A Poem for Every Day of the Year

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A story, if well told, can last a lifetime or longer. Brian Pattern’s poem pays homage to great works of children’s literature that continue to give, and live a life of their own. Most of the poems were not really my piece of cake, but that's what you get with a collection: a variety of poetic doems, themes, and writers. And the good thing is, a collection makes discovering new writers easy. It kind of forced me out of my small bubble and I added some poets on my to-read-more-of list :) The first one was very hit-or-miss due to the selection of poems, the second one was a history book (non-fiction), and this year I read this.

I think if this were to be used in a school setting, it would be a gentle and fun reading session for children to be introduced to older poets, and get a sense of appreciation for nature. The poems are all about nature and people interacting with it, observing it, fearing or delighting over it. Maybe that has made following the months and changing seasons especially fun. Or maybe it’s just that I love animals and plants so much that this really was perfect for me. This is a book I would definitely have in my classroom. I could see this being used as a nice, peaceful way to start the school day. I think it presents a lovely opportunity to bring the class together and create a ‘poetry environment’ and ultimately spark a child’s interest in poetry. The book captures the complexity and diversity of nature very well and as we move through it, we are made aware of the changing seasons and a variety of living things. I believe this poetry book could be used for a variety of topics/lessons, for example:

About Allie Esiri

As with every ' a (insert name) a day' book, I started off well. Reading a poem a day and wanting to read more was great, then I kind of forgot about it and left it at my parents which is why I read four months' worth of poems yesterday+today, whoops. Ocr ABBYY FineReader 11.0 (Extended OCR) Ocr_converted abbyy-to-hocr 1.1.11 Ocr_module_version 0.0.14 Old_pallet IA19229 Openlibrary_edition May – On May Day – Anonymous – As with previous poems this could be used to explore the history of annual events, such as May day. Additionally, it could be used to create their own music to accompany this poem or read it alongside a dance that they have created themselves. The children could also create their own poem describing their thoughts on May day and the activities/ characteristic of the day. Be that as it may, I knew some of the poems already, though of some we unfortunately only got abbreviated versions (for good reason though), while a lot were unknown to me. That’s a pretty good mix in my opinion. February – That What We’d Do – Mary Mapes Dodge – A poem about two individuals visualising themselves as owls sitting in a tree sharing the romance of St Valentines Day. This is a sweet poem and could be used for the children to explore writing their own poems about what is would be like if they were another creature.

Use poems as models/example for writing own poetry – use nature as a basis, take the children outside or get them to think about their own relationship with nature, places they’ve been, how they’ve interacted with nature – use this as a starting point for their own poems. The Contents of A Poet for Every Day of the Year list the poem and poet for each calendar day although I prefer not to look at that properly until next year when I’ve enjoyed a daily surprise from the book. With poets from Angelou to Wordsworth there really is something for any and every reader. One of the absolute pleasures here is the attention to more marginalised poets such as those from the LGBTQIA+ community so that A Poet for Every Day of the Year feels inclusive and engaging. Throughout the course of the term or year, I would collate all poems that the children had written to create our own class anthology and share in the school library. Overall this is very well thought out and beautiful collection of poetry and illustrations from start to finish, which would be very versatile in a classroom setting. With younger children I would use this book as a read aloud and share a poem a day, discussing the characteristics of each month/ season. With older children I would use the book to support and explore cross-curricular activities, such as those mentioned in the selected poems above. Though aimed at children, there is nothing childish about the anthology A Poem for Every Night of the Year, edited by Allie Esiri - a reminder that poetry is for everyone and for every day (or night). It would be easy - but a pity - for adults to miss out. It is a brilliant idea to divide the year up with a poem for every night - it gets round the feeling of defeat that can set in with unwieldy anthologies. A flamboyantly miscellaneous list of authors ranges from Sappho to AA Milne and from Langston Hughes to Charles 1. Adults and children should read in the new year with this book and keep going. -- Kate Kellaway The Observer

Allie Esiri Press Reviews

January – The New Year – Anonymous – This poem helps you reflect and consider each year as having its own personality. The children could use this poem to support writing their own poem about the characteristics of years that have passed. This could be linked to history and thinking about the different time periods and their characteristics. As well as how the world has changed over the recent years that have passed as well as decades. Science/Geography could be touched on here to think about climate and environmental changes. This wonderful collection of poetry offers a beautifully illustrated poem for each day of the year and a diverse collection for every month and season. The publisher of this collection, Kate Wilson, explains her intention for this book to build upon a collection of poetry she herself had loved as a young person and ‘to make something that was more beautiful and easier to find your way into’ and ‘to make a book that helped you see the world around you’. This collection is inspiring, educational and presents a diversity of different poets and literary techniques. I truly believe there is something for everyone hidden within this book and that this would be a perfect addition to any classroom and anyone’s book shelf. A Poem For Every Day of the Year is a magnificent collection of 366 poems compiled by Allie Esiri, one to share on every day of the year. These poems are funny, thoughtful, inspiring, humbling, informative, quiet, loud, small, epic, peaceful, energetic, upbeat, motivating, and empowering! Perfect for reading aloud and sharing with all the family, it is bursting at the seams with familiar favourites and exciting new discoveries. T.S.Eliot, John Betjeman, Lewis Carroll, William Shakespeare and Christina Rossetti sit alongside Seamus Heaney, Ted Hughes, Carol Ann Duffy, and Kate Tempest.This soul-enhancing book will keep you company for every day of your life. About This Edition ISBN:

