THERE'S A ZOO IN ROOM 22 by Judy Sierra

School Poetry

Sierra, Judy. 2000. THERE'S A ZOO IN ROOM 22. illustrated by Barney Salzburg. San Diego, CA: Gulliver Book Harcourt, Inc. ISBN 9780152020330.   

The students in Room 22 ask their teacher, Miss Darling, for a class pet. The kids in Room 22 have a very special teacher, for instead of just one pet, she gives them a whole pet alphabet. From Anaconda Amanda to a zorilla, the students and Miss Darling have a zoo in their classroom by the end of this book. This poetry book is a must-have for a school library, and a great read aloud.  The students will laugh out loud at the antics in the book. The best part.... finding out at the end what a zorilla is. 

Each letter of the alphabet gets it owns poem in this book. All the poems are rhyming poems, and with the familiar rhythm and topic, they will all appeal to young children. Many of the poems have an AB rhyming pattern, but a few have different patterns, such as an AAAB rhyming pattern. The poems are also filled with alliteration.

The poems are laid out in alphabetical order, with each poem getting its own page. The illustrator, Barney Salzburg, uses pencils and watercolors to create cartoon illustrations. The illustrations truly add humor to the poems. For example, the poem "Return to Sender: Jaguarundi", has a detailed illustration showing the jaguar attempting to escape from his box.  You can also see the children and other animals from previous pages peeking out the school windows. 

Spotlight Poem 

Iggy Iguana

Meg put Iggy on her shoulder -- 

He's a super shoulder holder.

Moments later, he grew bolder,

And he climbed up on her head.

Now begins the part that's creepy --

Our iguana, feeling sleepy,

Made Meg's hair into a teepee,

And her head is now his bed.

Activities

The above poem is my favorite from the book THERE'S A ZOO IN ROOM 22. I think for young students, especially Pre-K and K, you could start off by singing the song, "Head, Shoulder, Knees, and Toes." 

While most children's poems have an ABAB rhyming pattern, this poem has a different pattern. After reading the poem a few times, have students identify the rhyming words. Students can even name the rhyming pattern in the poem.

A post reading activity for the entire book would be for the class to make their own alphabet poetry book. The topic could be pets, just like in this book, or you could have the students choose another topic. Wild animals or zoo animals would be a good topic.