Module 3- Poetic form (Guyku)

(Credit)

Raczka, Bob, Guyku. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2010.

Illustrations by Peter H. Reynolds

Guyku is a book of haiku’s intended specifically for boys. These poems tell about those special times you have as a boy that you always manage to forget about! These memories are given in order of season- spring, fall, winter, and summer. We can read about times you built snowmen or went finishing with hot dogs as your bait! Raczka does a wonderful job of using vivid descriptions to take the reader back to old memories as a boy!

Guyku has great overall appeal. The main point of this book is to recall memories from a young boys childhood so its content is very relatable to a wide variety of children. The illustrations have a very subtle theme. Each illustration is centered in the middle portion of each page. They are all on a grey/black scale and look exactly like sketches. The season that the poem is about will determine what color the illustrator pairs with the grey and black  drawings. For example, a poem about building a snowman is draw in black, with a hint of blue. Blue is the color used in this book for winter. It’s very interesting and creative!

As a teacher, I find Guyku a ‘must’ have book of poetry. It is difficult to find poetry specific for a gender and not only has Guyku mastered this put it’s content is extremely appropriate and interesting for young children! I could really use these poems, which are recollection of childhood memories as a taking off point for writing. Personal narratives can be difficult for students, especially older students. They claim they have ‘nothing to write about’. Guyku does a quality job of recalling memories and giving students idea’s to write about. For example, with a group of younger students I would read the poem about snow days:

How many million

flakes will it take to make a

snow day tomorrow?

We would then quick write. In a quick write, students are timed for two minutes and would brainstorm as many words and idea’s that they could recall about experiences they’ve had on a snow day. After a quick write, we can share students can compose a personal narrative about a snow day using the ideas they brainstormed.