NPM Day 29: Poetry Programs for Tweens and Teens

You can use any of the ideas from the previous three days to create a poetry program for tweens and teens.

• Day 1: Magnetic, Cut up, and Post-It Note Poetry
• Day 2: Book Spine and Blackout Poetry
• Day 3: Paint Chip Poetry

Creating and sharing poetry should be the simple goal. The teens can share poems they like or poems they've written themselves. 

I've hosted an event called Puzzles and Poems. We put together jigsaw puzzles and created book spine poetry and blackout poetry. 

Pairing poetry with something, especially a game, activity, or food can attract teens who otherwise wouldn't be interested. If you want to alliterate, you could pair poetry with pizza, pancakes, or pie. 

Check out these links for further inspiration: 

• Teen Poetry Blitz from Ontario Librarian
• YALSA Tips for Hosting a Poetry SLAM or Open Mic Night
• How to Plan a Teen Poetry Slam at the Library from School Library Journal
• Pinterest Search for Poetry Programs for Teens
• MakerSpace: April National Poetry Month Activities from Teen Librarian Toolbox
• MakerSpace Poetry from Teen Librarian Toolbox
• Poetry Crafts from Teen Librarian Toolbox
• Poetry and Writing Crafts from Teen Librarian Toolbox
• Poetically Speaking from Teen Librarian Toolbox

NPM Day 28: Sharing Poetry with Tweens & Teens - Invitation to Create Day 3

Today is all about Paint Chip Poetry. Using paint colors to inspire poetry has been around for quite a long time. I enjoy reading the color names and using them for poetic inspiration. 

Check out the following links to see how to create Paint Chip Poetry:

• Homeschool Fanatic 
• Ethical ELA 
• Pinterest Search for Paint Chip Poetry

If you don't want to waste paint chips to create poetry, you could try Paint Chip Poetry: A Game of Color and Wordplay created by Lea Redmond. 

Another way to not waste but still create with color is to check out this post on Building Book Love. 

What colorful poem are you going to create today? 

NPM Day 27: Sharing Poetry with Tweens & Teens - Invitation to Create Day 2

Today I'll be sharing about book spine poetry and blackout poetry. Both of these are forms of found poetry. Here's a definition of a found poem from poets.org. 

I discovered book spine poetry through a post on the ALSC blog by Travis Jonker. Travis blogs at 100 Scope Notes via School Library Journal. Creating book spine poetry is so fun. My favorite place to create is in the picture book section of a public library. Due to picture books larger spine, the titles are often free from labels which helps. I browse the shelves with paper and pen and jot down the titles that appeal. Only when I think I've got a poem do I pull the books and stack them up. 

Here's one I wrote way back in 2016. 

The Doorbell Rang 
A Visitor for Bear 
That New Animal
The Tiger Who Came to Tea 

Blackout poetry is also known as erasure. Here's a definition of erasure from poets.org. Blackout poetry can be simply that or it can be more artistic. "The Art of Blackout Poetry" by Cheryl Trowbridge on Teach Kids Art is a good introduction to the form. A search of Pinterest for "blackout poetry ideas" yields a plethora of results. Here's a link to an online blackout poem generator. There's a new text to play with every day. 

I hope you have fun creating found poems using book spines and blackout. 

NPM Day 26: Sharing Poetry with Tweens & Teens - Invitation to Create Day 1

As I've said before, reading and sharing poetry often leads to creating poetry. There are some really fun ways to create poetry with tweens and teens. Today, I'm sharing magnetic poetry, cut-up poetry, and Post-it Note poetry. Most of these are ideas I came across on blogs or Pinterest over the years. 

You can buy official Magnetic Poetry® kits from their website here. There are kits for every level and interest imaginable. You can even play with a few of the kits online. Find that here. 

If buying an official kit isn't in your budget, you can make your own. Here are some links that show you how to create DIY magnetic poetry: 

• If You Give a Girl a Needle
• The Creativity Greenhouse
• Pinterest Search for DIY magnetic poetry

Screenshot of Pin on Pinterest

Cut-Up Poetry is similar to magnetic poetry, but you don't need magnets. You can use words cut out of magazines, packages, junk mail, or really anything to create poems. You can make these temporary just by laying the words out on a table or piece of paper and snapping a picture of your poem. You can make it a little more permanent if you use cut-out words to make pushpin poetry or by gluing your selected words to a piece of paper. See gluing examples above, here, and here. Pushpin poetry as simple as it sounds. You put words on a cork board using pushpins. See an example here. 

