Good concrete poems have the ability to tickle a child's funny bone, pique a child's interest in poetry, and engage children in word play of their own. Get your child thinking (and writing) with a good book of concrete poetry. A Poke in the I: A Collection of Concrete Poems is one of my favorite books of concrete poetry. In case you are not familiar with them, concrete poems can be one-word poems or poems with a number of words, but in every case, the words are arranged into a particular shape that reflects the poem's meaning. A Poke in the I is a collection of thirty concrete poems by well-known visual poets. Poet Paul B. Janeczko edited the book, which was published by Candlewick Press. The quality of the poetry, the design of the book, and the witty collages by Chris Raschka, a Caldecott Honor artist, create an exceptional experience for the reader. I recommend the book for 8-14 year olds.
(Cover art courtesy of Candlewick Press)
This book looks great for my poetry unit that I teach to my 4th graders in the spring. I love to check out multiple poetry books from the library for the students to read, and I use them as a modeling tool during lessons. I like the idea that the words are displayed on the page in a way that relates to poem. My students would enjoy creating a poem of their own using this technique. Thanks for sharing!
Douglas Florian is another great writer of concrete poems!