Best Books For Preschoolers

Poetry For Kids

Rain on the green grass,
And rain on the tree,
And rain on the house-top.
But not upon me!

Anon

Taken from Read me first- poems for younger readers for every day of the year.

We maybe drowning in picture books or chapter books, but don’t overlook poetry. These days poetry seem like a lost art, and it makes me sad. Today I’d like to encourage you to look into poetry for kids and instill in your kids the love of reading and listening to poetry.

Children reading

Encourage Poetry For Kids

Poetry comes in so many different styles! It really stirs the imagination. My two love to draw or play with playdoh while I’m reading some poetry.

We have tried to paint but I had to keep stopping to change paper on the easel so that didn’t work out for us.

For the poem above the preschooler tried to draw what he heard me saying. He included a big umbrella covering himself and added his little brother under it.

When it rains I try and repeat the poem as a fill in the blank: rain on the green_________ and rain on the _______________. Sometimes he adds the poem word. Sometimes he makes up something silly or that fits. I don’t really mind. It’s a bit of fun but getting him to think about words and the seasons. It adds to the “It’s raining it’s pouring the ____ man is snoring” ditty which was the only one I knew.

Of course it doesn’t have to rhyme but these are our favorite type of poems at the moment. Along with poems that have pictures with them. And, of course, the kids love alliterations!

Reasons to try poems

  • They can be short
  • You can learn them, sing them and recite them to each other
  • Improves  vocabulary, language and listening skills
  • Fuels the imagination
  • Nursery rhymes are easy to learn
  • Makes the children laugh
  • Introduces humor and nonsense to children

Try this one

Your legs know how to walk
Your eyes know how to cry
Your mouth knows how to talk
Your heart knows how to fly
By Stephen Bowkett.

Thank you to Melitsa Avila of Growing Nimble Families for these ideas on how to expose our young children to the wonderful world of poetry.

Poetry books for kids

Poetry for Kids: Emily DickinsonPoetry for Kids: Emily DickinsonPoetry for Kids: Walt WhitmanPoetry for Kids: Walt WhitmanRevolting RhymesRevolting RhymesPoems to Learn by HeartPoems to Learn by HeartPoetry for Kids: Robert FrostPoetry for Kids: Robert FrostWhere the Sidewalk Ends: Poems and DrawingsWhere the Sidewalk Ends: Poems and Drawings

Benefits of poetry for children

Poetry allows children to experiment with language. Fun sounds and patterning make poetry fun for children.

The rhythm and rhyme of poems often make it easy for children to memorize verse after verse.

Why is this memorization important?

  • Memorization allows children to “read” before they are actually reading. This builds confidence and a desire to read more.
  • With memorization children are able to pick up on the words that they know and recognize them in other texts.
  • When children recognize rhyming words they are able to expand upon that knowledge by recognizing patterns within our language.

Here is an activity that you can share with your child for poetry day:  Rhyme to Read

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