Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant

I love poetry!  It is so fun to read and it does not take much time to share a poem or two with your child.  Jack Prelutsky is one of my favorite poets and he is usually a kid favorite.  One of his newest collections, Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant is so much fun to read.

In this collection Prelutsky plays with words and combines an animal name with an inanimate object.  Some of his creations are pop-up toadsters, shoehornets, zipperpotamuses and a clocktopus! He takes his readers on a journey into a world of imagination and creation.

This collection of poetry is great to help children visualize. Children should always have a movie playing in their mind when they hear a story.  They should be able to create mental pictures.  However, this skill is challenging for many students.  Prelutsky uses a descriptive vocabulary to help paint a picture in the reader's mind.   He offers the readers clues as to what each of his creatures might look like.

To help your child visualize, pick one poem to read aloud.  Do not let them see the picture.  As you read the poem have your child close his/her eyes and focus on creating a mental picture of the creature.  Give your child a piece of paper and a pencil.  Read the poem again and let your child sketch the creature.  Have a discussion with your child about the descriptive words that are helping to create a picture.  After your child has finished their drawing share the picture the illustrator created.  Discuss how the images are alike and different.

It is always fun to change roles. Let your child read a poem to you and see what type of images you can create!