Happy Poetry Month

   April is National Poetry Month and I have lots of fun things planned for this month.
   Today I met with a small group of seniors at Santa Catalina Villas to talk poetry and to share poems with each other.  I had a grand time.  I always have a good time when I can talk poetry with folks.

  This month I'm participating in a progressive poem.

2013 Progressive Poem Begins Here!

at my friend Amy VanDerwater's blog, The Poetry Farm.

   Each day a children's poet will add a line to the poem, until we have a 30 line poem. 

Happy National Poetry Month!  

Welcome  to the 2013 Kidlitosphere Progressive Poem!

Last year, Irene Latham invited poetry-lovers to share in a progressive poem feast which she kicked off at her blog, Live Your Poem, on April 1, 2012.   Irene has organized us all again this year to build a poem day-by-day, throughout April. 

So Amy Van Derwater starts the poem today.  Tomorrow I will add a line to the poem, and then on Wednesday,  Matt Forrest Esenwine gets to add the third line.

Here is the complete line up of children's poets.

2013 Kidlitosphere Progressive Poem

April
1  Amy Ludwig VanDerwater
2  Joy Acey
3  Matt Forrest Esenwine
4  Jone MacCulloch
5  Doraine Bennett
6  Gayle Krause
7  Janet Fagal
8  Julie Larios
9  Carrie Finison
10  Linda Baie
11  Margaret Simon
12  Linda Kulp
13  Catherine Johnson
14  Heidi Mordhorst
15  Mary Lee Hahn
16  Liz Steinglass
17  Renee LaTulippe
18  Penny Klostermann
19  Irene Latham
20  Buffy Silverman
21  Tabatha Yeatts
22  Laura Shovan
23  Joanna Marple
24  Katya Czaja
25  Diane Mayr
26  Robyn Hood Black
27  Ruth Hersey
28  Laura Purdie Salas
29  Denise Mortensen
30  April Halprin Wayland

     To make navigating a little easier you'll find this list on the right hand column that lists the pages you can travel to, underneath the page starting HOME

    I had so much fun thinking about this progressive poem.  I thought I'd write my own progressive poem this month too.  I'm titling this poem WHAT IS POETRY?  and I'll write it in rhyming couplets.

   Then, April 18th is POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY.  I've volunteered at my local library to help children make pockets to put their poems in.  I've also been making my own pockets that I've been sending to my friends.  I'll share this "art" with you in a post, later this month.

  April 20 is the 2 year anniversary for my blog Poetry For Kids Joy.  I can't believe I've been writing a poem a day for almost two years now.  I have been having so much fun.  Thank you for reading my poems, for making suggestions and offering a heaping pile of encouragement.  I never would have gotten this far in this journey without you.  So, to say thank you I have what I think will be a fun give-away.  Stay tuned for the details of that.

    When I attended a Highlight's Educational Foundation children's poetry workshop led by David Harrison in 2011, one of the first things we discussed was, what was our definition of poetry.  David supplied us a reading list with lots of quotes by famous poets on the topic.  I'll share some of these with you this month.  The epigraph for this poem will change daily. 

WHAT IS POETRY?

I think all writing is a disease.  You can't stop it.--William Carlos Williams

What is poetry?
It is finding the truth, no need to lie.
It's munching on watermelon and letting seeds fly.

(Tomorrow I'll add the next verse.)

    I found out from reading my friend Linda Andersen's blog that April 17 is National Haiku Day.

    Have a great poetry day and I'll see you tomorrow when I get to add line 2 to the progressive poem.