LITTLE CAT

The birds sing.
     Little cat creeps.
The birds perch.
     Little cat leaps.

All the birds have flown away.
Little cat wants to play.

He sits on his haunches,
     flicks the tail at the tip.
He washes his face
     and licks his lip.


     Do you have a cat?  More people in the United States have cats than dogs.  It did used to be that way.  Dogs used to be the more popular pet.  Can you try writing a poem today about your pet?  It doesn't have to be a real pet.  It can be one from your imagination.  It might be a llama, a hippo, or a bear.  Anything is OK for your poem.  Just have fun writing.

Poetry Camp

I just got back from Poetry Camp at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington.  What fun I had with over 40 children's poets.  There was lots to learn and lots to do.
  On my air flight home I met a young 3 year old.  She gave me a picture she had made.  I asked her name and she told me she was, Salsa.  I thought this was unusual and I looked to her dad for an explanation.  Had I heard right?
  "Just call her Salsa," said Dad.  "She likes to change her name every week or so." 
   How unusual, I thought.  I knew this young person had the heart of a poet, if she was changing around words and selecting the ones she likes. 
   If you could select a name to be called this week, what would it be?  I think I'd be Cookie this week because I've baked a lot of them for a writers meeting.
   Here is the picture Salsa gave me:

Salsa has stickers
of a horse, 
a dog.
a cat.
She draws 
the corral,
the doghouse
and a mat.

 I thought it was clever of Salsa to be able to draw the surroundings for her stickers.  Do you have some stickers to play with?  I have stickers of soccer balls I think I'll try drawing a soccer player.  Once you've drawn your picture, can you write a poem to go with it?  Have fun writing and sticking, and drawing.

Enjoy each day and treasure the people you meet.

Manticore V

My manticore is a gho-che-at.
He has the head of a ghost,
the feet of a cheetah,
and the body of a very scared cat.

He runs fast outdoors
with his cheetah feet
hunting for fish and souls 
to eat.

He wears a Hawaiian lei
to say Aloha
every day.

  Who ever would have thought to put the head of a ghost on a manticore?  Only the children from Kapa'a Elementary School.  I think this came from the idea that a manticore is a mythical beast.  Isn't the creativity wonderful?  And then to follow through with the idea that a ghost eats souls.  Some thinking is going on.  Wonderful!  I've never had a manticore poem go in this direction before and I love it.  Bright and very creative.
   Can you try writing a manticore poem today?  Maybe you can get your friends to help by suggesting interesting shapes to patch together.  Don't forget to try to use your five senses when writing your poem. 

Seek new paths for your creativity.

MANTICORE III

   This manticore has the head of a dog.  The body of a pentagon.  Cat feet and tail, and eagle wings.  I couldn't remember how to make a five sided shape, so I drew a five pointed star first, and then connected the points.  Hey, it worked.  I'm not that great an artist, but I'll always give it a try.  Just wait till I share the goat head.  I love how the kids stretch my abilities.  The name we came up with for this manticore was a Do-pen-at-le.

My dopenatle is named Jaxs.
He eats dogfood
with his friends
the dog,
eagle,
and cat.
His body
is a pentagon.
He flies in the air
and soon
is gone.  

   This poem was written with the help of second graders at Kapaa Elementary School in Kauai, Hawaii.  Can you try making your own manticore creature and then writing a poem about it?  Have fun creating.

   A poem and bubblegum have a lot in common.

Another Manticore

This manticore has a squid head, turtle body and cat feet.  We called him a squiturat.  He also is wearing a tutu and glasses.

Sebastion, my squiturat
loves ballet,
except he's fat.

He can't leap
off the ground,
with cat feet,
he falls down. 

      This is another manticore poem, written with the second graders at Kapaa Elementary School in Kauai, Hawaii.  Can you tell I had a really good time working with the hildren? 
          Can you try making your own manticore poem.  Take three animals, or objects and piece them together and then give the creature you've made a name.  Where does your creature live?  What does it eat?  What does it like to do?  Have fun creating and writing your poem.

 
E mahalo kakou i ka mea loa'a.  Let us be thankful for what we have.  A Hawaiian proverb.

The Sleeping Cat

The sleeping cat
didn't want to play.
She told the lion,
"Go away!"


