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Children spend most of their childhood studying and having fun with their peers at school. So to make them ready for the good and bad experiences of their school life, you may encourage them to read some good poems about schools for kids. Their expectations and experiences keep changing as they transition through primary, middle, and high school, so it is a must to give them motivation now and then. While some children are excited to go back to school and meet their friends and teachers after breaks, others prefer staying home and dread going back to school. Reading a delightful and engaging school poem is an excellent way to help your child prepare for school after a long break. Scroll through this post to find some of the best poems about school to encourage your children to enjoy the best phase of life.
14 School Poems For Kids
Poems have the power to make reading easier for young children. They teach children to identify different sounds in words and also build vocabulary (1). Teaching poems can open the way for constructive discussions too. Teacher and blogger Jessica Zannini finds different ways to make poetry interesting for children. She writes, “I like to have a reading response and a test prep page with each poem. This way I know that all of the standards are being met. Then I will add one task where the students have to write a specific type of poetry. The last task for the poem will connect with math, science, or social studies.” She further suggests, “Have them memorize a poem to perform for a small group or the class. This is a great way to assess fluency and get some of those speaking standards checked off the list (i).”
School is a hub of cherished memories for children, encompassing everything from school bus rides and recess fun to tests and report cards, alongside the irreplaceable experiences shared with friends. These school poems will help your kids explore friendship, fun, and the numerous exciting experiences they encounter in school. Let your children or students share their experiences and treasure these poems as memories.
1. First Day At School
A million billion willion miles from home
Waiting for the bell to go. (To go where?)
Why are they all so big, other children?
So noisy? So much at home they
Must have been born in uniform
Lived all their lives in playgrounds
Spent the years inventing games
That don’t let me in. Games
That are rough, that swallow you up.
And the railings.
All around, the railings.
Are they to keep out wolves and monsters?
Things that carry off and eat children?
Things you don’t take sweets from?
Perhaps they’re to stop us getting out.
Running away from the lessins. Lessin.
What does a lessin look like?
Sounds small and slimy.
They keep them in the glassrooms.
Whole rooms made out of glass. Imagine.
I wish I could remember my name.
Mummy said it would come in useful.
Like wellies. When there’s puddles.
Yellowwellies. I wish she was here.
I think my name is sewn on somewhere.
Perhaps the teacher will read it for me.
Tea-cher. The one who makes the tea.
— Roger McGough
This beautiful school poem for kids captures the nervousness of a child on their first day at school. It portrays the confusion they feel in a strange new world with playful language.
Did you know?2. School Is Not So Cool
School, School, School,
A school is not so cool
We’re here five days a week
8 hours a day.
School, School, School,
A school is not so cool.
People laugh when we fall
we just have to make a call.
School, School, School
A school is not so cool.
We have to work hard to get good grades.
I’m not going to do it no more.
I do it every day.
We can’t go on the grass.
We can’t bother another class.
We cant save spots at lunch.
We have to go as a bunch.
We have 3 minutes in the hall.
I’m always late, what a ball.
We have to pay attention
if not, we get detention.
School, School, School,
A school is not so cool.
They have too many rules
they play us as fools
if we get A’s
the parents jump Hip Hip Hooray.
If we get F’s
we tell them we need to take a rest.
We always have homework
we never have classwork
they have too many rules
they need to take it cool.
School, School, School,
A school is so not cool!
— Chantel Braatz, poemhunter.com
School might be fun, but there are also rules to follow. This poem is a humorous take on the many instructions at school and perhaps a call on parents and teachers to be empathetic.
3. September, The First Day Of School
I
My child and I hold hands on the way to school,
And when I leave him at the first-grade door.
He cries a little but is brave; he does
Let go. My selfish tears remind me how
I cried before that door a life ago.
I may have had a hard time letting go.
Each fall, the children must endure together.
What every child also endures alone:
Learning the alphabet, the integers,
Three dozen bits and pieces of a stuff
So arbitrary, so peremptory,
That worlds invisible and visible.
Bow down before it, as in Joseph’s dream
The sheaves bowed down, and then the stars bowed down.
Before the dreaming of a little boy.
That dream got him such hatred of his brothers.
As cost the greater part of life to mend,
And yet great kindness came of it in the end.
II
A school is where they grind the grain of thought,
And grind the children who must mind the thought.
