I am always on the lookout for poems that relate thematically to the literacy units in Treasures that we study. This week we concluded Unit 1, "Friends and Families." I pulled out one of my favorite poems for students to read and memorize, "Could We Be Friends," by Bobbi Katz. We use poems such as this one to practice reading fluency, explore rhyme and rhythm, and we sometimes (depending on the poem) use them as springboards for writing. I even use it as a classroom management strategy; I'll prompt students to recite a poem as they transition into another activity, maintain some order and keep down the chatter. A fun way to get children to read is to have them make a recording of their own reading. Try it at home! I'd previously written a blog entry about it (1.3.13, "Using an iPod to Improve Reading," just look it up under the blog category, "Reading Strategies."). Here's an audioclip of Room 17 reading "Could We Be Friends" with me. After this initial practice, we made subsequent recordings on my iPhone of children leading the whole class in reading and reciting this poem. As students become more familiar with the poem, I will be asking each of them to recite it from memory. (Seems like such an old-school practice, I know! But in this day and age when we so often rely on technology to help us remember things, I feel it's important to be able to memorize, particularly when it comes to literature).
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