# data[].attributes.body
Young Poets Network is The Poetry Society’s online platform for young poets up to the age of 25.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
New feature: A Brief History of Black British Spoken Word

# data[].attributes.body
Opportunities to see poets from the GCSE syllabus live

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
We have now contacted the ten winners of this year's competition to inform them of their success. Well done to our winners, but congratulations to everyone who entered and made the standard of this poetry competition incredibly high. Keep writing!

Best wishes,

Daniel Powell

Each event includes the Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage. He is one of Britain's best poets, with a superb ear for language.This is a great opportunity to hear Simon read his work from the anthology. Carol Ann Duffy is one of the most read, studied and loved of today's poets. She was an inspiring and transformational ...More

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Now booking for 2023/2024 The Simon Powell Poetry Prize: Announcement 1st June 2023 We have now contacted the ten winners of this year's competition to inform them of their success. Well done to our winners, but congratulations to everyone who entered and made the standard of this poetry competition incredibly high.

# data[].attributes.body
Online resources and collections plus an e-book library that is free to join

# data[].attributes.body
Listen to poems in their own language and in translation

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
lyrikline - listen to the poet! Contemporary poetry in original voices. Growing collection of poems and audio-recordings of international poets and thousands of translations.

# data[].attributes.headline
Poetry Prompts from Joseph Coelho for the British Library

# data[].attributes.subject
Poetry Prompts from Joseph Coelho for the British Library

# data[].attributes.body
A fantastic resource with videos, lesson plans, booklists and ideas for creating a poetry classroom

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Poetry is a fundamental element in the development of children's literacy. This site holds an extensive bank of poems for children and teaching resources, videos of poet performances and interviews to support the teaching of poetry in the classroom.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Poetry is a fundamental element in the development of children's literacy. This site holds an extensive bank of poems for children and teaching resources, videos of poet performances and interviews to support the teaching of poetry in the classroom.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
National Poetry Day is the annual mass celebration on the first Thursday of October that encourages everyone to make, experience and share poetry with family and friends.

# data[].attributes.body
Audio archives of poets reading their poems

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Poetry Archive is a not-for-profit organisation with charitable status

# data[].attributes.body
Free education resources KS1-5

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Teaching resources - National Poetry Day

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Download free poetry teaching resources, lesson plans and posters to help you inspire your class this National Poetry Day.

# data[].attributes.body
The Poetry Archive is a not-for-profit organisation that produces, acquires and preserves recordings of poets reading their own work out loud.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The Poetry Archive needs your help to remain free-of-charge

Our supporters are very special people. They are poetry lovers who want to help others to share in the transformational power of the written word by ensuring the Archive can remain free-of-charge for everyone. We now attract over 5 million visits per year from teachers, children, poets and people just like you. If you can, please consider making a donation, signing up to our Insider, or becoming a Member today. Thank you!

The Poetry Archive is an entirely not-for-profit organisation with a mission to record every significant poet reading their own work aloud and make this poetry freely available to everyone.

We can only do this with your help. This ambitious and valuable project succeeds because of the generosity of people who share our passion to grow and care for this vital heritage. Every £1 we raise contributes directly to our recordings programme. You have already helped us by becoming a visitor to our website, so thank you for that! You can help us record more poets by joining us as a Member of the Archive and truly get connected to the work we do.

5 Reason to become a Member

You can help us grow this vital heritage of poetry and ensure we can keep it safe for future generations to enjoy

You can gain access to thousands of poems exclusive to our Members

You can dedicate a poem to someone's memory, or to celebrate an anniversary or achievement, or simply because you love them

You are directly supporting poets and their careers when you become a Member and use your credits to download their work

You can get connected to our behind-the-scenes work through Member newsletters and gain early-bird or discounted access to a range of events and special offers

Copyright © 2023 All rights reserved. Charity No. 1093858. Registered No. 4336052

The Poetry Archive is a not-for-profit organisation with charitable status.

Help keep the Archive Free!

For poetry lovers everywhere! Become a member to enjoy our full catalogue, rare recordings and exclusive member offers, whilst helping to keep the Archive free-of-charge.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. We use cookies. Accept More info

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Listen to the world's best poetry read out loud. Start exploring the Poetry Archive for your favourite poems or poet. Read along or listen distraction free.

# data[].attributes.body
PRIMARY- Resources collated by Michael Rosen for the BookTrust during his time as Children's Laureate

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
During his time as Children's Laureate, Michael Rosen celebrated poetry and how teachers can best teach it at school - and make it fun. Here are some resources to get you started.

# data[].attributes.body
Primary and Secondary Classroom Resources

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A collection of poetry resources from the BBC to use with students of all ages.

# data[].attributes.body
A collection of free resources about poetry

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
On this site, you'll find a wide selection of poetry lesson plans and activities covering the whole spectrum of key stages, and exploring many themes and forms of poetry.

Each resource has been created by our team of poet-educators and poetry-passionate teachers; all with extensive experience of encouraging an enthusiasm for poetry in the classroom.

