If you were to ask this elementary teacher of thirty-three years what type of poetry has the biggest impact on students, the thumbs up winner is light verse. Light verse is defined as "poetry that is playful or humorous and usually rhymed." If we extend the umbrellas of "light verse" to include such poetry as what we find in the late Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends or Falling Up, which is full of quirks, surprise rhymes, and free verse, then light verse is music to soul of most elementary students.
Children love the poetry books of Shel Silverstein, Jack Prelutsky, Judith Viorst, Bruce Lansky, Jeff Moss, and Kalli Dakoa. At first glance their poems look easy to write. Just pick a topic — any topic — from apples to zebras, and write a poem. You don't have to worry...
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http://www.consideration.org/sottile/for-teachers/light-or-lightning.html
