Welcome to the Third Carnival of Children’s Literature. Since April is National Poetry Month, the theme for this carnival is poetry. However, we have all sorts of posts, both poetic and prosaic, about children’s literature to give you enough reading to keep you busy all month. You can visit them all today (you glutton!) or bookmark this post and stop in daily for a dose of poetry and children’s literature all April long.
April 1 was, of course, April Fool’s Day, and we have some foolish fun posts just for a late celebration:
Susan at Chicken Spaghetti shares David Moody’s funny literary poem about Laura Numeroff (and other writers).
And then there are The Three Disco Mermaids who are actually three authors discussing writing for children. They must have been on the receiving end of a few rejection letters from publishers because their submission is 12 Form Rejections, a Christmas-time parody of the Twelve Days of Christmas using phrases from form rejection letters. With writers it’s all grist for the mill, right?
April’s not only National Poetry Month; it’s also Mathematics Education Month. So for April 2 (yesterday), head on over to At a Hen’s Pace to read about poetry, multiplication tables, and a very special teacher in the post, My Fourth Grade Poetry Muse.
Melissa Wiley In the Bonny Glen says today, April 3, is her due date (she’s great with child), so today is a great day to read her submission, Peeping at Spring with Poetry. I wonder if Melissa is peeping into the eyes of her new baby today?
April 4: It’s National Library Week (April 2-8, 2006), and Kim Winters, author of Kat’s Eye, an online journal featuring rants, raves, and musings about writing, balancing work and family, and life after the MFA, commits the Faux Pas of all Faux Pas in her post by the same name. Unfortunately, it involved a library book and RAIN.
April 5: Wednesdays are poetry days at The Immaculate Castle, and the family there recently found themselves memorizing Tennyson. Then, mom asked the question: What did Alfred Tennyson’s mother read to him as a child?
April 6: This week is also The Week of the Young Child (April 2-8, 2006). The Queen of Carrots is here with some advice on Poems To Say All Day Long. She writes, “The first introduction to poetry I can remember is the poems my mother would recite at suitable times. These are poems I find myself reciting to my little ones (both still under two) when the occasion arises.”
Meanwhile, Camille at Book Moot ponders Poetry and the Very Young. Do you consider a bookcase to be essential furniture in the nursery? Yeah, me too.
April 7 is the birthdate of the English poet Wiliam Wordsworth, and we join Cindy at Dominion Family as she puts together a bound family poetry book consisting of a few favorites from each member of the family. One of Cindy’s favorites is Lucy II by the birthday boy himself.
April 8: Happy Hearts Mom of the blog Sweetness and Light also reads poetry with her young children and helps the older ones to memorize poems. She writes about Poetry at Our House. The poems they’re memorizing? A.A. Milne, of course. The Deputy Headmistress at The Common Room has a wonderful tribute to Mr. Milne from his birthday back in January. Accept no substitutes, says she.
April 9: Palm Sunday. On April 9, 1865 General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House. The Civil War was over. Unfortunately, the enmity between North and South, and between black and white, was not over. Liz B. at A Chair, A Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy reviews the YA title, A Wreath for Emmett Till by Marilyn Nelson. The book is made up of a series of sonnets about the life and death of Emmett Till, a 14 year old black child who was brutally murdered for the “crime” of whistling at a white woman.
April 10: April is also Autism Awareness Month. The always-insightful blogger who is Blest With Sons talks about her family’s recent forays into poetry, from which she suggests that poems are best for the Asperger kids with which you’ve been blessed. It’s called Rhyme Time and features Mr. Milne—again.
April 11:Karen Edmisten says you are what you read. (Shhh! don’t tell anyone, especially not her husband, but she sometimes dog-ears pages to mark favorite passages—very gently.)
The Prattling Pastor’s Wife once thought poetry was a waste of time, until she discovered children’s poetry and later began to enjoy poetry with her own children. Now it’s Poetry Every Day.
April 12: On this day at sunset, the Jewish celebration of Passover begins. And Wordswimmer, a blog on writing and the writing process, with a special focus on writing for children, shares excerpts from a conversation with Yehuda Amichai, Israeli poet, on the writing process entitled Encouraging Words to a Young Poet.
In addition, Beverly Cleary is 90 years old today and the celebration includes D.E.A.R. Day. Do all you children’s literature aficionados know what D.E.A.R. stands for?
April 13: Maundy Thursday. Also the birthday of Thomas Jefferson and Lee Bennett Hopkins. So Many Books is Celebrating National Poetry Month with a poetry mad-lib. It’s not targeted for the younger set, but I think it would be a fun poetry game for children and young adults.
April 14: Good Friday. Also the anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination in Ford’s Theatre by John Wilkes Booth. Lincoln died on April 15, 1865.
April 15 is the birthdate of Leonardo Da Vinci, so it seems an appropriate date to read about the evolution of a painting. The Bluedorns show us how daughter Johannah creates a masterpiece: Piglet Paints a Picture, or, The Evolution of a Painting. I reviewed Johannh Bluedorn’s beautifully illustrated book, Bless the Lord: The 103rd Psalm here.
April 16: Resurrection Day.
April 17: “In March 1957 Hilary Knight completed a painting of Eloise, which was hung in the lobby of the Plaza Hotel. On December 6, 1960 the Eloise painting disappeared from the hotel, and later that month Kay Thompson offered a reward for its return. It never turned up. On April 17, 1964 a new oil painting was completed by Hilary Knight, which is the one that currently hangs in the Plaza.” Fast Facts about Eloise from KidsReads. At Cajun Cottage they Absolutely Love, Love, Love Eloise! Read and find out why.
On April 18, 1906 the business section of San Francisco, California was destroyed by an earthquake and subsequent fire. Nearly 4000 people died.
