We are on a mission and we want you to take up our challenge, honour the poetry that inspired you to read and write as a child, and help us to let in the stars of children’s poetry. There are all sorts of ways to get involved.
Share poetry together. You could organise an open-mic in your school, library or even street, where people can come along and share new or found poetry. Get adults involved and ask them to share their favourite childhood poetry.
Adopt a poem – after sharing your poetry with friends or classmates, adopt your favourite poem and perform it, illustrate it or use it to create new poems. (You could write it out on a piece of paper, cut it up and re-arrange the words to create the first line of another poem)
Create your own poetry. Enter a competition, there are lots of good ones around. Or create your own ‘in-school’ competition. Just make sure you complete the circle and share it with friends.
Let us know what you’re doing by tagging us in your pics on the MCBF social media: Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
The Manchester Poetry Library opens in 2021 their children’s collection will include poetry for children and young adults, written and recorded. It will also offer resources and CPD for teachers, librarians and home educators. Visit www.mmu.ac.uk/poetrylibrary and sign up for the newsletter.
The Poetry Society has lots of information for young poets, including links to the Young Poets Network and the Foyle Young Poets competition poetrysociety.org.uk/young-poets
The ‘Let in the Stars’ anthology, the book created to be a launch-pad for this campaign was shortlisted for the CLiPPA award in 2015. This is still the only award in the UK for published children’s poetry and is organised by the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE). For details of the award, resources and their shadowing scheme, visit clpe.org.uk/poetryline/clippa.