It may be those two grindings are but one,
As from the alphabet come Shakespeare’s Plays,
As from the integers comes Euler’s Law,
As from the whole, inseparably, the lives,
The shrunken lives that have not been set free
By law or by poetic phantasy.
But may they be. My child has disappeared.
Behind the schoolroom door. And should I live
To see his coming forth, a life away,
I know my hope but do not know its form.
Nor hope to know it. May the fathers he finds
Among his teachers have a care of him
More than his father could. How that will look
I do not know; I do not need to know.
Even our tears belong to ritual.
But may great kindness come of it in the end.
— Howard Nemerov, allpoetry.com
A parent experiences bittersweet feelings when they send their child to school. This poem reflects those deep emotions that talk about the struggle of letting go and keeping them with you.
4. School Just School
School we need it
school, friends
school you have teachers
school is great
high school is even better
college, PARTIES
school you mite find your true love
new experiences every day
school, dances
school just school
school who does not love it
school is fun
school, preps
school, classes
school, math, science, computer classes
school is great love it
school just school
we need school
— Kerri King, poemhunter.com
This lighthearted school poem for kids offers a positive view of school. It talks about friendships, experiences, and opportunities that make school days memorable. Using short sentences and impactful words, this poem teaches children how daily activities can be fun.
5. In School-Days
Still sits the school-house by the road,
A ragged beggar sleeping;
Around it still, the sumachs grow,
And blackberry-vines are creeping.
Within, the master’s desk is seen,
Deep-scarred by raps official;
The warping floor, the battered seats,
The jack-knife’s carved initial;
The charcoal frescoes on its wall;
Its door’s worn sill, betraying.
The feet that, creeping slow to school,
Went storming out to playing!
Long years ago, a winter sun.
Shone over it at setting;
Lit up its western window-panes,
And low eaves’ icy fretting.
It touched the tangled golden curls,
And brown eyes full of grieving,
Of one who still her steps delayed
When all the school were leaving.
For near it stood the little boy.
Her childish favor singled;
His cap pulled low upon a face.
Where pride and shame were mingled.
Pushing with restless feet, the snow
To right and left, he lingered;—
As restlessly her tiny hands.
The blue-checked apron fingered.
He saw her lift her eyes; he felt.
The soft hand’s light caressing,
And heard the tremble of her voice,
As if a fault confessing.
“I’m sorry that I spelt the word:
I hate to go above you,
Because,”—the brown eyes lower fell,—
“Because you see, I love you!”
Still memory to a gray-haired man
That sweet child-face is showing.
Dear girl! the grasses on her grave
Have forty years been growing!
He lives to learn, in life’s hard school,
How few who pass above him
Lament their triumph and his loss,
Like her, because they love him.
— John Greenleaf Whittier, poetryfoundation.org
This touching poem talks about childhood memories from school. Children grow and learn through experiences such as young love and the separation of friends. These are parts of growing up while attending school and show children they can learn and grow all at once.
Did you know?6. Round and Round
Round and round the playground,
Marching in a line,
I’ll hold your hand.
You hold mine.
Round and round the playground
Skipping in a ring
Everybody loves it
When we all sing.
Round and round the playground
That’s what we like:
Climbing on the climbing frame,
Riding on the bike.
Round and round the playground,
All together, friends.
We’re sad, sad, sad
When the school day ends.
— John Kitching, panmacmillan.com
When you think of school days, do you remember children playing together? This playful poem will put a smile on your face. It teaches that you can look for rhythm and music anywhere, even if you are playing.
7. Dinner Lady
Today at school
I cut my knee.
The dinner lady
looked after me.
She washed away
the blood and dirt,
then put a plaster
where it hurt.
— David Harmer, panmacmillan.com
This short and sweet poem talks about the kindness of a dinner lady who looked after the poet when he was hurt at school. It highlights the comfort and care a child receives at school.
8. Where Do All The Teachers Go?
Where do all the teachers go
When it’s four o’clock?
Do they live in houses?
And do they wash their socks?
Do they wear pajamas?
And do they watch TV?
And do they pick their noses?
The same as you and me?
Do they live with other people?
Have they mum and dads?
And were they ever children?
And were they ever bad?
Did they ever, never spell right?
Did they ever make mistakes?
Were they punished in the corner?
If they stole the chocolate flakes?
Did they ever lose their hymn books?
