National Poetry Day
Resource type: Event
Price band: Free
Key stage: KS1, KS2, KS3, KS4, KS5, Adult
Region(s): All of UK
This nationwide annual celebration of poetry takes place on the first Thursday of October, which in 2023 falls on October 5th. Each year, National Poetry Day has a different theme and the theme for 2023 is Refuge.
The National Poetry Day website provides a range of free resources to support schools. Resources for National Poetry Day 2022 included:
- Themed lesson plans for KS1 through to KS5.
- A competition for pupils aged 7-12.
- A selection of permissions-cleared poems that tie in with the year’s theme for schools to use.
- Information about the National Poetry Day Ambassadors.
- Posters and display material to raise awareness of National Poetry Day.
Cost: Resources are free with registration.
About the Forward Arts Foundation: National Poetry Day is organised by the Forward Arts Foundation, a charity committed to promoting public knowledge, understanding and enjoyment of poetry in the UK and Ireland. Other programmes include the Forward Prizes for Poetry and the annual anthology of the year’s best poems, the Forward Book of Poetry.
Further resources:
- Waterstones Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho has produced Poetry Prompts, a series of weekly bitesize videos designed to celebrate and demystify the reading and writing of poetry. There are free posters and accompanying resources from CLPE to download.
- The BBC Teach website has a range of Poetry Resources for primary and secondary teachers.
- Help students in KS2 and KS3 create their own natural world poems with the Wild Poetry activities from the National Literacy Trust. The resources are available with the NLT’s free membership level, which will also provide access to resources from previous National Poetry Days.
- Young Writers runs poetry competitions for primary and secondary pupils every term with free teaching resources to download.
- Get involved in the Poetry By Heart Competition, an annual poetry speaking competition for pupils in KS2 – KS5 in schools and colleges in England.
- Sign up for Poetry Together, a free initiative that encourages schools and care homes to connect by learning a poem off by heart and coming together to recite it.
- The National Poetry Centre for Primary Schools provides a comprehensive bank of resources to support the teaching of poetry in the primary classroom.
- The Poetry Society offers a service matching poets with schools that would like to run poetry workshops.
- Find more resources to support the teaching of poetry here.
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