Poetry for Kids

Welcome to Poetry4kids. I’m Kenn Nesbitt.

With Thanksgiving just around the corner here in the US, I wanted to write a fun poem about the holiday that captures the feeling of overindulging at a big family feast.

Thanksgiving is a time for gratitude and togetherness, but it’s also a time when we often eat more than we should—something kids and grown-ups alike can relate to. I thought it would be fun to explore that universal experience from a playful perspective, imagining what it might feel like to share the aftermath of a big meal with an unexpected companion.

I hope this poem brings a smile to your face as you prepare for your own holiday celebrations!

It’s Thanksgiving Night

It’s Thanksgiving night, and

My stomach is aching.

I ate too much food, so

We’re hugging each other

Tonight, though, we’re whining

— Kenn Nesbitt

Welcome to Poetry4kids. I’m Kenn Nesbitt. A couple of years ago my friend, the children’s poet Janet Wong, asked if I would contribute a poem to an anthology she was creating with children’s literature professor Sylvia Vardell called Things We Feel. She gave me several photos to choose from as inspiration, and I particularly liked one of a young boy tossing a bowling ball. It made me think about that moment of suspense—the thrill, the hope, and the uncertainty you feel as soon as the ball leaves your hands.

As with other books in this series (Things We Do, Things We Wear, and Things We Eat), 100% of the profits will be donated to the IBBY Children in Crisis Fund, a cause I’m proud to support.

Suspense

I make a wish.

— Kenn Nesbitt

Welcome to Poetry4kids. I’m Kenn Nesbitt. As a student, I remember being so tired in school some days that I would fall asleep at my desk and the teacher would have to wake me up. I was never so tired in the morning that I went to school in my pajamas or bedsheet or blankets. But a friend of mine actually did this once when she was in college. She was so sleepy that she woke up at the very last minute, wrapped her sheet around herself and walked to class.

Recalling this recently, I thought it might be funny to write a poem about it. I hope you enjoy it.

Ideas for poems can come from lots of different places. Sometimes when I write a poem, the idea starts with a single word or a phrase. In this case, I was thinking about the upcoming holidays, Halloween and Thanksgiving. Halloween made me think of monsters, including Frankenstein’s monster, which made me think of “Frankenstein’s Thanksgiving.” It occurred to me that it might be fun to write a single poem that combines Halloween and Thanksgiving into a single holiday. This poem is the result.

The Monsters’ Thanksgiving

When monsters spend Thanksgiving

They each will bring a favorite dish

The Creature from the Black Lagoon

The Zombie drops some finger foods.

The Mummy brings a bubbling bowl

They do this each November, and

— Kenn Nesbitt

Welcome to Poetry4kids. I’m Kenn Nesbitt. With Halloween just around the corner, I wanted to write a poem about the holiday. I had already written a poem about spooky monsters called “The Monsters’ Thanksgiving,” so this time I thought it would be fun to come up with a poem about trick-or-treating. I imagined creating a time-saving device to help collect more candy, and the idea of an army of trick-or-treating robots came to me.

The very next day, I saw a headline that read, “Inventor Builds Six Robot Copies of Himself, Uses One to Give Speeches and Take Questions From Audience.” I took that as a sign that my idea was timely—and that this was definitely a poem I needed to write! I hope you enjoy it.

Robot Halloween

I built a hundred robots, and

They went in all directions

My robots were efficient.

They brought their load of candy home

An avalanche of candy poured

We may no longer have a house

It turns out having robots

— Kenn Nesbitt

Every now and then, there’s a day when you just don’t want to get out of bed. Rather than take on the new day, you just want to stay under the blankets and sleep. I wrote this poem because I started thinking about all the wild, imaginative reasons someone might have for staying in bed—things that are so strange, they would drive just about anyone back to bed. While you can take this poem at face value, reading it as though these crazy things actually happened to the narrator, you should also consider other possibilities. Perhaps the narrator is still asleep and dreaming. Or maybe they’ve just come up with a harebrained excuse to avoid facing the day. No matter how you interpret it, sometimes it feels like it’s just easier to stay under the covers when things get too weird!

Bed Instead

This morning I woke up

I thought this was odd, so

My clothing was strolling.

My toys and my backpack

If anyone needs me,

— Kenn Nesbitt

I recently had a “half birthday,” which falls in August since my real birthday is in February. Because of this, I was thinking about writing a half-birthday poem. By the time I started working on it, it was already September. The line “I never can remember if my birthday’s in September” popped into my head because September rhymes so nicely with “remember”—and also with December and November. I liked the way that line sounded, so I created this poem with that idea as the starting point.

When thinking about half birthdays, it also occurred to me that since it might be fun to celebrate your birthday twice a year, it could be even more fun to celebrate it three or four times a year, or even more often.

Oh, and by the way, the rhythm of this poem is the same as one of my all-time favorite poems, “In Praise of Llamas” by Arthur Guiterman. It was fun to use that familiar rhythm to explore the idea of never quite remembering my birthday—and deciding how often to celebrate it!

When’s My Birthday?

I never can remember

And it may be on the seventh,

Now, while some might find this vexing,

— Kenn Nesbitt

I wrote this poem in honor of my dear friend, the children’s poet Jack Prelutsky, who turned 84 in recently. Jack was born in 1940, which, according to Chinese astrology, was the Year of the Dragon. Interestingly, his 84th birthday also falls during the Year of the Dragon. You see, in Western astrology, there are twelve zodiac symbols, one each month. In Chinese astrology, however, there are still twelve zodiac symbols, but they celebrate one per year, so each zodiac symbol repeats every twelfth year. 84 is 12 times 7, so there have been seven dragon years since the year Jack was born.

While for people, 84 years is generally considered pretty old, I wanted to draw a playful parallel between Jack’s birth year and the idea that, for a dragon, 84 is still quite young. This poem celebrates that connection and the idea that Jack, like a dragon, is still full of life and energy.

If you would like to read some of Jack’s poems, you can find them on his website at jackprelutsky.com.

Dragon’s Birthday

Today is Dragon’s birthday

The birthday cards are scribbled

The birthday toasts are proffered

— Kenn Nesbitt

Do you ever feel like the summer sometimes seems too short? One minute you’re having fun in the pool and the next thing you know, you’re sitting in class practicing spelling and arithmetic. At least, that’s the way it often feels to me. I love the summer, and not just because school is out. I love the sunshine, the warm weather, the fresh fruits, and all the summer activities.

Now, dn’t get me wrong… The other seasons are nice too. But if I had to pick a favorite, it would definitely be summer.

As I was thinking about writing a poem about the summer coming to an end, as it is where I live, I was thinking that it is short as well as summery.

The Summer Isn’t Like a Book

The summer isn’t like a book.

— Kenn Nesbitt

Hi, I’m Kenn Nesbitt. Welcome to today’s episode of Poetry4kids! With the new school year just starting up here in the U.S., I couldn’t help but think about all those shiny, new back-to-school supplies—new clothes, fresh pencils, spotless notebooks, and clean lunch boxes. There’s something exciting about starting the school year with everything brand new. But as we all know, it doesn’t take long for those new supplies to show a little wear and tear. I wrote this poem to capture what the first week of school is like, from that eager first day to what happens after just a few days of fun and learning. I hope you enjoy it.

The First Day of School

My pencils are sharpened.

My folders are empty.

My notebook is spotless.

One Week Later

My pencils are broken.

My folders are full and

My scissors are twisted.

 — Kenn Nesbitt