Did they ever leave their greens?
Did they scribble on the desktops?
Did they wear old dirty jeans?
I’ll follow one back home today.
I’ll find out what they do.
Then I’ll put it in a poem.
That they can read to you.
— Peter Dixon, panmacmillan.com
What do teachers do outside of school? Seeing teachers outside school is considered to be one of the most awkward moments for a student. Addressing this matter in a playful manner, this poem wonders if teachers also have normal lives.
9. Where Teachers Keep Their Pets
Mrs. Cox has a fox
nesting in her curly locks.
Mr. Spratt’s tabby cat
sleeps beneath his bobble hat.
Miss Cahoots has various newts
swimming in her zip-up boots.
Mr. Spray has Fred his fly
eating food stains from his tie.
Mrs. Groat shows off her stoat
round the collar of her coat.
Mr. Spare’s got grizzly bears
hiding in his spacious flares.
And . . .
Mrs. Vickers has a stick insect called ‘Stickers.’
. . . but no one’s ever seen where she keeps it.
— Paul Cookson, panmacmillan.com
This hilarious yet educational poem talks about where teachers would keep pets that rhyme with their names. It is great for teaching rhyming words to children while also talking about teachers in a fun manner.
10. At the End of a School Day
It is the end of a school day
and down the long drive
come bag-swinging, shouting children.
Deafened, the sky winces.
The sun gapes in surprise.
Suddenly the runner’s skid to a stop,
standstill and stare
at a small hedgehog
curled-up on the tarmac
like an old, frayed cricket ball.
A girl dumps her bag, tiptoes forward
and gingerly, so gingerly
carries the creature
to the safety of a shady hedge.
Then steps back, watching.
Girl, children, sky, and sun
hold their breath.
There is a silence,
a moment to remember
on this warm afternoon in June.
— Was Magee, panmacmillan.com
A school day has many memorable moments. But some days stand out from others. This short poem talks about a simple act of kindness by a student at the end of a school day.
11. Teacher
Loud shouter
Deep thinker
Rain hater
Coffee drinker
Spell checker
Sum ticker
Line giver
Nitpicker
Ready listener
Trouble carer
Hometime lover
Knowledge sharer
— Paul Cookson, panmacmillan.com
This short poem describes teachers in different ways. It uses a variety of qualities and habits of various teachers and highlights their strictness and kindness. It is a great way to teach children synonyms as well as contrasting values.
12. The Teacher’s Day in Bed
Our teacher’s having a day in bed –
She’s sent her pets to school instead!
There’s…
A parrot to read the register,
A crocodile to sharpen the pencils,
A canary to teach singing,
An adder to teach maths,
An octopus to make the ink,
An elephant to hoover the floor,
An electric eel to make the computer work,
A giraffe to look for trouble at the back,
A tiger to keep order at the front,
A reed bunting (can’t you guess?
to help with reading, of course!),
A secretary bird to run the office
A piranha fish to give swimming lessons
(Glad I’m off swimming today!),
A zebra to help with crossing the road,
Oh, and a dragon to cook the sausages.
I bet that none of you ever knew.
Just how many things a teacher can do!
— David Orme, panmacmillan.com
This humorous poem imagines a scenario where a teacher’s pets take over the classroom for a day. Every pet is assigned a role and they perform all the tasks the teachers do with aplomb. This poem lets your child’s imagination soar and helps them look for unique qualities in everyone.
13. What Teachers Wear in Bed!
It’s anybody’s guess
what teachers wear in bed at night
so we held a competition
to see if any of us were right.
We did a spot of research,
although some of them wouldn’t say,
but it’s probably something funny
as they look pretty strange by day.
Our Headteacher’s quite old-fashioned,
he wears a Victorian nightshirt,
our sports teacher wears her tracksuit
and sometimes her netball skirt.
That new teacher in the infants
wears bedsocks with see-through pajamas,
our Deputy Head wears a T-shirt
he brought back from the Bahamas.
We asked our secretary what she wore
but she shooed us out of her room
and our teacher said her favorite nightie
and a splash of expensive perfume.
And Mademoiselle, who teaches French,
is really very rude
she whispered, ‘Alors! Don’t tell a soul,
but I sleep in the . . . back bedroom!’
