Memory

Today is Memorial Day. It's a holiday, which means no school, right? It's good to know why Memorial Day is a holiday. On this day, we remember soldiers who have died. We also remember family members and friends who have died.

So Memorial Day is about remembering. It's about memory. Are you remembering someone special today? Maybe it's your grandma or grandpa. Maybe it's your pet. Or maybe you're remembering someone who's living--your mom, dad, aunt, or uncle in the military or away from home for another reason.

Think about someone you're remembering today. Write down five things about that person.

Today I'm remembering my mom who died a few years ago.

My Mom

1. Made the best chocolate chip cake.

2. Took the bus with me because she didn't drive.

3. Helped me with my spelling words (and that's why I'm a good speller).

4. Taught me some words in Polish.

5. Loved to go shopping.

What do you remember about a special person or pet? Happy Memorial Day!

Water, Water Everywhere....

When you get to a page in a book that describes the weather, do you yawn? It doesn't have to be that way! The weather--rainy, sunny, stormy, cold, hot, dry--can be a great backdrop to your story. The weather can reflect the way your characters feel, or just the opposite. Your character may be in a sunny mood, and not even a rain squall can dampen that.

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse is all about the weather. The story is set in the Oklahoma dust bowl during the Depression. The dryness almost lifts off the page.

In As Long As There Are Mountains by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock, set in Vermont, Iris describes the rain: "The trees dripped rain, shrouded in fog, and seemed as pale and lifeless as ghosts, but they weren't lifeless at all. Their energy was stored deep inside to weather the cold winter." That could describe Iris herself.

A picture book can convey weather, too. Here's the first page of George Shannon's Rabbit's Gift: "Rabbit twitched his nose in the cold, damp air. Time to find food. More snow was coming. Coming soon." Even if you're reading that in spring, don't you want to cuddle up under a warm blanket?

Whether (ha-ha) you're writing about wet weather, dry weather, cold weather, or hot weather, you have an opportunity to convey mood.

Try writing a paragraph about weather. Describe a storm, a blizzard, a thunderstorm, or a heat wave. Think about how you have experienced those weather events. Now think about a character who experiences hail on his face, sleet under his collar, or snow in her boots.

Makes you want to cuddle up under a warm blanket, doesn't it?

Emotions

When people read our stories, they want to feel our characters' emotions. How do we put emotion into a story?

We can write about our characters' emotions by thinking about our own emotions. We don't have to be gushy or drip tears all over the page (or screen). But we can think about a time we felt the same way our character is feeling.

If your character is angry: think about a time someone made you really mad. What did you do? Did you want to hit someone? Did your heart start racing? Did your face get hot? Did you roll your hands into fists? Or did you go off by yourself to cool down?

If your character is happy: think about a time you felt true joy. What did you do? Did you jump up and down ? Did you cheer? Or did you sit quietly and let the wave of happiness wash over you?

If your character is jealous: think about a time you felt "green" with jealousy because your friend received a wonderful gift. What did you do? Did you make a sarcastic remark? Did you try to grab the gift? Or did you force yourself to make a kind remark, even though you didn't feel like it?

Look at the photo of the boy above. What do you think just happened? What emotion is this boy feeling? Think about a time you felt that same emotion. How did you react? Would this boy react the same way?

Write a paragraph describing how the boy is feeling. Maybe your description will make him feel better!

Naming Places and Things

It's fun to name characters in a story, but it's also fun to name things in your story.

In this exercise, name the following things and imagine the stories they might go in. When you come up with a story idea you love, write the story!

• a desert town
• a disease that's just been discovered
• a diner
• quadruplets
• a combination laundromat and beauty salon
• a new diet soda
• a summer cottage
• a rock band
• a circus
• a tree house
• a parking garage
• a shoe store

Here's my idea for a desert town named Crazy Rock: A girl who's lived near the ocean all her life moves to Crazy Rock, a town of 100 people in the Arizona desert. She misses the water so much, she decides to find a way to bring a bit of the ocean to her new home....

Excuse me while I go write the story. Try naming the things above and finding your own idea for a story!

"I Am" Poem

In an "I Am" poem, we write about a thing as if we are that thing. (Isn't it fun to pretend?)

Here's the form we use for an "I Am" poem:

I am a __________, __________ing ___________________.

I am a __________, __________ing ___________________.

I am a __________, __________ing ___________________.

I am a ____________________________________________.

In the first blank, write down an object. In the second blank after the comma, use a verb ending in "ing." Try to think of fun and unusual verbs, something you don't usually connect with that object. Instead of "I am a pine cone, falling to the ground," how about "I am a pine cone, diving to the ground?"

In the third blank, finish the sentence as you'd like. So: "I am a garbage can, opening my mouth to eat leftovers." (Who says you can't write a poem about a garbage can?)

For the next two lines, write about two other objects. For the last line, finish the poem however you'd like with an "I am" statement.

Since we just celebrated Earth Day, I wrote an "I Am" poem about something from nature.

Leaf

I am a leaf

swallowing rain.

I am a blade of grass

listening to skateboarders.

I am a daffodil

hiding from flower pickers.

I am the big, fat, yellow sun winking at Earth.

A How-To Poem

For the rest of National Poetry Month, I want to focus on writing poems.

How about a "How-To Poem?"

We all know how to do things. Some of us know how to bake chocolate chip cookies. Others know how to put on a pair of skis (I don't). Still others know how to take the subway. If someone asks us, we can explain how to do those things.

That's what a "How-To Poem" does. It explains how to do something, only we use our imaginations instead of explaining how to do something from real life.

For example: How to give a giraffe a bath. Or how to find buried treasure. Or how to put a bathing suit on a four-ton hippo. (Don't try that at home.)

What would you like to explain in your "how-to poem?" Use your imagination: the sillier the better. Here's my "how-to-poem" about putting a cat to bed.

HOW TO PUT A CAT TO BED

First, find a cat.

He may not cooperate.

Tuck him in with blankets.

Sing lullabies until he purrs.

Then turn away and wait

for the sound of

little

cat

paws.

National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month, and that means it's time to write poems! Not that we ever need an excuse to write a poem, but April is a good time to remember how much fun it is to play with words.

So go ahead! Write a poem!

How, you ask?

Start with an acrostic poem. That's one where you use the letters of the person, animal, place, or thing you're writing about to start each line. Like this:

Always running

Moving quickly with her

Yellow braids flying.

Baby seagulls cry while

Early morning swimmers

Arrive with their

Chairs and towels

Hoping for a scorcher.

Use your own name, your street, your favorite ice cream, the best month of the year (in your opinion), or even the word "poem" to write an acrostic poem.

Practically no one writes

Ordinary poems.

Except me.

Maybe it's because I'm extraordinary.