SIDMAN POETRY: Meow Ruff by Joyce Sidman

Meow Ruff by Joyce Sidman 

Bibliography:

Sidman, Joyce, and Michelle Berg. Meow Ruff. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2006.

Review:

Meow Ruff is the epitome of well-written concrete poems. Every picture, every character and every piece of the book is a concrete poem. The illustrations aren't just delightful pieces of art, but rather each picture is a poem. While this is a children's book, the reader can stay on the same page for several minutes reading and discovering new poems within the illustrations. For example on page
four there are about eight different poems that don't just tell you what is happening, but show you through word position and concrete poems.

Furthermore, the illustration created by Michelle Berg are simple in design but detailed with words. For example, in the spotlight poem the words "black bottomed storm brewing" take on the beauty of the clouds and the storm, but still create an ominous mood.   Some of the poems pictures are accompanied by graphics that indicate a wag of a tail or a flutter of a crows wing. It is this attention to detail that makes Meow Ruff a unique, engaging, and versatile piece of literature.

Spotlight Poem:

This artistic display of poetry perfectly captures what is great about Joyce Sidman. There is so much to teach just on one page; for example, you can teach characterization and inferencing with the animals thought poems, you can teach figurative language with the onomatopoeia's that are present throughout the poem; you can teach tone and mood through the cloud formation poem. The versatility of this poem also stretches through age groups. It is simplistic enough for early readers to comprehend the different components, but it is thoughtful enough for advanced readers to investigate the intricacies of a concrete poem.

Follow-up Activity:

As a follow-up I would group students into pods of four and have them start a project that includes choosing a piece of figurative language and developing it into a children's concrete poem book. Having the students mimic the model of Joyce Sidman will help them deepen their understanding of grade level TEKS such as analyzing word position, punctuation, capital letters, and figurative meaning. (7.4A)