— Brian Moses, panmacmillan.com
This playful poem talks about a child wondering about their teacher’s bedtime wear. They make some amusing guesses and imagine their teacher’s life outside school. This poem can be used as an example to show children how commonplace items can be used to make a fun poem.
14. Chemistry Class
Chemistry class, chemistry class,
The class in which I do surpass!
The class I really most enjoy,
My teacher, though, I do annoy!
Mixing that, twirling this,
Adding ‘till I hear a hiss!
Prompting looks up from her desk,
Towards my beaker, statuesque!
Heating up, cooling down,
My teacher watches, face a frown!
Lovely liquid, yellow bubbles,
Teacher’s ready for the troubles!
Exploding here, exploding there,
Yellow globs in teacher’s hair!
It’s dripping onto teacher’s shawl,
And creeping down the classroom wall!
Fizzle here, fizzle through,
Oh no, I think I’m in a stew!
It’s eaten through the wooden floor,
And dropped below on Mr. Moore!
Chemistry mess, much distress,
My brew today did not impress!
Chemistry is my favorite class,
But that’s my last, I think, alas!
— Gareth Lancaster, fizzyfunnyfuzzy.com
Chemistry classes have loads of potential for hilarious errors and chaos. This poem talks about a student’s chemistry experiment going wrong with funny results. Using sounds and rhythm, this poem turns a disastrous experience into a funny one.
Illustration: Beautiful And Famous Poems About School For Kids
Image: Stable Diffusion/MomJunction Design Team
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What are the benefits of sharing poems about school with kids in terms of their language and literacy development?
Poems are small paragraphs with multiple literary elements like rhythm and character narratives. Reading or reciting poems can help children develop speech functions such as pitch, tone, and pronunciation. They also help children learn new words and use them in conjunction with contexts while encouraging creative imagination and writing skills (1),(2).
2. What role do school poems play in promoting a positive and supportive school environment?
School poems promote socio-emotional development by helping children understand each other’s emotions and behavior and react accordingly. Poems may help children make sense of shared experiences, thereby building self-confidence and a shared sense of community. Lines from such poems can be turned into school quotes for kids, which can then be used to create a platform where children can discuss social issues, creating an inclusive environment that values the ideas and opinions of people from different cultural backgrounds and languages.
3. What are some tips for parents and educators on using school poems to inspire kids’ love for language and storytelling?
Parents and educators should encourage children to read and listen to age-appropriate English poems for kids. They should introduce children to different poem themes, exploring emotions and perspectives. Organizing interactive read-aloud sessions and using visual aids to narrate poems are ways parents and educators can help children develop an avid love for language and storytelling.
4. How can school poems enhance children’s learning experiences?
School-themed poems help children warm up to going to school after a long time, encouraging them to value learning and socializing. Poetry motivates children to be creative, improves their language and vocabulary, and helps them express their emotions and opinions better. Reading and writing school poems helps children process and articulate their feelings about school and learning, thus making them valuable tools in children’s education.
School is the foundation of a person, and the more they love it, the better their future can be. Encourage your little ones to read poems about school and even compose rhyming poems for kids to enjoy their school life the way they should. It also motivates them to love the learning process, gain knowledge, and excel in their respective fields. You can even inspire your child to write poems about their schooling or share their experiences so that they can keep them as memories and go back in time to see how wonderful those days were.
Key Pointers
- School is a place of cherished memories, from bus rides to friendships, and poems can highlight these joyful moments.
- Children spend most of their childhood at school, learning and having fun with peers.
- Preparing kids for the positive and negative experiences of school life is important, and reading school-related poems can help.
- Writing or reading poems about school can help children appreciate their experiences and preserve memories of their school days.
Poem writing can be fun. If you want your child to try writing a poem, you can encourage them to write a poem on their school. Have a look at this video for some inspiration.
Personal Experience: Source
MomJunction articles include first-hand experiences to provide you with better insights through real-life narratives. Here are the sources of personal accounts referenced in this article.
i. How to Teach Poetry (Even if you HATE it)https://medium.com/@jessicazannini/how-to-teach-poetry-even-if-you-hate-it-746f09c27896
References
- How poetry can help kids develop reading skills.
https://readingpartners.org/blog/poetry-can-help-kids-develop-reading-skills/ - Teaching and Reading Poetry with English Language Learners.
https://www.colorincolorado.org/article/introducing-and-reading-poetry-english-language-learners
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