• Poetry Friday: On a Flake-Flying Day

    This week’s Poetry Friday host is Jama at Jama’s Alphabet Soup. https://jamarattigan.com/   On a Flake-Flying Day       On a Flake-Flying Day: Watching Nature’s Wonders by Buffy Silverman Millbrook Press, 2023   On a Flake-Flying Day is another book in Buffy Silverman’s season series. You can see…

  • Poetry Friday September 30, 2022 + Ice Cycle

      Tabatha is posting the roundup this week.   Haiku of the Week   bee sashays up the thin petal— balancing act   Photo & Haiku © 2022 Marcie Flinchum Atkins  Haiku Moments Playlist Poetry Printables Page Sign up for poetry postcards   What I’m Reading Ice Cycle: Poems…

  • Poetry Mentor Texts: Some Bugs by Andrea DiTerlizzi

    Some Bugs By Andrea DiTerlizzi Illustrated by Brendan Wenzel Beach Lane, 2014 Some Bugs is one of those books that completely absorbs the reader in it’s fun but spare language. It’s a brilliant 94 words! Like Raindrops Roll, it’s one I typed up because I wanted to study the…

  • Baseball Books as Mentor Texts: BARBED WIRE BASEBALL by Marissa Moss

    Barbed Wire Baseball By Marissa Moss Illustrated by Yuko Shimizu Abrams, 2013 Kenichi Zenimura loved to play baseball. He play baseball for years. Until World War II, when he and other Japanese families lived their lives in internment camps. But inside that bleak camp, Zeni made a baseball field.…

  • SHE SANG PROMISE by Jan Godown Annino, Mentor Text Lesson Plan

    SHE SANG PROMISE: THE STORY OF BETTY MAE JUMPER by Jan Godown Annino Illustrated by Lisa Desimini A few weeks ago, I featured SHE SANG PROMISE as a mentor text on the Grog site. This week, I’m debuting the full length lesson plan. SHE SANG PROMISE MENTOR TEXT LESSON…

  • Poetry Mentor Texts: When Thunder Comes by J. Patrick Lewis

    WHEN THUNDER COMES: POEMS FOR CIVIL RIGHTS LEADERS by J. Patrick Lewis Illustrated by Jim Burke, R. Gregory Christie, Tonya Engel, John Parra, and Meilo So Chronicle Books, 2013 J. Patrick Lewis has captured fifteen international civil rights leaders’ struggles in this poetry collection. This would be an amazing…

  • Monstories: How to Use Monster Books to Write Your Own Monster Story

    There are some really great monster books out there. One of my newest favorites is MONSTORE by Tara Lazar, which I featured during Picture Book Month.  I use MOSTLY MONSTERLY by Tammi Sauer, illustrated by Scott Magoon, and I NEED MY MONSTER by Amanda Noll, illustrated by Howard McWilliam,…

  • Writing Wednesday: Using HERE COME THE HUMPBACKS as a Writing Mentor Text

    HERE COME THE HUMPBACKS By April Pulley Sayre Illustrated by Jamie Hogan Charlesbridge, 2013   This nonfiction book about humpback whales combines lyrical first lines on each page, with narrative facts and separate factoids on each page. Beautifully written and chock-full of information that will delight animal lovers, it…

  • Writing Wednesday: Using THE TREE LADY as a Writing Mentor Text

      The Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed a City Forever By H. Joseph Hopkins Illustrated by Jill McElmurry Beach Lane Books, 2013   This picture book biography about Katherine Olivia Sessions highlights the difference one person can make. Kate lived at a time…