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Poem in my Pocket

by Chris Tougas

May_Change Sings.jpg

Not only a fanciful rhyming adventure tale, Chris Tougas’s picture book is also a delightful allegory for the creative writing process.

"In this charming picture book allegory of the creative writing process, happenstance and weather events symbolize the emotional ebb and flow of writing a poem. I had a poem in my pocket, but my pocket got a rip. Rhymes tumbled down my leg and trickled from my hip. Thus begins the journey of a young poet's words out into the world, where they join randomly with other words to form funny riffs and puns all over a busy city street. The child scrambles to capture the loose words and arrange them back into poem form, only to lose them again as a storm swoops in on a rushing wind. Eventually, the words plant themselves in the muddy ground, where they grow into something that might be even better than the original poem: a Poet-Tree."

– Goodreads

Listen

Visit Tumblebook Library

-Log in to the Tumblebook database
-Click TumbleSearch
-Search by Subject: “poetry"
-Listen, watch, and read along with the narrators of different poems.

https://www.tumblebooklibrary.com

User Name: fauquier

Password: reads

Learn

Visit Britannica School

-Click the Elementary Tree arrow
-Search “poetry"
-Learn more about the different rhythms, sounds, and forms of poetry.

https://school.eb.com

School Access ID: fcps1

Passcode: welcome

Share

Discussion

-Ask an adult to share a favorite poem.
-On April 28th, Poem in Your Pocket Day, share pocket poems with your family and friends.
-Create your own pocket poems to share.
-Print your own pocket Poems foldable book.
-Listen to poet Linda Kulp Trout read and perform her poem “Hands Say, ‘Great Job!’" https://vimeo.com/534206085
-Practice reading her poem while making the hand movements. https://bit.ly/3ixQXJ0
-Watch the poetry mini book folding video. https://vimeo.com/399349427

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