Happy Poetry Friday, friends! Michelle is hosting the roundup on her site Today's Little Ditty. Be sure to swing on over and join in the poetry fun!
What an exciting week it has been! First, I was honored to be invited to share a little bit of my note-booking process with others on Amy VanDerwater's Sharing Our Notebooks page. Then, I had the opportunity to be in a few classrooms this week where I was simply awed by all the writing flowing inside of notebooks. It was incredible to hear how inspired students are to write when they are given a host of invitations and notebook strategies by teachers who value them as writers for life. I am so grateful to have the privilege to work alongside these teachers and writers. You can take a peek HERE at some of the brilliant writing work happening at our school Spring Creek Elementary. The poem I am sharing today is one that came to life after rereading an observation in my notebook. The entry was about the day I watched a crow chase a hawk along a high line wire in a nearby field. The crow kept cawing and cawing at the hawk. I could tell he did not want him in his territory. It really surprised me that a crow would chase a hawk and not the other way around. I had always thought of the hawk as a master of other field birds. This observation certainly made me wonder more and more about the crow. My questions led me straight to research. I learned so much about this intelligent bird that I might never have considered. Simple observations can be explored in many different ways when we take the time to consider them truly and deeply. 
Click HERE to learn more about the crow.
Invitation to Write:
Observations can create wonder. And wondering can lead us to consider all sorts of possibilities! There are so many things to wonder about in the world around us. Sometimes all we have to do is stop in our tracks, and take a look. Write down some observations you are making right this moment. What do your observations make you wonder about? Is there more you want to learn? Choose a few of these ideas or topics and consider the possibilities of each one. Push your thinking by asking, "What if...?" or "Have I considered...?" Let your observations be your guide. There is much to consider!
10 Comments
9/16/2016 07:41:24 am
It's it fun when all that research finds its way to poetry? Nice job with the crow. I do enjoy a crow's raspy caw! 9/16/2016 11:00:25 am
Nice, Kiesha! Gotta love a research expedition that ends in a poem. You might want to see if your library has a wonderful new book out now called CROW SMARTS by Pamela S. Turner. 9/16/2016 03:06:19 pm
Having been dive-bombed by several crows for walking past their nesting areas, I can tell you that these birds are absolutely fearless! You have to hand it to them, once you've gotten over the shock of being dive-bombed, that is! 9/16/2016 03:28:40 pm
I researched crows and ravens a couple of years ago, and there are some incredible videos out there of crows playing in the snow - sliding and frolicking. Have you come across any of those? You must do a YouTube search for crows playing if you haven't. There is also a video of a crow who stole the the catch or bait off fishing lines propped in the ice. They are amazing birds - very intelligent! 9/17/2016 10:19:01 am
I really enjoy this...my favorite line: I too am fascinated by crows. We used to live next to a green belt where crows had staked their claim. We were dive-bombed by them a few times. But mostly they left us alone. Often when I was walking, I heard their coos, rattles and clicks to each other. They would often perch close to each other, like buddies or lovers as they watched the world go by below. They seemed quite tuned in and affectionate toward their own. I love the crows. I read fascinating posts by a Cornell researcher who would band the crows by intruding on their nests. They remembered his car, and they would dive-bomb it whenever they saw it anywhere in town. Lots of fascinating stories about crows remembering people who feed them, too. 11/17/2018 03:28:09 pm
hi in my observations of australia there are a couple of crow/raven available at my web site for any honest use,........gibba Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWelcome! I'm Kiesha Shepard, and I have a love for writing and the teaching of writing. Whispers From the Ridge is a place where I can share my words and ideas for teaching writing. It's also a place for you to find inspiration for writing the words inside of you. I invite you into my world of writing as I capture the whispers from the ridge. 
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July
2 Laura at Laura Shovan 9 Margaret at Reflections on the Teche 16 Molly at Nix the Comfort Zone 23 Kat at Kathryn Apel 30 Becky at Sloth Reads August 6 Mary Lee at A(nother) Year of Reading 13 Christie at Wondering and Wandering 20 Carol at The Apples in My Orchard 27 Elisabeth at Unexpected Intersections September 3 Heidi at my juicy little universe 10 Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect 17 Denise at Dare to Care 24 Laura at Laura Purdie Salas October 1 Catherine at Reading to the Core 8 Irene at Live Your Poem 15 Bridget at wee words for wee ones 22 Jama at Jama's Alphabet Soup 29 Linda at TeacherDance November 5 Tabatha at The Opposite of Indifference 12 Matt at Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme 19 Carol at Beyond LiteracyLink 26 Ruth at there is no such thing as a God-forsaken town December 3 Michelle at Michelle Kogan 10 Cathy at Merely Day by Day 17 Jone at Jone Rush MacCulloch 24 Buffy at Buffy Silverman 31 Carol at Carol's Corner |
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Photos used under Creative Commons from Kristine Paulus, Ryan Hodnett, Marie Hale, gurdonark, btrentler, Kelly Colgan Azar, jeffreyw, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - Midwest Region
