine Merit award. Yay! And, I’m happy to say that Michelle Heidenrich Barnes of Today’s Little Ditty was the winner for her […]

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Tip #5: Make a Face [Poetry Tips for Teachers]

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Tip #5: Make a face. Keep an appropriate expression. Don’t grin during a sad poem or look serious during silly verse. If you were to smile while reading this poem, for instance, your students might be a little disturbed–or think you are!      

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poetryaction and bookalikes for Yuck!

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  Yuck! Kids know how fun it is to be grossed out! This book shows the foods different young animals like to eat, and they all seem pretty disgusting. Then it ends with a reversal about what those animals think about human food. This made me think of one of my favorite childhood/teen sandwiches–grilled peanut […]

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Lullaby and Kisses Sweet–a New Lee Bennett Hopkins Anthology

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Yippee! Lee Bennett Hopkins has a new anthology coming out on March 3, and it’s the cutest board book I’ve seen in ages. It’s called Lullaby and Kisses Sweet: Poems to Love with Your Baby (Abrams). Lee notified everyone that the book is on sale for a great price right now in pre-order on Amazon, […]

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“Snowflake Wakes” by Joyce Sidman [Poetry Friday]

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Welcome to Poetry Friday (and happy Halloween)! Joyce Sidman has a new poetry collection coming out Tuesday, and it is glorious. It’s a companion book for Dark Emperor called Winter Bees & Other Poems of the Cold (HMH, 2014). I love Joyce’s work, nature, and winter, so this is a triple-threat collection! The poems are […]

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A scary poem video for K-4

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I love scary books and poems (and movies, even though I cover my eyes a lot during them). Here’s a cheesy video of me reading my poem “Midnight,” from a jack-o-lantern’s point of view. Midnight See my spooky, blank eyes staring? Like the crooked teeth I’m baring? Feel my wicked candle flaring? Am I smiling? […]

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“My Rock” [by Ken Slesarik]

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Over the summer, I shared my kite poem from Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong’s latest fantastic Poetry Friday Anthology–the one focused on science (awesome idea). Today I’m sharing another poem, this one by teacher and poet Ken Slesarik. It’s from the Kindergarten section/edition, Week 19: Soil & Land. My Rock My rock is cold, gray, […]

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Rain Forest, by Marilyn Singer [Poetry Friday]

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I recently discovered the beautiful poetry collection called HOW TO CROSS A POND: POEMS ABOUT WATER, by Marilyn Singer. As I savored each poem, I was tickled to see some water roles that I showed in WATER CAN BE… shown in her poems, too (although her collection is very diverse, with poems ranging from informational […]

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“Ocean Tales,” by Laura Purdie Salas, pt. 2

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Usually in this feature, I share my process as a reader reading a poem someone else wrote. But for this one, I’m sharing the writing process behind a poem I shared last week on Poetry Friday, “Ocean Tales.” I was working on a set of poems that eventually became BOOKSPEAK! POEMS ABOUT BOOKS (Clarion, 2011), […]

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