I am the seed that grew the tree is a collection of nature poetry (oh woah, that rhymed!) for every day of the year, selected by Fiona Waters and illustrated by Frann Preston-Gannon. Surprisingly to me, it is filled with lots of poetry throughout time that wasn't created just for this collection. Poetry, even more so than short stories or novels, is a deeply personal thing. Therefore, it’s always a gamble to buy a book like this. I’m happy to have found that this was definitely „for me“ and I had great fun throughout the year. It sometimes made me cry (it was an emotional year) but usually cheered me up or emphasized my good mood. November – Anonymous – As with previous poems on key dates this poem could be used to look at the history of ‘bonfire night’ as well as explore the tradition of fireworks. The children could create their own soundscapes and poems, as well as art to describe and express this event.

LoveReading4Kids Says

This book is fantastic for both adults and children - the range of poems on offer would definitely tempt anyone who is not accustomed to poetry to dive in and explore. I didn’t think poetry was ‘my thing’ but this anthology was extremely refreshing; I enjoyed the mix of traditional and contemporary poems and on top of this, the poems weren’t too lengthy or arduous to read – it felt like an extremely inclusive and accessible collection of poetry. July – Shadows – Judith Nicholls – This poem could be used in science to explore light, particularly shadows. This could link to a practical activity where the children capture and investigate their own shadows. Which they could use to write their own version of this poem.

Wat een prachtboek, een instant klassieker! Ik ben zo blij dat Van Mourik op I am the seed that grew the tree is gestuit én dat ze besloten heeft om ons (Nederlandstaligen) ook zoiets moois te gunnen. Knap is ook dat ze er voor gekozen heeft om niet de gedichten te vertalen maar wel op zoek te gaan naar gedichten in het Nederlands die bij het thema en de bestaande prenten passen. Dit moet een huzarenwerk zijn geweest, maar zeker en vast de moeite waard. Ik ben er gerust in dat al wie dit boek koopt er jaren plezier van gaat hebben én dat dit het soort boek is dat mensen elkaar blijven schenken. Ik ben hier zo blij mee! Particular favourites of mine included Love's Philosophy by Percy Shelley, The Buddha by Tony Mitton and the very famous The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. There's also an excellent extract from Shakespeare's The Tempest, which in itself is a play of pure poetry. As such the poems are rich in diversity and carry with them varying degrees of complexity. Although published by Macmillan Children's Books, I think this collection is more suited to an adult reader. There are, certainly, poems in here that a young reader may enjoy, but I think an adult would get more out of poems that deal with larger issues such as love, death and life. Poetry powerhouse’ Allie Esiri follows up the bestselling A Poem for Every Night of the Year with another lively, inspiring collection. There’s a huge range of poems included, by poets old and new, and from across the world. Each poem is linked to a particular day, some very closely – Mary Elizabeth Coleridge’s I Saw a Stable for Christmas Day, Valentine by Wendy Cope for 14 th February – while other connections are more tangential: Blake’s Jerusalem for 12 th July, the day James Hargreaves applied for a patent for the spinning jenny. Esiri tells us to think of these poems as ‘a boost of words for the day ahead’, and they are just that, a short connection with another human being. The more poetry in our lives, the better, and this is a book everyone in the family will enjoy. ~ Andrea Reece I like that the poem for my birthday is written by someone who's name looks similar to mine... Gene (Gén). Below are examples of some of the poems that I particularly liked and how I would use them in a classroom;

As a little kid, I had several books with „365 stories about …“. A little while ago, I re-discovered the joy of such books accompanying me throughout the year(s). Lots of classics in here and a mix of newer poets also. Some are funny, thoughtful, inspiring, humbling. April – Voices of Water – Tony Milton – I would use this poem to explore water and the sounds associated to water. The class could make their own music to accompany the poem with instruments or body percussion, such as creating a soundscape. The poetry anthology ‘I Am The Seed That Grew The Tree’ by Kate Wilson, is a beautiful collection of poems which explore nature through a poem a day. In the introduction Kate discusses the versatility of this book, suggesting it can be used as a shared read aloud or personal read. The book can be used to share a poem a day, focus on specific dates or just to enjoy the imagery created by Frann Preston-Gannon. I particularly enjoyed the illustrations as they added context and detail to each poem, helping the mind explore the words within each poem.