Don't Read This Book, Whatever You Do!

More Poems About School

By Kalli Dakos

Dakos, Kalli. Don't Read This Book, Whatever You Do! : More Poems about School. Illustrated by G. Brian Karas. New York, NY: Four Winds Press, 1993.

ISBN 0027255824

This book is a collection of poems about school life, all written by one poet, Kalli Dakos. It was written as a companion volume to If You're Not Here, Please Raise Your Hand. There is a variety of poetic elements throughout the book including assonance, rhythm, free verse, similes, rhyming patterns, personification, and different voices to name a few. Out of all the elements present in this book the rhyming, different voices, and free verse are the three most common elements represented. Every poem in the book has hand drawn pencil illustrations by G. Brian Karas that represent what each poem is about. The illustrations are funny, entertaining, and will help children visually see the story of the poems. Students will find this book of poems amusing because of the humorous and sentimental topics that they can imagine happening in their own lives. There does not seem to be any specific layout for the book. All the poems are different, but they all have the common topic of school or school related events. 

There are multiple poems that can be used to provide poetry breaks or introduction to poetry lessons. One poem from this book that I would use to teach in a poetry unit would be Eric Is Allergic to Girls. It is a poem that the students will find humorous, and they will learn a thing or two about rhyming patterns and poems with different voices. A week before the lesson the teacher will select two students, a boy and a girl to be two of the voices in the poem and the teacher will be the narrator. After some practice the teacher and student actors will present the poem to the class. This activity will provide student involvement, entertainment, and an opportunity for students to learn about poetry.

Excerpt from Eric Is Allergic to Girls by Kalli Dakos

Narrator:   Eric began to make a fuss

                 When Jane sat by him on the bus,

                 First he coughed, then he wheezed,

                 Then he blew a monstrous sneeze.

Eric:          I always get sick when I sit near you,

                 I think I'm allergic to girls. Ah-choooooooo!

Jane:         Your brain must be the size of a dot,

                 To have such a silly, stupid thought.