Daniel finds a poem by Micha Archer

A vividly illustrated, inventively told opportunity for early readers to grasp the power of language to observe, entertain, and mystify.  Kirkus

Daniel sees a poster advertising a poetry event in the park. Over the next seven days Daniel asks "What is poetry?"  Each answer is, in itself, poetic. Daniel gathers the answers and discovers he has made a poem.  Here is an extract:

Morning dew glistens,
Crisp leaves crunch,
There's a home with many windows
in the old stone wall.

These wise words come from a spider, squirrel and a chipmunk. Daniel also talks to a frog, a turtle, a cricket and an owl.

The words and accompanying illustration on the final page are - well I have to say it - poetic!

I highly recommend you find this book to use with a young class. Yes is it about poetry but it also a simple way to talk about days of the week and will give you a wonderful stimulus for experimenting with collage.

You can see the author/illustrator Micha Archer reading her book here. Here is an audio interview with Micha Archer. Take a look at Micha's web site. There is a video where she shows her a range of art techniques. There are some good discussion ideas here.

The sequel to Daniel finds a poem - Daniel's good day - was published this year. You could also take a look at this book by Laura Purdie Salas - Snowman - Cold = Puddle. You can see the fabulous illustrations by Micha Archer and as a bonus add another book to your 'to read' pile. I love the idea of this equations poetry book.

I would pair Daniel finds a poem with Stanza by Jill Esbaum. I have Stanza on my shopping list but it is sadly out of print and hope to include a review on my blog sometime soon. It is another truly special book.