Celebrating Day of the Dead

I love Halloween! I love making costumes and trick or treaters and candy and skeletons and pumpkins! Living in Texas, I also enjoyed discovering the tradition of the Day of the Dead-- a time to remember those we love who are no longer with us (thinking of you, Dad, Oma, Opa, Julia, Izell, Monte, Lettie). So, I was happy that we featured a poem about the Day of the Dead by our very own Texas author, René Saldaña, Jr., in this year's Poetry Friday Anthology for Celebrations (Pomelo Books, 2015). On top of that, my talented collaborator, Janet Wong, tried her hand at making a poem video for this poem which you can view by clicking HERE.

Here is the poem in English AND Spanish along with the Take 5 activities to guide you in sharing this poem. Enjoy!

Now head on over to Check it Out where Jone is hosting our Poetry Friday gathering here.

Teen Read Week: Poem #7 "Dracula" by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand

Here's the final poem in my series for Teen Read Week on the theme "Get Away @ the library" to spotlight all the great resources and activities available to help teens build literacy skills while reading for the fun to it. It's also a great poem for celebrating Halloween next week! It's "Dracula" by Carmen T. Bernier Grand from The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Middle School (Pomelo Books, 2013). You can also find it at Pinterest here. 

And here are the "Take 5" activities for sharing this poem also available at Pinterest here.

If you haven't gotten your copy of The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Middle School, it's not too late! It includes 110 poems by 71 poets along with "Take 5" mini-lessons for each and every poem tied to the Common Core skills (and/or TEKS in Texas) for each grade level, grades 6, 7, 8. 

Now head on over to Jama's place to celebrate Poetry Friday. She always has a yummy treat for us!

Teen Read Week: Poem #6 "Texas, Out Driving" by Naomi Shihab Nye

Teen Read Week continues with the theme "Get Away @ the library" to spotlight all the great resources and activities available to help teens build literacy skills while reading for the fun to it. Today, I'm sharing "Texas, Out Driving" by Naomi Shihab Nye. Yes, I live in Texas, so of course I love this poem, but I think you will too. Who doesn't love Naomi's lovely, lyrical, intelligent, compassionate poems? I'm so proud that this one is featured in The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Middle School (Pomelo Books, 2013). You can also find this poem graphic at Pinterest here. 

If you'd like ideas about how to share this poem with teens and tweens, try these "Take 5" activities from The Poetry Friday Anthology® for Middle School. This graphic is also available at Pinterest here.

One more poem coming tomorrow (and perfect for Halloween)...