Lost in my favorite poetry anthologies!

Today I join my fellow bloggers in "serving up a slice" to the Tuesday Slice of Life sponsored by Stacey and Ruth from Two Writing Teachers. 


I love that April is poetry month, but I'm always saddened to lose a week of poems to Spring Break, and then it's time to gear up for our state testing.  However, Poem in Your Pocket Day is always celebrated in my classroom.  We've been busy this week exploring poetry in preparation for Thursday's poetry picnic.

I find myself turning to poetry during happy times, sad times and all the in-between times.  I want my students to understand that poetry is for all the times of our lives.  From Mrs. Lewallen who taught me "When the frost is on the punkin and the fodders in the shock," and "Hats off, the flag is passing by," to Mrs. Powers who shared "He drew a circle that shut me out," and "I must go down to the seas again," to Mrs. Thrasher who led me into the mysteries of "In Xandu did Kubla Khan A stately pleasure dome decree," and the pleasures of a walk as "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood," my life has been enriched by these women who shared their love of poetry with me.  I hope that I can continue their legacy by leading my students to a lifelong love of poetry.

My students read books from 15 genres during 6th grade and one of those requirements is for a poetry anthology.  Today's post is a list of my favorite anthologies.  One of the things I love in anthologies is the introduction written for each section.  One of my students pointed out to me that Jack Prelutsky wrote an original poem for each section of The Random House Book of Poetry for Children.  I've owned this anthology since before I had children.  I used to read poems to my husband during road trips.  My copy of Where the Sidewalk Ends was given to me by my husband's mother after my first visit to meet her.  I love these words from Caroline Kennedy's new anthology, Poems to Learn by Heart.  "Growing up is hard, but poems can protect, guide, and connect us to others.  If we learn them by heart, the emotion, the wisdom, and the power they contain can bring joy to our lives and sustain us through difficult times."

So here is my baker's dozen of poetry anthologies that I must have in my classroom and on my bookshelf.  Unfortunately, I don't own all of them . . . yet (but more than half of them are on my personal shelf) and thanks to my library, they are all in my classroom right now!

A Family of Poems selected by Caroline Kennedy &
Poems to Learn by Heart selected by Caroline Kennedy, both books are lusciously illustrated with paintings by Jon Muth

Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle compiled by Stephen Dunning, Edward Lueders & Hugh Smith

Whisper and Shout:  Poems to Memorize edited by Patrice Vecchione

National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry:  200 Poems with Photographs that Squeak, Soar, and Roar edited by J. Patrick Lewis

The Tree that Time Built selected by Mary Ann Hoberman and Linda Winston

Julie Andrews' Treasury for all Seasons
selected by Julie Andrews & Emma Walton Hamilton, with paintings by Marjorie Priceman
& Julie Andrews' Collection of Poems, Songs, and Lullabies 
selected by Julie Andrews & Emma Walton Hamilton, with paintings by James McMullan

How to Eat a Poem:  A Smorgasbord of Tasty and Delicious Poems for Young Readers 
by American Poetry and Literacy Project, Academy of American Poets and Ted Kooser

The Barefoot Book of Classic Poems compiled and illustrated by Jackie Collins

The 20th Century Children's Poetry Treasury selected by Jack Prelutsky and illustrated by Meilo So &
The Random House Book of Poetry for Children selected by Jack Prelutsky and illustrated by Arnold Lobel

Another Jar of Tiny Stars edited by Bernice Cullinan and Deborah Wooten

How about it?  Tell me about your favorite anthologies - the ones that you return to year after year!