A Poke in the I by by Paul B Janeczko

• Title: A Poke in the I
• Author: Paul B. Janeczko
• Publishing: Candlewick. March 3, 2005.
• Synopsis: A Poke in the I is a collection of concrete poetry. These poems are those that are written in about some it is also in the shape of. This book is a collection of this type of poetry including 30 poems by different authors. In addition, in the book there is also tips and guidelines on how to write your own poem. 
• The style of this book is different from most in that not only is the language written in a poetic verse, but it also takes the physical shape of the topic of the poem. In addition to the interesting visual aesthetic of the written words, the pictures are also bold and vivid, giving the look of cut out magazine clipping that make this book unique.
• I was particularly drawn to this book because I love these types of poems. I love that not only are they just words but they take a physical shape. I think this is an excellent book because it shows children a unique type of poetry that breaks away from the typical image that they probably had of poetry and puts it in a new and exciting light. 
• I would obviously use this book to teach a poetry lesson to my students and to introduce the concept of concrete poetry. I would start the lesson by introducing the concept of concrete poetry and by showing them the poems in this book. I would then let then read the poems (from a separate sheet of paper) while they look at the visual display of the picture of words. I would then have my students brainstorm to create a concept of their own idea of a concrete poem. I would then have them draw create it on a sheet of paper, illustrate it, sign it like a true poet, and then I would combine them all to create a classroom concrete book of poetry similar to A Poke in the I. 
• In looking up the concept of concrete poetry, I also found an awesome website that creates concrete poems for you. You have a group of shapes to choose from, and then they give word lists from which you can choose words to add to your poem, or you can add your own words. I think this would be an awesome tool to give to your students when learning about concrete poetry especially for an activity that they can complete at home. The website can be found here: http://www.wild-about-woods.org.uk/elearning/concretepoetry/
• The author A Poke in the I has a website that can be located here: http://www.paulbjaneczko.com