What Are Your Favorite Children's Poems?

"The Way Of Haiku" - an anthology of haiku poems, by James Hackett (my daughter likes haiku). This is my personal book, from when I was a child, that I have given to my daughter.

"Ogden Nash's Zoo" by Ogden Nash (my son likes these)

Also try, some Hawaiian poem books & books. My kids like these as well.
Amazon has a bunch. Hawaii has some good local authors.
Here's a link:
http://www.poets.org/state.php/varState/HI
http://www.bambooridge.com/

Shel Silverstein:
Invitation
Where the Sidewalk Ends (of course!)
Rain
God's Wheel

First Poems - Tasha Tudor (whole book)

A Light Exists in Spring - Emily Dickinson

Trees - Sarah Coleridge

Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats - T.S. Eliot (Book)

Robert Louis Stevenson:
To Any Reader
Foreign Lands
Windy Nights
Marching Song
The Land of Story-Books

UGH...a toddler needs to eat here! I have more, but these are my favorites. You have a lovely list here, R.!

shel silverstien colors- reminds me of our diversity even though its' probably more about feelings.

You beat me to my favorites! The Jabbeerwock and Sarah Sylvia Cynthia Stout!

I also like from Shel Silverstein: Forgotten Language and The Silver Fish.

The Complete Nonsense of Edward Lear is fun too. It's got some great poems in it. The book I have is from when I was a kid, but you might be able to get it frim the library or a used bookstore. My favorite poem out of that book is The Duck and The Kangaroo.

Said the Duck to the Kangroo,
"Good gracious, how you hop!
Over the fields and the water too,
As if you would never stop!
And I long to go out in the world beyond!
I wish I could hop like you"
Said the Duck to the Kangaroo

"Please give me a ride on your back!"
Said the Duck to the Kangaroo.
I would sit quite still, and say nothing but 'Quack',
The whole of the long day through!
And we'd go to the Dee, and Jelly Bo Lee,
Over the land and over the sea;--
Please take me a ride! O do!"
Said the Duck to the Kangaroo

Said th Kanagroo to the Duck,
"This requires some little reflection;
Perhaps on the whole it might bring me luck,
Which is, if you'll let me speak so bold,
Your feet are unpleasantly wet and cold,
And would probably give me the roo-
Matiz!" said the Kangaroo.

Said the Duck, "As I sate on the rocks,
I have thought that over completely,
And I have bought four pairs of worsted socks
Which fit my web-feet neatly.
And to keep out the cold I've bought a cloak,
And every day a cigar I'll smoke,
All to follow my own dear true
Love of a Kangaroo!"

Said the Kangaroo, " I'm ready!
All in the monlight pale;
But to balance mewell, dear Duck, sit steady1
And quite at the end of my tail!"

So away they went wiith a hop and a bound,
And they hopped the whole world three times round;
And who so happy,--O who,
As the Duck and the Kangaroo?

This is out of the Edward Lear bookI mentioned aboce. It hasn't an auther, instead, the cover says "Collected and Introduced by Holbrook Jackson" It's got some great stuff in it, but I don't know if it's still in print, as it was first published in 1957. My copy is a hand me down from my brother who got it from a family friend.

Anyway, good luck in finding more childrens poetry.

We are enjoying many poems lately!
Some favorites:
"Dinosaur Din" by XJ Kennedy
"The Owl and the Pussycat" by Edward Lear (this is his bedtime 'song'....and I sing it)
"I Love Little Pussy" , "Girls and Boys"...traditional English poetry from "A Year of Poetry...illustrated by Anne Grahame Johnstone. I often recite Stevenson's "The Flowers" when we come across hollyhocks or bachelor's buttons.

Stuff from AA Milne's poetry books (When We Were Very Young, Now We Are Six)

We are currently enjoying a book of "Dragon, Dinosaur and Monster Poems". (My husband and I both met through poetry, so this is a fun question!--I'm sure there are more that I love, just can't think of them at the moment. These are my son's favorites.)

cuccabara sites on an old gum tree

Shel Silverstein's Homework Machine. I know the internet was not widely available when it was written, but it reminds me of kids who are now using the internet to find the answers to their homework.

My kids are learning this one right now in French (which sounds better than in English-I'll try to spell it (will have many mistakes) below:

The cat opens his eyes
The sun comes in
The closes his eyes
The sun stays in

That is why at night
When the cats awakes
I see in the dark
Two pieces of sun

Le chat Ouvrit les yeux
Le soleil y entra
Le chat ferma les yeux
Le soleil y resta

Voila pourquoi le soir
Quand le chat se reveille
J'appercoit dans le noir
Deux morceux de soliel.

Thanks for awesome list! I love most of these and have not read some.

Right now I like this little ditty:

At the Seaside
~Robert Louis Stevenson

When I was down beside the sea
A wooden spade they gave to me
To dig the sandy shore.
My holes were empty like a cup,
In every hole the sea came up,
Till it could come no more.
________________
My kids are the same with bedtime stories.

We're song guys - every night we start with the same song, Nick Cave's, All the Pretty Little Horses (gruesome history, but just beautiful (we think:-)). Then we move into Eric Satie, Gymnopedie No. 1 - 3, and by then the kids are close to slumber, so I put on whatever I'm in the mood for.

Do ya'll have the ability to watch stuff on your phones? These are my favorite little clips as of late. When I'm feeling scared and alone, sometimes I'll watch 'em just to get a little bump of love. Perhaps not what your looking for, but worth a share anyhow :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFzXaFbxDcM&feature=share

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9D05ej8u-gU

Big, Bad, and a Little Bit Scary - It's a collection of poems that are really wonderful! Here's a link on amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Big-Bad-Little-Bit-Scary/dp/0670035...