10 Short Poems for Kids, a list of favorite works of poetry for children by Melanie Bielski.
Poetry is all around us! It is in the lyrics of the music we listen to and in our childhood memories of nursery rhymes. Poetry weaves sounds and rhythms, shaping words and word sequences into new meaning, creating new images, and change the way we see the world. I love to read poems out loud to my daughter, to expose her to this new magical world of words. Here are some of our favorite poets and short poems for kids. Enjoy!
10 Kids Poems – Poetry for Children
THE ICE CREAM STORE
The Ice Cream Store features a collection of poems written by Dennis Lee. The poems will certainly excite your child’s imagination: rocketships, digging holes to Australia, and a trombone playing walrus to name just a few. David McHail provides pictures for these poetic adventures. Here are three of our favorite poems by Dennis Lee.
THE ICE CREAM STORE by Dennis Lee
Oh, the kids around the block are like an
Ice cream store.
‘Cause there’s chocolate, and vanilla
And there’s maple and there’s more,
And there’s butterscotch and orange –
Yes, there’s flavors by the score;
And the kids around the blocks are like an
Ice cream store!
THE SECRET PLACE by Dennis Lee
There’s a place I go, inside myself,
Where nobody else can be,
And none of my friends can tell it’s there –
Nobody knows but me.
It’s hard to explain the way it feels,
Or even where I go.
It isn’t a place in time or space,
But once I’m there, I know.
It’s tiny, it’s shiny, it can’t even be seen,
But it’s big as the sky at night …
I try to explain and it hurts my brain,
But once I’m there, it’s right.
There’s a place I know inside myself,
And it’s neither big nor small,
And whenever I go, it feels as though
I never left at all.
THE WATER-GO-ROUND by Dennis Lee
Oh, the sea makes the clouds,
And the clouds make the rain,
And the rain rains down
On the mighty mountain chain;
The the silver rivers race
To the green and easy plain –
Where they hurry, flurry, scurry
Till they reach the sea again,
And the sea makes the clouds,
And the clouds make the rain…
THE TAMARINDO PUPPY and OTHER POEMS
Recently I discovered The Tamarindo Puppy and Other Poems by Charlotte Pomerantz and pictures by Byron Barton. What a treat! These poems are written in two languages: English and Spanish. The poems are lively and perfect for reading aloud. Below you will find a few of our favorite poems by Charlotte Pomerantz.
YOU – TU by Charlotte Pomerantz
You are you. Tu eres tu.
Not me, No yo,
But you. Pero tu.
Look in the mirror Mira el espejo
Peek-a-boo Peek-a-boo
The face that you see La cara que miras
Isn’t me – No sou yo –
It’s you. Eres tu.
MY FAT CAT by Charlotte Pomerantz
My fat cat
snoozing in the hay
zz zz zz zz
dreaming of the little mouse
the chummy mouse
the yummy mouse
the kind-that-fills-your-tummy mouse
who
got
away.
Gato mio, gato gordo
snoozing in the hay
zz zz zz zz
dreaming of the little mouse
ratoncito pequenito
amiguito
sabrosito
zz zz zz zz
who
got
away.
TOGETHER
Together by George Ella Lyon is a delightful picture book lyrically detailing, in poetic fashion, the dreams of two best friends. Vera Rosenberry illustrates this charming poem about dreaming the same dream.
You cut the timber
and I’ll build the house.
You bring the cheese
and I’ll fetch the mouse.
You salt the ice
and I’ll crank the cream.
Let’s put our heads together
and dream the same dream.
I’ll drive the truck
if you’ll fight the fire.
I’ll plunk the keys,
if you’ll be the choir.
I’ll find the ball,
if you’ll call the team.
Let’s put our heads together
and dream the same dream.
You dig for water
and I’ll make a pail.
I’ll paint a boat
if you’ll set the sail.
You catch the fish
and I’ll catch the stream.
Let’s put our heads together
and dream the same dream.
More Short Poems for Kids
And what children’s poetry collection would be complete without Shel Silverstein? He has written and illustrated 4 books filled with children’s poems. Filled with poems that children of all ages enjoy again and again. His poems are filled with whimsy, but yet poignant. Below you will find a poem from each fabulous book!
WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS poems and drawings by Shel Silverstein
Where the Sidewalk Ends
There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.
Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.
Yes we’ll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we’ll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.
EVERYTHING ON IT poems and drawings by Shel Silverstein
For The World’s Record (from Everything On It)
We made the world’s longest hot dog,
And now that it’s finally done,
We realize nobody’s baked
The world’s longest bun.
FALLING UP poems and drawings by Shel Silverstein
Falling Up
I tripped on my shoelace
And I fell up –
Up to the roof tops,
Up over the town,
Up past the tree tops,
Up over the mountains,
Upwhere the colors
Blend into sounds.
But it got me so dizzy
When I looked around,
I got sick to my stomach
And I threw down.
A LIGHT IN THE ATTIC poems and drawings by Shel Silverstein
How Many, How Much (from A Light in the Attic)
How many slams in an old screen door?
Depends how loud you shut it.
How many slices in a bread?
Depends how thin you cut it.
How much good inside a day?
Depends how food you live ’em.
How much love inside a friend?
Depends how much you give ’em.
And to close, let’s quote Shel Silverstein:
“Listen to the mustn’ts, child. Listen to the don’ts. Listen to the shouldn’ts, the impossibles, the won’ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me. Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.”
Now, snuggle with your little love and read some poems!
Find these Short Poems for Kids and More Poetry for Children on our Amazon list
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Short poems for kids, poetry for children and funny poems for kids
