Wonderful Words: Poems About Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening
selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins
illustrated by Karen Barbour
Ages 6 & up, 32 pages
Wonderful Words is a collection of fifteen short poems regarding words, books, reading, and writing. Each poem is on a double page with bright colorful pictures. These poems spark an interest to create poems, build words, and excite about reading. I’ll be honest, I don’t use poetry often. I probably enjoyed half of the poems, but it’s a great book to use when teaching poetry and a fun way to creatively explore words. Words Free as Confetti by Pat Mora provides descriptive words for feelings and colors while introducing Spanish words.
Words Free as Confetti
by Pat Mora
Come, words, come in your every color.
I’ll toss you in storm or breeze.
I’ll say, say, say you,
taste you sweet as plump plums,
bitter as old lemons.
I’ll sniff you, words, warm
as almonds or tart as apple-red,
feel you green
and soft as new grass,
lightwhite as dandelion plumes,
or thorngray as cactus,
heavy as black cement,
cold as blue icicles,
warm as abuelita’s yellowlap.
I’ll hear you, words, loud as searoar’s 
purple crash, hushed
as gatitos curled in sleep,
as the last goldlullaby.
I’ll see you long and dark as tunnels,
bright as rainbows,
playful as chestnutwind.
I’ll watch you, words, rise and dance and spin.
I’ll say, say, say you
in English,
in Spanish,
I’ll find you.
Hold you.
Toss you.
I’m free too.
I say yo soy libre,
I am free
free, free
free as confetti.
abuelita: grandmother
gatitos: kittens
yo soy libre: I am free.
I am courious as whether the words in Spanish as simple as these are known by kids.. Thanks for sharing!
I think so, because I was in a classroom reading a story that had abuelita in the story. They kept yelling because I was mispronouncing the word. Thanks for stopping by.
Hello Caroline, thanks so much for the poem, I will print it out and keep it for my grandchildren, ravishing descriptions of words! We don’t use Spanish over here in Australia but the idea will catch their imaginations and lead to discussion
I’m glad you liked the poem enough to print and share. I was going to use a more ‘bookish’ poem, but I liked the descriptive words and hint of another culture. Thanks for stopping by.