Using poetry in the classroom is a simple way to teach kids about voice, perspective, inflection, and speech patterns. It’s also a fantastic tool for reading fluency and comprehension during small or whole-group lessons.
A Poem of the Week Improves Fluency
Reading fluency relies on consistency and tons of repetition. Therefore, one of the easiest ways to help students build their confidence is to provide texts and fun poems they can read repeatedly. Then provide follow-up activities that target key ELA skills, such as reading comprehension.
Find out how a poem of the week can be easily implemented in the classroom for your poets during small or whole-group lessons. Select fun poems and let kids use fun pointers while reading to make it even more fun.
Table of Contents
- A Poem of the Week Improves Fluency
- Common Challenges
- What is a Poem of the Week
- What Does Poem of the Week Include
- A Weekly Poem Routine That Works
- Why a Poem of the Week Is Worth It
- Try a Digital Poem of the Week
- What Teachers are Saying
- Frequently Asked Questions About Teaching a Poem of the Week
- 3 FREE Poems and Activities to Try
- Poem of the Week Year-Long Bundle
- More Poetry and Reading Fluency Ideas
Common Challenges
Scenario 1
Imagine this: Your emergent reader, Bethany, doesn’t like to read the exact text repeatedly. So when you pull out a new book, she proclaims, “I’ve already read that.” You remind her that rereading things is okay because it helps with understanding, but she won’t listen.
We’ve been there.
Students like Bethany need reminders that repetition in reading is what makes them fluent. Making homework repetition fun is key to getting students to reread their texts. They need a purpose for reading, and that’s where the poem activities come in.
Scenario 2
Imagine this: Each week, you try to find something new to do to keep your kids engaged as they dive into reading. It’s challenging to find something they all enjoy and look forward to. It can be time-consuming, and you wish there were something already created you could use.
Don’t worry; I have you covered.
When you have a classroom of students who thrive on consistency, take advantage of it. And let’s be honest, most classrooms are this way. Utilize a poem of the week to get kids excited about reading new topics. They will love the seasonal poems and the activities that come with them. You’ll love that everything is prepared for you. Just print and add to your poetry journal, word work station, or literacy centers each week!
What is a Poem of the Week
A poem of the week is a strategic literacy tool and a way to teach poetry, allowing students to reread a single text. Each time they read, they focus on different elements of the poem and complete fun poetry activities that help them understand it more deeply.
The key to reading fluency is understanding the text, not simply being able to read the words and the high-frequency words they contain. A poem of the week gives students a purpose as they read and consistency as the school year progresses.
What Does Poem of the Week Include
The Poem of the Week Bundle includes 85 poems, each with six differentiated activities. Sixty-five of the poems are original poems with sight words and decodable text, and 20 of them are fun nursery rhymes.
The differentiated activities range from illustrating poems to filling in the blanks and more. That’s what makes interactive poetry activities so fun; there’s a little bit of something for every child.
Activity 1 – Rewrite the Poem
In this activity, students are provided with a sheet of lined paper to copy the poem’s words. They will use the printed poem to rewrite it on their own sheet. This activity helps kids learn sentence structure and punctuation, and to be concise.
Activity 2 – Rebuild the Poem
Using strips of paper with sentences from the poem, students will build the poem. This allows students to arrange the poem’s events to work on comprehension and retention.
Teacher Tip: Keep a copy of the weekly poem on a pocket chart or an anchor chart so students can see it all week long. When kids have easy access to it during transitions or free moments, you’ll catch them reading it on their own without even being asked. That’s the goal right there!
Activity 3 – Complete the Sentences
This activity provides students with sentence beginnings. Students must complete the sentences to recreate the poem on their papers. This activity helps kids learn sentence structure and organization skills.
Activity 4 – Complete the Tasks & Draw
Students are given a brief list of tasks to complete with the poem. This might include highlighting certain words or circling phrases related to grammar and meaning. Once they complete the tasks, they draw a picture to represent their poem to show their understanding.
Activity 5 & 6 – Fill in the Blanks (& Draw)
Students fill in the blanks in the poem to complete it. They are provided with a word bank to help them. Once they are done, they draw a picture to represent the poem.
A Weekly Poem Routine That Works
Here’s the thing: when you use the same poem all week long, something magical happens. Kids stop just reading the words and start really knowing them. They build confidence, pick up on patterns, and feel like little poetry experts by Friday. Here’s how to break it down day by day:
Monday – Read and Introduce the Poem
Think of Monday as the “let’s just get cozy with this poem” day. Read it aloud to your students a few times, don’t rush it! Use your best expressive voice and let them just listen first. Then start digging in together: What’s this poem even about? Do you hear any words that rhyme? Are there any words that are new or a little tricky? This low-pressure intro sets the tone for the whole week.
Tuesday – Build Fluency
Now that students have heard the poem, it’s time to play with it. Read it together using different voices and formats to keep things fresh and fun:
- Echo reading – you say a line, they repeat it back
- Choral reading – everyone reads together as a group
- Partner reading – students read to each other side by side
Fluency practice doesn’t have to feel like a drill. When kids are giggling through a poem in a silly voice, they’re still building those all-important reading skills. Win-win!
