First Verses - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0192761455 ISBN 13: 9780192761453

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 1998

This is a collection of modern poems for children, many of them written specifically for this book. It is divided into four sections: Counting Rhymes, Finger Rhymes, Chanting Rhymes, and Action Rhymes. The brief poems are fun-to-read, and Carol Thompson's beautiful illustrations show young readers how to act out the rhymes. This brings children into the poems to play along, making reading even more fun.

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About the Author:

John Foster is one of the most prolific compilers of poetry anthologies for children. He is also the editor of the widely popular First Poetry anthologies as well as Dinosaur Poems, Magic Poems, Monster Poems, and Dragon Poems (all available from OUP.)

From School Library Journal:

PreS-Gr 1--"When I get up in the morning/I tumble out of bed,/I yawn and stretch and stretch and yawn/And scratch my sleepy head." Clive Webster's action rhyme is one of many in this anthology. Fourteen counting rhymes invite clapping, counting, and giggling. Fourteen finger rhymes are simple enough to perform without instructions, though scenes of playful children sprinkled on the pages demonstrate what to do with your fingers. Seventeen chanting rhymes will be welcome for shared reading. Along with an excerpt from "Spaghetti! Spaghetti!" by Jack Prelutsky and "I Don't Like Custard" by Michael Rosen, poems about balloons, popcorn, snowmen, bears, billy goats, and even squeezes provide a humorous assortment for children to say and read aloud together. The traditional Caribbean "Children, Children" will make a popular call-and-response chant. Like the finger rhymes, the 14 action rhymes are self-explanatory. Each page contains humorous scenes illustrated in bright watercolors over pen-and-ink. The chubby children, representing diverse backgrounds, reflect the verses' energetic tone. Some British spellings and terms might be unfamiliar to American readers. Still, the book will be welcome in collections that serve young children. A musical cassette is available for each section. Parents, care-givers, and teachers will find many of these verses, and their accompanying illustrations, inviting ways to encourage children to join in the reciting and the reading themselves.

Joan Zaleski, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY

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