Some days all you want to do is sleep.  What do you do when you want to sleep, but others want you up and moving?  Can you try writing a poem about sleeping today?
  Hey I just wrote one.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz,
zzzzzzzzzzzz,
zzzzzzzzzz.


  That was supposed to be funny.  Did you get my silly joke?  I don't think I've written a poem about snoring, I'll have to try that, too.  What animal do you think snores the loudest?  Do birds snore?  Have fun writing your poem.

A birdie with a yellow bill
Hopped upon the window-sill,
Cocked his shining eye and said:
'Ain't you 'shamed, you sleepy-head?'  Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), Time to Rise

MY CAT

copyright 2015, Joy Acey

My kitten,

as everyone knows,

is the best cat 

you can find.

I dress her

in my doll's clothes.

She never seems to mind. 

copyright 2015, Joy Acey

     This poem was inspired by Stella and Sophie, two new friends I met last night.  Do you have a pet?  A cat?  A dog?  What do you do with your pet?  What does your pet do to you?  Can you write a poem about your pet (real or imaginary) today?  Have fun thinking about imaginary pets.

Writing children's poetry is the best way I know to meet new friends.

THE OLD BARN

The old barn remembers

when it knew the comings

and goings of all the farm animals,

the smell of wet hay under the cow's feet

and the mews of the cat

wanting warm milk,

the steam from the horse's soft nostrils

on cold winter mornings

and in summer the laughter

of children moving hay bales

in the mow to make a maze,

in later years, the smell

of diesel and oil mixed with dirt

around the truck and tractor,

the sound the skip-loader made

as it mucked out the pigs' pens,

or the scurrying of mouse feet

racing from the silo with discarded corn.

Abandoned now, the roof sags,

the wood has weathered gray,

dust motes float in the sun rays

slipping through the chinking,

the metal door hinges squeak needing oil.

The barn doesn't know

how much longer he'll be able

to stand it. He's waiting,

once more to hear the soft words

of lovers meeting in the mow.

There is only the echo of memory

to keep him company.

     Today's poem was written for Jane Yolen who shared a poem about a barn this week.  She didn't have hay in her poem and I commented on that.  She responded, it had been a long time since hay was made in her barn.  I suggested she needed to write a poem from the barn's point of view and Jane said that was my poem to write.  So I did.
     Your challenge for today is to take an object and write your poem from the viewpoint of the object.  Have fun writing.

The Poetry Friday Round Up is hosted this week by Margaret Simon on her blog Reflections on the Teche.  Thanks, Margaret for organizing us this week.  



     Writing a children's poem is like dropping a pebble into a pond, you never know how far the ripples will go.
 

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2014

WHO AM I?

She zips around town,
with her cat named Doom.
The witch rides on me,
I am her __ __ __ __ __.

This is a riddle poem, but it is also a mask, or persona poem.  If you were a broom, what would you be made of?  Who would have made you?  How would you have become magical, if you are?  Where would you live?  Would you play quidich?  What can you tell us about your life and the person who rides you?  If you live at a school, what do you do after the children all go home?  How do you get along with the other brooms?  What advice would you give us?  Can you write today about being a broom?  Have fun.

DIRTY DOG

My dog is dirty,
he rolled on the path.
I've filled the tub
to give him a bath.

I've looked all around.
He's can't be seen
now that I want
to wash my dog clean.


     Have you ever given a dog a bath?  How about a cat?  Is there another animal you could bathe?
I once scrubbed the side of an elephant.  Just like giving a dog a bath, I got more water on me than I did on the elephant.  I thought about changing this poem to be about an elephant instead of the dog, but I think I want a different poem for that.  Elephants love water and they would be the first ones in the water making mud. 
   Your poetry challenge for today is to write a poem about bathing, grooming or feeding an animal.  Have fun writing.

SPRING DAYS

The cats search
for field mice
in the barn.

If one is seen,
cats don't think twice
they leap, and bring harm.

Cats keep an eye
up in the rafters
for a barred owl--
he might be a captor
sleeping in the barn.

Horses in the paddocks
eating the grass,
spring will come,
then quickly pass.

Time soon
for the cows
to be milked.
What do you think?
Cats are hoping 
for a drink. 


