Poetry for kids?

[redheadbaker]

DS' teacher (3rd grade) is having the kids do a poetry reading. They have to choose a poem (minimum 5 lines long), memorize it, and record themselves reciting it. 

Looking for poetry recommendations. Poetry has NEVER been an interest of mine (reading it or writing it). 

[jenny1223]

If it were my 3rd grade DS, we'd probably go for Shel Silverstein.

[meanie]

Jan 27, 2021 14:55:56 GMT -5 jenny1223 said:

If it were my 3rd grade DS, we'd probably go for Shel Silverstein.

Another vote for Shel Silverstein - Light in the Attic, Where the Sidewalk Ends, etc

My 2nd grader loves his books, there are lots of shorter poems that are easy to memorize and she thinks they are funny

[ny96]

Another vote for Shel Silverstein. My 7 year old loves the books which we’re passed down from h and I from when we were kids. Ds also likes Beastly Verses by Joohee Yoon.

[imojoebunny]

I hate memorizing things, and it killed the joy of poetry for me for a long time. My brain doesn't do that well, so I would go with short. I remember memorizing Trees by Joyce Kilmer because it was easier for me to remember, even though I am atheist, but these might be even easier.

poets.org/poem/eagle

poets.org/poem/rumors

[arehopsveggies]

Jack Prelutsky is great. When I sub I always keep a book of his poems in my bag to fill random minutes

[circa1978]

Rhett Miller of the Old 97s has a children's poetry book my DS9 really likes (lots of potty humor).

www.amazon.com/No-More-Poems-Verse-Worse/dp/0316416525

[Pilsy]

I was coming in to recommend Shel Silverstein, but I see that's been covered. lol

In 4th grade, I memorized and recited the one about the girl (Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout, I think) who wouldn't take out the garbage.

[magpie]

I still remember when I had to do this. I chose Shel Silverstein.

Homework oh homework, I hate you, you stink.
I wish I could wash you away in the sink...

There are also some funny poetry collections for kids by Jack Prelutsky and Roald Dahl that are also very popular in my school.

[sju1982]

I recited Boa Constrictor by Shel Silverstein in grade school, and can still remember every line of it.  I love his stuff. 

[pierogigirl]

The Dragons Are Singing Tonight is a great poetry book by Jack Prelutsky

[abs]

Jan 27, 2021 19:02:28 GMT -5 magpie said:

I still remember when I had to do this. I chose Shel Silverstein.

Homework oh homework, I hate you, you stink.
I wish I could wash you away in the sink...

There are also some funny poetry collections for kids by Jack Prelutsky and Roald Dahl that are also very popular in my school.

Pretty sure that is a Jack Prelutsky poem.  It's the one I memorized, too, and I still know it.    I can't remember where my phone is most of the time but a poem I learned in 3rd grade?  No problem, lol.   I liked Shel Silverstein, too, but his poems haven't held up as well to me over the years.

[magpie]

Jan 27, 2021 20:36:47 GMT -5 abs said:

Jan 27, 2021 19:02:28 GMT -5 magpie said:

I still remember when I had to do this. I chose Shel Silverstein.

Homework oh homework, I hate you, you stink.
I wish I could wash you away in the sink...

There are also some funny poetry collections for kids by Jack Prelutsky and Roald Dahl that are also very popular in my school.

Pretty sure that is a Jack Prelutsky poem.  It's the one I memorized, too, and I still know it.    I can't remember where my phone is most of the time but a poem I learned in 3rd grade?  No problem, lol.   I liked Shel Silverstein, too, but his poems haven't held up as well to me over the years.

You're right! My mind is blown, lol! Apparently, I memorized the poem as a kid, but not the author.

[loira]

Another recommendation for Where the Sidewalk Ends.

ETA: this would not be a project in Canada because all the kids would probably just recite In Flanders Fields. 😂

[Bad Dingo]

www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/552825/out-of-wonder-poems-celebrating-poets-by-kwame-alexander-chris-colderley-marjory-wentworth/

Kwame Alexander is an amazing poet.
Edited to Add: if you want to fall in love with poetry, here's an NPR interview about how to get kids interested in poetry.
www.npr.org/2017/07/27/539682661/getting-kids-interested-in-poetry

[Alps79]

I third Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky. I still have the poetry books I got when I was in elementary school and my kids love reading them.

My daughter just had to memorize Shakespeare's "Friends, Romans, Countrymen, Lend Me Your Ears." It was part of a project on Roman history and she's also in third grade. It's amazing what their minds can do!

[fortnightlily]

Ogden Nash has some pithy poems. Though many are shorter than 5 lines so you may have to search a bit I had his 'Zoo' collection as a kid and loved it.

interestingliterature.com/2019/11/10-of-the-best-ogden-nash-poems-everyone-should-read/

[CloudBee]

We're studying poetry daily in homeschool this year.

Here are 2 of DS's favorites that are more than 5 lines. He's 7 and in 2nd grade.

Hurt No Living Thing
by Chrstina Rosetti

Hurt no living thing:
Ladybird, nor butterfly,
Nor moth with dusty wing,
Nor cricket chirping cheerily,
Nor grasshopper so light of leap,
Nor dancing gnat, nor beetle fat,
Nor harmless worms that creep.


A Dragonfly
by Eleanor Farjeon

When the heat of the summer
Made drowsy the land,
A dragon-fly came
And sat on my hand,
With its blue jointed body,
And wings like spun glass,
It lit on my fingers
As though they were grass.

[CloudBee]

For anyone that enjoys poetry, these books have been very popular in our family this year.

Dover Children's Thrift Classics
Favorite Poems of Childhood
Unabridged - Easy-to-Read Type
Edited by Philip Smith
Retails for $3.00-4.00 (Amazon)

Sing a Song of Seasons
A Nature Poem for Each Day of the Year
Retails for $30-40 depending on the day (Amazon)

DS is a fluent reader at 7. However, I wanted to add something into his daily rotation that allowed me the ability to hear him read so I can offer correction. (He really doesn't enjoy reading a page from his current chapter book, and I think it's important to keep on top of his fluency/pronunciations.) For anyone with reluctant or avid readers, poetry is a great way to fine-tune pronunciations. DS often leads off the "t" at the end of words, and quietly says the "ed" sound. A combination of missing teeth and laziness. His age. He gets great practice reading poetry, as if he leaves off the endings most poems do not audibly rhyme!

[lilles]

Harlem by Langston Hughes has been a favorite of mine since fourth or fifth grade