LISTEN FOR ME by Joyce Sidman
(Found in: Sidman, Joyce. 2005. SONG OF THE WATER BOATMAN AND OTHER POND POEMS. Ill. by Beckie Prange. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 9780618135479)
With the season of spring in full swing, LISTEN FOR ME is a great spring poem to share with children. This poem vividly describes the emergence of spring peepers (tree frogs) from the winter chill and their distinctive sound, which is one of the earliest signs of spring. The rich language, carefully selected descriptive words, and sense imagery used throughout the poem allow readers to experience the fresh and invigorating sights and sounds of the beginning of spring as if they were right there on the pond with the spring peepers on a warm night. Beckie Prange’s beautiful hand-colored woodcut illustration of several spring peepers in a dark nighttime pond depicts the text of the poem perfectly. Additionally, some factual information about spring peepers is also included with the poem, making it an ideal poem to pair with a science lesson.
INTRODUCTION: Prior to reading this poem, play an audio clip of spring peepers (for easy access to an audio clip of this sound, try http://www.naturesound.com/frogs/pages/peeper.html). Tell students that today you are going to read a spring poem to them, and you would like for them to be thinking about what they think the noise they just heard might be. To avoid giving the answer away, delay showing students the illustration until after the extension activity (listed below poem).
LISTEN FOR ME
By Joyce Sidman
Listen for me on a spring night,
on a wet night,
(Found in: Sidman, Joyce. 2005. SONG OF THE WATER BOATMAN AND OTHER POND POEMS. Ill. by Beckie Prange. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company. ISBN 9780618135479)
With the season of spring in full swing, LISTEN FOR ME is a great spring poem to share with children. This poem vividly describes the emergence of spring peepers (tree frogs) from the winter chill and their distinctive sound, which is one of the earliest signs of spring. The rich language, carefully selected descriptive words, and sense imagery used throughout the poem allow readers to experience the fresh and invigorating sights and sounds of the beginning of spring as if they were right there on the pond with the spring peepers on a warm night. Beckie Prange’s beautiful hand-colored woodcut illustration of several spring peepers in a dark nighttime pond depicts the text of the poem perfectly. Additionally, some factual information about spring peepers is also included with the poem, making it an ideal poem to pair with a science lesson.
INTRODUCTION: Prior to reading this poem, play an audio clip of spring peepers (for easy access to an audio clip of this sound, try http://www.naturesound.com/frogs/pages/peeper.html). Tell students that today you are going to read a spring poem to them, and you would like for them to be thinking about what they think the noise they just heard might be. To avoid giving the answer away, delay showing students the illustration until after the extension activity (listed below poem).
LISTEN FOR ME
By Joyce Sidman
Listen for me on a spring night,
on a wet night,
on a rainy night.
Listen for me on a still night,
For in the night, I sing.
That is when my heart thaws,
my skin thaws,
my hunger thaws.
That is when the world thaws,
and the air begins to ring.
I creep up from the cold pond,
the ice pond,
the winter pond.
I creep up from the chill pond,
to breathe the warming air.
I cling to the green reeds,
the damp reeds,
the muddy reeds.
I cling to the slim reeds;
my brothers are everywhere.
My throat swells with spring love,
with rain love,
with water love.
My throat swells with peeper love;
my song is high and sweet.
Listen for me on a spring night,
on a wet night,
on a rainy night.
Listen for me tonight, tonight,
and I’ll sing you to sleep.
EXTENSION: After reading the poem aloud, begin a discussion about the sounds students heard before the poem as well as what sound the poem is asking them to listen for. Once students begin guessing that the sounds must come from some type of frog, ask students to point out words from the poem that helped them reach this conclusion (such as “pond,” “reeds,” and “throat swells”). Since many young students may not be aware of what a peeper is, it might be necessary to explain that a spring peeper is a tree frog. Follow up this activity by showing students the poem’s illustration and reading the factual information on spring peepers that is included with the poem.
Listen for me on a still night,
For in the night, I sing.
That is when my heart thaws,
my skin thaws,
my hunger thaws.
That is when the world thaws,
and the air begins to ring.
I creep up from the cold pond,
the ice pond,
the winter pond.
I creep up from the chill pond,
to breathe the warming air.
I cling to the green reeds,
the damp reeds,
the muddy reeds.
I cling to the slim reeds;
my brothers are everywhere.
My throat swells with spring love,
with rain love,
with water love.
My throat swells with peeper love;
my song is high and sweet.
Listen for me on a spring night,
on a wet night,
on a rainy night.
Listen for me tonight, tonight,
and I’ll sing you to sleep.
EXTENSION: After reading the poem aloud, begin a discussion about the sounds students heard before the poem as well as what sound the poem is asking them to listen for. Once students begin guessing that the sounds must come from some type of frog, ask students to point out words from the poem that helped them reach this conclusion (such as “pond,” “reeds,” and “throat swells”). Since many young students may not be aware of what a peeper is, it might be necessary to explain that a spring peeper is a tree frog. Follow up this activity by showing students the poem’s illustration and reading the factual information on spring peepers that is included with the poem.
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