Let us know how you find using them, and how you adapt them for your classroom.

You can tweet us at @PoetryEducation or email [email protected] .

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
On this site, you'll find a wide selection of poetry lesson plans and activities covering the whole spectrum of key stages, and exploring many themes and forms of poetry. Each resource has been created by our team of poet-educators and poetry-passionate teachers; all with extensive experience of encouraging an enthusiasm for poetry in the classroom.

# data[].attributes.body
Includes searchable poetry archive

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Poems, readings, poetry news and the entire 110-year archive of POETRY magazine.

# data[].attributes.headline
The Poetry Station- English and Media Centre

# data[].attributes.subject
The Poetry Station- English and Media Centre

# data[].attributes.body
Poetry video archive

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Poetry Station - Poems to view on video

# data[].attributes.body
Poetry By Heart is a national competition in which young people in key stages 2, 3, 4 and 5 choose poems they love, learn them by heart and perform them in a school or college competition.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Sea Fever

By John Masefield

Read

Poem of the week

Receive a different poem every week in your email

Sign up

Choose poems

Find a poem to learn from any of our timeline and showcase collections

Learn poems by heart

With tips on how to memorise poems and how to polish them for performance

Perform poems out loud

Share your poems aloud in a class, club or event of any shape or size, at school or college

Enter the national competition

Do it your way - either the 1- poem Freestyle celebration or the 2-poem Classic championship

Come to the Grand Finale

Classic finalists and the best Freestylers perform on stage at Shakespeare's Globe, London - with guest tickets for schools taking part

Everything you need is here

Videos of past finalists, hundreds of classic and contemporary poems, and pupil and teacher competition guides

The competition

Poetry by Heart is a national poetry speaking competition for schools and colleges, open to all pupils in key stages 2 to 5. Taking part in Poetry By Heart is all about developing confidence with poetry in an enjoyable, accessible and engaging way. Registration, participation and competition entry are free for schools and colleges in England.

Poetry Collections Lucky Dip

Mix it up

First World War Poems Showcase

Experience Poetry By Heart

The 2022 Finals

The 2021 Finals

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Read Sign up Choose poems Find a poem to learn from any of our timeline and showcase collections Learn poems by heart With tips on how to memorise poems and how to polish them for performance Perform poems out loud Share your poems aloud in a class, club or event

# data[].attributes.body
The Children’s Poetry Summit is a UK network of individuals and organisations actively interested in poetry for children. It provides a regular forum for discussion, information exchange, sharing of ideas and good practice, and a pressure group which campaigns for children’s poetry.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Image: Travis Elborough.

Word Play with the Card players

Tom* and I we sat and spoke

about the kids, and them awoke;

writing (and drawing) til their pencils wore away or broke.

What was to be drawn and writ

would be about a bit of local art

in which they'd get to take a part,

with poets working in the school,

each employing, as a tool

a local gallery exhibit

to inspire and uninhibit.

Clare** would come there too, to note

and photograph the drawn and wrote

in Bristol, Bradford, Luton Town:

the young creative gold dust sieved.

And, London, where I've also lived.

*Tom MacAndrew, freelance producer, **Clare Elstow, writer and broadcaster.

Paul Cézanne: The Card Players 1894-1895, Musée d'Orsay, Paris, public domain.

As a tester for this, I visited a nearby primary school with 'The Card Players' by the French painter, Paul Cezanne. I explained that I had a French Connection because my dad was born in Paris and French was his mother tongue. I told the children and their teacher that I celebrate these French roots. We discussed a wide variety of roots and heritage present in the classroom. We then looked at the two card players present in the painting, at their opposite ends of the table.

Are they friends? Are they brothers? Are they farmers? Look how big their knees are! Can you supply a third person to put in the middle? What does this person look like? How big are the newcomer's knees? What do the existing card players think about the new arrival? What does the table think? What does Paul Cezanne think of what is going on?

John's own drawing in answer to this exercise!

The teacher in this class is most attentive,

as the children write and draw,

ignited by this image from the Courtauld.

I have learned, with running courses

in classes, workshopping in schools,

that tools held by teachers are such valuable resources.

They know the children, understand

when many hands go shooting up,

which voice

is the most prudent choice.

It may not be the chosen reply

will be the cleverest,

but it may be, here is a child too shy

to ordinarily supply their teacher

with an answer.

The teacher can also advise the guest

when it may be best

to say goodbye.
John Hegley
John Hegley was born in Newington Green, North London, and was educated in Luton, Bristol and Bradford University.

He has produced ten books of verse and prose pieces, two CDs and one mug, but his largest source of income is from stages on his native island. An Edinburgh Festival regular, he is noted for his exploration of such diverse topics as dog hair, potatoes, handkerchieves and the misery of human existence.

He is an occasional DJ, dancer and workshop leader, using drawing, poetry and gesture. He has been awarded an honorary Doctorate of Arts from what is now the University of Bedfordshire, and once performed in a women's prison in Columbia.

