Category: News

Weekend Children’s Poetry Links

Children's Poetry Links

The Miss Rumphius Effect challenges readers to write a Tanka, a Japanese form of poetry that has been practiced for over 1000 years.

NPR this week published a list of the 100 must-read books for kids aged 9-14. The one poetry book on the list is Thanhha Lai’s Inside Out & Back Again, a novel in verse about a young girl who leaves Vietnam with her mother and brothers at the end of the Vietnam war to resettle in Alabama.

Ted Scheu, “That Poetry Guy” posted a new video of his “cousin” Luigi reading his poem “Nothing Much.”

Children’s writer Elli Woollard posted a few silly nursery rhymes here and here and a wonderful, more serious poem on her blog, Taking Words for a Stroll.

Sylvia Vardell posted a “back to school” poem called “Underwear Scare” by new poet Terry Webb Harshman, along with a list of Poetry Books for Children About School on her blog Poetry for Children.

Renee LaTulippe hosted the Poetry Friday Roundup, including a first draft of her poem “The Boat,” on her blog No Water River.

M.M. Socks posted a new poem called “Gorilla in a Kid Costume” on his blog The Drawer of M.M. Socks.

Amy Ludwig VanDerwater posted a new poem called “Mittens and Friends” on her blog The Poem Farm.

Poet Eric Ode’s newest book The Boy and the Dragon is now available for pre-order on Amazon.com.

Playing With Your Food Poem Lesson

Football

Here’s a quick and easy poetry writing lesson that can be used as early as first grade. I call it a “playing with your food” poem. It’s a list poem about playing your favorite sports with your favorite foods.

Step 1: Create a list of  five of your favorite sports, like this:

  • Basketball
  • Soccer
  • Baseball
  • Volleyball
  • Football

A Dazzling Display of Dogs by Betsy Franco

A Dazzling Display of Dogs, Concrete Poems by Betsy Franco

As Children’s Poet Laureate, one of my jobs is to select a collection of poetry each month to feature on the Poetry Foundation’s website. There you’ll find my monthly book picks, and those of the previous Children’s Poets Laureate.

My pick for August, 2013 is A Dazzling Display of Dogs, concrete poems by Betsy Franco, illustrations by Michael Wertz.

Interview with Children’s Author Betsy Franco

In addition, I interviewed Betsy Franco about her life as a poet and about her new book. Here is what she had to say.

Write a Poem About Your Favorite Things

What's Your Favorite Thing?

It’s famously said about writing that you should “write what you know.” Unfortunately, this can mean a lot of different things, and can be easily misunderstood. For example, you might think it means to only write about things you have actually experienced. But that would be like saying you can’t write about someone driving a car if you’ve never driven a car yourself. Obviously that doesn’t make sense.

So instead of telling kids to “write what you know,” I like to say that “the easiest thing to write about is your favorite thing,” because that is what you know the most about. If you love playing video games, you probably know a lot about them. If your favorite thing happens to be karate, or soccer, or pizza, you probably know a lot about that.

This doesn’t mean that your favorite thing is the only thing you should write about, but if you are ever stuck for an idea, just ask yourself what you like and then write a poem about it.

In fact, if you have a lot of things you like, you can even make a simple list poem of all of your favorite things. Here’s how.

I Taught My Cat to Clean My Room

“I Taught My Cat to Clean My Room” from the book My Hippo Has the Hiccups> is the first animated video I created on my own. I hope you enjoy it. I’m looking forward to creating more in the months to come.

List of Rhyming Animals

There have been many times that I have been writing a poem and needed a list of animal names that rhymed with one another. To make it easier, I have collected the following list of rhyming animal names. Feel free to use these in your own animal poems.

