It's Raining Pigs and Noodles

Poems by: Jack Prelutsky

Drawings by: James Stevenson

I'm one of those rare students in a college class who happily raises their hand when a professor asks, "Who in here likes poetry?" I love poetry. With that said, I don't like every poem I read. I'm also one of those teachers who exposes my Kindergarten students to poetry almost daily. If we have a minute or two before lunch, I whip out a book of poems. Sometimes, the kids beg me to read poems, especially if they're funny! Yeah!

Being that we were to blog about 1 collection of poetry, I found this to be quite difficult. I have LOTS of collections of poetry that I think are very worthwhile to blog about so I had to narrow down my choice. I did not choose Shel Silverstein or The Random House Book of Poetry. I chose It's Raining Pigs and Noodles by Jack Prelutsky. This collection of poems is very funny with some rhyming and some not. These poems are also very relateable with kids.

I've read this entire book, but chose to reread a few. "My Parents Have the Flu Today" is about a child and all the mischievous things he can do while his parents are sick in the bed and not around to really watch him. "I Ate a Tooth This Morning" is about a child who had a loose tooth and while eating breakfast, accidentally swallowed the tooth. Another poem, "You Can't Make Me Eat That," is about a child simply refusing to eat what's on his plate. Lastly, "Why Do I Have to Clean My Room," is about a child wondering why he is being made to clean his room because the "crayons scattered on the floor" and "pizza in the corner" do not bother him at all. All of the topics are very relateable and I can speak for my own classroom, that my students are rolling over in laughter when I read these poems aloud.

Though these poems may be over-the-top silly, I think it's a great way to introduce children to poetry and rhyming and discuss how poems are different than stories. Jack Prelutsky is a great poet with more hilarious collections on the shelf.