Screenshot of Pin on Pinterest

Post-It Note Poetry is just what it sounds like. You're writing short poems on post-it notes. You could also use index cards or any smaller paper. The beauty of post-it notes is that they're sticky so you can display them. See the above image for an example. Amy Ludwig VanDerwater is writing index card poems for her 2026 poetry month challenge. See it here. 

NPM Day 25: Poetry for Tweens & Teens

Tweens and teens can enjoy poetry, too. Sometimes it's a harder sell because as part of their education they've had to over analyze poems. All the previous poets and collections I've shared that are for children may also appeal to tweens and teens. In addition I'd like to highlight some poetry collections, verse novels, and nonfiction in verse. 

Verse novels can appeal to tweens and teens because they read quickly. 

A few of my favorite verse novels are Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds, Borrowed Names by Jeannine Atkins, and Your Own, Sylvia by Stephanie Hemphill, but I admit that I don't read verse novels as often as I do poetry collections. 

Poetry Collections for Tweens and Teens 

• Somebody Give This Heart a Pen by Sophia Thakur
• Respect the Mic: Celebrating 20 years of Poetry from a Chicagoland High School edited by Peter Kahn, Hanif Abdurraqib, Dan “Sully” Sullivan and Franny Choi
• When the Stars Wrote Back by Trista Mateer
• You Don’t Have to Be Everything: Poems for Girls Becoming Themselves edited by Diana Whitney
• Black Girl You Are Atlas by Renée Watson
• Legacy: Women Poets of the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes
• Dark Testament: Blackout Poems by Crystal Simone Smith
• Ink Knows No Borders: Poems of the Immigrant and Refugee Experience edited by Patrice Vecchione & Alyssa Raymond
• One Last Word: Wisdom from the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes 

Verse Novels for Tweens and Teens 

• Call Me Athena: Girl from Detroit by Colby Cedar Smith
• Ain’t Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds
• Red, White, and Whole by Ranjani LaRocca
• Me (Moth) by Amber McBride
• Enter the Body by Joy McCullough
• The Watch that Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic by Allan Wolf
• The Snow Fell Three Graves Deep: Voices from the Donner Party by Allan Wolf
• Bull by David Elliott
• Voices: The Final Hours of Joan of Arc by David Elliott
• The Seventh Raven by David Elliott 

Nonfiction in Verse for Tweens and Teens 

• Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir by Nikki Grimes
• A Long Time Coming: A Lyrical Biography of Race in America from Ona Judge to Barack Obama by Ray Anthony Shepard
• Shout by Laurie Halse Anderson
• Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
• Stone Mirrors: The Sculpture and Silence of Edmonia Lewis by Jeannine Atkins 

Resources 

• Discussion guide for Black Girl You Are Atlas on the author's website
• Educator's guide for One Last Word on the author's website
• Classroom Activities for Ink Knows No Borders on the publisher's website
• Teaching guide for Ink Knows No Borders on the publisher's website
• Reading guide for Call Me Athena on the publisher's website
• Curriculum guide for Ain't Burned All the Bright on the publisher's website
• Educator's guide for Red, White, and Whole on the author's website
• Resources for Me (Moth) on the author's website
• Teacher's guide for Enter the Body on the publisher's website
• Teacher's guide for The Watch That Ends the Night on the publisher's website
• Discussion guide for The Snow Fell Three Graves Deep on the publisher's website
• Discussion guide for Ordinary Hazards from the publisher via TeachingBooks
• Educator's guide for A Long Time Coming on the author's website
• Teacher's guide for Shout on the publisher's website
• Teacher's guide for Brown Girl Dreaming on the publisher's website
• Educator resources for Stone Mirrors on the author's website

Links to My Reviews 

• Borrowed Names by Jeannine Atkins
• Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath by Stephanie Hemphill

NPM Day 24: Poetry Tag

Poetry Tag was created by Sylvia Vardell as a fun game on her blog during April 2010. You can read all about it here. In the March 2011 issue of Book Links, she shared the idea with teachers and librarians in her Everyday Poetry column seen below. I was inspired to create my own poetry tag games. I've shared them with students and I would really like to create more games with the kids, but I'd need more time and lots of poetry books to look through. 