     Part of the reason I love  writing poetry is the research you get to do.  I originally wrote the owl was a raptor, but when I looked up information on the owl, I discovered there is some controversy about calling an owl a raptor, so I had to change my line.  This poem is definitely a draft, I need to do a lot more work on it. 
     So your challenge for today is to write a draft poem about an owl.  Have fun writing.  

I'm Hiding

I'm hiding here
under my bed
pretending I'm
the cat
waiting to be fed.
Won't you please
pet the head
of the cat 
who is hiding
under the bed.


     Where is your favorite place to hide?  Can you write a poem about hiding or about something you'd like to hide.  Have fun writing.

BEING CAT

If I were a cat
I know what I'd do
I curl in your lap
and purr for you.


    Today's poem came because I was reading a poem posted today by US children's poet laureate Kenn Nesbitt.
    His poem starts: If I had a dollar/ I know what I'd do...  and as I reread the lines, I thought, hey, I've written a poem with those same words.  And the more I thought about the lines, the more I knew these lines would make a good outline for lots of poems.  My previous poem was about a dog, so I tried again with a cat.  The poem above is what came out.  But what would happen if you used a bird?

If I were a goldfinch,
I know what I'd do,
I'd sit at the feeder
and sing songs to you.

     Or what happens if I try another animal?

If I were an elephant
living in the zoo
I'd share half my peanuts
and give them to you.

        I could also try a holiday, this is what I ended with for the Fourth of July.
If I were an American flag
I know what I'd do
I'd wave for freedom
in red, white and blue.


    Would the basic pattern work for professions?

If I were my teacher
I know what I'd do.
I'd make recess last all day.
How about you? 

 So now it is your turn.  Think of an animal, an object, or an event, and write your own poem.

If I were (fill in the blank.)
I know what I'd do.
I'd ______________________
____________________ with you.

    Give it a try and see if you have fun.  You are welcome to leave your poems in the comments below.  Have fun playing with this.

WHILE EATING CUSTARD PIE

Little cat swung
on a crescent moon
singing a jolly,
happy tune.
She sang low,
she sang high
to the stars
in the moonlit sky.

     I went to sleep last night thinking about this poem.  Originally the poem was an excuse to use the line while eating custard pie. But as the night wore on, I rewrote the poem to a Halloween poem with pumpkin pie, and this morning in a brilliant job of editing, I got rid of the pie. (How can you sing and eat pie at the same time?  It is like eating crackers and trying to whistle.) So then I rearranged the lines and ended up with an a-a, b-b rhyming pattern.  I did try a,b, a, b, but I didn't like that as well.  I could have used longer (fewer) lines, but I like these shorter lines for early readers.  You could make the argument that my rhyme scheme now is a, b, c, b for two stanzas, but I'll hold with the idea that what I really have here is rhyming couplets.  I have this theory that most rhyming children's poetry is written in couplets and the a,b,a,b pattern is really a couplet with internal rhyme.  Any comments?
       Your poetry challenge is to write a poem about an animal in the sky. (A Rhino in the sky with diamonds, maybe.)  Have fun writing. 

SATURDAY MORNING

Woke up this morning
there on my deck
a snake was sleeping
and causing heck.

The dog was barking,
the cat hissed to say,
Wake up, Mr. Snake.
Please slither away.

Santa's Cat

Santa couldn't find his cat.
He wondered where she was at.

He looked in the kitchen
and under the stairs.
He looked in his workshop.
But the cat wasn't there.
 
He checked with the elves
and his reindeer, 
they both said,
"We haven't seen her here."

Santa thought she'd run away
until he checked
inside his sleigh.

There with the cat,
Santa couldn't believe his eyes,
mewed eight little kittens--
a big surprise.

So if this Christmas eve
in your stocking you find
a sweet little kitten
from Santa's cat.
She doesn't mind.


     Happy Monday.  I'm going to Phoenix today to have some poetry fun with the students at Esperanza Music Academy.   I hope you have a fun day too.  for your poetry challenge today, can you write a poem about Santa's dog.  It doesn't need to rhyme, but let me know what kind of dog he is.  What does he look like?  What does he like to eat?  What does he do?  
      Have fun writing your poem. 

Five Bats Go Flying

Five bats flying
one Halloween night
they zipped and zoomed
they flew to the moon
as they took flight.

