I'm Glad I'm Me: Poems About You

by Jack Prelutsky, Nancy Meyers (Illustrator)

Twenty-one poems that will entertain you, inspire you, and celebrate you for who you are!

Genres: Poetry, Childrens, Picture Books, School

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Jack Prelutsky is an American poet. He attended New York public schools, and later the High School of Music and Art and Hunter College. Prelutsky, who has also worked as a busboy, furniture mover, folk singer, and cab driver, claims that he hated poetry in grade school because of the way it was taught. He is the author of more than 30 poetry collections including Nightmares: Poems to Trouble Your Sleep< and A Pizza the Size of the Sun. He has also compiled countless children's anthologies comprised of poems of others'. Jack Prelutsky was married to Von Tre Venefue, a woman he had met in France. They divorced in 1995, but Jack remarried. He currently lives in Washington state with his wife, Carolyn. He befriended a gay poet named Espiritu Salamanca in 1997 and both now work together in writing poems and stories for children and adults alike.

Reviews

[Steve Holden · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up as I began my teaching career, excited to see a newer Prelutsky book. This is very cute with an important message for all - be happy about yourself. The message is easy for all to pick up, and the poems all surround the central message. It's not as silly or funny as some of his other works, but that's not the intent here. It is very short - most kids pick up and read through quickly in one reading session.

[Zach · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was the best book I ever read!!!

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

didn't like it that much.

[Dora · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my 1st review on Poetry (self selected book) for Week 6. (RLL520)
I could consider this an audio book read as I listened to it on Youtube as a reader read each page while displaying the pages in the book. I liked it so much, I ordered a hard copy through Amazon.

I couldn't find the lexile level or DRA level for this book.
I believe this book is appropriate K-5.
It was published September 2006.
According to Wikipedia: In 2006, the Poetry Foundation named Prelutsky the inaugural winner of the Children's Poet Laureate award.

This book has many short poem passages that all talk about being different. Each poem had a theme; poetry on what you liked to eat and who cares about what others think, what you feel and expressing it today, if your athletic or not and one day maybe you can be. It's poetry that the students could possibly relate to.
I would use in the classroom to teach students that poetry is a form of expression. After reading a few passages over a course of days, I would encourage students to write their own poem about themselves and what they like or dislike.

My favorite one was I Don't Want to. Sometimes in Life we just don't want to do anything today because it's just one of those days. :)

[Bonnie Chen]

I really enjoyed reading this book. The poems in the book brought back many memories of mine that reflect on the innocence of youth and brought back many memories of mine as a kid. The poems are quite silly, but it expresses an important theme. The theme is being yourself and be proud of who you are. Do not wish you were someone else. Do not compare yourself with anyone else. Just focus on yourself and learn to appreciate yourself. Kids often grasp this message better than teenagers and adults because the ignorance of kids is the most pure and carefree. Kids do not understand insecurity, stress, or jealousy. Kids are the only ones who know how to truly enjoy life. As a teenager, I hope to become a kid again. Being a kid means I don't know how to compare myself with others, how to be insecure and stressed out all the time. I forgot how it was like to be a kid, but reading this book brought back all the feelings and memories, making me nostalgic.

[Awilma Acosta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of my favorites!
Even though it is very very very short, I ,love it.
I teaches me about myself. What we children, in general think, and what we love. The book, Im glad Im me tells me that every chil;d needs to be unique. They act like they want to, not like their parents want to. This book has a sence of humor even an 80 year old can understand.=]
I love it.=]=]=]=]=]=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=D=]=]=]

[Carly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really cute book with a very important message. The book is full of poems about being yourself and staying true to yourself. I really enjoyed how the poems were arranged on the pages. Kids will like it because they are poems that are about them and they love reading poetry. It would be good to read during an "All About Me" unit or a family unit.

[Jessica Vu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute poem book that can be used for helping teach students how to write poems about a variety of things, using a variety of techniques.
Some poems are better than others. Read poems at the beginning of the LA while teaching about poems. Pick a story like "I Don't Want To..." and have students create their own poems.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

First time I read one of Jack Prelutsky’s poetry books I was in third grade and we read it over a few weeks, while doing assignments from it. His poems really started me on my poetry kick. Though that was years ago, I’ve never lost my love for poetry. Of course my taste has matured now, but I still like to pick up his books when I find them, just for kicks.