You could even write poems based on the idea of connections between poems. Start with a poem you wrote or just one you like a lot and respond to it. Here's one of the Poetry Tag games I created way back in 2012. I'm still sharing it with kids and teens to this day. 

• “Nobody’s Pet” from A Whiff of Pine, A Hint of Skunk by Deborah Ruddell
• “My Dog May Be a Genius” from My Dog May Be a Genius by Jack Prelutsky (p.7)
• “The Spellican” from I’ve Lost My Hippopotamus by Jack Prelutsky (p. 126)
• “Sea Speak” from A Rumpus of Rhymes by Bobbi Katz
• “Wanda’s Swimsuit” from Button Up! Wrinkled Rhymes by Alice Schertle (p. 20)
• “Sharks” from Twosomes: Love Poems from the Animal Kingdom by Marilyn Singer
• “The Detested Radishark” from Scranimals by Jack Prelutsky (p. 29)
• “Red Radish, Green Garnish” from The Bookworm’s Feast by J. Patrick Lewis

Resources 

• Sylvia Vardell's Poetry for Children Blog
• Poetry TagTime Companion Blog
• Jack Prelutsky's website
• Teaching guide to The World of Jack Prelutsky on the publisher's website
• Activity guide to Celebrate National Poetry Month with Jack Prelutsky on the publisher's website
• Jack Prelusky Interview on the publisher's website
• Reader's guide for Button Up on Lee Bennett Hopkins Poetry Award Teaching Toolbox blog
• Lesson plan for Button Up! from the publisher via TeachingBooks

Links to my Reviews

• A Whiff of Pine, A Hint of Skunk: A Forest of Poems
• My Dog May Be a Genius
• I've Lost My Hippopotamus 
• Twosomes: Love Poems from the Animal Kingdom

NPM Day 23: Writing Poetry

There are many books about writing poetry written specifically for children and teens. Teens might also look at poetry writing books written for adults. Both age groups might also benefit from looking at general creative writing books. One of my favorite books is Panning for Gold in the Kitchen Sink: Everyday Creative Writing by Michael C. Smith and Suzanne Greenberg. What follows is just a selection of the books available for children and teens interested in writing poetry. 

• A Kick in the Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Forms selected by Paul B. Janeczko
• Picture Yourself Writing Poetry: Using Photos to Inspire Writing by Laura Purdie Salas
• Poetry Matters: Writing a Poem from the Inside Out by Ralph Fletcher
• How to Write Haiku and Other Short Poems by Paul Janeczko
• Pick a Picture, Write a Poem! By Kristen McCurry
• Immersed in Verse: An Informative, Slightly Irreverent, & Totally Tremendous Guide to Living the Poetic Life by Allan Wolf
• Write Your Own Haiku for Kids: See the World through “Haiku Eyes” by Patricia Donegan
• Pizza, Pigs, and Poetry: How to Write a Poem by Jack Prelutsky
• What Is Poetry? The Essential Guide to Reading and Writing Poems by Michel Rosen
• How to Write Poetry by Paul B. Janeczko
• The Death of a Hat: A Brief History of Poetry in 50 Objects selected by Paul B. Janeczko
• My Shouting, Shattered, Whispering Voice: A Guide to Writing Poetry & Speaking Your Truth by Patrice Vecchione
• Write Your Own Poems by Jerome Martin

Resources 

• Poetry Tips from Paul B. Janeczko from the publisher's website via TeachingBooks
• Poetry exercises on Laurie Purdie Salas' website
• Tips for Young Writers on Ralph Fletcher's website
• Poetry jokes on Allan Wolf's website
• Activities for Write Your Own Poems by Jerome Martin from the publisher's website

Links to My Reviews 

• Picture Yourself Writing Poetry: Using Photos to Inspire Writing by Laura Purdie Salas
• Pizza, Pigs, Poetry: How to Write a Poem by Jack Prelutsky