Poetry in the Library

Although National Poetry Month (April) officially began last week,  we have been celebrating it all year long. I've read Face Bug (Wordsong, 2013) to 3rd graders, shared Rutherford B: Who Was He? Poems About Our Presidents (Disney-Hyperion, 2013) with 5th grade, and book talked several poetry picture books throughout the school year.

But April is our chance to do even more!

So far, I have put up a Poet-Tree highlighting names of some lovely poets I have met -- and whose books I have read and enjoyed:

Underneath the tree, I displayed poetry books written by the poets. I keep having to replace them as they are checked out! (I thank the person who came up with the first Poet-Tree and sharing it!)

I also have placed a poetry book on every table in the library for display -- and checkout. Even if learners don't check them out, they are reading them! Access is key!

Here are a few of the poetry books on display in my library!

One source I will refer to constantly as I promote poetry in the library:

The Poetry Friday Anthology (Pomelo Books, 2012) contains many wonderful poems organized by grade level. Included in the anthology are suggestions on how to share the poems with students. Dr. Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong have compiled the collection and I think it's a must-have for any elementary school librarian or classroom teacher.

The first poem I read aloud from this book (this month) was "Recipe for a Poem" by Kristy Dempsey. I shared it with 5th graders, and on the second reading, they read part of it aloud with me. I love the format and the message in the poem. When I tweeted to Kristy Dempsey, she  gave me a wonderful idea: have the students write recipe poems! I will definitely try this with the next class. I can't wait to get started tomorrow with this! (More on this in another post!)

There are so many poems I want to share! Each time I find one to read-aloud, I find another!

How are you celebrating National Poetry Month?