Tap Dancing on the Roof "Sijo" (Poems)

Tap Dancing on the Roof: Sijo (Poems)

Written by: Linda Sue Park

Illustrated by: Istvan Banyai

Clarion Books, 2007

48 pages

Picture Book-Poem Collection

            I chose this book because I was interested to see what children’s sijo poems looked like. I wanted to blog about a poetry book that wasn’t the traditional rhyming poetry. A sijo is a Korean form of poetry. Sijos are similar to haikus because it is written using a syllabic structure. In English, sijos have three lines each with fourteen to sixteen syllables. The sijo collections in this book are light and humorous. The poems are easy to understand, and each ending line is cleverly witty. The sijos deal with every day things like “Breakfast,” “October,” “School Lunch,” and “Shower.”

            Istavan Banyai illustrated this book. Banyai’s illustrations were done digitally. There are very few colors other than white, black, gray, and pale blue. These colors give the book a dreary feeling. Some of the illustrations seem to be a little abstract. If the reader were to judge the book on illustrations alone, they would probably not expect this book to be light or humorous.

Tap Dancing on the Roof is appropriate for grades K-3. I would read the poem, “Long Division” as an introduction for a 3^rd grade math lesson on long division. This poem explains long division in a humorous way. I think this poem would really help the students understand long division. I would read the poem, “Word Watch” for a 2^nd grade vocabulary lesson. This poem discusses the words jittery, snuggle, abrupt, airy, and sesquipedalian. I could also use this book for a 2^nd grade science lesson as well. I would use the poem, “Botany Lesson” because it talks about plants and their growth. This book has won two awards. Tap Dancing on the Roof won The Lion and the Unicorn Prize for Excellence in North American Poetry in 2008 and the 2007 ABC Children's Booksellers Choice Award.