5 Tips to Celebrate National Poetry Month

5 Tips to Celebrate National Poetry Month

- in Education, Featured, Parenting
National Poetry Month, which began in 1996 from the Academy of American Poets, celebrates its 25th year.
Reading and learning about poems help with rhyming, order of words and critical thinking skills.
In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends reading out loud your children including to “read from a variety of children’s books, including fairy tales, poetry, and nursery rhymes.”
Here are five ways to introduce your kids to poetry.

 

 1. Poetry Books for Kids. There are a variety of books to check-out on poetry, including some favorite authors such as Shel Silverstein, Mother Goose, or Dr. Seuss. Need other options? Click here or here for Scholastic who provides a list to by grade and age group.

 2. Write a Poem. Have your kids show off their poetic side. Have them choose a topic and write a poem. Then have them read to the family during dinner. If your kids are younger, work on the poem together with simple words or pictures. There are a lot of fun ways to write poetry with kids. Such as use an acrostic poem, or ekphrastic poetry You can look for these forms and others from Writer’s Digest 168 poetry forms to try here.

3. Poetic Pinterest.  If you are looking for ideas to help teach your kids about poetry, Pinterest has a few ideas to try here.

4. Area events and programs dealing with poetry. View your local library listings for events in your city. Fr example, Cuyahoga County Public Library is bringing patrons 30 days of poetry. Each post includes a daily mix of poetry to read, poetry to write, and a poetry book to check out. Click here to learn more.

About the author

Angela Gartner has been the editor at Northeast Ohio Parent Magazine since 2014. She has won local and national awards for her features, columns and photography over the years. Previously, her work appeared in publications including The News-Herald, Sun Newspapers and The Chicago Tribune. She grew up in Northeast Ohio and is a mom of two boys. The whole family is busy every weekend with sports and finding new happenings around the region. She is also a board member and past president at the Cleveland Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. She loves reading, writing poetry and taking the family's Scottish Terrier on walks.

1 Comment

  1. Another tip that helps me in my daily book writing. Poetry is a plan of fulfillment and torture and wonder, with a scramble of the word reference. Thanks for sharing your blog.

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