Art inspired Poems, John Hegley, Paul Cezanne, Poems4Kids, Poetry and Art, Teaching with poetry

Image credit: Ben Rogers for The Poetry Society
In Celebration of the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award

One of my first experiences of poetry was when I recited Edward Lear's 'The Owl and the Pussycat' at my school eisteddfod.

This was a big deal. My headmistress was proudly Welsh, and despite my school being in Deal, Kent, the eisteddfod was a big calendar event. With two Welsh grandmothers, one of whom was a published poet in the local area, I was determined that I would perform my favourite poem with confidence and bring the house down.

Or at least, this is what I had dreamt in my bedroom, and not quite what happened on the day. In a state of stage fright, I caught the worst case of the giggles and was told to finish the line I was attempting and to "GET OFF THE STAGE!"

Despite this moment, my love for poetry and performance has never diminished and to work at The Poetry Society and deliver one of the biggest poetry competitions in the world, the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award, is a dream come true.
Top 15 Foyle Young Poet winners and judges Caroline Bird and Daljit Nagra. Image credit Hayley Madden for The Poetry Society
The Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award is synonymous with excellence in poetry and has recognised, nurtured and supported some of the best known poets in the English-speaking world. However, the Award is not just about the excellent winning poems, it is also about the very act of a young person expressing themselves. There is a bravery with each poem that I wish I had known as a teenager. This year, the competition received over 11,000 poems from over 6,000 young people from across the world, and whilst it is exhausting to read that many poems (and to eat that many biscuits during the judging process) it is such a privilege to read poems by the young people who will shape our world.
Left to right, Kara Jackson Foyle Young Poet and Youth Poet Laureate Chicago, Patricia Frazier former Youth Poet Laureate Chicago, Em Power Foyle Young Poet winner 2017, 2018, Fiyinfoluwa Oladipo Foyle Young Poet winner 2018, Natalie Richardson Foyle Young Poet and former Youth Poet Laureate Chicago and poet Rachel Long. Image credit Helen Bowell for The Poetry Society.
The Foyle Award connects to so many more poetry activities outside of the competition itself. Some of this year's highlights include sending poet Ryan van Winkle on an epic adventure to the Isle of Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, to run poetry workshops with 150 students across a week. We welcomed three youth poet laureates from Chicago, two of whom were Foyle Young Poets, to The Poetry Café to lead workshops for recent Foyle winners and entrants, and to share a stage with them at our free Young Poets Takeover. And we sent three-time Foyle winner Mukahang Limbu and 2019 judge Raymond Antrobus to Wogan House to catch up with Cerys Matthews on her BBC6 Music radio show.
Left to right, Mukahang Limbu Foyle Young Poet winner 2016. 2017 and 2018, Cerys Matthews and Foyle Young Poet judge Raymond Antrobus. Image credit Helen Bowell for The Poetry Society.
Last year we celebrated 20 years of the Foyle Award, and what really struck me was that approximately 100,000 young people in the last 20 years have shared their work with The Poetry Society, and whilst we celebrate 100 winners each year, I think it is also important to celebrate the very act of writing poetry itself. Like many of us, I was only taught to read and recite poetry at school, and I wish I had been given the tools and confidence to write poetry myself, and share in the power and freedom that it can give a young person. That is why, in celebration of the legacy of the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award and its ongoing commitment to poetry, we will be launching a new teaching resource for teachers using Foyle Young Poets' winning poems as inspiration for lesson plans that will enable young people to write poetry themselves in and out of the classroom.
Left to right Foyle Young Poet winner 2017, 2018 Suzanne Antelme and 5 time Foyle Young Poet winner and former judge Helen Mort. Image credit Hayley Madden for The Poetry Society.
On the 2nd October 2019 this year's top 100 winners, selected by judges Raymond Antrobus and Jackie Kay, will be announced at the Southbank Centre and another 100 young people will join the Foyle Young Poets family.
Alice Watson
Alice Watson is the Education Officer at The Poetry Society. She manages the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award and supports the delivery of SLAMbassadors, Look North More Often and Artsmark at The Poetry Society. She has previously worked at Lauderdale House and Shakespeare's Globe and studied an MA at King's College, University of London in Education in Arts and Cultural Settings. To get in touch please contact Alice Watson.

Having Fun with Children's Poetry

In 2014 the wonderful people at National Poetry Day made me a National Poetry Day Ambassador.

My journey as a children's poetry promoter started in 2008, after meeting with a group of children's poets who all felt the same way; we vowed to find as many ways as possible of supporting children's poetry. Later that year we gathered again to be filmed sharing poems, to put out into the world in as many places as possible. Out of that fun-filled few days came this video of the wonderful and much-missed Gerard Benson and his River Song.

Just as I was thinking what to try next, and wondering if targeting families might help to engage the parents that buy books, I was asked by Bristol Poetry Festival 2009 to organise a Poetry Exhibition.

