YOU’RE A POET
Ways to Start Writing Poems
By: Sean Taylor
Illustrated by: Sam Usher
Published: March 4, 2025
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Poetry is an essential skill for young children. It helps them develop language skills and creativity while also encouraging word play and exploring the rhythm of words and sentences. Poetry can also help kids learn to read and comprehend, especially when a poem rhymes. On this last day of Poetry Month, I hope you choose to expose your child or classroom to different types of poetry and maybe even write a few poems together.
With a story and a how-to guide for writing poems, Piglet, his mom, and his friend Squirrel get together to have fun, play, and create a few poems together. The how-to guide allows the reader to join in and create poems just like Piglet does. From a puddle poem to a comparison poem to a made-up poem to an If-I-Was poem, kids will learn how easy it can be to create their own poem. The final poem is a perfect heartfelt poem for kids to write for their Mom, Dad, Grandparent, or teacher.
In a puddle poem, Piglet throws a rock into a puddle, and suddenly words pop up like “Sunshiny, Fresh, Earth, Wet, Sploshing, and Puddle“. All those words describe a puddle and give the reader a visual and sensational experience when hearing the words. Using circles and spokes out from the circle while creating helps kids see the poem come together.
Throughout the book, Piglet, his mom, and Squirrel explore and play while creating poems. Kids will love the story and the illustrations and will find that they want to write poems just like Piglet does. Piglet makes writing fun in this great new children’s book that encourages a love of poetry.
Check out the first few pages of YOU’RE A POET, HERE.
Sean Taylor has written more than sixty books for young readers, including I Want to Be in a Scary Story, How to Be Cooler than Cool, and Hoot Owl, Master of Disguise, all illustrated by Jean Jullien; A Brave Bear, illustrated by Emily Hughes; and The Dream Train, illustrated by Anuska Allepuz. Check out his website, HERE.
Sam Usher is the creator of a series of picture books about the natural world. He is also the author and illustrator of Can You See Sassoon?, which was short-listed for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. When he’s not holding a pen and wobbling at paper, he may be found perfecting a difficult piece of Chopin at the piano. Sam Usher lives in England.
To purchase a copy of YOU’RE A POET, click HERE.
Get these writing journals for your child’s poems, HERE.
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Thanks to the publisher for sending a copy of this book for this review. This review is my honest opinion. If you choose to purchase through the above links, I may receive a small commission without you having to pay a cent more for your purchase.
Posted Under Book Review, Children's books, pigs, poetry, Sam Usher, Sean Taylor