Red Sings from Treetops: a Year in Colors/ MODULE 5/SIDMAN POETRY

Joyce Sidman Illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski.2009. Red Sings from Treetops: a Year in Colors. Boston. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. ISBN 978-0-547-01494-4.

Red Sings from Treetops: a Year in Colors is written by Joyce Sidman and illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski.  Children love reading about the different seasons and this is an exceptional book about the ever changing colors and shapes during the seasonal changes.  Each season is explored in terms of how it encompasses colors.  The book starts out with spring.  In spring the “Red sings. From treetops” and “White sounds like storms”.  In summer, “white clinks in drinks” and Purple pours into summer evenings one shadow at a time”.  “Brown rustles and whispers underfoot” and “Yellow grows wheels and lumbers down the block” in fall.  Winter “pink prickles: warm fingers against cold cheeks” and “Blue breathes, deep and lustrous overhead.”  These poems are written in free verse style.  The rhyming is limited but there is some throughout the book.    

The way the colors change shape and form throughout each season is what makes this book so unique and wonderful.  The book starts with the color red for spring and ends with the color red in winter; however the red of spring is very different than the red of winter.

This book travels through each season with one several-page poem per season, each exploring the seasonal colors I free verse form. The illustrations in the book are very different and enjoyable.  Each illustration contains a woman wearing a crown and a little white dog.  Zagarenski uses scraps of newspaper and other decorative materials to create an illusion of colors as you journey through each season.  The names of the colors are printed in their color ink to draw attention to the color.  All the illustrations are very detailed.  The colored illustrations really bring the seasons to life and make you feel like you are right there in the poem. 

Every single one of these poems is of consistent quality.  Each one that I read made me think back to that season and I felt like I was there.  Some of the descriptions meet the season so well.  One of my favorites was fall.  “Fall smells/ Purple: / old leaves, crushed berries,/squishy plums with worms in them/ Purple: the smell/ of all things/mixed together.”  All of the poems contain these wonderful, true to life description of the seasons.  I felt like I was there in the poem and it was fall.  These poems are so descriptive that they will stimulate a variety of thoughts and emotions.  Children can reminisce about a memory that they had during different seasons.  During each season brings on a different mood.  You can feel the new life of spring and the hot summer days, in the fall you have the feeling of crunchy leaves and carving pumpkins, in the winter you feel the icy snow and cold fingers.  None of the poems are sentimental but can bring back a sentimental moment. 

I cannot even begin to express the great appeal that this book will have to children and adults.  All the poems will relate to a familiar childhood experience that they had.  Even I as an adult I could relate to every one of these poems.  These poems will be understood by children, yet they will expand linguistic abilities.  Children can learn the descriptions of the season and the colors that relate to them.  There are words that young children may not be familiar with but will lead to a great teaching experience to teachers, parents, or librarians.           

The seasons flow into each, bringing readers full circle through the year.  The five senses are used throughout the season which will delight readers of all ages. 

I am sharing with you a poem from spring.  I wanted to share all the poems with you because they are truly that wonderful.  I hope everyone gets a chance to read this book and share it with children. 

Green is new

in spring, Shy.

Green peeks from buds,

trembles in the breeze.

Green floats through rain-dark trees,

and glows, mossy-soft, at my feet.

Green drips from tips of leaves

     onto Pup’s nose.

Even the rain tastes Green. 

Classroom/Library Connection

Recommended audience: Ages 4-8

Before reading: Before reading this poem I would take the children outside to look at all the colors that are happening during the current season.  We would collect a sample of a few spring items.    

During reading: I would read the poem slowly so they can truly appreciate the poem and notice how the color green is being used to represent spring.  I would ask if we found anything green when we were outside looking.     

Reread the poem: I would then discuss the poem with them and we would talk about the different colors that we notice in each season and some of our favorite colors of each season. 

After reading: I will have each child pick their favorite color of the current season and write about it and draw a picture using mostly that color.