Pockets Full of Poems

Happy Poetry Friday! I am still on poetry cloud 9 after all the  Poem in your Pocket Day festivities! Today, I am sharing some of the fun things that we did at my school to celebrate this perfectly pocketed poetic-filled day. For more of the poetry round-up, head over to JoAnn's space Teaching Authors.  

There were poems in pockets throughout our entire school yesterday. And by the end of the day, there were none. That's because they were all tucked away in the pockets of children!  It was so fun to see the excitement on their faces when they plucked a poem from the pocket and began to read.

What made it even more exciting was that the poems were written by the fourth grade poets at our school. Each poem was like a special treasure that students carried with them and read throughout the day.

I am including my own fourth grade son's poem below. He really enjoyed getting to write his poem and share it with others.  It was a perfectly splendid "poem in your pocket day" for all.

I had to join in the fun, too! Here is one of the poems that I gave as a gift to all the staff members at my school to place in their pockets for the day.

When Giving Is All We Have
by Alberto Rios
                                 One river gives
                                 Its journey to the next.

We give because someone gave to us.
We give because nobody gave to us.

We give because giving has changed us.
We give because giving could have changed us.

We have been better for it,
We have been wounded by it-

Giving has many faces: It is loud and quiet,
Big, though, small, diamond in wood-nails.

​Read the rest of the poem here.
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Invitation to Write:

I invite you to pick a poem for your pocket this week. Carry it with you wherever you go. Let each line, each word, and each pause be your guide as you journey throughout the day. Live with your poem for a week, for a month, for a lifetime. May it bring you pockets full of joy each time you read it!