Hello everyone! It’s time once again for our weekly Children’s Poetry Blog Post Roundup. We’ve had another busy week in the world of children’s poetry, with new poems, insights into the craft, book announcements, and reflections from some of our favorite poets. Let’s take a look at what’s been happening over the past few days.
No Running in the HallWhen my kids were in elementary school, they loved taking rules very literally. If I told my son not to touch his sister, he would immediately find the exact spot where he could stand as close as possible without actually touching her, and think it was hilarious. Technically, he was following the rule, even if he was clearly missing the spirit of it.
That kind of literal thinking has always made me laugh, especially when it comes to rules at school. Kids hear a rule, take it at face value, and then use a lot of creativity to follow it exactly, sometimes in ways adults never expected. It’s not about breaking the rules; it’s about finding all the tiny spaces around them.
I realized there might be a poem hiding in that idea, especially if the rule was followed with complete sincerity… and a whole lot of imagination. That’s where this poem came from.
I hope it makes you smile, especially if you’ve ever known a kid who was very good at following rules, just not quite the way they were intended. This is…
No Running in the Hall
They said, “No running in the hall,”
and so I didn’t run at all.
They didn’t say, “Don’t skip and prance.”
They didn’t say, “Don’t disco dance.”
And so, you may have seen me hop,
or spiral like a spinning top,
or zig and zag from side to side,
or spread my arms to fly and glide.
I might have marched. I might have stomped.
I might have wriggled, rolled, and romped.
I might have done a funky strut.
I might have wagged my you-know-what.
I might have slid across the floor,
or maybe moonwalked through a door,
or got down on my knees to crawl.
But, hey, I didn’t run at all.
— Kenn Nesbitt
Welcome back, fellow poetry enthusiasts! It’s that time again for our weekly Children’s Poetry Blog Post Roundup. We’ve gathered up all the exciting news and wonderful updates from the world of children’s poetry over the past week, and I’m thrilled to share them with you.
Well, it’s that time again, fellow word-weavers and poetry pals! Welcome back to this week’s Children’s Poetry Blog Post Roundup. It’s always a treat to see what everyone has been up to, and this past week was certainly no exception. There’s been a wonderful mix of festive cheer, thoughtful reflections, and creative prompts making the rounds. So, let’s see what news has emerged from the vibrant world of children’s poetry for the past week.
Well, hello everyone! It’s that time again for our weekly Children’s Poetry Blog Post Roundup. I’ve been keeping an eye on the wonderful world of children’s poetry, and I’m happy to share the news and updates from various poetry blogs over the past week. It’s always inspiring to see what fellow poets and educators are sharing, creating, and discussing.
Our Brand-New TVA lot of my poems are inspired by things that happen in my own life. I wrote this one while my wife was watching a football game with her sister and brother-in-law, and I was in the other room working on a poem. As they cheered at the TV, it made me think about how different people in the same family often want to watch completely different things.
That reminded me that many families wait until Christmas to make big purchases—like a brand-new TV—and that sometimes, instead of bringing everyone together, it can create a whole new set of arguments. Football? Parades? Christmas cartoons? A holiday movie? Everyone has a favorite.
I started wondering what might happen if nobody could agree on what to watch on their shiny new television. That little idea was enough to spark this poem.
Our Brand-New TV
For Christmas, our gift was a brand-new TV.
We couldn’t agree, though, on what we should see.
My sister said, “We should all watch the parade.”
Our dad said, “The football game’s on, I’m afraid.”
My brother said, “Let’s watch a Christmas cartoon!”
Our mom said, “A good movie’s starting at noon.”
We squabbled and fought over what we should see
for hours and hours but couldn’t agree.
And meanwhile, our dog, who did not get a vote,
just sat down and chewed up the TV remote.
The TV’s now stuck from the way that he chewed.
It only shows squirrels and close-ups of food.
And, strangely, we all liked his channel much better.
It turns out our dog is a great TV setter.
— Kenn Nesbitt
It’s time again for this week’s Children’s Poetry Blog Post Roundup! For those of us who love reading, writing, and teaching poetry to young people, there’s always something new and inspiring happening. Here’s a look at the news and updates from the wonderful world of children’s poetry for the past week.
Snow’s NoseI’ve always loved building snowmen. When my kids were younger, we used to spend whole winter afternoons rolling giant snowballs around the yard, hunting for the perfect sticks for arms, and deciding how he should be dresses and decorated. Which hat would work best? Should he have a scarf or a tie? Does he really need a carrot nose or would a button work just as well?
This year, I started thinking about how much personality a snowman seems to have by the time you’re done with it. You give it a hat, a scarf, and a pipe, and suddenly it feels like a character—someone who might have opinions about your artistic decisions. I wondered what would happen if a snowman actually could share those opinions.
That little idea was enough to spark this poem. The moment I imagined a half-finished snowman watching me choose its accessories, I knew I wanted to write about it. What would a snowman say? What would it care about? What would it absolutely not want? I hope you enjoy the result.
Snow’s Nose
I made a new snowman
out in our front yard.
It didn’t take long and
it wasn’t too hard.
I stacked up some snowballs.
I gave them a pat,
then threw on a scarf,
and a pipe, and a hat.
I sculpted some feet
from a little more snow,
and stuck in some sticks
where his arms ought to go.
I added some coal
for his buttons and eyes,
and that’s when he spoke,
to my utter surprise.
He said to me, “Thanks for
the hat, scarf, and pipe.
The sticks that you picked
are exactly my type.
“Now bring me some carrots.
You picked all my clothes,
but really, I don’t want you
picking my nose.”
— Kenn Nesbitt
Well, hello again, poetry lovers! It’s time for another roundup of news from the wonderful world of children’s poetry. Here’s what’s been happening around the kidlit poetry blogosphere this week.
Soot SuitI love writing poems about the holiday season, so I wanted to start December off with a new funny poem about Santa Claus. To get myself in the right festive mood, I reread Clement Clarke Moore’s classic poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas,” better known as “‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.” As I was reading, a couple of lines jumped out at me:
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
I couldn’t help noticing something amusing about the word “soot.” It looks like it ought to rhyme with “suit,” but it doesn’t. “Soot” actually rhymes with “put” and “foot,” not with “suit” or “boot.” Still, that contrast made me laugh, and I thought there had to be a poem hiding inside that idea somewhere.
So I first decided to call it “Soot Suit,” and then sat down to see what I could come up with. And this is the result, my newest holiday poem.
Soot Suit
When Santa came to visit us
on Christmas Eve this year,
his eyes were bright and merry
and his face was full of cheer.
He carried toys and presents
in a sack upon his back.
But Santa wasn’t dressed in red.
Instead, his suit was black.
Without his bright red coat and hat
he looked a little weird.
He also had some smudges
on his cheeks and on his beard.
We asked if he was trying out
a new and different style.
He looked down at his blackened suit
then answered with a smile.
He said, “My suit’s not really black,
as maybe you could tell.
It only looks that way because
your chimney soots me well.”
— Kenn Nesbitt
