Like “casual Friday” in the corporate world, there is a perception in the world of literature that on Fridays we should relax a bit and take a moment for something special. Why not bring the Poetry Friday concept into your classroom and take five minutes every Friday to share a poem and explore it a bit, connecting it with children’s lives and capitalizing on a teachable moment? In this book, the authors offer poetry that focuses particularly on science-themed topics.
The Poetry Friday Anthology for Science (K-5 Teacher's Edition) features 218 poems by 77 award-winning and popular poets, exploring science standards while also incorporating literacy skills.
Match poems and science lessons using the weekly themes or the index at the back of the book to identify relevant science topics. Add poetry sharing to a planned science lesson by taking one minute to read aloud a science poem to set the stage for the instruction. Or conversely, end with a poem to reinforce the concepts introduced in a science lesson and build knowledge retention.
The 77 poets include Newbery and Newbery Honor winners Margarita Engle, Linda Sue Park, and Joyce Sidman; Children's Poet Laureates Mary Ann Hoberman, J. Patrick Lewis, and Kenn Nesbitt. Poems include Spanish bilingual poems by Alma Flor Ada, Carmen Bernier-Grand, F. Isabel Campoy, Margarita Engle, Guadalupe Garcia McCall, and Carmen Tafolla.
Topics covered: scientific practices, lab safety, tools of science, matter, force/motion/energy, light and sound, space, the water cycle, weather and climate, forces of nature, natural resources, ecosystems, video technology, computers, famous scientists, science careers, and more.
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Author Bio
Sylvia Vardell is Professor in the School of Library and Information Studies at Texas Woman’s University and has taught graduate courses in children's and young adult literature at various universities since 1981. Vardell has published extensively, including five books on literature for children, as well as over 20 book chapters and 100 journal articles. Her current work focuses on poetry for children, including a regular blog, Poetry for Children, since 2006. She is also the regular “Everyday Poetry” columnist for ALA’s Book Links magazine. Sylvia Vardell’s other professional books include: Poetry Aloud Here: Sharing Poetry with Children (2012) and The Poetry Teacher’s Book of Lists (2012).
Janet Wong is a graduate of Yale Law School and former lawyer who switched careers and became a children’s poet. Her dramatic career change has been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, CNN’s Paula Zahn Show, and Radical Sabbatical. She is the author of 30 books for children and teens on a wide variety of subjects, including writing and revision (You Have to Write), creative recycling (The Dumpster Diver), diversity and community (Apple Pie 4th of July), cheating on tests (Me and Rolly Maloo), and chess (Alex and the Wednesday Chess Club). Janet Wong’s poetry books for children include: TWIST: Yoga Poems (2002) and Good Luck Gold (1994).