May you experience…
May all of your days be filled with wonders! ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author http://www.4writersandreaders.com
Archive for the ‘Nature’ Category
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Limerick (poetic definition)
noun
Write a Summer Limerick & Get the Kids Writing Too!
HAVE FUN WRITING LIMERICKS
Summertime is fun time! And with ‘back to school’ just around the corner, it’s a great time to write limericks and get the kids writing too…
Whether you’re a writer, a reader, a teacher, a parent or simply want to share the love of reading and writing, get the kids together and give “Limericks” a try. You’ll be glad you did!
Some of my favorite things about summer are butterflies, long lazy summer days, gardens and sunshine. I love to sit on the porch with my camera at the ready just in case I spot an amazing monarch or any of our sensational butterfly friends dropping by to enjoy the view. So far this year I’ve spotted twelve monarchs and dozens of other butterflies too—and managed to capture several of these exquisite creatures with my Canon “PowerShot.”
Butterflies are very sensitive to the environment and with their natural habitat areas being increasingly eroded and with significantly greater use of chemicals, our butterfly population is in decline. Planting and cultivating milkweed (Monarch caterpillars need milkweed) and other blooms that our pollinators need for survival is one way that I can help.
Limerick (poetic definition)
[lim-er-ik]
1. a kind of humorous verse of five lines, in which the first, second, and fifth lines rhyme with each other, and the third and fourth lines, which are shorter, form a rhymed couplet.
My limerick is about one of the monarch butterflies (captured by my camera) that fluttered through my garden so far this summer. I had fun writing two verses to tell my monarch’s story. Check out the link at the end of the post to find out more about poetic limericks.
A Monarch Butterfly Limerick
by Bette A. Stevens
There once was a monarch so fair
She fluttered and flit through the air
’Twas milkweed she needed
And so she proceeded
To search through the garden with care
Monarch knew she had nothing to fear
Her flutters would soon disappear
When milkweed she spotted
Her heart was besotted
Depositing monarch eggs there
WRITING POETRY WITH CHILDREN
Tips & Tools
When teaching (grades 4-8), I found that writing poems and sharing them was an exciting way get children of all ages hooked on writing. I must admit it—limericks are so much fun to write and to share! In the classroom we learn about using some of the tools in our writer’s tool box—literary devices like assonance (repeating vowel sounds) and consonance (repeating consonant sounds) to create a musical message. And of course, we had Scholastic rhyming dictionaries and thesauruses close at hand. It’s always exciting to discover alternative words (synonyms) that have just the right sounds and syllables to perfect our poems.
Whether you’re a writer, a reader, a teacher, a parent or simply want to share the love of reading and writing, get the kids together and give it a try. You’ll be glad you did!
Click the link to find out all about it How to Write a Limerick http://www.poetry4kids.com/blog/lessons/how-to-write-a-limerick/
[Explore Bette’s Blog]
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Happy Birthday, Beatrix Potter
Beatrix Potter—a pioneer in self-publishing and introducing picture books for young children! ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author http://www.4writersandereaders.com
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So we’ll live…
Oh, the wonder of it all… ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author http://www.4writersandreaders.com
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In the long…
Kindness counts… ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author http://www.4writersandreaders.com
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Even after all…
LOVE is what it’s all about… Keep shining! ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author http://www.4writersandreaders.com
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With freedom…
So very happy! ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author http://www.4writersandreaders.com
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Have an Amazing Mother’s Day!
Wishing everyone a beautiful and blessed Mother’s Day! ~Bette A. Stevens, Maine author/illustrator
Author Bio
Inspired by nature and human nature, author Bette A. Stevens is a retired elementary and middle school teacher, a wife, mother of two and grandmother of five. Stevens lives in Central Maine with her husband on their 37-acre farmstead where she enjoys reading, writing, gardening, walking and reveling in the beauty of nature. She advocates for children and families, for childhood literacy and for the conservation of monarch butterflies (milkweed is the only plant that monarch caterpillars will eat).
Stevens’s children’s book, THE TANGRAM ZOO and WORD PUZZLES TOO! was first published in 1997 by Windswept House Publishing, Mt. Desert, ME; a second edition was self-published by the author in 2012. AMAZING MATILDA , Stevens’s second children’s book, self-published in 2012 won a 2013 Purple Dragonfly Book Award (Honorable Mention for Excellence in Children’s Literature – Ages 6 and older category) and also placed #9 on The 2013 Gittle List for Self-published Children’s Picture Books. Stevens has written articles for ECHOES, The Northern Maine Journal of Rural Culture based in Caribou, Maine. In 2013, the author published her first book for the YA/Adult audience: PURE TRASH, a short story of a boy growing up in rural New England in a family whose poverty and alcoholism mark him as a target for bullying by young and old alike. This short story is a prequel to Stevens’s début novel DOG BONE SOUP—coming of age story and family drama set in 1950s and 60s rural New England.
Find out more about Maine author/illustrator Bette A. Stevens and her books:
[Explore Bette’s Blog]
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#writephoto CHILD: “Through the Eyes of a Child” haiku by Bette A. Stevens
Through the Eyes of a Child
Haiku by Bette A. Stevens, Maine author
When seen through the eyes
Of the children we’re watching
The whole world’s brand new
The haiku, “Through the Eyes of a Child,” is my response to a #writephoto CHILD writing challenge from author/blogger Sue Vincent at https://scvincent.com/2017/04/27/thursday-photo-prompt-child-writephoto/ I invite you to visit and explore Sue’s blog.
Have a beautiful day and let’s all keep looking at the world through the eyes of the children in our lives—not only the children in our families and neighborhoods, but through the eyes of children in communities around the world—we’re sure to get inspired! ~Bette A. Stevens
[Explore Bette’s Blog]
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New 5✰ Review + #1 Amazon Best Seller in ‘butterflies’ too!
AMAZING MATILDA by Bette A. Stevens reached #1 on Amazon’s Best Seller ‘butterflies’ category during Earth Month 2017. This award-winning Monarch Butterfly adventure (Ages 4-11) is available in paperback ($9.49) and eBook ($3.99) versions. However, when you purchase the paperback, the eBook version can be downloaded for #free (Kindle Matchbook).
BUY “AMAZING MATILDA” at YOUR AMAZON http://bit.ly/19Qr3Y0
Latest Book Review
AMAZING MATILDA, A Monarch’s Tale written and illustrated by Bette A. Stevens
on April 20, 2017
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
I love Matilda! Her story is wonderful! I recommend! For children and adults!
Book Blurb
This “Gem of a Tale” about a Monarch Butterfly teaches kids lessons in friendship, patience and persistence as AMAZING MATILDA transforms from egg to caterpillar to butterfly. (Age 5-11).
Love Monarch Butterflies?
BEYOND THE BOOK—find resources at your finger tips: Have fun and learn even more about Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ monarch butterflies by downloading Bette’s FREE Click here: FUN & LEARNING with Monarch Butterflies PDF where you’ll find:
- Monarch Facts
- Coloring Pages
- Crafts
- Gardening
- Video: How to Make an Origami Butterfly
- Butterfly Teacher Guide and so much more…
- FIND OUT how you can help protect our Amazing Monarchs
Talking Books with the kids
Download Bette’s #FREE AMAZING MATILDA FINGER PUPPETS and “Get talking about books with the kids” CLICK HERE https://4writersandreaders.com/amazing-matilda-finger-puppets-free-download/
Find out more about Maine author/illustrator Bette A. Stevens and her books:
[Explore Bette’s Blog]
Bette A. Stevens, Maine Author 
Written
on 09/02/2017