“Oh, such silliness! Silly willy-nilliness.”

Author: Poems Selected by William Cole
Title: Oh, Such Foolishness!
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers, 1978.

Grade Level: K-3

Summary: A collection of silly poems by various poets.

Strengths: These poems and rhymes are very silly and very entertaining for small children. This book would be a great way to introduce poetry to younger children and to show them that they are already familiar with poetry such as nursery rhymes and jump rope rhymes. The illustrations by Tomie DePaola are whimsical and may be familiar to young readers who are familiar with his book.

Concerns: Many of the poems were so silly that they did not make sense and some of the poems are older poems and therefore use language or terms that are no longer “politically correct.” While, this should not be a huge concern readers should be aware of this characteristic to avoid getting caught off guard. I personally did not enjoy many of the poems, but it is an interesting collection that should be available to children to read.

Classroom Use: This book lends itself to identifying poetry in students’ daily lives such as jump rope or hopscotch rhymes. This book can be a great introduction to jump rope rhymes or nursery rhymes and give students an opportunity to share or practice their favorites.