HAPPY SNOW DAY EVERYONE!!!!

It seems like we should all be celebrating this happy event together somehow, but then I guess it would not be a Snow Day!! :) Anyway, my first thought was of all of you today and how much fun you would have in the snow...and no Social Studies test, either! ;) I thought I would need to shovel the snow so I could get my car out of my driveway and off to Norman Cook early, but instead I am writing a haiku on our blog:

Norman Cook Snow Day!
Classroom's dark, our books can sleep
Celebrate the snow!

(PS: I don't think the poor groundhog is going to see his shadow today!! Does that mean that Spring is almost here??!!)

A little Frost for a Frosty Day!

Hello everyone! I am really looking forward to reading your thoughts about THIS famous poem by Robert Frost. (I will tell you my thoughts later, because I don't want to influence you in any way!) PLEASE MAKE CONNECTIONS: to yourself, to other poems or stories you have read, to the world around you...

By the way, some of you have still not voted for your favourite poem on our blog so far. Please do this today!

In the meantime, have a happy snowy day (and, apparently, a very snowy evening!) and I will see you tomorrow! Now, here is the poem:

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening

by Robert Frost

 

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Cats Playing Patty-cake, what they were saying...

Gemma's blog has some great things to check out...you must look for the baby hummingbird! But here is one of the videos she found and it goes with a very old poem you might know:

Here is the old and traditional rhyme that goes with this video! :)
The earliest recorded version of the rhyme appears in a play from 1698!!!
(How many years AFTER Medieval Times was that...? Anyone?)

Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake, baker's man.

Bake me a cake as fast as you can;

Pat it and prick it and mark it with B,

Put it in the oven for baby and me.

Patty cake, patty cake, baker's man.

Bake me a cake as fast as you can;

Roll it up, roll it up;

And throw it in a pan!

Patty cake, patty cake, baker's man.

Maybe you could post a "nursery rhyme" that you know....is it poetry?

Let's Vote for our Favourite Poem!

Since we are starting a new year, it might be a good time for us to look back at our blog so far and to vote for our favourite poem...After reading some of your comments and ideas, I feel I must remind you that I HAVE NOT WRITTEN ANY OF THESE POEMS! I only found them ( in books or online) and thought they were interesting, so I wanted to SHARE them with you. You certainly do not need to like every single poem, but I am really interested to hear your ideas and what you think. Sooooo....

1. I would like you to look at the list of all the poems we have read so far (in the blue column to the right of your screen) and
2. vote forThe Best Poem (so far) and tell me WHY and
3. vote for your Least Favourite Poem, and tell me WHY.

Everyone needs to vote....Thanks! I am looking forward to hearing your ideas :)

Happy New Year!

...and Welcome Back! Hope you had a fabulous holiday! Here are two great poems and one "musical" entry for the New Year 2011...The first is only part of a poem by one of our favourite poets, Alfred, Lord Tennyson, who wrote The Eagle (such a great poem, don't you think?). The second is an uncomplicated poem, that I happened to stumble across. It was published as a "haiku", but in English, the syllables don't cut it as a haiku...(5-7-5). Puzzling, but maybe it works out in Japanese?The thrid entry is a **link to a little video made by somebody not much older than you are. It is a "Soundscape" (we'll be talking about this in music....). Is this music? art? poetry? What are your thoughts about these first 3 entries of the new year?

By the way, I saw a total of  THREE gorgeous hawks over the holidays, right by my house and on the same day -- this made me think of Tennyson and The Eagle. It was a rather magical experience, as one does not often see these specatacular (and HUGE) birds of prey so close to the city. Anyway, a special thanks to those hawks for choosing a tree by me to perch on...and also for reminding me to post these 3 little gems on our blog! Best wishes to everyone for a Happy New Year!

In Memorium
by Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.

Poem for the New Year
by Kobayashi Issa

New Year's Day --
everything is in blossom!
I feel about average.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pm9AonuPivQ   (If you have any trouble using this link directly, try copying it into the top bar on your screen...it is on Youtube.)

Snow Haiku

A haiku is a Japanese form of poetry, which usually has to do with nature. It is organized into 3 lines of text. The first line has 5 syllables, the second line has 7 syllables and the third line has again 5 syllables. Here are some haiku about snow! Clap out the beats of the words as you read them. Can you count the syllables?

Snow Haiku

By Regis Auffrey

Snow is in the air
There’s a hush before the storm
Anticipation

From a sky of lead
Silver crystals start to fall
Dust from angels' hands

The woods are silent
All creatures have sought refuge
As the first snow falls

The snowfall over
The moon rises to reveal
A land of magic

Freshly fallen snow
Sparkles in the morning sun
A flawless landscape

What do you think of these haiku poems? Can you write a haiku?
Happy first snowfall!

At Last! We're Back and We're Writing!

It has been awhile since the last post, but we've been busy...Most recently, we have been examining "similies" (and metaphors, but mostly similies). Since the Grade 4s have started our unit on Rocks and Minerals, I thought I'd get us started with another "gem" by Christina Rosetti, so here it is:

Flint

An emerald is as green as grass,
A ruby red as blood;
A sapphire shines as blue as heaven;
A flint lies in the mud.

A diamond is a brilliant stone,
To catch the world's desire;
An opal holds a fiery spark;
But a flint holds a fire.

Let's see what similies you can come up with...
PS: Here's a big hello to Ilias at his new school in Toronto and to Erfan in Bangladesh! Feel free to jump in with a poem! We miss you both! :)