Kids Pick the Funniest Poems

Kids Pick the Funniest Poems

Bruce Lansky

Summary:

 This is a collection of hilarious poetry for children ages 6 years and up. The poets in this collection range from Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein to Anonymous.

Evaluation:

This collection is a must have in every elementary classroom as well as household staple for those with young children. This is a great introduction to poetry because it captures the child's attention, appeals to their sense of humor, and comments on various aspects of their life.  I remember reading this collection when I was in elementary school and laughing my head off. 

A couple of my favorite selections are:

Who, Me?

There is a kid who lives with us 

Who no one's ever seen.

He's the guy who broke our vase

And painted Fluffy green.

He drew the funny pictures

On my brother's bedroom door,

And left those worms to shrivel up

Inside my dresser drawer.

He also took my favorite cookies

From the cookie jar,

And put a tuna sandwich

In the brand new VCR.

In fact, he does most everything

That you might think is bad.

Of course he isn't really real...

Just don't tell Mom and Dad.

                                    Joyce Armor

A Student's Prayer

Now I lay me down to rest,

I pray I pass tomorrow's test.

If I should die before I wake,

That's one less test I'll have to take.

                               Anonymous

Freddie

I don't like doing homework,

I know that it will bore me.

But now I am much happier

'Cause Freddie does it for me!

He greets me at the door each day

When I come home from school.

He just can't wait to read my books-

I think that's pretty cool!

I give him all my homework,

Like history and math.

And when he's done I give him

A nice warm bubble bath!

My grades are so much better now

Which makes my parents glad.

Freddie is the smartest dog

That I have ever had!

                           Phil Bolsta

Book Details
     Reading Level: Ages 6-up
     Hardcover: 115 pages
     Publisher: Meadowbrook; First edition (November 15, 1991)
     Language: English
     ISBN-10: 067174769X
     ISBN-13: 978-0671747695

Visit Life is Better with Books for other Poetry Friday posts!

Dog

Dog

Matthew Van Fleet

Summary:

 Twenty different breads of dogs are used to demonstrate basic concepts such as: opposites, synonyms, opposites, emotions, and much more in a rhyming story.

Evaluation:

BEST BOOK EVER for dog lover children! We are on our second copy of the book since the last one fell apart from daily use. The book is very interactive with pull tabs, touch and feel, and flaps to lift. A must have for any dog lover with young children!

Genre & Age:

nonfiction

0-2 and up

A Pony to Love

A Pony to Love

Christine Taylor-Butler

Summary:

The little girl and boy in the story start off with stuffed ponies and their imagination transforms them into real ones. This story takes readers on a magical pony rides on the beach, through the fields of flowers, in the circus, through a parade, in the snow, and in a rodeo. Then finally they take their ponies back to the stable to let them eat and groom them.

Evaluation:

I LOVE this book! Both of my daughters are horse lovers and this book is a great introduction to caring for a horse as well as what all a rider can do on a horse they love. The illustrations are wonderful. They are very soft, warm and full of imagination.

Age and Genre:
fantasy
3-5 and up

the Monster at the end of this Book

the Monster at the end of this Book

By Jon Stone

Summary:

 The Monster at the end of this Book starring Lovable, Furry Old Grover is about Grover who is afraid to turn the pages of the book for fear of the monster that lies at the end. He grows more and more frantic with every page until at the end he learns that he did not have anything to fear but his own imagination.

Evaluation:

 I love this book! I remember my mom reading it to my brothers and I when we were little. Now, I read it to my daughter and she loves it just as much as I did. We both can not wait to get to the end of the book. The illustrations are wonderful and nicely convey Grover's sense of fear, and anguish over the readers turning of the page. I highly suggest this book to anyone with a young child and sense of imagination! 

Genre & Age Group:

3-5 years and up

fantasy

Once Upon a Time, the End (Asleep in 60 Seconds)

Once Upon a Time, the End (Asleep in 60 Seconds)

by Geoffrey Kloske and Barry Blitt

Summary:

 Once Upon a Time, the End (Asleep in 60 Seconds) is a collection of fractured fairy tales, a few nursery rhymes, and  bible story all told by a father who just wants his child to go to sleep. The desperate dad keeps cutting the stories shorter and shorter until they all lived...

Evaluation:

 This is one of my favorite books yet! The authors have taken well known and loved tales and nursery rhymes and turned them into a hilarious collection. The overall story of the dad trying to get his child to go to sleep is perfectly interwoven within the collection of fractured fairy tales, folk tales, nursery rhymes, and bible story he is telling. 

Princess Pea for example:

Every young girl wanted to marry the prince.

To find a princess, the prince's mother put a pea 

Under the mattress to see how each would sleep.

They all slept soundly, except one-she was so sensitive,

She had not slept well.

And so she married the prince.

Is there a pea under your bed?

Then what's your excuse?