A Bristol Poetry Festival grant, an Arts Council grant, sponsorship money and six months preparation led to a poetry submersion room at the Arnolfini, Bristol. Into a brightly painted room was introduced an explosion of poems, poetry toolkits, and our group of talented and willing poets.

ITV Television workshop supplied children who relished reading poems for us.

It was an interesting experience in that many of the people who came hadn't been expecting it (the Arnolfini is a cutting-edge modern art gallery), and yet they stayed sometimes for hours. Very few left without writing a poem.

Undoubtedly however, the biggest hit were the giant magnetic words. I have used these ever since in a variety of combinations and venues and highly recommend them. It's a very easy way of enticing anyone to play with words.

It is impossible it seems to pass a giant magnetic poetry board without picking up words and placing them together. Few were satisfied with that, they went to hunt in the boxes for more poetic or more meaningful juxtapositions. One of the most gratifying aspects was the total involvement of whole families, parents helping, inspiring and joining in by writing their own poems.

Other projects include marking most National Poetry Days by a range of poetry videos. My favourite theme was light.

We filmed people whose lives in some way touched on light (a fireman, a projectionist, a cosmologist, etc.) reading poems, sent to me by children's poets, about light. We also roamed the streets of Bristol and asked children and their families to read poems for us - surprisingly few turned down the offer!

Sometimes you'll find me in a school, inspiring children to use words as exciting tools to express themselves. And of course I also write poems most days, for a variety of rewarding projects. It is what I love most. At the minute I'm collecting and editing my first anthology, a book of shape poems for Macmillan, and thoroughly enjoying it. This also involves the frustrating fun of drawing with words!

I also run Poetry Roundabout, a website devoted to promoting everything about children's poetry - at the minute there is a series of poets and their favourite children's poetry books, and tweet for Children's Poetry Summit.

I feel very excited about starting on my next new project - and I'm so grateful to the lovely NPD people for giving a focus for my ideas, and to my lovely supportive poetry friends who supplied all the above poems and more.

In the meantime, this year's NPD theme being Truth, soon I'll be choosing climate crisis truth poems that poets have kindly sent, and filming them read by people who work in Climate Crisis in some way. Please look out for them!

Liz Brownlee

Liz Brownlee is a poet and poetry event organiser. Her latest book Be the Change, Poems to Help You Save the World, Macmillan, is out on September 5th. (Poets included in above exhibition, Roger Stevens, Sue Hardy-Dawson, Andrea Shavick, Philip Waddell, Bernard Young, Gerard Benson, Cathy Benson, Jane Clarke, Michaela Morgan, Graham Denton).

Andrea Shavick, Be the Change, Bernard Young, Bloomsbury, Cathy Benson, Gerard Benson, Jane Clarke, Liz Brownlee, Macmillan, Michaela Morgan, Philip Waddell, Poetry exhibition, Poetry Fun, Roger Stevens, Sue Hardy-Dawson

Photo: © Sam Lane

Who Dares, Writes

"Poetry written by children? But is it any good?" At a funding meeting for the Betjeman Poetry Prize, a board member of an arts foundation asked this very question.

At the time, I was dumbfounded. Whether or not the poetry by 10-13 year olds submitted to the annual poetry prize and judged by poets such as Carol Ann Duffy, Brian Patten and Imtiaz Dharker was 'good' by adult literary standards (which, presumably, was what the board member meant) was not the point, surely. Later, I began to question myself. Why hold a competition? What was the point of encouraging children to write poetry before - arguably - they had mastered the form? There are now over 100 poetry competitions for under-18s listed on the Poetry's Society's Young Poets Network. What is the point of generating all that poetry? Who are the competitions for?
Young poets warming up before a writing session at the Betjeman Poetry Camp 2019 with poet Paul Lyalls, and below, hand-written text showing the workings of a child poet.
Firstly, let's ask what literature is for: to illuminate, to entertain, to enable readers to see the world afresh, to teach, to moralise, to expose, to dazzle, to help the reader understand the world, to help the reader understand themselves, to make them laugh, to make them cry, to help them feel. These are benefits for the reader. But what of benefits for the writer? Why would any writer put themselves through the heartache, the isolation, the sweat and toil and tears? For some writers, writing is the only way of comprehending their experience; others just want to make money (no guarantee!). For some, it is about curiosity, for others about expressing their inner worlds. For still more it is about the joy of language.

Now let's translate all these benefits to the space where young people read and write: to feel, to comprehend, to process, to illuminate, to laugh, to cry, to understand, to know, for love of language. Why on earth would we not want our young people to begin all these activities as early as possible?
Year 5 Children from Richard Cobden Primary and Argyle Primary, Camden at St Pancras Station, taking part in a performance of their own poetry for a BPP collaboration project with Paul Lyalls and St Pancras International. They are proudly holding aloft the anthology, Track Record.
Competition as a concept will always provoke debate. Of course. The naysayers will debate the concept on political terms, on emotional terms, on every term (especially school term) under the sun. But this is a debate amongst adults. I would argue that kids understand competition better than adults do and it is often adult projection (vociferous dads on the side of football matches, Hollywood actresses who buy places for their children at university) that creates a monster out of a teaching tool. Competition teaches kids that they cannot win at everything; while it's important they strive to be the best version of themselves, there will always be someone 'better' than them out there.

