Whatcha Teachin'?: Kindergarten & 1st Grade Poetry

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You could easily lump poetry with reading or literature in your curriculum choices, but not me.  I absolutely love poetry - children's poetry being at the top of my list - and feel like it deserves its own category.

We've been reading poetry to the boys from birth and not just because I love it.  There's plenty of research showing the benefits of reading poetry to children.  Poetry highlights elements of language like no other genre; the appreciation for descriptive words, sound and rhythm, and phonetic awareness.  It's great for strengthening memory work and helping children be able to recite, nurturing both their expressive and receptive language skills.

Kids love poetry because of the bounciness of the language and illustrative words which are usually accompanied by beautiful pictures.

Children's poetry is usually short, simple and easy to read.  This makes it possible to read multiple poems in one sitting which is a great plus for wiggly worms with ADHD and autism.  We will usually read our poetry during lunch and I'll ask "should I keep going or stop?" after each poem.  Some days we read a couple and some days we can take out half a book in one day.

We read poetry year round so this list will probably grow, but without further ado, here is our list of books for this year so far:

Eric Carle's Animals, Animals
Here's a Little Poem
Curious Critters

The Llama Who Had No Pajama: 100 Favorite Poems
The Poetry Friday Anthology
The Waldorf Book of Animal Poetry
National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry
Forget-Me-Nots: Poems to Learn by Heart