Hi Netters,
Sorry I missed sending this to Janet Perry while she was compiling her list
of must-read poetry, but this book is worth the special mention:
"Love That Dog : A Novel" by Sharon Creech.
This is a story IN JOURNAL FORMAT by a boy about 3rd grade level, and his
experiences and reaction to poetry as his teacher introduces it in class. It
is WONDERFUL! Kids (even boys! ESPECIALLY BOYS!) really relate to this book.
I read it aloud every April (takes about four 15-minute sessions) to all my
3rd grade classes. It is a great introduction to a journal format (do stop
and show the pages at interesting points), and that makes it a (relatively)
quick read. It introduces several interesting poems either in the text, or
refers to them - those are listed in the back of the book.
WARNING - there is a very sad part when Jack reveals that his dog Sky dies.
The kids are really jolted by this and I come close to tears each time I
read it. So I read that part and move on quickly to the next page. Don't let
that dissuade you though - the book is really a gem. It also includes
"concrete" or "form" poems - poems that take the shape of the subject of the
poem. There is a poem about an apple in the shape of an apple that I read AS
FAST AS I CAN (I don't read all the words - you don't need to - just read it
very fast and make sure you grimace when you get to the "wormyyuckyyucky"
part! THE KIDS LOVE THIS ONE AND ALL BEG ME TO READ IT AGAIN THE FOLLOWING
WEEK!!! Practice reading as fast as you can with drama - raise and lower the
pitch of your voice at times.
Later in the book, the author introduces Walter Dean Myers (Yes, the REAL
author) who comes to visit the class after receiving a letter from Jack. I
do discuss this with the kids - since authors don't usually include REAL
PEOPLE in their fiction books. I show the kids information about Sharon and
Walter from the Internet.
Since I have 4 or 5 3rd grade classes, I use a Post-it with each teacher's
name on it to keep track of each class' progress as I read aloud. That way,
if a class misses due to an assembly, I know where to catch them from up the
next week.
I hope that you give this book a try! It was one of our California Young
Reader Medal nominees several years ago, and it remains one of the most
popular books among my 4th graders, who want to read it on their own now. I
would love to hear from you if you try it!
Joanne Ladewig (A.K.A. "Library Lady")
Library Media Tech
Lawrence Elementary, GGUSD
Garden Grove, California
shatz@verizon.net
Comments are my own and may not represent the views of GGUSD
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