  • Alsatian / crustacean / dalmatian
  • Auk / hawk
  • Auks / fox / hawks / ox
  • Baboon / loon / raccoon
  • Bat / cat / gnat / rat
  • Beagle / eagle
  • Bear / hare / mare
  • Beaver / retriever / weaver
  • Bee / flea / manatee
  • Buck / duck / geoduck
  • Bug / pug / slug
  • Calf / giraffe
  • Camel / mammal
  • Caribou / cockatoo / ewe / gnu / kangaroo / kinkajou / shrew
  • Chick / tick
  • Chinchilla / gorilla
  • Clam / lamb / ram
  • Cockatiel / eel / seal
  • Cottontail / quail / snail / whale
  • Cow / sow
  • Crow / doe
  • Deer / steer
  • Dog / frog / hog / polliwog
  • Drake / snake
  • Eel / seal / teal
  • Fawn / prawn / swan
  • Ferret / parrot
  • Fowl / owl
  • Gander / salamander
  • Germ / worm
  • Goose / moose
  • Grice / lice / mice
  • Grouse / louse / mouse
  • Guppy / puppy
  • Hen / wren
  • Hippopotamus / rhinoceros
  • Jay / ray
  • Lark / shark
  • Lynx / minks / skinks
  • Man / orangutan
  • Mink / skink
  • Mole / oriole / vole
  • Moth / sloth
  • Nag / stag

Click here for other lists of rhyming words.

List of Rhyming Body Parts

It has happened more than once that I have needed to rhyme various parts of human or animal anatomy – body parts – in a poem. Here is the list that I refer to when I need it. I hope you find it useful as well.

  • Back / crack
  • Beak / cheek / physique
  • Biceps / triceps
  • Breast / chest
  • Butt / gut
  • Bum / gum / thumb / tum
  • Claw / jaw / maw / paw
  • Clothes / nose / toes
  • Chin / grin / shin / skin
  • Ear / rear / sneer
  • Eye / thigh
  • Eyelash / moustache / rash
  • Feet / seat
  • Fist / wrist
  • Groin / loin
  • Hide / inside / side
  • Hip / lip / fingertip
  • Lung / tongue
  • Nail / tail

Click here for other lists of rhyming words.

List of Rhyming First Names

Often when writing a poem, I find it’s handy to have a list of first names that rhyme with one another. Here are some common first names that rhyme that you could use in your own poems:

  • Aaron / Erin / Karen / Sharon
  • Adele / Belle / Darnell / Danielle / Giselle / Manuel / Marcel / Michelle / Miguel / Nell / Rachelle / Raquel
  • Andy / Brandy / Mandy / Randy / Sandy
  • Ann / Cheyenne / Dan / Fran / Jan / Luann / Nan / Roseann / Stan
  • Anna / Brianna / Hannah / Savanna
  • Annie / Danny / Fanny / Frannie / Manny
  • Bailey / Haley / Kaylie
  • Barry / Gary / Harry / Jerry / Keri / Larry / Mary / Perry / Sheri / Terri
  • Belinda / Linda / Lucinda / Melinda
  • Ben / Glenn / Gwen / Jen / Ken / Len
  • Benny / Denny / Jenny / Kenny / Lenny / Penny
  • Bernise / Clarice / Denise / Elise / Luis / Maurice / Reese
  • Bert / Kurt
  • Bill / Jill / Phil / Will
  • Billy / Lily / Millie / Willy
  • Bo / Flo / Joe / Moe
  • Bob / Rob
  • Bobby / Robbie
  • Bonnie / Connie / Donny / Johnny / Lonnie / Ronnie / Tawny
  • Boris / Doris / Horace / Morris
  • Braden / Hayden / Jaden
  • Brandon / Landon
  • Bree / Dee / Lee / Marie
  • Brynn / Flynn / Gwyn / Lynn / Quinn
  • Brody / Cody / Dodi / Jodie
  • Cam / Pam / Sam
  • Chloe / Joey / Zoe
  • Charlene / Christine / Colleen / Dean / Eileen /  Eugene / Francine / Irene / Janine / Jean / Kathleen / Maureen / Maxine / Nadine / Pauline
  • Cindy / Lindy / Mindy
  • Clancy / Nancy
  • Clarence / Terrence
  • Clark / Mark
  • Corey / Dory / Laurie / Morrie / Tori
  • Daniel / Nathaniel
  • Dawn / Don / Fawn / John / Lon / Ron / Sean / Vaughn
  • Dick / Mick / Nick / Rick / Vic
  • Dolly / Holly / Molly / Ollie / Paulie / Polly / Wally
  • Drew / Lou / Hugh / Stu / Sue
  • Ed / Fred / Jed / Ned / Red / Ted
  • Eddie / Freddie / Teddy
  • Faye / Jay / Kay / Mae / Ray / Trey
  • Florence / Lawrence
  • Ginnie / Minnie / Vinnie / Winnie
  • Jack / Mac / Zach
  • Jim / Kim / Tim
  • Jimmy / Timmy
  • Joan / Sloan
  • Joni / Tony
  • Kayla / Layla
  • Kendall / Wendell
  • Kiley / Miley / Riley / Wylie
  • Matt / Pat
  • Mickey / Nikki / Ricky
  • Paul / Saul
  • Thelma / Velma

Click here for other lists of rhyming words.