[Alyssa Boni · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought it was good book. "I liked the poem about my mother took me skating."

[Hannah Sheffield · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book would be good for a teacher to read to young students. The poems inside the book are short and cute. A teacher could read a poem or two a day. The last poem in the book I'm Glad I'm Me could be a lead into an activity where the students draw a picture that expresses themselves.

[Margie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came across this special collection of Prelutsky poems and was pleasantly reminded of how much I like his work. The poems are simple, catchy and to the point. They are sure to please children in the elementary/middle school grades along with the adults who share their lives.

[Cassi · Rating 5 out of 5]

great intro to poems! they are silly poems that keep kids interest!

[Riley Schumacher · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a good book but to short and easy for me.

[Charles Krueger · Rating 5 out of 5]

i thought it was a truly entertaining book. It was full of good poems that i could relate to. If you ever forget your book, i would strongly encourage you to read this book.

[Sophie]

I liked a few of the poems in this collection. I liked the nose one the best.

[Dawnesha F · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book filled with poems that address the good and not so good points about being yourself. "My Brother is a Quarterback" deals with a younger brother who is sad that he can't do all the cool sports activities his older brother can do just because he is older. "Life's Not Been the Same in My Family shows an older sister upset that she is not getting the attention that she wants due to her cuter younger baby sister that is just born. There are also some upbeat poems that show the quirky side of us such as "Twaddletack Tuck" and "They Tell Me I'm Peculiar. In all, happy, sad, weird, or quiet all of those moments and characteristics make us who we are and we should accept and love them.

[Kayla Angeletti · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a whole book consisting of many different poems. I loved seeing all of the different poems throughout the book. I think my favorite poem was “ my mother took me skating” Because I could kind of relate to it. I loved the rhyming used in some of the poems as well, and the only thing that I didn’t like was that there were barely any illustrations in this book, there were maybe one or two pictures on each page. All of the poems in the book were interesting and I would definitely read this book again. I would definitely recommend having this in your classroom!

[Tammy Manns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genre: Poetry
Grade Level: Primary (2-3)

This book has 21 funny poems written from a child's viewpoint basically about life! My favorite one is I Don't Want To. The last few lines say,
"I don't want to stop my not wanting...
I'm having that kind of day."
We've all had that day where we just don't want to do anything! This is a great book to show the different poem styles and just to read for a laugh for younger ages.

[Reanna Holycross · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has many short poems that range in topics. The poems are easy to understand for younger students and there are pictures accompanying each poem to help students visualize what is going on. Reading these stories aloud would help students hear the rhythm that poems have and they can notice how poems can be formatted differently, as there is a variety included in this book. There are also rhyming words which would be good to talk about as well!

[Mary Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection of poems is so precious. I can imgine a child being able to have this little book and relate to so much of it. Not only is it excellent work, but it sends really uplifting messages of self-love to children who are reading. I'm such a fan of Jack Prelutsky's work and I love that he's put this collection together. Definately a great gift for students/children.

[Sarah Howlett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trait: Ideas
ATOS: 3.3
Lexile: 430L

Fun and lighthearted poems that promote self love. Might be good for a poem unit and to use for a project for students to talk what they like about themselves or about their family.

[Chandra Miramontes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute book of poems, the illustration could be more colorful, but the poems are full of spunk. One of the poems I really enjoyed was Hurry Grandma Hurry. I would recommend this book to children that are in 2nd to 3rd grade

[Alyiah.Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the one poem that says i'm cuter than a button

[Kendalyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack Prelutsky is probably one of my favorite children's poets, other than Shel Silverstein of course.

[Caitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this book is such a cute way to introduce poetry to students. It has a mix of silly poems and meaningful ones.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a small book with twenty-one fun and silly rhyming poems with fun black-and-white illustrations. They will likely appeal to grade-school-age children and parents reading with them.

[Daniel Jansky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and cute. An excellent intro to poetry for kids.

[Jaime · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome book! I actually sang a bunch of these poems to my son and he was laughing hysterically!

[Uriah]

it was good