Monday, September 29, 2008
Shel Silverstein, how I love him!
So now that we are moving on to the poetry unit, I couldn't help but look up some of the poems that I used to love when I was a kid. Of course, I had to google Shel Silverstein, my favorite poet from my younger days! I read his poem, "Bear In There," and I totally remember having this read to me in second or third grade. It is a poem about a polar bear in someone's refrigerator who eats all the food.. basically.. in a nut shell. The poem basically describes my childhood at my elementary school. Not to be taken literally, but I really did enjoy every one of Shel Silverstein's poems. His poems actually got me interested in reading! I think if I had to thank anyone for writing something so profound, but yet so simple and fun, it would have to be Shel Silverstein. I love him and you should too!!!!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
I was very much into Shel Silverstein as well! My older brother had "Where the Sidewalk Ends" and "A Light in the Attic", which were two of Silverstein's collections. "Bear in There" was absolutely one of my favorites, and I remember memorizing it to recite in front of my class as a project in second grade, I think. I would agree that his work can be such a fun way to get kids enthusiastic about poetry and lends itself to activities to get them engaged in different materials. For example, we had to choose our favorite poem in the book and recite it or act it out or do some other response to it that made us engage with the text and ensured comprehension and understanding while paired with learning about poetry. I sometimes had a hard time getting into poetry and really liking it, but Silverstein's creative and quirky poems made it fun and engaging for me. He was awesome!
Except.... did anyone else think his picture on the back of the book was a little creepy? He reminded me od the bald guy in the movie 'Harry and the Hendersons' who pretends to me the bad guy. Anyone know what I'm talking about? lol. :-)
That's funny you said that because I used to love Shel Silverstein- but once i got to middle school stopped reading him completely. Maybe it was a lack of time- I don't really know what the reason was for stopping, but just this summer I rediscovered Shel. I was working with elementary students at a summer care program, and one of the older teachers suggested I read the peoms every day to the kids- it was still challenging to ramble off the rhymes as an adult- just as it was for my fourth grade memorization assignment of poetry- some things never change- Oh and that picture of him on the back of the book.... that was why I waited till fourth grade to start reading his books by myself-
His poems are very well written and easy to follow. As young kids, the rhymes draw you in, but as you become older, I think the actual meaning behind many of the poems becomes clear. These meanings relate closely to children in their every day life. I would recommend his poems and books to anyone and everyone, whether they enjoy history or not.
I agree that the poems he writes are very easy to get into and they are very engaging unlike other poems during this time.
Post a Comment