Poets Day is a wonderful way to introduce your children to the world of reading and poetry, and can be a lot of fun to celebrate with your emergent reader! There are fun and endless ways to create your own silly kids poems together, whether they rhyme or not. Be as silly as you can. It has been shown that young children who are learning to read tend to remember words and sentences better if they appeal to them! So grab some pencils, some paper, and spend some time creating some silly kids poems together.
What is Poet’s Day?
National Poets Day is a day to celebrate poetry and those authors who have written it. It doesn’t matter if the poem is a popular, well-known piece, or if you are celebrating your own child’s poem. The day is about celebrating beautiful (or silly!) writing, and poems for kids tend to be very funny and silly. The best way to celebrate Poet’s Day is to pick up a pen and some paper and to write a poem of your own. Since almost everyone has created some poetry at some point, it’s a great way to give it another go! If you are a parent, help introduce your children to Poet’s Day and the wonderful gifts that poetry has to offer. You could even start off by reading some famous short kids poems: www.poets.org/poetsorg/text/poems-kids.
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Here’s How to Write a Poem for Kids:
1. Gather Supplies
Grab plenty of paper and a few pencils for you and your child. Get situated in a spot that the two of you associate with fun and being social, such as the dining table, your child’s room, or a fun corner of your living room. By writing together in a familiar spot, you won’t make your child feel overwhelmed or anxious about the activity. Get some books that have kids silly poems in them, or print out a few online that you think your child would like. This will encourage them to get excited about the idea of reading poems with you!
2. Get Started
Once you are settled in, spend some time discussing what type of poem you would like to write. Do you want it to rhyme? If so, then make a list of silly rhyming words that you can use in your poem. Do you want it to be a long poem or a short poem? Is there any way you can incorporate some of your child’s school vocabulary words into the poem? Make sure to use language that your child will respond better to. For example, using the word “quiet” instead of “peaceful” can be easier for your child to understand and sound out.
Ask your child to come up with a few words that he or she would like in the poem. You can write these down or even create flashcards and have your child rearrange them. You can help fill in some of the missing words, and ask your child to write the poem in their own handwriting. This will help reiterate the words and their meanings, as well as help small motor skills and handwriting skills.
3. Make it Fun!
When you are finished writing the poem, don’t stop there! Plan a fun activity around it. For example, if you have written a poem together about taking silly foods to a picnic, you and your child can take a picnic trip together. Pack a basket full of the silly foods you named in your poem! Another fun activity could be creating a “stage” for your child to read their poem on, and act out some of the silly scenes that you’ve written together. Not only do activities like these foster your child’s creativity and imagination, they are also wonderful ways to interact together and get your child interested in reading and writing.
A lifelong love for reading…
No matter what you choose to do with your child to celebrate Poet’s Day, helping your child develop a love of reading and writing is a wonderful gift to give them. Make it a family activity or a quiet activity for a rainy day. The choice is yours, and the sky is the limit. Whether you are picking up some popular poems for kids or you are helping your child to write their very own poem, it is bound to be a wonderful way to help encourage your child to get creative, silly, and enjoy reading. Take a look at these fun short poems on learning for kids: familyfriendpoems.com/poems/funny/short/
Do you have any favourite silly poems for kids? Let us know in the comments below!