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World Poetry Day - KS1

Part of EnglishPoemsYear 1Year 2

Two children sat at a desk writing on a piece of paper.

What is world poetry day?

World Poetry Day is a day which celebrates all things poetry!

It's aim is to encourage people to read, write and teach poetry all around the world.

Poems can be about anything - a thought, an emotion or a story.

Poems can also rhyme, use alliteration or rhythm but they don't have to.

Two children sat at a desk writing on a piece of paper.
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Rhyming words in poetry

Rhyming is used in lots of poems.

A rhyme is when different words have the same sound. For example, bird and word.

Let C±«Óătv's Radzi Chinyanganya energise your class with a song and movement routine about rhyme. Radzi will help children spot rhyming words, even when they don't have the same spelling pattern.

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Activity: Rhyming Quiz

Put your rhyming knowledge to the test and see if you can spot the rhyming words.

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An illustration of the word 'poem' written on a scroll.

Activity: Write an acrostic poem

In an acrostic poem, the first letter of each line spells a word or phrase.

The word that is spelt is what the poem is about.

Here is an example using the word story.

  • Surprising characters and plot twists

  • Titles that grab your attention

  • Old fairytales or new adventures

  • Reading every page

  • You never know what could happen next

Create your own acrostic poem using the word poem.

An illustration of the word 'poem' written on a scroll.
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An illustration of two young children reading books on a green couch.

Memorising poetry

Some people have learnt poems so well that they can say it out loud without reading it. This is called memorising.

To help you memorise a poem, you could:

  • Read through the poem carefully and slowly

  • Focus on the beat (rhythm) of the poem

  • Practice speaking the words out loud

An illustration of two young children reading books on a green couch.
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An illustration of a young girl speaking into a microphone

Activity: Perform a poem

Choose your favourite poem and perform it for your family, friends or even your favourite teddy!

To help you practice, you could:

  • Read the poem a few times

  • Practice speaking the poem out loud

  • Speak slowly and clearly

If you are feeling really confident, you could try and memorise a few of the lines!

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Where next?

Karate Cats

Practice your spelling with the Karate Cats in this Bitesize game.

Karate Cats
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