That established, you might ask why not just hold a football tournament? There are millions of youngsters who prefer football to writing. Sure, but there are also thousands (maybe even millions) of youngsters for whom writing is vital: I write, therefore I am. While writing competitions are not for everyone, they do provide a goal and a platform for those kids. Is their poetry 'any good'? If their poem strikes a chord in the judge's heart, the young poets will have done their job. If other kids read the poems selected for commendation, those other kids may be inspired to make their own squiggles and marks on the page which - miraculously! - may articulate what they know in their heads and feel in their hearts.

To my mind, any encouragement of that process is worthwhile. Perfection of form may come later. Surely it is enough to draw out a young person's voice. How much more roundly developed as adults will the next generation be, if, as youngsters, they have played with language, tried to describe, worked through feelings, expressed an individual opinion and crucially, may have been heard.

Imogen Lycett Green

Imogen Lycett Green is a freelance writer and educator who runs the Betjeman Poetry Prize, an Artsmark charity inspiring children and young people aged 10-13 to read, write and perform poetry. A former staff journalist on the Daily Telegraph, she is the author of biography and children's fiction, a judge of the Chiddingstone Short Story Prize and a former chair of the UK International Radio Drama Festival. She was a Royal Literary Fund Fellow at Southampton University and is an English tutor at Brighton Aldridge Academy working with KS 3&4 students. http://www.betjemanpoetryprize.co.uk.

"Burrow in, borrow on" - working with children at the National Poetry Library
The children's collection of the National Poetry Library was founded in 1988 when the children's literature magazine Signal, which ran an annual poetry book prize, kindly donated their collection. We now collect all new children's poetry books published in the UK, with a selection from overseas (mainly US), and a selection of rhyming story and picture books. Our young adult collection is also growing at quite a pace thanks to the explosion of verse novels in recent years.

One of our ambitions at the NPL is to create lifelong poetry readers. The Royal Festival Hall is a popular place for new parents to meet with their babies so we started Rug Rhymes (Friday 10.30am in term time) for under-5s and their carers. As well as traditional nursery rhymes and children's songs we try to slip in some stellar poetry: poems like 'maggie and milly and molly and may' by e.e. cummings and 'Give Yourself a Hug' by Grace Nichols have been big hits! The session is the perfect opportunity for the library to highlight our free children's membership which allows four books to be borrowed for up to four weeks.

Next up are workshops that schools can book for class visits, all based around work books the library has developed in collaboration with poets and artists. These range from Poetry Explorers for primary schools, where children learn about using a library and also spend time reading and listening to poetry; and Letters Home (our most beautiful booklet, created with Henningham Family Press) which is suitable for primary and secondary schools and introduces the children to experimental First World War poetry.

For secondary schools we also have Poetry Box, a science and poetry activity developed with poet Mario Petrucci where children use science and space exploration to create poems, and Dictionary Story, based on a visual poetry book by artist Sam Winston, which is well-suited for A' Level students studying art and design. Secondary schools are also welcome to bring small groups to the library for a tour and teacher led activity - these are proving popular currently during the lull between exams and the end of the school year. During the summer holidays teachers looking for new ideas for the classroom may want to check out our section of books aimed at supporting the teaching of poetry.

And the library isn't just for school visits. February half-term sees our annual Day of Children's Poetry as part of Southbank Centre's Imagine Children's Festival. This year we held a poem illustration workshop with children's poet and illustrator Ed Boxall, had a puppy poems reading with Brian Moses, Roger Stevens and, also, Victoria Adukwei Bulley reading from Thinker : My Puppy Poet and Me by Eloise Greenfield. Later in the day we welcomed poets Simon Mole, Karl Nova and Rachel Rooney for a reading for ages 8-11. We'll be making plans soon to try and top this for next February's Imagine Festival.

An unexpected personal outcome of working with children at the National Poetry Library is that I've started to write children's poems. Sometimes I would write a poem for the Rug Rhymes session and this led to my colleague Pascal O'Loughlin and I setting ourselves the challenge of writing a new children's poem each month for a year. It extended into two years and I've recently published my first children's poem in Dragons of the Prime, an anthology of dinosaur poems from The Emma Press, and had a poem shortlisted in the YorkMix Children's Poetry Competition. The National Poetry Library's children's collection is not just a wonderful resource for children and families - "Burrow in, borrow on" says regular visitor John Hegley - but can be an inspiration to aspiring children's poets too.

The National Poetry Library is on level 5 of the Royal Festival Hall. More information about visiting and joining the National Poetry Library can be found here, National Poetry Library.

Follow this link to find out more about booking one of our schools workshops.

Lorraine Mariner

Lorraine Mariner is an Assistant Librarian at the National Poetry Library and has published two poetry collections for adults with Picador, Furniture (2009) and There Will Be No More Nonsense (2014).

