Poetry: Books for Elementary Grades

These poems for two or more voices explore the myriad sounds animals make--from a frog's jug-o-rum to a fish's boom! to an elephant's bark. Laced with humor, the poems are a delight to read aloud and cover all major classes of animals: mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, amphibians, insects, even a crustacean! Readers will learn how to estimate the temperature by counting a cricket's chirps and see how creatures make sounds at specific pitches and frequencies,...

A collection of poems that celebrate the joy, beauty, imagination, and freedom of childhood.

Hang on tight for a raucous bounce through the solar system and back -- propelled by funny, fanciful, factually sound poems and exuberant illustrations. The universe poured into me. My brain was overloaded. It smoked and glowed red-hot. And then it actually exploded. Ever wonder what the sun has to say about being the closest star to Earth? Or what Pluto has gotten up to since being demoted to a dwarf planet? Or where rocket ships go when they retire?...

"Everything Comes Next contains Naomi Shihab Nye's most beloved poems, including 'Famous,' 'A Valentine for Ernest Mann,' 'Kindness,' and 'Gate A-4,' as well as new, unpublished poems. It is an introduction to the poet's work for new readers, as well as a comprehensive edition for classrooms"--

"More than 100 funny new poems from Jack Prelutsky, the nation's first children's poet laureate, in a wide array of poetic forms, from haiku to concrete poems and everything in between, and hilariously illustrated in black-and-white on every page"--

"In captivating, lyrical verse, award-winning children's author Susan Vande Griek explores the fascinating movements of twelve birds. Hawks kettle, riding warm air currents like bubbles rising in a pot of boiling water. Puffins wheel, circling over the sea and island colonies. And eagles cartwheel, locking talons high in the air and then tumbling toward earth. Alongside each poem is an informational sidebar explaining why the bird moves in its own...

An ALA Notable Children's Book, Honey, I Love and Other Love Poems includes sixteen poems that tell of love and the simple joys of everyday life, seen through the eyes of a child: playing with a friend, skipping rope, riding on a train—or keeping Mama company till Daddy gets back. Each of these sixteen "love poems" is spoken straight from the perspective of a child. Riding on a train, listening to music, playing with a friend...each poem elicits...

"When Juan Felipe Herrera was very young, he picked flowers, helped his mama feed the chickens, slept under the starry sky, and learned to say goodbye to his amiguitos each time his migrant family moved on. When he grew up, Juan Felipe Herrera became a poet. His breathtaking poem "Imagine" and Lauren Castillo's evocative illustrations will speak to every reader and dreamer searching for this place in life."-- dust jacket.

A collection of poems describing the characteristics and activities of a variety of insects. Written to be read aloud by two voices--sometimes alternating, sometimes simultaneous--here is a collection of irresistible poems that celebrate the insect world, from the short life of the mayfly to the love song of the book louse. Funny, sad, loud, and quiet, each of these poems resounds with a booming, boisterous, joyful noise.

A collection of poems arranged in such categories as poems that make you smile, send messages, or share feelings; poems that contain "beats that repeat" or "word play"; and special kinds of poems such as limericks, songs, and haiku.