National Poetry Month

Love poetry? Hate it? Don’t get it? Now’s the perfect time to give it fresh look. It’s National Poetry Month!

Here are a few quick ideas for anyone: readers, teachers, parents, kids, writers, and even the “I’m not really a writer” word dabblers (you know who you are).

Read

Want to join my “poetry club”? Browse or add to the My Castle Heart Poem Share on Poets.org. To add to it, log in as MyCastle, password: myheart. Then browse or search for poems. When you find one that you like, click the “Add to Notebook” link at the top to add it to our shared list.

More ideas for bookworms:

Sign up to receive a poem a day in your inbox. (I’ve been loving this one.)
Download this free poetry app on your phone or tablet.
Treat yourself to one of Amazon’s top poetry books.
Check out a couple of these kids’ poetry books at your library.

Teach

In the spirit of Rainer Maria Rilke’s Letters to a Young Poet, the Academy of American Poets is inviting students to respond to poems with handwritten letters to the board. Click here for more details.

More ideas for teachers:

Preparation
Reading
Writing
Other activities

Share

There are oodles of easy ideas for enjoying poetry together. For instance:

Get a book from the library and read a poem together each night at bedtime.
Leave a favorite poem in someone’s pocket or lunch box.
Surprise a friend with a poetry book.
Attend a local poetry reading.
Maybe even read your own poem at an open mic night!

Write

One word: NaPoWriMo. What the heck is it? You write one poem a day throughout the month of April.

Think you can you do it? Sure you can! I’ll tell you what, I’ll do it, too.

You can use one of these traditional forms or just go with the flow. It doesn’t have to be a sonnet. Even two lines will do. Type them on your computer, write them in a journal, or post them online and link up with other participants for inspiration and support.

Happy Poetry Month. May it bring something into your life that surprises you.

Have your own ideas or favorite books, poems, or poets? Please share!

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