In contrast to the attitude many adults take toward poetry, young children are wonderfully receptive to the form. The lyrical and rhythmic elements naturally appeal to them. Plus, exposure to rhyming words and a rich vocabulary is immensely helpful for developing reading skills.
To help foster a love of poetry, cultivate a daily or weekly family ritual. Center your reading around afternoon “teatime” (no tea required!) or bedtime. Or just read a single poem to kids each morning or night while they bathe or brush their teeth. Any way you manage it, you’ll be strengthening family bonds and nurturing a love of poetry with each session. And they’re never too young to start!
Here are books of poetry new and old, on topics ranging from animals and nature, to the silly, whacky and even mundane. Some are by a single author, like Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic A Child’s Garden of Verses; many are anthologies, offering a ton of bang for buck.
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A Kick in the Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms
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Falling Up
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Hip Hop Speaks to Children: A Celebration of Poetry With a Beat
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The Tree Is Older Than You Are
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Favorite Poems Old and New
View on AmazonSelected by Helen Ferris. More than 700 entries from a variety of poets arranged into intriguing categories such as “On the Way to Anywhere” and “Almost Any Time is Laughing Time.” Excerpts from the Bible interspersed throughout (though regrettably without chapter and verse citations), as well as many poems with Christian references.
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All the Small Poems and Fourteen More
View on AmazonAs the title suggests, this volume combines four previously published collections of small poems, plus 14 more. The poet focuses mostly on the simple delights to be found in a backyard or pasture.
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A Child’s Book of Poems
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The Llama Who Had No Pajama
View on AmazonBright illustrations, some of which careen and crawl around the text, will be a hit with kids. Many, but not all, of these short contemporary poems are observations and explorations of animals and their diverse traits.
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A Child’s Garden of Verses
View on AmazonI read this with my kindergarteners, and I’m looking forward to reading through this again with my preschooler next year. It’s a beautiful collection of poems with topics and viewpoints young children can relate to. It was originally published in 1885, but don’t be tempted to think it’s lost its relevance. Some of the language is a little old-fashioned, true, but there’s also a wonderful innocence that comes from that bygone era which can’t be recaptured by modern writers.
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Oxford Illustrated Book of American Children’s Poems
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National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry
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A Light in the Attic
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Where the Sidewalk Ends
View on AmazonI remember my neighbor-babysitter reading Shel Silverstein's poetry to me as a child. “Sick” caught my fancy. I also recall perceiving my parents were less impressed by that slightly naughty poem than I was.
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National Geographic Book of Nature Poetry
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Now We Are Six
View on AmazonAnother collection of enchanting poems by Milne, some featuring Winnie-the-Pooh!
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When We Were Very Young
View on AmazonA collection of poems for children from the author of Winnie-the-Pooh, these will appeal to all ages because of Milne’s sophisticated understated humor.