April 19: ForKelly at Big A Little a, Wednesdays and poetry are a traumatic combination. Find out why in her post about two well known children’s poems, one a comforting favorite (“The Land of Counterpane”) and the other a trauma (“Monday’s child”).
April 20: Mathematics Education Month continues with Fibonacci numbers. Engineer Husband told me about this special series of numbers a long time ago, but I had no idea they could relate to poetry until I read Gregory K’s post The Fib at GottaBook in which he writes about using a very precise (and geeky!) form of poetry to help train the writing brain… and having fun doing it. I’m definitely going to try this idea out on the urchins. While you’re visiting GottaBook, check out some of Mr. K’s own poetry (links in the sidebar) and this post, Poetry, It’s Not Just for April Anymore.
April 21: San Jacinto Day. On this date, Texans commemorate the Battle of San Jacinto in which the Texicans under General Sam Houston defeated Mexican troops led by Dictator/General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna to gain Texas its independence from Mexico. On this day since author Chris Barton is a fellow Texan, the carnival features two of his posts on children’s literature: first the one he submitted, The Power of the One-Two Punch, and then the one your hostess couldn’t resist, a reflection on poetry called Stop. Me If You’ve Heard This One. Money quote: “I feel about poetry the same way I feel about Chinese food: While I may well find it delicious on the occasions when I partake, if you were to ask me right now if I’d like some, my instinctive response would be ‘No, thanks.'” Chris is a nonfiction kind of a guy.
April 22: Dawn just started her blog in March at By Sun and Candlelight, but she already has a plethora of posts, mostly about poetry. I thought this one, All Things Bright and Beautiful was a particularly good reminder for Earth Day. We can celebrate not just the Earth, but the Lord God who made it all.
On April 23, celebrate Shakespeare’s birthday with my dear cyber-friend MFS of Mental-Vitamin (who was once reprimanded for “dipping into a gilt-edged set of Shakespeare�s complete works. ‘You�ll ruin the pages!’ cried my mother as she swooped in to ‘save’ the books and promptly return them to their purely decorative function as knickknacks on her colonial-style drum table.” Ouch!). MFS has a much more enlightened attitude about books in her post, In the company of books.
Amanda at Wittingshire on The Bard’s Birthday (from last year), including a nine year-old’s reaction to Romeo and Juliet.
And for the last post in today’s Triple Treat, here’s Carmon of Buried Treasure on poetry and Shakespeare: Fun Poetry Lessons With Carmon.
April 24: Verse novels? Author Susan Taylor Brown has made list of novels for children and young adults that are written in verse form. YA author Brandi Lee reviews Ms. Brown’s verse novel, Hugging the Rock and another by Christine Ford called Scout. And Kim, One Over-Caffeinated Mom, also reviews Ms. Brown’s novel.
April 25: National TV Turn-off Week started yesterday. Isn’t a reading good historical novel a lot better way to entertain oneself than watching TV anyway? Henry Cate of Why Homeschool? recommends the historical novel A Thane of Wessex by Charles W. Whistler.
April 26: Birthday of Charles Francis Richter (b.1900), American author, physicist, and seismologist and also of John James Audubon (b. 1780), American artist and naturalist.
April 27: Ludwig Bemelmans was born on this date in 1898, and millions of children have visited “an old house in Paris that was covered with vines” since that time. Students for Literacy Ottawa runs free Reading Circles for Kids to improve their reading skills, so that they can read about Madeline and other heroes and heroines of children’s literature. This post highlights some of the other activities, besides reading, that are done at the circle to help the kids with their reading and to ensure they have fun. And who doesn’t love playing games?
April 28: Arbor Day. With apologies to Joyce Kilmer, Becky of Farm School gives us Poetry as broccoli, and a wrap-up for National Poetry Month,
described as “how to make poetry and broccoli palatable to kids, with links added to recent Farm School posts about poetry, to help celebrate National Poetry Month.” Lots of good stuff for a poetry-appreciating Arbor Day.
It’s also Poem in Your Pocket Day in New York City. Why don’t other cities celebrate this day?
April 29: Catherine Ross would appreciate our perusing her review of The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson on this day. The book itself is “a poetic tale of adventure that reminds us that even the smallest creature are valuable.”
April 30: The bluebonnets should be out in full force in Texas by the end of April, and so we end this edition of the Carnival of Children’s Literature with a post “introducing Miss Rumphius to the lover of children’s literature. She isn’t as well-known as Laura, Anne or Jo, but is a heroine for adults and children, deserving a place on the home library shelf. Barbara Cooney, her author, also illustrates her beautifully.” Read about The Lupine Lady from The Wellspring.
The Carnival of Children’s Literature is registered with the TTLB Ubercarnival.
Past carnivals:
First Carnival of Children’s Literature at Here in the Bonnie Glen by Melissa Wiley, our initiator and fearless leader. Email Melissa if you’re interested in hosting the carnival in future months.
Second Carnival of Children’s Literature at Chicken Spaghetti by Susan.
The May Carnival of Children’s Literature will be hosted at In the Bonny Glen. Submissions are due to Melissa by May 20.
Happy April everyone!
March is Women’s History Month, and I think it might be a good time to celebrate some of the women I admire or who influenced history in some way. Obligatory disclaimer: I am not a feminist. However, the women I admire run the gamut from women who kept their homes and reared their children wisely to those who were involved in politics or business and, of course, women authors. While I tend to think focusing on people of certain race or ethnic group (Black History Month, Hispanic History Month) reinforces the very stereotypes that such a celebration is supposed to combat, a month to focus on the half of the human race that is female seems like a good thing. We are all either female or related to at least one woman. 
