March & April 2020
Vol V No II
Not your ordinary poetry magazine!
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Published bi-monthly
Poetry for Children
with Robert Schechter
Moon
The moon’s round face
Through my window came peeping
On a star-sprinkled night
When I wasn’t sleeping,
It looked lean and hungry
So maybe it might
Like a midnight snack—
Just a little bite.
I said, “Moon, how about
Some mouse a la mode,
A delicious sandwich
Of hot roast toad?
A bottle of ice cold
Popcorn pop?
A bunch of baked beans
And a big lamb chop
With sauerkraut on it
And plenty of wool?”
“No thanks,” said the Moon,
“Can’t eat, I’m full.”
X. J. Kennedy’s latest collection of poems is That Swing (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2018). His textbook An Introduction To Poetry (co-authored with Dana Gioia) has now been used by more than eight million college and high school honors students.
My iPhone Did My Homework
My iPhone did my homework.
I simply talked to Siri.
I read her all the problems
and she answered every query.
I asked her, “What is five times twelve?”
She answered, “Allentown.”
Her answer seemed suspicious
but I shrugged and wrote it down.
I asked her, “Who’s the President
or leader of Peru?”
She answered, “Forty seven,”
so I wrote that one down too.
I asked her ten more questions,
and she answered every one.
Her answers seemed bizarre
but I was glad to have it done.
It seems that Siri’s not too smart,
or maybe slightly deaf.
I turned my homework in today
and got a big, red “F.”
I guess, for homework,
Siri’s not the best to call upon.
I’ll only let Alexa
do my homework from now on.
Former Children’s Poet Laureate Kenn Nesbitt has written a zillion funny books for kids (give or take a bajillion). He’s also a huge geek and loves writing poems about science and technology. When he’s not writing poetry, he likes programming his computer to do dumb stuff.
What I’d Like to Share
I’d like to share a nasty cold
And all my clothing that’s too old.
I’d like to share my toys that broke,
At dinnertime, my artichoke.
I’d like to share a rotten chore.
Perhaps you’d like to sweep the floor?
And I would gladly share the pain
Of toothaches or an ankle sprain.
I’d share my cares,
My worries, too.
I thought I’d share
These thoughts with you.
The Dreaded Dreeth
The dreaded Dreeth
Has eighty-odd teeth;
Twenty above
And twenty beneath,
Twenty more left
And twenty more right —
A toothsome,
Gruesome,
Chewsome sight.
© 1999 Douglas Florian. First published in Laugh-eteria.
Artist and poet Douglas Florian has written and illustrated dozens of books of children’s poetry, including Poetrees (2010) and Dinothesaurus (2009), a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year, a Horn Book Fanfare List selection, and a Junior Library Guild selection.
If I Were a Blue Balloon
If I were a blue balloon,
I’d lift you up to fly with me
through silver starlight, past the moon —
I’d share my nighttime willingly.
I’d lift you up to fly with me
where dragons set the sky aflame.
I’d share my nighttime willingly.
You’d be a knight and lay your claim
​
where dragons set the sky aflame.
I’d ferry you through dreams of night —
you’d be a knight and lay your claim —
then float you into morning light.
I’d ferry you through dreams of night,
through silver starlight, past the moon,
then float you into morning light —
if I were a blue balloon.
First published in One Minute Till Bedtime: 60-Second Poems to Send You Off to Sleep.
Renée M. LaTulippe is an author, editor, and teacher. Her poems appear in many anthologies including School People, Thanku: Poems of Gratitude, and One Minute Till Bedtime. Renée teaches The Lyrical Language Lab and blogs on children’s poetry at NoWaterRiver.com.
What I Know About the Sun
I know that the sun is a dazzling star
far, far from earth. Millions of miles far.
I know that plants, animals and people
need the sun to grow.
I know that it takes eight minutes or so
for the light of the sun to reach earth.
And that the sun is always shining somewhere
even when it’s dark in my back yard.
I also know how the sun shimmers on the pond
where my grandpa takes me fishing.
And how quickly it bakes mud pies on an August day.
I know how the sun brightens everything—even hearts.
And how poets like to sing about it.
First published in The Poetry Friday Anthology For Science, Teacher Edition, 2014.
Eileen Spinelli has authored more than 40 children’s books. Her books of poetry include Feathers: Poems About Birds (2004), Tea Party Today (2006), and When You Are Happy (2006).
Sandy Surprise
I sculpt a face
beside the sea.
I think it looks
a bit like me:
A small twig mouth
and seaweed hair,
two sandy ears—
a perfect pair,
a seashell nose
and pebble eyes.
I think I’m done
but then . . . surprise!
When I get up
to go and play,
the nose sprouts legs
and crawls away!
First published in Clubhouse Jr. July 2012
Diana Murray is the author of over a dozen children’s books, including Unicorn Day, Ned the Knitting Pirate, and Goodnight, Veggies. Her poems also appear in magazines and anthologies such as Thanku: Poems of Gratitude. Visit her website at http://www.dianamurray.com