Why is poetry important? Read the five reasons that support the importance of poetry in primary school and instill a love for poems in the classroom.
Why Teach Poetry?
Read the five reasons that explain the importance of teaching poetry and instill a love for poems in the classroom. Children will love these activities that build reading, writing, and language skills.
There tend to be two types of teachers when it comes to poetry: Ones who love it and bring it into the classroom freely and often. Then, others stay clear. This may be because they don’t think it fits with the curriculum and what they are teaching. They may not “have time” to fit it in. Or they may not enjoy poetry, preventing them from introducing it in the classroom.
If the love is not there yet, I challenge you to try it! Open a book of poems. Read the odd poem to your class. Find a poem that goes along with your classroom theme and share it. Ask children about their experiences with poetry and how it makes them feel.
Why is Poetry Important In Primary School
Poetry has a place in our curriculum. It can be taught as part of reading, writing, and language lessons, and it fits easily into classroom themes, projects, and celebrations. It can add additional value to our studies. Poem of the week activities can be easily implemented to strengthen language arts lessons.
This post includes five reasons to teach poetry in the classroom. If you are already a poetry advocate, I hope you gain additional insight and ideas to strengthen your program. If you are reluctant to teach poetry, I encourage you to read the reasons why and find out for yourself. The reasons listed and FREE activities to try will help guide you in the right direction!
1. Build Reading, Speaking, & Listening Skills
Why teach poetry? Children need to learn to read various texts, and poems are one of those forms. The unique thing about poetry is that we often read aloud, repeat often, and share in groups. When children listen to poems orally, they are building their listening skills. They learn to attend to the words they hear and think about what they mean together.
When sharing poems in a classroom, look at them and read them together. Children strengthen their reading skills and build reading fluency through repeated reading. The dots connect in a child’s brain when they see, hear, and say it aloud.
Children begin to listen to the rhythms and rhyme present in poems. Reading fluency develops as verses are practiced and read many times. Rachel Clarke says, “As teachers, when we use poetry with children, we are modeling how to read it, building familiarity with it, and widening children’s reading horizons,”
Reading comprehension also results in discussions about meaning, connecting, and visualizing. Encourage children to imagine the poem as it is read aloud. They can draw a picture or think quietly about what they hear.
Ask children to share what a poem is about or what they believe a word or line means. Naturally, children will connect to what they hear. Ask children to share their connections to their own experiences.
2. Explore Language & Vocabulary
Poetry provides teachers with a special tool that can be broken down and evaluated in parts. A tool that can be used to teach many literacy skills.
Poetry often contains words that rhyme for effect. Children can learn about phonics and letter sounds by listening to and locating rhyming words. A poem can teach sentence structure, parts of speech, and many grammar skills. Teaching grammar in engaging ways can be a struggle. Poetry can help!
Poetry builds vocabulary. Children are exposed to words they have not heard before and listen to them in context. Discuss new terms with children and ask them to point out the ones they hear for the first time. This exercise provides a venue for ELL learners to learn and build language. Not only do children hear new words, but they are also learning how words are chosen for effect and to create imagery.
Explore a poem of the week during a class meeting. Encourage children with activities such as locating sight words, finding new terms, or focusing on a particular skill you are teaching in class. Poetry Mats are a valuable resource for practicing many skills. Poetry offers a memorable and motivational way to teach. The opportunities to learn through poetry are endless!
3. Inspire Poetry Writing
Teach how poems are constructed and the words they contain. It is the first step to writing. Different types of poems have various components. Poetry teaches us how to combine words to form meaning and context. We learn how to choose the right words to create imagery and effect.
When we break poems down into their parts, we learn a lot about how writing comes together. We learn to follow a pattern and put words in order. The simple patterns found in some poems are fun to follow and great places for children to start learning to write. Writing poetry is a transferable skill that will help children write in other ways and styles.
Start teaching poetry to children early as they begin to learn to write. A good poetry writing unit includes planning and brainstorming activities, templates to practice and write, and ways to display poetry. Start by teaching simple poetry forms that follow a pattern so children can connect. Try these free lessons as a fun start: acrostic poetry, shape poetry, autobiography poetry.
4. Encourage Creative Thinking
Poetry is a form of expression. Writing lets us express our feelings and thoughts on a subject, while reading encourages us to connect and find meaning in our experiences.
Poetry can have a positive impact on children’s social and emotional learning. It may offer them a new way of thinking about something. It can put things into words that children may not know how to express otherwise. Poetry encourages children to express themselves and their feelings.
Jeanette Winterson, a poet and writer, once said, “It isn’t a hiding place. It is a finding place.” Poetry inspires children’s imaginations to run wild.
5. Build a Love for Reading
Expose children to various styles and types of text as they learn to read. As teachers, we want them to love the act of reading and what they read as they learn. Reading can be hard work, and the books children learn first often lack that unique ingredient. Poetry is different. It has that special sauce that children crave and so much more!
Children have a natural curiosity to foster and encourage with poetry. It creates enchantment and wonder in a child’s mind. Poems encourage kids to imagine new worlds and experiences.
Poetry is great to share with children but also to have available for them to choose and read independently. Poems provide enjoyment and laughter. They are engaging and fun to read! They encourage kids to move with the rhythms they hear and add actions.
Teach poetry to children; otherwise, they may miss out on it completely. Children tend not to choose books of poems to read if they haven’t been exposed before. Break this barrier and share it with them. Build a love for poetry together!
Children’s Poetry Books
It is essential to find great examples of poems to share with children. Jack Prelutsky, Dennis Lee (a Canadian poet fav), Dr. Seuss, and Shel Silverstein are a few fantastic authors who have written various poetry and books for children.
Classroom Poetry Resources
Poem of the Week Year-Long Bundle
Try the Poem of the Week Bundle by Proud to be Primary. It includes everything you need to practice reading fluency each week with your students. There are 85 poems in this bundled pack, each with six differentiated activities kids will love.
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!
Poetry Activity Mats Bundle for K-2
Try the Poetry Mats Year-Long Bundle by Proud to be Primary. It includes differentiated, versatile, and fun poems and poetry activities for the whole school year. That’s a total of 50 poems and activities in one bundle!
These poem of the week worksheets require no prep, so you can grab and add quickly to your morning work, literacy centers, or small group lessons. Try them for National Poetry Month, or use them all year long!
Kids will gain fluency and confidence through repeated, shared reading experiences for ten months. Poetry Mats are sure to become your students’ favorite poetry activities!
FREE Resource for Teaching Poetry
This FREE Poem of the Week resource includes 2 original poems and 1 nursery rhyme to add to your collection of poems. There are 6 differentiated activities, sentence strips, and a bulletin board banner. Your students will be reading and writing poetry all week long!
Click the image below to get the resource.
Social-Emotional Learning Poem & Activities
This FREE empathy poetry pack includes an original poem and engaging activities. The poem and activities will help you teach the concept of empathy and build important reading skills at the same time.
Click the image below to get the resource.
Learn More About Teaching Poetry
Ultimate Guide to Teaching Poetry to Kids
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FREE Poetry Email Series
Sign up for the poetry email series filled with tips to get you started, strategies for success, and tons of FREE poems and poetry writing tutorials you can access right away. Everything you need to have fun and build reading skills with poetry!