Moon Over Tennessee Book Trailer

This is the book trailer I made for Moon Over Tennessee.

What is Goodbye?

Grimes, Nikki. What is Goodbye? ill. Raúl Colón. Hyperion Books for Children, 2004. ISBN 0-7868-0778-4

Jaron is dead. How should Jerrilyn and Jesse grieve? What is the right way? How long are they allowed to be sad? How do you say goodbye? There is no right way for any of these things as the poems in the book note. Jesse acts out while Jerrilyn keeps everything bottled up. The poems demonstrate questions and feelings everyone has when a loved one dies. The mood of the poems range from deep sadness, to guilt, to desperation, to, ultimately, happiness. All of Jesse's poems rhyme while Jerrilyn's are free verse. This book is a really good way to demonstrate to young people that grief is personal and there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Memories will replace grief.

I might use a couple of poems to demonstrate the grief of a book character might experience after the loss of another character. I would then have the students write a poem in the character's voice demonstrating the grief or the way the character handles the grief. I would read the following poem outloud to give them a springboard to work from.

Mad ~Jesse

You promised I could

always count on you.

You swore you'd teach me

everything you knew.

When I got older,

we were going to

bike across the country.

We were going to hike

through Yellowstone then

through Yosemite.

How could you die and

break your word to me?

You're nothing but a

lying little rat.

You left me, Jaron.

I hate you for that!

Salting the Ocean

Nye, Naomi Shihab (comp.) Salting the Ocean: 100 Poems by Young People. ill. Ashley Bryan. Harper Collins, 2000. ISBN 0688161936

100 poems, by 100 kids, in grades 1 through 12. While that might seem like a lot of numbers, this books is filled with lots of words. These are poems that children can relate to. The language is simplistic, but intense in many spots. The poets write about everything in their lives, from family problems to where they live, and even about themselves. The moods of the poems range from happy, to serene, to mad. Even the style is varied. While many are free-verse, there are a few that are concrete. Overall, this is a great book to get kids reading poetry and even inspired to write some of their own.

I would use this book as an introduction to writing poetry for upper elementary and middle school students. This would be after already having read several different types, styles, and moods of poetry. This would show students that they can write poetry and possibly even get published. I would read several and then let them loose with their creativity. One of the poems I would read would be the following untitled poem.


Questions are boxes wrapped in paper.
When you remove the bright ones from the pile
you can see the simpler ones...the ones holding the
decoratives ones up. When you open
the simplest boxes, you get the
best gifts.

-Valerie Marie Vick

Seeing the Blue Between

Janeczko, Paul B. (comp.) Seeing the Blue Between: Advice and Inspiratino for Young Poets. Candlewick Press, 2002. ISBN 0-7636-0881-5


Do other poets feel this way? How do I get started writing poetry? I need some advice! Well, just read this book! Compiled by Paul B. Janeczko, you will find letters and advice from poets written to you, the new poet. Each poet shares their experiences and challenges through their letters to the new writers and give advice on how to find your poetic voice and express your thoughts and feelings in new ways. In addition to the good advice you'll find, you can also read some of the poets' works. The poetry itself presents a wide range of topics, types, and styles. Every mood seems to be represented as well. The topics range from bad poems, bugs, and even being eaten by a shark. As a reader, you will see rhyming poetry, free verse, and concrete poems that range in mood from playful to sad. At the end, you can even peek further into the poets' lives in the notes section. There is much to read and discover in this book. If you want to gain the experiences of the experts, this is the book to dive into.

I would use this book to create a collaborative lesson with a writing teacher. I would begin first by reading simple poems that the children may have already heard already, a couple of funny poems and a couple of more serious poems by various authors. I would read a couple of bits of advice from the book, then I would then ask the students to write a poem of their own. The next class, I would ask them to evaluate their own poems and their writing process. Did they like how it felt to write? What would they have done differently? Was it hard to express your thoughts in poetry? I would then read a couple of the letters of advice from the book and, time allowing, I would read their poems as well. I would then have the students go back and re-evaluate their works, edit, and/or rewrite. When they felt as if they had a cultivated work, they would turn it in and/or share with the class.

One of the pieces of advice I would share before the students write is from Jack Prelutsky. He says "Exaggerate...Make the ordinary special...Your ideas are more important than trying to make a perfect rhyming poem. Your poem should have a sense of rhythm-it should sound like a song and have a repeating beat like a soft drum tap. BUT YOU DO NOT HAVE TO MAKE THE LINES RHYME!!!"

One of the poems I would share would be from Lilliam Morrison.
"The Boxing Match"

Two bushes have come to blows.
The wind is egging them on.
Their shadows are boxing here on the rug
In a broad strip of sun.

Wham, wham, they bob and weave,
Then abruptly the battle is done.
The wind has rushed to another arena.
Nobody hurt. Nobody won.