Go to bed.

The watercolor illustrations in this book are as wonderful as the stories. My 4 year old daughter is already reading this book along with me every night. We both laughs ourselves silly every time we read it. Now she is even taking other fairy tales and retelling them herself.

Genre and Age Group:

3-5 years and up

Folk Tale

Fairy Tale

The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963

The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963

by Christopher Paul Curtis

Summary:

This book  is about a middle class, nine year old, African American boy named Kenny. Kenny lives in Flint, Michigan with his family who people call the Weird Watson's. His older brother, Byron, is always getting into trouble. Finally, his parents have had enough and they decide to take a family road trip to visit the only person who can straighten Kenny out, Grandma Sands. They spruce up their car, the Brown Bomber, for the long trip to Birmingham, Alabama. While in Birmingham the family finds themselves caught in the middle of one of the most famous and tragic events of the Civil Rights Movement, the bombing of the Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church. 

Evaluation:

               Anyone who is looking for a great book that you won't want to put down, The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 is the perfect book. It is a must read for children ages 8 years to adult. I love how the author incorporated historical events with adventure and hysterical family drama. The book starts off being a light read full of hilarious events. One of my favorite events was when the two brothers, Kenny and Byron, had to go de-ice the car so they could go to their Aunt's house for the night to keep warm. Kenny was working hard so he could get going, but Byron on the other hand was admiring himself in the mirror. When Byron kissed his reflection his lips inevitably got stuck. I was laughing so hard as the family worked to get his lips unstuck because I could envision one of my younger brothers doing the same thing.

            The author really focuses on family ties as one of the main themes of the book. Along with the historical problems the country is facing the reader also see's the problems of the Watson family. Curtis has the reader feeling what the characters in the story are feeling, whether good or bad. The reader laughs and cries alongside with the Weird Watsons throughout the book. Once the reader is emotionally attached to the Watson family a drastic turn of events almost turns the book into a tragedy. It engages the reader to think about the historical events that took place during the Civil Rights Movement, specifically the Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church bombing, from a personal perspective.

            Growing up I learned about the Civil Rights Movement, but it was not until this book that I viewed it in a more personal light. I saw the four little girls that died that day as little Joey Watson's, who the I grew to love throughout the story.  Joey reminded me so much of my own daughters, that I felt the anguish and pain that the Watson's felt when they thought Joey was in the church. I also love how Curtis does not dismiss Kenny's feelings after the event. We see Kenny suffering as a child would who has witnessed such a tragic event. But, Curtis uses Byron as a savior to Kenny which I really admired.

    I believe The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 should be a staple in the middle school classroom as well as on home books shelves everywhere. The characters in this book are easy for a children and adults to relate to. Kenny and Byron have many of the same experiences and feelings as children today. Growing up, no matter what state or time period you are in, is hard. And, raising children in this era is no easier. Like the Watson brothers, teenagers today are trying to make sense of the world they live in, while exploring the hopes and stumbling blocks of growing up. The Weird Watsons provide children as well as adults with a unique opportunity to experience the Civil Rights Movement events through the eyes of a child and his parents. This is a memorable story of family bonds and friendship built between brothers, which is a stirring contrast to the lasting impression of the horrible tragedy that took place in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963.

Classroom Extension Ideas:

LANGUAGE ARTS CLASSROOM: have the students explore characterization. Students can pick one of the characters from the book and create a treasure chest for them. Have the students put items into the chest that would reflect what the character is like. Then have them share their treasure with the class at the end of the book. Another idea is to have the students keep a daily reading journal in order to reflect upon what they read that day. Students could also write short essays on some of the main points of the book such as family, first impressions, bullying, and equality. For example, have students define and write about what family means to them. For their essay on first impressions have them answer the question: How do first impressions create our opinions of someone. Are they always right, why or why not? Then for their essay on equality have students think of a time that they have been treated unfairly because of their family, background, culture, age or social status and write about how they felt and handled the situation.

HISTORY CLASSROOM: students can research and do projects on the Civil Rights Movement. One idea is to have students create a newspaper from 1963. They can interview parents, grandparents, neighbors, and relatives who lived through and remember the Civil Rights Movement. Students can then put their findings in a article. They can also research the Sixteenth Avenue Baptist Church bombing and write their own news report of the events that took place. They can include adds for movies, music, cars, gadgets, and other popular items of the era. Another idea is to utilize the map skills that Mr. and Mrs. Watson hat to use since they did not have GPS. While reading the story students can find where the Watson's are on a United States Map and determine how many miles they have traveled and have left to go. They can also research different facts about the states along I-75 from Flint, Michigan to Birmingham, Alabama just as Wilona did in her notebook, and share them with the class.

MATH CLASSROOM: Teachers can have students research the cost of items from the 1960's and compare them to today's prices. They can also create word problems about the trip including mileage, travel time, and distance.