Rejoice: Poetry Celebrating Life in the Amazon Rainforest

written and illustrated by the third grade students of Mendon Center Elementary in Pittsford, NY

*2009 Scholastic Grand Prize Winner NonFiction

Summary

The introduction of this book tells about the wonders of the rainforest, while also saying that the rainforest is in danger of extinction. By the year 2050, if nothing is done, the rainforest could be gone forever due to the cutting down of trees and ruining the natural habitat of many animals that could become extinct. The poems in the book are nonfiction, each short poem telling about a different animal in the rainforest.

Escape Artist

I swing on the wines,

And I dash through the trees.

I escape the villainous harpy eagle

That may snatch me at any moment

As it hunts just above me.

But it cannot catch me,

For I am the spider monkey.

The last page of the book gives a few more details about the animals discussed in each of the poems, as well as different plants in the rainforest.

Discussion

Though this book has won no awards as of yet, I think it is a fantastic edition to any classroom. It was written and illustrated by a third grade class, which empowers children and could inspire my class to write and illustrate their own book to submit for publication. The illustrations are crisp and bright, and they are set against a simple white background. Because it is written by third graders, the language is developmentally appropriate as well as engaging, and this book can be fun for classes to read out loud or alone. As for application, any rainforest unit in the classroom would be much assisted by this, as it has a different little known animal on each page. This book received a wondeful review by Jon Scieszka, who said "Wow. Beautiful poems, spectacular art, a wonderful combination of information and art."

Third graders at Mendon Center Elementary. (2009). Rejoice! Poetry Celebrating Life in the Rainforest. New York: Scholastic.