Caged Bird
BY MAYA ANGELOU


A free bird leaps
on the back of the wind   
and floats downstream   
till the current ends
and dips his wing
in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.


But a bird that stalks
down his narrow cage
can seldom see through
his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and   
his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.


The caged bird sings   
with a fearful trill   
of things unknown   
but longed for still   
and his tune is heard   
on the distant hill   
for the caged bird   
sings of freedom.


The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.


But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams   
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream   
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied   
so he opens his throat to sing.


The caged bird sings   
with a fearful trill   
of things unknown   
but longed for still   
and his tune is heard   
on the distant hill   
for the caged bird   
sings of freedom.

A flying Moth                 by Myungja Anna Koh


To hate all of me
dark night, secretly
you and me
in the same space
The flames in your mouth
Crunch, crackle, crank
Slowly a moth
leaping into the fire
Peeking into my soul from the tip of your
​tongue


I trust you
I don't know boundaries
You are me
Me like you


Since I was little,
You designed me
Who am I?
just the world I know
The world you made only for you
Your curse and accusation are my castles.
The dark blue sky you see every day
The only world I can see
I'm so far away from the daylight
you've always wanted it
Only you and me
in the quiet room
I endure your poison
to sacrifice my life to you


A moth jumping into a flame
Your sparks are buried at the tip of my wings
Someday I won't be able to fly
flick, flutter, frack
Still the moths fly around the roaring fire
that's me
that's what you want


But do you know?
The moth squints at the shining star
You don't know I am watching
Someday I'll leave you and fly away
you'll find another moth to burn
you will miss me
that's not love
Silly, self-lover!


I smell mint
Towards the quietly sparkling starlight
flap my wings little by little
and I will leave you
and I'll never come back

  TOUCHED BY AN ANGEL.            by Maya Angelou



​We, unaccustomed to courage exiles from delight
live coiled in shells of loneliness
until love leaves its high holy temple
and comes into our sight
to liberate us into life.


Love arrives
and in its train come ecstasies
old memories of pleasure
ancient histories of pain.
Yet if we are bold,
love strikes away the chains of fear
from our souls.

We are weaned from our timidity
In the flush of love's light
we dare be brave
And suddenly we see
that love costs all we are
and will ever be.
Yet it is only love
which sets us free.

 The below is the summary and study after reading about the article, "How poetry can help kids develop reading skills by Ally Bush".

  Reading poetry helps children about voice, pitch, volume, and inflection. While these are mainly functions of speech, they’re also incredibly important for children learning to read. Poetry can teach young readers about speech patterns, which can give them cues to the words on a page.  

Like any form of reading, poetry can introduce children to new words. Poetry is unique in that it typically follows a rhythm. When children read sentences and phrases that have a cadence, it introduces them to new words in new contexts.  Children have wonderful, active imaginations. Poetry can help children tap into their creativity by encouraging them to think about the new and unexpected relationships between words. In addition, having young readers try to write poetry can improve their literacy skills. 
The wonderful thing about poetry is that it’s subjective. Poetry can have a narrative structure, nonlinear structure, or even just be a collection of your favorite words.
One of the seven most important skills for promoting literacy is supporting oral development. Reading poetry aloud, just like reading other genres aloud, can help children improve their literacy skills. When kids read aloud, they think more deeply about the sound of the words they’re saying and therefore improve their reading skills.

Here is the suggestions the poem book to read for your kids!

Reference: How poetry can help kids develop reading skills

 Poetry is the expression of what the poet sees and feels in connotative and rhyming language. Literally, it means that poetry is a form that can be sung as it is. 

 I recently discovered a songbook  which my kid sang at the music summer camp.

I'd like to write it here for a moment. 

The Wells Fargo Wagon

Oho the Wells Fargo Wagon is a comin' down the street, oh please let it be for me. 
Oho the Wells Fargo Wagon is a comin' down the street, I wish, I wish I knew what it could be.

I got a box of maple sugar on my birthday. 
In March I got a grey mackinaw.
And once I got some grapefruit from Tampa. 

Montgom'ry Ward set me a bathtub and a cross cut saw. 

Gary, Indiana 

Gary, Indiana, Gary Indiana, Gary, 
Indiana let me say it once again. 
Gary, Indiana, Gary Indiana, Gary, 
Indiana, that's the town that knew me when.

If you'd like to have a logical explanation how I happened on this elegant syncopation. 
​I will say without a moment of hesitation, 

There is just one place that can light my face. 

Gary, Indiana, Gary Indiana, not Louisiana, Paris, France, New York, or Rome. 
But Gary, Indiana, Gary, Indiana, Gary, Indiana, my home sweet home!

Pick a Little/ Good Night Ladies

Pick a little, talk a little, pick a litte, 
talk a little, cheep cheep cheep, talk a lot, pick a little more. 
Pick a little, talk a little, pick a litte, 
talk a little, cheep cheep cheep, talk a lot, pick a little more
Pick a little, talk a little, pick a little, 
talk a little, cheep cheep cheep, talk a lot, pick a little more. 
Pick a little, talk a little, pick a litte,  
talk a little, cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep cheep

Good night ladies
Good night ladies
Good night ladies
We're going to leave you know. 

Good Night, My someone

Goodnight, my someone, goodnight, my love. 
Sleep tight, my someone, sleep tight, my love.
Our star is shining its brightest light, for good night, my love, for goodnight.
Sweet dreams be yours dear, if dreams there be.
Sweet dreams to carry you close to me. 
I wish they may and I wish they might
Now goodnight, my someone, good night!

76 Trombones

Seventy six trombones led the big parade,
with a hundred and ten cornets close at hand. 

They were followed by rows and 
rows of the finest virtuosos the
cream of every famous band.
Seventy six trombones caught 
the morning sun, with a 
hundred and then cornets right 
behind.

There were more than a 
thousand reeds springing up
​like weeds there were horns of every shape and kind.