Wednesday – Word Work
Time to put on those detective hats! Pull the poem back out and look at it closely. Depending on your current focus, you might hunt for:
- Rhyming word pairs
- Sight words or high-frequency words
- Words with a specific vowel pattern, blend, or digraph you’re studying
- Compound words or contractions
- Words with prefixes or suffixes
- Describing words (adjectives) or action words (verbs)
- Words that are synonyms or antonyms of other words you know
This is a great time to grab some highlighter tape or dry-erase markers if you have a pocket chart or laminated copy. Making it hands-on makes it stick!
Thursday – Comprehension and Discussion
Don’t skip this step, poems have so much to talk about! Pull up those higher-order thinking questions and let students really chew on the meaning. Some favorites to ask:
- What is this poem mostly about?
- How does this poem make you feel? Why?
- Why do you think the poet chose those specific words?
- What pictures did you see in your mind while reading?
- Can you make a connection? Does this remind you of anything in your own life?
- What’s the mood of this poem: happy, silly, peaceful, mysterious?
- If you could ask the poet one question, what would it be?
These conversations are gold. You’ll be surprised by what kids come up with when you give them the space to think!
Friday – Performance and Creativity
Friday is the celebration day, and honestly, it might become everyone’s favorite. After a whole week with this poem, students truly own it, and now they get to show it off! Here are a few ways to wrap up the week:
- Perform it aloud with expression, movement, or even props
- Illustrate a favorite line or moment from the poem
- Write their own short poem using the same rhyme scheme or pattern as a mentor text
There’s something so joyful about watching a kid who was unsure on Monday stand up and confidently perform a poem on Friday. That’s the magic of repetition done right.
Teacher Tip: Print a copy of the poem for each student to keep in a personal poetry binder or folder. By the end of the year, they’ll have a whole collection they can read independently, and they’ll be SO proud of it!
Why a Poem of the Week Is Worth It
Still on the fence? Here’s why so many teachers swear by this simple routine:
- Builds reading fluency – Repeated reading of the same text helps students read more smoothly and confidently over time.
- Expands vocabulary – Kids naturally pick up new words through repeated exposure and discussion.
- Supports phonics and word study – Poems are perfect for spotting patterns, rhymes, and spelling rules in context.
- Boosts comprehension – Students practice thinking deeply about meaning, mood, and the author’s choices.
- Grows confidence – By Friday, even your most hesitant readers feel like they’ve got this.
- It’s low prep! – One poem, five days of engaging activities. Your future self will thank you.
The best part? Students actually look forward to it. There’s something special about having a classroom poem that belongs to everyone for the week.
Try a Digital Poem of the Week
If you want to save paper, the poems are also available as digital resources. This makes it super easy to assign in Google Classroom or Seesaw. Students can complete the activities during literacy centers, at home for homework, or when you have a sub!
What Teachers are Saying
I couldn’t praise this resource more– I use this every week with my students and they practice past poems daily! This has helped with fluency, reading engagement, reading stamina and growing a love for literacy! Thank you so much for this! – Sydney F.
I love this poem resource. It has everything you need to teach whole class poetry. I’m excited about the update with google classroom activities. Thank you! – Carolyn H.
We used this resource every week as part of our shared reading each week. Students got a copy to add to their books they could continue to read during their independent reading time. – Tiffany B.
I have been printing this resource as homework and the feedback I have gotten has been great! It was about how it’s different from other types of homework and engaging. – Elizabeth R.
I incorporated these poems into our morning meeting routine and the additional worksheets as homework and small group work! My students LOVED them! It was a great supplement for our phonics lessons. – Deanna P.
I use this resource every day and I love it! The poems are great and my students like the topics. I love the follow up activities that go with them as well. – Melissa M.
Frequently Asked Questions About Teaching a Poem of the Week
What grade levels is Poem of the Week best for?This routine works beautifully in kindergarten through third grade. Simply choose poems that match your students’ reading level and adjust your activities to fit!
How long does each daily activity take?Most days only need about 10–15 minutes — easy to fit into your morning meeting, transition time, or literacy block.
Do I need any special materials?Nope! A printed copy of the poem for each student is really all you need. A pocket chart is a great bonus, but definitely not required.
3 FREE Poems and Activities to Try
Try 3 of the weekly poems and activities in your classroom with this free resource!
Click the image below to grab a copy.
Poem of the Week Year-Long Bundle
Running this routine all year long doesn’t have to mean hours of prep. The Poem of the Week Bundle by Proud to be Primary has everything you need — no planning stress required.
With 85 poems and six differentiated activities each, the Poem of the Week Bundle is the perfect way to build reading fluency in a way kids actually enjoy.
Here are the 4 individual poetry resources you get in the year-long bundle.
- September to January Poem of the Week – This pack covers the winter holidays, Santa Claus, back to school, pumpkins, healthy eating, skip counting, and more fun topics for fall and winter.
- February to June Poem of the Week – This pack covers holidays like Valentine’s Day, Groundhog Day, Mother’s Day, Earth Day, Easter, shapes, plants, and more engaging topics for winter, spring, and summer.
- Supplemental Poems for the Year – This pack includes a variety of topics from the school year, focusing on losing a tooth, Veteran’s Day, firefighters, time, dinosaurs, gingerbread cookies, and more.
- Nursery Rhymes of the Week – This pack covers familiar nursery rhymes like Itsy Bitsy Spider, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and more!
More Poetry and Reading Fluency Ideas
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