It's no secret that poetry is a challenging activity. Some of your students might struggle with creating poems, whilst others might struggle with analyzing them. And some might just struggle with both of these. Never fear - here is a list of some of the best poetry activities to make poetry more accessible for your students. These will help them to understand poetry on a deeper level and apply what they have learned to their own writing. You can use them to introduce your students to poetry or as a way of checking their comprehension skills.
1. Rhyming Dominoes
Turn this classic game into a fun poetry activity. Your kids will develop their understanding of poetry by matching words with the same rhyme scheme. They can then write their own poems with these words.
Learn more: No Time for Flash Cards
2. Doggie Haiku
Haikus are a notably difficult type of poetry, but your students will simply adore making their own creative poem using the book "Dogku". Why not have a poetry slam to see who has the best one?
Check it out: Teaching Fourth
3. Haikubes
Similar to the one listed above, this cool poetry activity will help teach your students about one of the harder types of poetry in a fun way. You can also try writing the words down on a piece of paper and picking them out of a hat to save money.
Buy them here: Amazon
4. Blackout Poetry
This poetry game is excellent for teaching your kids about grammar rules, imagery, and much more as they create their own blackout poems. It's also a good way to reuse any old texts that are destined for the trash.
Read more: Just Add Students
5. Push Pin Poetry
This will make a great display board for your classroom while also providing an excellent stimulus for helping your students craft their own original poems. It also requires very little set-up.
Check it out: Residence Life Crafts
6. Songs to Poem
Using the lyrics of a modern pop song, you can teach your students how to explore meaningful poetry and engage them in discussions about figurative language, for example.
Find out more: Teachers Pay Teachers
7. Book Spine Poetry
This activity is similar to activity 4 but instead involves using book titles as words for poems instead. This fun activity will be particularly useful for an avid reader!
Learn more: Teachers Pay Teachers
8. Pop Sonnets
This is a great way to engage your more reluctant students in analyzing poems. The blog below has turned numerous modern-day songs into an interesting type of poem - Shakespearean sonnets!
Check it out: Pop Sonnet
9. Figurative Language Truth or Dare
Help your school students to learn about language techniques with this figurative language game. It’s great for a whole class review and guarantees fun with poetry!
See it here: Teachers Pay Teachers
10. Literary Term Practice Game
Another entire class game, you’ll just need some colorful paper and task cards to check comprehension skills of key literary techniques.
Read more: Teachers Pay Teachers
11. Invisible Ink Poetry
Get your kids engaged with this fun poetry game. You can make some cross-curricular links to science by explaining why poetry turns visible and invisible.
Learn more: Poetry 4 Kids
12. Poetry Inspiration Scrapbook
Every writer suffers from writer’s block at one point and your kids are no exception. This scrapbook is a great way to combat this and will help your kids create some excellent picture-inspired poetry.
Check it out: Poetry 4 Kids
13. Clip It Rhyming Center
You can use this poetry unit to help younger students to understand rhyme with simple words and syllables. Try expanding with more syllables for a bit more of a challenge.
Find out more: Education to the Core
14. Tone Tunes
Mix music with poetry to create a message, then use this message to create a poem. You can differentiate the features that need to be included depending on the ability of the students.
Read more: Teach Writing
15. Concrete Poems and Shape Poems
Your kids will love the art aspect of this activity. Make sure they don’t spend too much time in the drawing aspect of it, though, as the focus should be on creating concrete poetry!
See more: The Room Mom
16. Acrostic Poems
This is one of the easier types of poetry to create and it’s a great way to introduce your students to a poetry unit. You can try adding in some grammar rules to make a more complex poem.
Read more: My Poetic Side
17. Character Cinquains
Use this worksheet to explore ideas of rhyme in poems. You can expand upon it to include quatrains for more literacy skills.
Check it out: Worksheet Place
18. Texting Couplets
This is a rather unique take on poetry creation and will really get your kids engaged in thinking about how to craft a text. Just make sure they’re focusing on texting poetry in class!
Learn more: Teachers Pay Teachers
19. Rhyming Worksheets
These worksheets are great as a warm-up activity to a lesson, an introduction to poetry, or as something for younger learners.
See it here: Kids Connect
20. Online Magnetic Poetry
Struggling for words? Use this tool in class to help improve fluency skills and language techniques. You can also make your own physical version of it to use as well.
Check it out: Magnetic Poetry
21. Found Poetry
This activity is similar to the journal activity previously mentioned and will help you make use of any falling-apart books or magazines. A great way to save resources and make poetry enjoyable!
See more here: There's Just One Mommy
22. Paint Chip Poetry Game
Another excellent game, this is perfect for providing your kids with different stimuli for writing poems. You can also try making your own paint chip poetry with some old paint chips lying around.
Learn more: Amazon
23. Reading Progressive Dinner Stations
This activity is great for the classroom and will get all of your students involved in talking about different literary techniques.
Read more: Teachers Pay Teachers
24. Favorite Poem Project
Instead of getting your kids to write their own poems, why not ask them to interview people about their favorite poems? They can then share these with the rest of the class for an entire class discussion.
Learn more: Favorite Poem Project
25. Metaphor Dice
Struggling to think of literary techniques to use in poems? Use these dice as an engaging poetry activity to help improve your kids’ literacy skills. You can adapt them to fit other techniques, too, such as similes.
Check it out: Amazon
26. Haiku Tunnel Books
Turn two-dimensional words into three-dimensional poetry with these awesome books. Every student is sure to love this innovative form of poetry, and it has good links to art and design, too!
Read more here: Teach Kids Art
27. Poetry Bingo
Yet another fun group poetry game! This is the classic game of bingo with a twist that will have your students checking their comprehension of each technique. Make sure you don’t forget to get some prizes for the winner!
See more here: Jennifer Findley
28. Roll & Answer Poetry
This fantastic resource comes with comprehension questions that you can use to check your students’ understanding of different types of poetry.
Learn more: Teachers Pay Teachers
29. Silly Limericks
Who doesn’t love a limerick? This worksheet will soon become a favorite poetry game for your kids as they create their own funny poems. Use some of the other activities on here to give them some more ideas.
Read more: Steamsational
30. Nursery Rhyme Craft
Introduce your younger learners to poetry with this engaging task, where they’ll create their own fun poem. You can make some cross-curricular aspects by involving art, too.
See it here: All Kids Network
31. Poetry Speed-Dating
You can easily transform this into a class competition with a little extra class time to challenge students to talk in detail about specific poems.
Read more: Teach Nouvelle
32. Nursery Rhyme Wall
Your younger learners won’t be able to resist building a wall out of their favorite rhymes or nursery rhyme. It is also great for building their motor skills.
Learn more: Toddler Approved
These were just some of the top games and activities that we recommend to help your kids with poetry. They can be used to introduce them to poetry or to reinforce any skills that you have looked at previously. No matter how you use them, your kids will be sure to have fun whilst doing so!
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