POETRY ROUNDUP- FINAL

Okay, I started the Poetry Roundup last night, fell asleep, then thought I would finish this morning. But then it took longer than I expected, and a friend stopped by for coffee, then my son asked if I wanted to go on a "movie date" and now it's ten o'clock on Saturday night and I'm just finishing up the Poetry Friday Roundup. Some great, great, great offerings and a lovely note from Jayne Jaudon Ferrer, the creator of Your Daily Poem…

Original Poetry
Charles Ghigna (Father Goose) takes us on a metaphoric poetry journey. A poem is a little path. A fisherman. A firefly. A busy bee. Can't wait to share these great metaphors with kids this fall.

Amy (The Poem Farm), who has set herself the enormous task of writing a poem every day this year, offers "Words on the Water," another poem about poetry.

Amy inspired Linda to try writing a poem a day for the month of July. Today's poems feature not only four original poems (including a metaphor poem about poetry), but also one of the world's cutest swimsuit models!

Theresa (Looking for the Write Words) gives us "Blue Sky Days," a list poem that will be a great mentor poem for my young poets when I head back to school next month.

Toby Speed gives us "Backyard Game." After you read her poem, scroll down and check out her pictures of baby robins and her daily pictures of the sky. Wow. Wow. wow.

Elaine Magliaro's daughter is getting married TODAY (congratulations Elaine and family!) and she still found time to write a really lovely poem, "Things to Do If You Are the Ocean" that left this landlocked gal longing for water. Elaine also shares Stephen Dunn's "The Kiss" at Blue Rose Girls.

While we're thinking about water, head over to Priya's blog to read "Lighthouse," an original poem inspired by Google wallpaper. Wow, wow, wow! This fourteen-year-old's use of line breaks is really powerful!

Karen Edmisten shares her Friday plans in a short poem that one of her commenters describes as the "epitome of class and elegance." It made me laugh!

Anyone who has ever done the "sports mom" thing, could identify with Jeni's "Defeat," a poem written to honor her baseball playing son.

Andromeda Jazmon (A wrung sponge) honors her bike washing son with a beautiful photogaph and a Fourth of July haiku.

Poetry
If you need a good laugh (especially if you are in that baby boomer age range) check out "Now We're the Old Folks" at Joe's Poetry Insider.

This must be the week for metaphors. Tabatha started us out with "The Kite" by songwriter Leonard Cohen. Listen to this great line, "A kite is a contract of glory that must be made with the sun."

After you have read "The Kite" hop over to Irene Latham's blog and check out Carl Sandburg's backyard (OK, I know a poem written in 1916 is a classic), but this ode to the moon is a perfect companion to "The Kite." I'll be thinking about "white thoughts and silver changes" when I look at the moon tonight.

Mary Lee brings us Theodore Roethke's "The Waking" and a gorgeous picture of sunflowers (which I am thinking this woman of many talents probably took herself!). I'll be carrying the line "I learn by going where I have to go" around in my head for a while.

Jama Rattigan has given me a new poem to add to my list of all-time favorites. Read Taylor Mali's "Silver Lined Heart", share a few of your favorite things, and then put some emergency champagne glasses in your trunk.

Classics
Dori (Dori Reads) shares lines from Twelfth Night and a lovely story about where she found her copy of the book.

And another Shakespeare lover, Laura (Teach Poetry K-12), gives us Hamlet's "To Be or Not To Be" soliliquy, as well as some of her thoughts on this work.

Ruth, who teaches middle school in Haiti, shares John Donne's "Death Be Not Proud"and also a beautiful paraphrase that she has used with her middle schoolers. If the situation in Haiti is seeming less real to you, spend a few minutes perusing Ruth's blog.

Can you imagine living only ten minutes from Robert Frost's home? And being able to walk in his woods? Diana Mayr does, and at The Write Sisters, she ponders Frost's "Come In."

Stenhouse is sharing Margaret Wise Brown's "The Silent Song." I can picture primary grade kidlets performing this poem.

At Kurious Kitty, Diana Mayr gives us a Thomas Hardy poem from an Alfred A. Knopf collection about horses. The poem made me sad, but I'd love to see this collection, also others in the series. Diana also shares a quote by Thomas Hardy at Kurious K's Kwotes.

And what's a "Classics" category without a little Emily Dickinson. Check out "The Daisy Follows Soft the Sun" at Bildungsroman.

Book Reviews
Mother Reader thinks Rebecca Kai Dotlich's BELLA AND BEAN qualifies for Poetry Friday. I totally agree. A lovely read about friendship and poetry.

At Paper Tigers, Sally reviews EENY MEENY MANITOBA. This sounds like a fun resource for teaching Canadian geography!

Mandy (Enjoy and Embrace Learning) shares ONCE I ATE A PIE, an anthology of dog poems, and a great story about her lab, who ate her daughter's first birthday cake. I am more than a little relieved to know that someone else's dogs are as badly behaved as my two. I have to get this book.

Kelly Fineman, one of the lucky ducks who got to attend ALA last week, brought back Debbie Levy's MAYBE I'LL SLEEP IN THE BATHTUB TONIGHT, a collection of bedtime poems that seems like it would be a great addition for any elementary poetry collection.

I don't know about you, but I'm always up for a good book about writing (which might explain why I seem to spend much more time reading about writing than actually writing). Janet shares IMMERSED IN VERSE: AN INFORMATIVE AND TOTALLY TREMENDOUS GUIDE TO LIVING THE POET'S LIFE, a book she describes as helpful for intermediate grade or middle school writers. I think I need to look for this one.

Is the term poemusic new to anyone besides me? Isn't it just the greatest word? It comes from Heidi Mordhorst, who uses the term to describe Natalie Marchant's "See You Later," a collection that includes a book and two CD's.

Ben reviews, TIME YOU LET ME IN, an anthology selected by Naomi Shihab Nye. All of the poems included in this anthology were written by poets 25 or under. Definitely worth checking out for upper elementary and older kids.

Poetry Contests
Anyone up for writing a little tomato poetry? Diana Mayr gave us the details about an upcoming contest!