Poems suitable for reading by 8-9 year olds.
I Didn’t Do It
I’ve heard that you can’t get in trouble
for something that you didn’t do.
My mother said that was correct.
My teacher confirmed it was true.
I’m guessing they must not have meant it;
imagine my shock and dismay
when I found out I was in trouble
for not doing homework today.
Try to Lick Your Elbow
Your elbow’s pretty hard to reach,
although it’s awfully near.
Just try to lick your elbow,
or to put it in your ear.
You cannot reach your elbow
with your shoulder or your nose.
It’s practically impossible
to touch it with your toes.
Your elbow won’t go near your neck,
your forehead, or your eyes.
If you could touch it to your spine,
I think you’d win a prize.
I tried to lick my elbow once,
and I came pretty close.
But then I stopped and realized,
like, OMG! That’s gross!
Cheese Breeze
Whenever I eat dairy,
it makes me have to toot.
You might think that sounds scary.
I think it’s kind of cute.
A sip of milk, some butter,
a tiny bit of cheese,
will make my tummy flutter
and cause a “bottom breeze.”
An ice cream cone or custard,
some yogurt or some ghee,
and then that noise you just heard…
That probably was me.
You might think I’m unlucky.
You might think it’s unfair.
But I don’t find it yucky;
it’s just my dairy air.
I Don’t Watch TV
I don’t watch TV.
I mean, who’s got the time?
I only watch YouTube,
and Netflix, and Prime,
and Hulu, and Crackle,
and Roku, and Tubi,
and Vudu, and Hoopla,
and Yahoo, and Mubi,
and Google, and Apple,
and Vimeo too,
and Disney, and PopcornFlix.
That’s all I do.
There’s so much to stream!
It might seem like a crime
to not watch TV,
but, then, who’s got the time?
My City
Here’s a little ditty
that I wrote about my city,
which I think is very pretty
and I think is very nice.
All the people are appealing.
There is such a friendly feeling
that is calm and spirit-healing.
I would call it paradise.
You can walk around the park, it
is just over by the market.
In the day or after dark, it
is a lovely place to be.
All the trees and all the flowers
have such soul-restoring powers.
You can walk around for hours,
so I hope you’ll come and see.
If you visit for a while
you are sure to get a smile
so that, mile after mile,
you will want to walk some more.
I expect you’ll like our city,
which is nice and very pretty
There is just one little pity;
you may find your feet get sore.
I Have a Bunch of Batteries
I have a bunch of batteries
I need to give away,
and if you’d like to have them,
you can get them all today.
I didn’t want to throw them out.
They’re yours to take instead.
I probably should warn you, though,
these batteries are dead.
I have a lot of tiny ones.
A few of them are large.
And you can have them all right now,
completely free of charge.
An Echo in My Room
There’s an echo, echo, echo,
in my room, my room today.
It’s an echo that I wish,
I wish, I wish would go away.
It’s a problem, it’s a problem,
for no matter what I do,
if I make a sound, a sound,
the echo, echo makes it too.
When this echo, echo, echo,
started, started yesterday,
I was not amused, was not amused.
It’s not okay, okay.
Now I must be silent, silent.
I’m afraid, afraid to speak.
If I’m talking, if I’m talking,
it might last, might last all week.
It’s annoying, but it seems, it seems,
it’s here, it’s here to stay.
It’s my parrot, it’s my parrot
saying everything I say.
One Warm, Sunny Day
One warm, sunny day
on a cold, snowy night,
the inky-black darkness
was sunny and bright.
The evening that morning–
that midnight at noon–
was late in December,
one April in June.
I stood where I sat
as I ran, lying still,
deep down in a valley
on top of a hill.
The people beside me
were nowhere around.
The birds in the sky were
all deep underground.
The fish in the tree
were asleep in their nest,
and watched the sun set
as it rose in the west.
Yes, that’s what I saw
when my eyes were closed tight,
one warm, sunny day
on a cold, snowy night.
My Brother Just Eats Candy
My brother just eats candy
and my sister just eats cakes.
The only thing my mother likes
are double-chocolate shakes.
My dad devours danishes
and donuts by the dozen.
My aunt and uncle live on pie
exactly like my cousin.
My grandpa and my grandma
just drink soda pop and punch.
My nephew and my niece
eat cookies every day for lunch.
And me, I’ll dine on any kind
of sugar-covered treat.
My family isn’t healthy, but
we sure are awfully sweet.
I Like Myself the Way I Am
I like myself the way I am.
I’m really glad I’m me.
In fact, I’m sure there’s no one else
on earth I’d rather be.
I’d rather not be someone else.
I wouldn’t want to switch,
unless they were more beautiful,
or powerful, or rich.
I only want to be myself.
To change would just be wrong,
except if they were super smart,
or muscular and strong.
Unless they were more talented,
or glamorous, or tall,
or popular, or interesting,
I’d never change at all.
Except if they were famous or
had won the lottery,
I’d like to stay the way I am.
I’m glad to just be me.
