Children's Poetry
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Poetry Break # 15

Poetry Break # 15: Two Poems That Can Be Sung

 

Introduction: Ask students if they know any senior citizens who are good-looking in their own way. Invite several students to describe the person they had in mind. Next, read the poem below once. Review the tune for the song (Greensleaves), and ask students to help you sing the poem to this tune. (Note: To make the words fit the song, you will need to repeat the last two lines of the poem twice).

 

         Growing Old

 

When I grow old I hope to be

As beautiful as Grandma Lee.

Her hair is soft and fluffy white.

Her eyes are blue and candle bright.

And down her cheeks are cunning piles

Of little ripples when she smiles.

 

Poem by Rose Henderson. Taken from The Random House Book of Poetry for Children by Jack Prelutsky, editior. Illustrated by Arnold Lobel. New York: Random House, 1983, p. 159. ISBN: 0394850106

 

Extension: a) Discuss these and other questions: What makes a person beautiful or handsome? Does beauty only belong to young people?  How does our culture define beauty? Do you agree with the cultural stereotypes? b) Read poems and short stories about senior citizens in nontraditional roles.  Ask students what kind of senior citizen they would like to be.

 

 

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Introduction: Ask students if they know the song, On Top of Old Smokey. Ask if anyone knows the version that starts, "On top of spaghetti, All covered with cheese."  Tell students you have a different spaghetti poem that can be sung to the same tune. Read the poem first. Next, give students a copy of the words and sing together.

 

 Spaghetti! Spaghetti!

 

Spaghetti! spaghetti!

You're wonderful stuff,

I love you spaghetti,

I can't get enough.

You're covered with sauce

and you're sprinkled with cheese,

spaghetti! spaghetti!

oh, give me some please.

 

Spaghetti! spaghetti!

piled high in a mound,

you wiggle, you wriggle,

you squiggle around.

There's slurpy spaghetti

all over my plate,

spaghetti! spaghetti!

I think you are great.

 

Spaghetti! spaghetti!

I love you a lot,

you're slishy, you're sloshy,

delicious and hot.

I gobble you down

oh, I can't get enough,

spaghetti! spaghetti!

you're wonderful stuff.

 

Poem by Jack Prelutsky. Taken from Sunflakes: Poems for Children  by Lilian Moore, editor.  Illustrated by Jan Ormerod. New York: Clarion Books, 1992, p. 28.. ISBN: 0395588332.

 

Extension: a) Ask students to name a favorite food and tell why they like it. Read other spaghetti and food poems. b) As a group, see if students can make up another stanza for this poem.