Whenever I find a new children's poem with a dance or movement theme, I like to share it on
Poetry Friday -- a weekly gathering of writers, poets, and other literature-loving people from around the blogosphere. Today I'm sharing the action rhyme "Moving Up and Down" from the June 2012 issue of
Highlights High Five.
This particular rhyme was written by the lovely
Mary Quattlebaum, with accompanying art by
Debbie Palen and photos by
Guy Cali Associates, Inc. I have to send a big shout-out and thank you to Highlights for Children, Inc. for letting me post the rhyme and illustrations on my blog!
Mary Quattlebaum was actually a guest author at my daughter's preschool a couple years ago. On the day of her visit, I had the pleasure of picking her up from the Metro station and spending some time talking with her about picture books. She so kindly gave me a signed copy of her picture book
Sparks Fly High: The Legend of Dancing Point, and she gave me inspiration and courage to keep trying to break into today's tough picture book market. Thank you for both of those gifts, Mary!
This week, Poetry Friday is being held at
A Year of Reading, so hop on over there to read some more poetic posts. Also, you can read about more of Mary's books, including plenty of poetry, on her
website. Her newest book,
Jo MacDonald Had a Garden, looks especially good for promoting movement!
Jo MacDonald Saw a Pond by Mary Quattlebaum and illustrated by Laura J. Bryant is a picture book based on the old song, "Old MacDonald Had a Farm". This is a fun book because you can choose to read the book or sing the book! Here's an excerpt:
Jo MacDonald saw a pond,
E-I-E-I-O.
With a swish-swish here,
And a swish-swish there,
Here a swish, there a swish,
Everywhere a swish-swish.
Jo MacDonald saw a pond,
E-I-E-I-O.
I really enjoyed the book. I like the fresh new take on a old favorite!
Pirate vs. Pirate by Mary Quattlebaum (Illustrated by: Alexandra Boiger)
Review by Chris Singer
About the author:
Mary Quattlebaum
is the author of more than a dozen children’s books, including
Winter Friends, Family Reunion,and the popular Jackson Jones series. She is the recipient of many awards, including the Marguerite de Angeli Prize and the Sugarman Award for Children’s Literature. She writes frequently for
The Washington Post, leads writing workshops, and speaks at conferences. She lives in Washington, D.C.
About the illustrator:
Alexandra Boiger was born in Munich and started her career as an animator for Warner Bros. She is the illustrator of such award-winning books as Little Bit Scary People, While Mama Had a Quick Little Chat, and Roxie and the Hooligans. Alexandra dedicated this book, her favorite project to date, to her husband. She lives in San Anselmo, California.
About the book:
Who is the mightiest pirate in the world? Bad Bart and Mean Mo both want that honor. And so they hold a series of contests: swimming with sharks, hurling cannonballs, and eating hardtack. Aarrr! The final contest—treasure counting–will decide the winner. This lively story, full of sea-dog lingo, will appeal to both girls and boys. Boys will root for Bad Bart, girls for Mean Mo—and in the end … well, that’s a BIG swashbuckling surprise.
My take on the book:
I loved this book! It’s just plain fun and dads who love to read aloud to the kids will have an absolute blast with this one. (Do you know how long I’ve been waiting to do a pirate accent for my little girl?!?).
It was great to see a pirate of each gender (Bad Bart and Mean Mo) competing against each other for the title of best pirate and the healthy competition which results. No matter the contest though, whether it’s arm-wrestling, cannonball throwing or swimming, each one results in a tie. A final contest (treasure counting) is to decide the winner, but you and your kids will never guess what happens in a wild and surprising finish.
This terrific story is accompanied by Alexandra Boiger’s gorgeous illustrations which do a fantastic job of showing off the contests between Mean Mo and Bad Bart.
Be sure to check out Mary Quattlebaum’s website
The two strong and funny characters, Mean Mo and Bad Bart, grabbed me immediately, when I first read this manuscript.
Thank you, Mary Quattlebaum, for writing this story.
excerpt from the Publishers Weekly review:
Pirate vs. Pirate: The Terrific Tale of a Big, Blustery Maritime Match
Mary Quattlebaum, illus. by Alexandra Boiger, Disney-Hyperion
...Boiger's (The Monster Princess) extravagant spreads are filled with billowy curves--foamy waves, full sails, and the bellies of Bad Bart's henchmen. Their romantic aesthetic, as a counterpoint to Quattlebaum's (Winter Friends) piratical hijinks, is central to the story's charm. An all-around winner.
A dear friend is the one who whispered, this evening, that a very generous
Mary Quattlebaum had penned these words about
The Heart Is Not a Size in this past weekend's
The Washington Post.Nuanced characterizations and lyrical writing distinguish Beth Kephart's oeuvre, including this third YA novel, The Heart Is Not a Size (HarperTeen, $16.99; ages 12 and up). Reliable Georgia and her artistic friend Riley volunteer through a GoodWorks building project to help a Mexican village. Being away from their privileged American homes, though, brings out secret issues: Georgia's panic attacks and Riley's eating disorder. How Georgia learns to help herself and Riley goes to the heart of this sensitive exploration of self-acceptance, friendship and teen-galvanized social change.
Thank you, my friend, and thank you, Ms. Quattlebaum, and thank you
Washington Post for giving
Heart this moment.
Love this! :) Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Maria!
Hi, Kerry! Every time I get one of your posts in my inbox, I think, now why haven't I written a dance poem yet (also considering my love of SYTYCD)? I've been looking for a topic for my first post after the summer break, and now I think I have one. Will let you know how it goes!
Thanks for sharing Mary's poem and links, and for the inspiration!
Unexpected change of plans: the roundup is at A Year of Reading http://readingyear.blogspot.com/2012/08/poetry-friday-roundup-is-here.html Thanks for changing your link!
Love the illustration, too. I can see how it would be helpful to show the picture to some students that might be shy or not know how to interpret movement yet. Thanks for sharing! (Stuck it on my pinterest board too)
Hi, Renee! I'm so happy to hear that you might try a dance poem soon! Isn't SYTYCD wonderful? I actually haven't seen a lot of it this season, but I do have access to some of the old shows and have been meaning to watch some of them. I love getting to know the choreographers on, too. It's so inspiring to see how they put movements together to make beautiful dances...kind of like putting words together to make beautiful poems!
Thanks for stopping by! I agree that the illustrations help a lot. Highlights High Five actually has an action rhyme in every issue, and there are always photos to go along with them. Thanks for sharing this on Pinterest, too!
Love the connection of poetry and dance/movement!!
Choreography is a COMPLETE mystery to me. I am always amazed and bewildered by the intricacies of it. How do they DO that? I miss Wade Robson, though - he is my favorite choreographer EVER.
Started the dance poem, though it is now competing with a fish poem. A dancing fish then? :)
I've always loved Mia Michaels and the way she can pull so much out of her dancers. I didn't know that Wade Robson wasn't on the show anymore. Sorry you miss him :( I can imagine another poem about a fish now, though...a fish who is swishing and wishing he could be a choreographer!