(Book cover compliments of goodreads.com)
Bibliography
Florian, Douglas. In the Swim: Poems and Paintings. San Diego, CA: Harcourt, Brace & Company. 1997. ISBN 0-15-201307-5.
Review
Florian’s entertaining book of 21 humorous poems about sea creatures captivates young readers with its wit and quirky use of words. Short, punchy poems that abound in puns and plays on words (“An eel is a fish--/ It’s eel-ementary!” ), Florian’s light-hearted introduction of each sea creature makes a fun read while educating young readers on some of the inhabitants of the ocean. Mostly free verse, Florian does include a couple of concrete poems: The Sawfish, whose lines zigzag back and forth across the page like a saw and The Salmon whose lines build like steps up a waterfall. Florian’s details about the sea creatures in his poems reflect true powers of observation that hone in on small, fascinating details like the oyster’s ability to be both male and female, the jellyfish’s lack of eyes, and the starfish’s lack of a brain. The playful tone of the poems finds a perfect companionship with Florian’s whimsical watercolor illustrations of each creature complete with surprising human-like attributes or silly props. Young readers will get a dose of ocean creature education while laughing over Florian’s paintings, puns, and general humor.
Reviews:
School Library Journal (starred) , Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, New York Times, Horn Book, and Kirkus Reviews
Lee Bennett Hopkins Award for poetry, 1995
Lee Bennett Hopkins Award for poetry, 1995
Sample poem
The Manatee
The manatee is not a man.
It’s heavy as a minivan.
It has a bristly, big mustache,
And paddle tail to make a splash.
The manatee does not take tea.
It swallows plants beneath the sea.
It eats so much that it may seem
At times to be a manateam.
Connections
(For elementary students)
Read The Manatee as an introduction to the science unit on sea creatures. Make a list of what the poem teaches about the manatee and then model how students can check out these facts to see if they are true or not using books and electronic resources. After students are assigned a sea creature for their research project, carry out the research individually in class. Be sure to read the remaining poems in Florian’s book as a daily treat!
Engage students in a Florian-like exercise of observation outside. Give each student 10 minutes to study a small area of space outside and record as many observations as possible especially as relates to the five senses. After returning indoors, have students share their observations with a partner and then attempt to create a short “Florian-like” mini-poem.
Related reading
Students will enjoy reading Doug Florian’s other popular books such as Dinothesaurus, Insectlopedia, and Mammalabilia. See more of Florian’s books at his blog http://floriancafe.blogspot.com/ .
Be sure to bring in a collection of other ocean related titles to explore such as:
Atlantic (G.Brian Karas)
Sea Elf (Joanne Ryder)
In One Tidepool: Crabs, Snails, and Salty Tails (Anthony D. Fredericks)
Water Beds: Sleeping in the Ocean (Gail Langer Karwoski)
Octopus, Oyster, Hermit Crab, Snail: A Poem of the Sea (Sara Anderson)
