Science Poetry: Science Verse

Bibilography:

Scieszka, Jon. 2004. Science Verse. Ill. Smith, Lane. New York: Penguin Group. ISBN: 0670910570

Review:

As a boy sits in science class listening to his teacher, Mr. Newton, and hears him say, that if he listens closely, he can hear the “poetry of science in everything”. Sure enough the next day the young student is zapped with a “curse of science verse.” What follows is a hilarious collection of poems about varied topics in science including biology, chemistry and physical science. Some of the poems rhyme but not all of them. Some have good rhythm but others seem a little uneven. I am not sure if this was done intentionally, however we all know that poetry can take many forms and does not always rhyme Isn’t this what students need to truly understand? One of the neatest aspects of this book is that the book can be bought with an audio CD of Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith reading the poems. I read the poems to myself silently first and then popped in the CD. Wow! What a difference that made. It was wonderful to listen to this author and illustrator read the poems as Scieszka meant for them to be heard. Several of the poems are meant to be sung. You can tell when you read the poems-if you are familiar with the classic songs such as Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star and Miss Lucy Had a Baby. However, if you are not familiar and some of our students will not be, the CD is a valuable asset. Listening to the CD will familiarize students with these songs and the parodies that Scieszka has written. Throughout the reading, Scieszka and Smith mention that the poems remind them of other classic poetry. For example, “Dino-sore” is compared to Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven”. In fact the word “dinosaur” echoes Poe’s “nevermore”. Other classic poems such as Lewis Carroll’s “Jabberwocky” and H.W. Longfellow’s “Paul Revere’s Ride” are compared to the poems that Scieszka has written. What a wonderful way to introduce children to more classic poets! In fact, the book ends with a list of observations and conclusions detailing the similarity of the poems. In sharing this book with students, I would be sure to have copies of all of the poems available for students to read and compare to Science Verse. By reading both poems, students will internalize the rhythm and style and try to mimic this in their own poetry. Smith’s illustrations are a hilarious addition to the story. Readers will love the bug-eyed narrator-and in the end wonder if he really “saw” the poetry or just dreamt it.

Poem Selection:

The selection that I would like to share is “What’s The Matter”. Prior to sharing this poem, I would introduce students to the classic folk song, Miss Lucy Had a Baby. Here is a sound clip that you can purchase of the song: http://www.songsforteaching.com/folk/misslucyhadababy.htm. In addition, Nadine Bernard Westcott has book based on this folk song called The Lady with the Alligator Purse, which can be used as an introduction to Scieszka’s poem.

What’s The Matter?

Miss Lucy had some matter.

She didn’t know its state.

She only had three choices,

So tried to get it straight.

She thought it could be liquid,

Quite possibly a gas.

And if it wasn’t solid,

Well call me sassafrass.

Miss Lucy called the plumber.

Miss Lucy called the cop.

Miss Lucy called the egghead

With the perfectly bald top.

“Liquid,” said the plumber.

“Solid,” said the copy.

“Gas,” said the egghead

With the perfectly bald, perfectly bald, perfectly bald

Top top top.