Children's Librarian, Children's Poetry, Lorraine Mariner, National Poetry Library, Poems4Kids, Southbank Centre

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Image: Travis Elborough. Tom* and I we sat and spoke about the kids, and them awoke; writing (and drawing) til their pencils wore away or broke. What was to be drawn and writ would be about a bit of local art in which they'd get to take a part, with poets working in the school, each employing, as a tool a local gallery exhibit to inspire and uninhibit.

# data[].attributes.headline
Reading Realm National Poetry Day Resources

# data[].attributes.subject
Reading Realm National Poetry Day Resources

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
✨🌟Please find some free downloadable display resources, featuring lots of childen's poets (Coral Rumble, Michael Rosen, Liz Brownlee, Sue Hardy-Dawson, Joshua Seigal and many more) and their thoughts on 'What is poetry?'✨🌟

There are four different versions, depending on your preference! Do send us a photo of any displays! @reading_realm
National Poetry Day Display Resources With Logo And Border National Poetry Day Display Resources With Logo No Border National Poetry Day Display Resources With Watermark And Border National Poetry Day Display Resources With Watermark No Border
This slideshow requires JavaScript.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What is poetry? FREE display resources for National Poetry Day, 2019! | The Reading Realm

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
✨🌟Please find some free downloadable display resources, featuring lots of childen's poets (Coral Rumble, Michael Rosen, Liz Brownlee, Sue Hardy-Dawson, Joshua Seigal and many more) and their thoughts on 'What is poetry?'✨🌟 There are four different versions, depending on your preference! Do send us a photo of any displays!

# data[].attributes.body
A free poetry project from LitFilmFest in conjunction with Joseph Coelho

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Celebrate the varied personal history, culture and heritage within your classroom with support from poet Joseph Coelho. This project will help students get to know each other by writing poetry about what makes them who they are. The performance video will then be shared, helping encourage an accepting and global mindset in your school whilst celebrating the individuals that come together to make community.

Quality planning and videos

Develop poetry writing and sentence level skills

All the supporting resources you need to deliver engaging lessons

See below for more details.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
This Is Us!: Poetry resource for Primary | LitFilmFest

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Celebrate the varied personal history, culture and heritage within your classroom with support from poet Joseph Coelho. This project will help students get to know each other by writing poetry about what makes them who they are.

# data[].attributes.body
Compiled for National Poetry Day 2018

# data[].attributes.headline
Poetry Books for a Poetry Friendly Classroom

# data[].attributes.subject
Poetry Books for a Poetry Friendly Classroom

# data[].attributes.body
A booklist from the Booktrust

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Poetry books for the Poetry Friendly Classroom

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Take a look at some of our favourite children's poetry books - perfect for use in the poetry-friendly classroom.

# data[].attributes.body
A searchable resource which you can filter to find poetry

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Be inspired and discover your child’s next favourite book with the BookTrust Bookfinder: search by theme and age, from babies and toddlers all the way up to teenagers.

# data[].attributes.body
From The Guardian

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Here are my top 10 new poetry books that every child must read. These are books that will both delight and challenge the very young child and the older (cooler) kid. I've split the list into two sets of five. The first five are poetry books suitable for the very young. These are books to be pored over at bedtime, read and re-read, or indeed performed and performed again.

The second group of five are contemporary poetry books for older children - books that get children thinking, questioning, laughing and speaking poems out loud. These are the books I wish were around when I was young, these are books every child should grow up with.

1. My Village. Rhymes from Around the World. Collected by Danielle Wright. Illustrated by Mique Moriuchi (Frances Lincoln)

Nursery rhymes from all over the world!!! ALL OVER THE WORLD. What more do you want! Here you'll find glimpses of strange little tales about love and tapioca and whales! The nursery rhymes are written in English and in their native tongue side by side - trying to decipher the foreign words with reference to the English becomes a game in itself. The mixed media artwork by Mique Moriuchi works really well with a collection which in itself is a montage of tales, stories and songs in both time and location. One that can be read again and again at bedtime.

2. Poems to Perform. A classic collection chosen by the children's laureate, Julia Donaldson. Illustrated by Clare Melinsky (Macmillan)

With a background in performance poetry this collection had to be on the list. It's not purely for the very young, but there are many in here that they will enjoy. This is a book that a child can grow with. It's one that celebrates poetry as a medium to be performed, something that I fear often gets overlooked. This is a collection that has been expertly chosen by Julia Donaldson with poems that trip easily off the tongue, poems with rhythms and rhymes and alliterative utterances and beautifully effective repetitions. There are poems perfect for a parent to read out loud with a child, such as Tony Mitton's 'Voices of Water', and many poems perfect for the classroom conjuring up conversations and characters such, as Harold Monro's fantastic 'Overheard on a Saltmarsh'. Clare Melinsky's bold lino cuts are beautiful yet allow the poems plenty of space to breathe.

