Poetry

Experiencing Poetry

It's so much easier to find great poetry online than it was when we had to track down published books (but you can do that too!) A big bonus is that you can also often hear poems being read, or see videos of performances. Poems are meant to be heard -- try reading out loud to yourself. There are also some fantastic books in verse for young adults!

Don't forget to track your (poetic) stories.

Author Jason Reynolds shares his humble opinion on how poetry can entice young readers: "Literature can be daunting for some young people, so how can we create a culture of avid readers? Poetry can be a non-threatening alternative introduction for fledgling bibliophiles, giving them more 'white space' on a page without losing narrative elements."

Poetry For Our Times

The New York Times Book Review asked two prominent American poets to write original poems responding to this historic moment in our country. You can read and hear the poems here, printed originally on June 21, 2020.


Community Poetry with Kwame Alexander on NPR:


Poetry on Video

Favorite Poem Project - A collection of 50 short video documentaries showing individual Americans reading and speaking about poems they love.

Poetry Foundation YouTube Channel

Poetry Slam YouTube Channel


Read/Hear Poetry

Favorite Poem Project - Americans Saying Poems They Love

Poetry 180 - A Poem a Day for American High Schools

The Slowdown - Daily 5 minute poetry podcast

From the Academy of American Poets:

What’s Your Favorite Poem? - New York Times , Dec 2015

Books in Verse

Middle School

The Crossover - Kwame Alexander

Brown Girl Dreaming - Jaqueline Woodson

House Arrest - K.A. Holt

Lifeboat 12 - Susan Hood

Love that Dog - Sharon Creech

Forget Me Not - Ellie Terry

Full Cicada Moon - Marilyn Hilton

Inside Out and Back Again - Thanhhà Lai

Shark Girl - Kelly Bingham

Other Words for Home - Jasmine Warga

Ordinary Hazards - Nikki Grimes


High School

Long Way Down - Jason Reynolds

October Mourning. A Song for Matthew Shepard - Leslea Newman

A Time to Dance - Padma Venkatraman

Shakespeare Makes the Playoffs - Ron Koertge

The Poet X - Elizabeth Acevedo

Solo - Kwame Alexander

Bull - David Elliott

Girls Like Me - Lola St. Vil