"I think I see something,"
said the first bat.
"Oh yes," said the four,
"on a broom, that's the cat."

"I see something."
said the second bat.
"Down in that ditch."
"Oh yes," said the four,
"that is a witch."

"Eeeeee," said the third bat.
"Look at what I see."
"Oh yes," said the four.
"A skeleton hangs in that tree."

"Eeeeek!" said the fourth bat.
"Is that a phantom?"
"No," said the four.
"It's a jack-o-lantern."

"Come," said the fifth bat.
"I know what we should do,
we'll fly in front of the moon
and sing
OOO-ooo-OOO."

"Yes,"said the four bats,
"that's what we should do,
we'll fly to the moon singing
OOO-ooo-OOO-ooo-OOO!"


     Sorry, I'm late today.  I've been having too much fun playing with this poem and the art work to go with it.  What I really want to do and will do soon is re-cast this poem as a poem for five voices--or as a mini-play/poem with one voice for each of the bats, a narrator and the chorus for the group of bats.
    Anyway, now it is your turn.  Can you write a poem about a bat today?  This is a good poem to try in rhyme since the "at" family of rhyming words is pretty big with lots of possibilities.  What ever you do, have fun today.  I'm so glad you stopped by. Thank you for coming to my poetry playground.

WILIFORD MOUSE

Wiliford Mouse

liked to spend hours

sitting in the garden

smelling the flowers.


This little mouse

was quite a hoot

sniffing the pollen

with his yellow snoot.


He'd taste the petals,

lap up the dew

but when the cat

came stalking through


Wiliford tried hiding

under the pansies

but he couldn't help it

young Wiliford sneezed.

AH  AH  CHOOOOO!






    Hey, Happy Thursday.  I want to thank you for stopping by and reading my poem.  I've used a slip rhyme, or assonance rhyme in the last stanza.  If you can think of a flower that rhymes perfectly with sneezed, please let me know.  That last stanza still needs work, but I'll get to it.
    Do you like mice?  Click here to read MICE by Rose Flyman.
    Here is your challenge for today, can you write a poem that uses Ah-choo? 

FORM POEM

LITTLE YELLOW FROG

Little yellow frog,

Little yellow frog,

Where have you been?

I've been hiding,

I've been hiding,

said little yellow frog,

under a log.

LITTLE RED HEN

Little red hen,

Little red hen,

Where have you been?

I've been sitting,

I've been sitting,

said little red hen,

trying to hatch these eggs.

     Can you see the pattern I've set up in these two poems? 

Little (color)  (animal).
Little (color)  (animal),
Where have you been?

 I've been (action word),
I've been (action word),
said the little (color) (animal)
(line to explain where or what the action is)

So let's try it with a cat.

Little white cat,

Little white cat,

Where have you been?

I've been sleeping,

I've been sleeping,

said little white cat,

on this cozy mat.

Or a dog.

Little brown dog,

Little brown dog,

Where have you been?

I've been running,

I've been running,

said the little brown dog,

through this misty fog.

 I'm already thinking about the verses I can write using this pattern with a goat, a lion, an ostrich, the moon, (see, it doesn't have to be an animal), the broom, even a Texas tycoon.  Just to show you the form can be used for something other than animals, I wanted to use different colors too.  So I thought about silver and the first thing that came to mind was a shovel.

Little silver shovel, 

Little silver shovel,

Where have you been?

I've been digging, 

I've been digging,

said little silver shovel

all across the gravel.

   So now it is your turn.  Can you write your own poem using this form?  If you had a whole group of poems you could put them together in your own little book of poetry.  Have fun.  If you'd like to leave your poem in the comments below, I'd LOVE to read your creation.  Thank you.

My Kitten

   On Thursday i volunteered at my local library for National Poem in Your Pocket Day.  I helped the children make pockets.  We decorated them and then wrote poems to go in our pockets. 
   A group of young girls,Ariana, Leylany, Reece  asked me to write a poem about a cat.  After some brain storming, this is what we came up with:

I have a little kitten.

she calls to me meow.

She never, never scratches.

I don't think she knows how.

The only time

I hear her hiss

is when she wants

a good night kiss.

Meow, meow,

hiss, lick, kiss,

purrrrrrrrrrr.


     Can you write your own poem about a cat,dog, or a fish?  Have a great weekend.