3. All the Wild Wonders. Poems of our Earth. Edited by Wendy Cooling. Illustrated by Piet Grobler (Frances Lincoln)

A gorgeous collection to get little ones thinking about the world and their place in it - there are many deceptively simple poems that take on big issues like deforestation and extinction. I can imagine many young and hungry minds asking many questions at bedtime as a result of these poems. Piet Grobler's illustrations are great fun and the large format makes this a nice alternative to a picture book.

4. A Great Big Cuddle - Poems for the Very Young by Michael Rosen. Illustrated by Chris Riddell (Walker)

Michael Rosen in collaboration with our new children's laureate, Chris Riddell. This is a book of broad strokes, simple, fun and brilliant and very big - I'm tempted to keep my copy on the coffee table, it's definitely one you want to keep close by just to peruse and smile at the "Wiggly Wiggly" pigs who get all "giggly giggle" or to say "hello" to the multicoloured monkeys with names like Dolly, Solly and Molly! There's a lot of space in this book with Riddell's engaging illustrations on solid colour backgrounds sometimes accompanied with words, sometimes just facing equally spaced words on an opposite page. I predict that many parents are going to know this book by heart very quickly.

5. Under the Spell of the Moon. Art for Children from the World's Great Illustrators. Edited by Patricia Aldana. Translated by Stan Dragland (Frances Lincoln)

Games, riddles and poems from around the world again with text in both English and the native language of the text's source. This book came about as a result of asking picture book illustrators from around the world to choose their favourite poem, riddle or game from their childhood. The result is like a mobile art gallery punctuated with text that reminds us of what great fun and enjoyment there is to be had from words - an enjoyment which can at times be sucked away when we start labelling text as poetry or narratives. Illustrators choose their favourites and that warm tingle of happy reminiscing permeates through the entire book.
These next five are for older kids - the one who is hungry for new ideas and challenges.
6. Falling Out of the Sky. Poems about Myths and Monsters. Edited by Rachel Piercey and Emma Wright (The Emma Press)

This is a brilliant and brave first foray into children's anthologies by this impressively productive and relatively young press. The book (aimed at 9+) features a range of poems and even a few prose pieces inspired by myths and monsters that will get young people familiar with the great iconic myths such as Icarus and Pandora's Box as well as introduce them to some less well known delights like Ginny Green Teeth and Terrainiac the Rain God! Here we have an exciting collection by a young, vibrant company that is not afraid to challenge as well as delight. The poems in this book invite young people and adults alike to think about and question poetry and at times inspire them to find out more about Dog-Bone gods and Celtic cauldrons. I particularly like the little annotated notes that accompany some of the poems inviting the reader to skip back or forward through the book to discover another poem connected to the myth or monster they have just read about. In a sense this makes the book feel digital as you flick back and forth, as one does when surfing the internet, finding a poem on The Minotaur near the start of the book and then being directed to a poem about Daedalus towards the end. One of my favourites from this collection is 'Love Song for a Minotaur' by Abigail Parry "I don't know how to work the string/that rigged a bloodknot in your heart."

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Roger McGough. Photograph: Mark Mackenzie/Waitrose/PA

7. by Roger McGough and Michael Rosen. Illustrated by Korky Paul (Frances Lincoln)

I lost count of the number of times I laughed out loud (lol'd) reading this brilliant, witty, funny and, at times, daring collection. The unstoppable pair make a delightful combination with Michael Rosen's spot on observations of childhood moments that we can all relate to such as the heart breaking poem 'One Day When I Was Young' which perfectly sums up the frustration a child can feel with the simple repeated line "I didn't laugh". Then you have McGough's nerve with poems like 'The Totally Inoffensive Children's Poem' which reminds us that art, poetry needs to incite and stir and make us think and that poetry is at its best when it questions. Korky Paul's illustrations are so detailed and full of character, this is one of those gems that can appeal to many ages and grow with the child.

8. Give The Ball To The Poet. A New Anthology of Caribbean Poetry. Edited by Georgie Horrell, Aisha Spencer and Morag Styles. Illustrated by Jane Ray (Commonwealth Education Trust)

A fantastic collection aimed at 11-16 year olds with themes covering sport, nature and family. There's a real mix of fun and in-depth reflection in this book with poems about the slave trade, the joy of mangoes and memories of grandparents. The lyricism of some of the poems leaps off the page. As you read you find yourself rolling the words around in your mouth. This collection is also a wonderful introduction to some of the greats in poetry - Benjamin Zephaniah, John Agard, Grace Nichols, Valerie Bloom to name but a few. Jane Ray's illustrations delve seamlessly from the beautifully everyday to the metaphorical in sumptuous colour pictures, making it as much a visual delight as a poetic one.

9. Let in the Stars. New Poetry for Children. Edited by Mandy Coe. Illustrated by The Manchester School of Art (The Manchester Writing School at Manchester Metropolitan University)

"We were looking for poems that would do more than simply give what most young readers know they like already... We looked for poems that said No, we don't think that you are the average child, the average nine-year-old or the average boy or girl."