 

List of Rhyming Foods

If you ever find yourself writing a poem that involves food, especially a list poem, you may find it helpful to have a list of foods that rhyme with one another. Here are some common ones that you could use:

  • Alfredo / potato / tomato
  • Almond roca / mocha
  • Apple / scrapple / Snapple
  • Artichoke / Coke / egg yolk
  • Avocado / adobado / amontillado / dorado / muscovado
  • Baloney / cannelloni / macaroni / minestrone / pepperoni / rigatoni / spumoni
  • Beans / greens / nectarines / sardines / tangerines
  • Beet / meat / sweet / treat / wheat
  • Beef / leaf
  • Beef jerky / tofurkey / turkey
  • Berry / cherry / dairy
  • Blini / fettuccine / linguine / martini / panini / tortellini / zucchini
  • Bread / sandwich spread
  • Brunch / Crunch ‘n Munch / lunch / Nestles Crunch / punch
  • Brussels sprout / sauerkraut / trout
  • Burritos / Cheetos / Doritos / Fritos / taquitos / Tostitos
  • Butter brickle / pickle / pumpernickel
  • Cake / shake / steak
  • Candy cane / champagne / grain / romaine / sugar cane
  • Cannoli / guacamole / ravioli / stromboli
  • Casserole / fillet of sole / roll
  • Chai / fry / pie / rye
  • Cheese / peas
  • Chex mix / fish sticks / Hickory Sticks / Kix / Pixie Stix / Trix / Twix
  • Chicken legs / eggs
  • Chicken wings / onion rings
  • Chip / dip / licorice whip
  • Clam / ham / jam / lamb / Spam / yam
  • Crème brûlée / curds and whey / fish fillet / Milky Way / parfait / pâté / puree / sorbet / souffle
  • Crepe / grape
  • Crumb / gum / plum
  • Coffee / toffee
  • Cookie dough / sloppy joe
  • Custard / mustard
  • Dish / fish / knish
  • Éclair / gummi bear / pear
  • Empanada / enchilada / tostada
  • Fajita / margarita / pita / Velveeta
  • Falafel / offal / waffle
  • Filet mignon / Grey Poupon / Parmesan / pecan / prawn
  • Fondue / Mountain Dew / stew
  • Fries / pies
  • Fruits / roots / shoots
  • Gazpacho / nacho
  • Ghee / pea / tea
  • Giblet / riblet
  • Glaze / maize / mayonnaise
  • Goose / juice / mousse
  • Ice / rice / spice
  • Hash / mash / succotash
  • Jell-o / Mello Yello
  • Lemon drop / lollipop / soda pop / Tootsie Pop
  • Lime / thyme
  • Noodle / strudel
  • Pastrami / salami
  • Quesadilla / tortilla
  • Roast / toast

Click here for other lists of rhyming words.

Lists of Words that Rhyme

Rhyming Word Lists

While a rhyming dictionary is always a handy tool to have when writing poems, sometimes it’s also helpful to have lists of rhyming words that are all in the same category. These rhyming word lists focus on common categories to help you write poems more quickly and easily.

For example, if you are writing a poem that involves sports, it might be helpful to rhyme kickball with stickball or biking with hiking. If you were writing a poem about foods, you might want to rhyme beans with greens, sardines, or nectarines. And a poem about geographical locations might rhyme Alaska with Nebraska, Austin with Boston, or Bulgaria with Bavaria.

Here are a few rhyming word lists that I have created.  I hope you will find them useful in your own poetry.

Rhyming Word Lists

More Rhyming Resources

If you need more rhymes than the ones on these lists, you may prefer to use a rhyming dictionary, such as rhymenow.com or rhymezone.com.

You will also find plenty of poetry writing lessons, including a video on how to rhyme, here on poetry4kids.com.