The blurb on the back by Philip Gross beautifully sums up this collection - these are poems that refuse to patronise the young - there are also lots of poems in this collection that play with form and narrative such as Rob Mooney's 'Dear Aunt Suzette' - a poem of four limericks or Carole Bromley's 'Goldilocks' that reads a bit like an errant child skiving off school and sneaking into a neighbour's empty house.

10. The Language of Cat by Rachel Rooney. Illustrated by Ellie Jenkins (Frances Lincoln)

I never knew a poetry book could be a page turner in the same way as the best novels but The Language of Cat is just that! While reading it it is impossible not to be carried by the excitement of what new insight the next poem will throw up. This collection is like a pick 'n' mix containing just one of each of your favourite sweets - each poem is delicious and each poem is new and fresh in idea and scope and beauty.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest

Joseph Coelho is the winner of the 2015 CLPE children's poetry award with his collection Werewolf Club Rules! Buy Werewolf Club Rules! at the Guardian bookshop.
Topics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Joseph Coelho's top 10 new poetry books every child must read

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Here are my top 10 new poetry books that every child must read. These are books that will both delight and challenge the very young child and the older (cooler) kid. I've split the list into two sets of five. The first five are poetry books suitable for the very young.

# data[].attributes.headline
Poetry Book for Children from LoveReading4Kids

# data[].attributes.subject
Poetry Book for Children from LoveReading4Kids

# data[].attributes.body
Booklist from LoveReading4Kids

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Poetry Books for Children - Books Lovereading4kids UK

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Our selection of poetry is a great way to get children into reading. Perfect for sharing at bedtime and for sparking the imagination of all children. Love reading 4 kids.

# data[].attributes.body
A writing challenge for National Poetry Day (includes links to resource pack from CLPE)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Wondering how to involve the whole class - or whole school - in poetry? Then take part in the #MyNPDPoem poetry writing challenge.

In association with CLPE and with the support of ALCS, #MyNPDPoem encourages schools everywhere to create poems, performances, displays and their own special poetry anthologies as part of the 25th anniversary celebrations for National Poetry Day. For NPD certificates of participation, just download this beautiful template.

Children aged 6 to 13 are invited to write a poem on the NPD theme Truth. They can write individually or with friends: topics could include the truth about family, the truth about school. A day outside looking at trees or animals might provoke a poem about the truths the natural world reveals. Young poets may want to share hidden truths about the way they feel about the world. Or maybe they'll want to explore the opposite of truth - lies!

CLPE have created a resource to help spark ideas here.

And poets Michael Rosen, Karl Nova, Rachel Rooney, Victoria Adukwei Bulley, Joseph Coelho and Simon Mole have made inspirational films, full of ideas and inspiration. We also have a specially created resource to accompany Simon's film, which you can download here.

Once children have written poems, share them on National Poetry Day by tagging pictures on Instagram or Twitter with #MyNPDPoem. You could hold your own poetry show on National Poetry Day: just invite everyone to perform their poems aloud and present each young poet with an NPD certificate. Be sure to register your event on the NPD map so we can make a noise about your achievement.

Schools are also invited to publish the poems as books for pupils to take home to their friends and families, using Scholastic's We Are Writers scheme. The books can be sold to raise money for the school or other charities.

Everyone who writes an original work automatically owns the copyright, regardless of their age, and #MyNPDPoem is supported by the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS). Find free resources and information explaining copyright to young people on the ALCS website.

Email us at info@forwardartsfoundation.org with any questions.

We can't wait to hear children's Truth poems and watch their #MyNPDPoem poetry performances. We look forward to highlighting the most enthusiastic schools and teachers as well as the most talented young poets.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Wondering how to involve the whole class - or whole school - in poetry? Then take part in the #MyNPDPoem poetry writing challenge. In association with CLPE and with the support of ALCS, #MyNPDPoem encourages schools everywhere to create poems, performances, displays and their own special poetry anthologies as part of the 25th anniversary celebrations for National Poetry Day.

# data[].attributes.body
CLPE Poetryline booklists

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
The booklists in this section were specially created for CLPE's Power of Poetry Project, funded by The Arts Council England.

Each day of the project has a specific poetry focus and is led by a different published children's poet. The booklists for each day showcase books that can be used across primary schools to illustrate the themes of the day.

The final section of each list shares books and poems, across poetry for adults and children, referenced on the course day by the poet tutors linked to specific activities in each session.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The booklists in this section were specially created for CLPE's Power of Poetry Project, funded by The Arts Council England. Each day of the project has a specific poetry focus and is led by a different published children's poet. The booklists for each day showcase books that can be used across primary schools to illustrate the themes of the day.

# data[].attributes.body
PRIMARY- A free 32 page booklet to build teacher confidence around poetry- filled with ideas for lessons

# data[].attributes.body
SECONDARY- Session plans with film and PPTs based on poetry with a Human Rights theme

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
We are Amnesty International UK. We work to protect men, women and children wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.

# data[].attributes.body
Compiled for National Poetry Day 2018