Jonathan Swift (1667 – 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer, poet and Anglican cleric best remembered in the literary world for his satirical novel, Gulliver’s Travels. As a writer, he developed close,...
Following his participation in the Islands Voyage, an unsuccessful 1597 naval campaign also known as the Essex-Raleigh Expedition, poet John Donne wrote “The Storm,” memorializing a storm at sea. The Storme To Mr. Christopher...
by Janice Campbell · Published December 31, 2020 · Last modified January 15, 2024
How better to mark the close of an old year and the coming of a new than with poetry or song? Here are a few favorite classic New Year’s Eve poems to help you...
Poets can be inspired by many things, but honestly — bugs? I guess if you’re writing about the month of August, it’s almost inevitable that some variety of insect will appear. You’ll find bugs...
Poets write about so much more than landscapes, lovers, and flowers — they write about war, conflict, justice, and striving for virtue. One quote that I have heard many times is “Once to every...
What is so rare as a day in June? Definitely not poems about the month of June — there are many! Here are five June poems that offer varying glimpses of this lovely month. Choose...
The beauties of springtime have inspired poets for centuries. As I thought about what poems to include in this post, I realized how many May poems there are! Here are seven poems by some...
February A poem from The Shepherd’s Calendar by John Clare (mini-bio at end) The snow is gone from cottage tops The thatch moss glows in brighter green And eves in quick succession drops Where...
Barbara Frietchie John Greenleaf Whittier Up from the meadows rich with corn, Clear in the cool September morn, The clustered spires of Frederick stand Green-walled by the hills of Maryland. Round about them orchards...
To S. M. A Young African Painter, On Seeing His Works by Phillis Wheatley TO show the lab’ring bosom’s deep intent, And thought in living characters to paint, When first thy pencil did those...
Morality By Matthew Arnold We cannot kindle when we will The fire which in the heart resides; The spirit bloweth and is still, In mystery our soul abides. But tasks in hours of insight...
by Janice Campbell · Published April 30, 2018 · Last modified December 7, 2020
Robert Louis Stevenson, in addition to his famous prose works, also wrote poetry ranging from children’s nursery rhymes to poems of travel and adventure. Here are a few samples for your enjoyment. From A...
As Kingfishers Catch Fire by Gerard Manley Hopkins As kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies dráw fláme; As tumbled over rim in roundy wells Stones ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell’s Bow swung...
Children's Literature / Poetry
by Janice Campbell · Published August 23, 2017 · Last modified October 21, 2023
In Hilaire Belloc’s humorous book of More Beasts (for Worse Children), a companion volume to The Bad Child’s Book of Beasts, you will find poetic descriptions of real and imaginary beasts. Many like “The...
by Janice Campbell · Published April 11, 2017 · Last modified December 9, 2023
April poems, spring poems — there are so many that it’s not easy to choose just a few to feature here. For now, I’ve chosen to offer just a few; we will add or...
Audio / Video / Classics-Based Writing Resource / Poetry
by Janice Campbell · Published March 7, 2017 · Last modified December 9, 2023
Poems about the month of March Each month has its share of poetic musings, and March is no exception. As children, we learn that “March comes in like a lion and goes out like...
The Hind and the Panther, Part Three by John Dryden “The Hind and the Panther” by John Dryden was published in 1687. It is an allegory told in heroic couplets, and it has also been described as...
The Hind and the Panther, Part Two by John Dryden “The Hind and the Panther” by John Dryden was published in 1687. It is an allegory told in heroic couplets, and it has also been described as...
The Hind and the Panther, Part 1 by John Dryden “The Hind and the Panther” by John Dryden was published in 1687. It is an allegory told in heroic couplets, and it has also been described as...
Classics-Based Writing Resource / Poetry
by Janice Campbell · Published January 5, 2016 · Last modified May 11, 2017
To Winter by William Blake (1757 – 1827) O Winter! bar thine adamantine doors: The north is thine; there hast thou built thy dark Deep-founded habitation. Shake not thy roofs Nor bend thy pillars...
by Janice Campbell · Published December 15, 2015 · Last modified March 6, 2021
“A cold coming we had of it . . . “ Journey of the Magi, by T. S. Eliot Here are two readings of “Journey of the Magi” by T. S. Eliot. The first reading...
Classics-Based Writing Resource / Elocution / Poetry
by Janice Campbell · Published November 6, 2015 · Last modified May 11, 2017
“The Roman Sentinel” by Ward M. Florence was included in many elocution books of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In this pre-television era, families and friends entertained one another with performances of...
Classics-Based Writing Resource / Poetry
by Janice Campbell · Published July 31, 2015 · Last modified April 26, 2017
There are poems especially suitable for memorization and recitation, and George MacDonald’s “The Wind and the Moon” is an excellent example. The rhythm and cadence of the language is delightful to young readers young...
Classics-Based Writing Resource / Poetry
by Janice Campbell · Published May 2, 2015 · Last modified April 26, 2017
“The Fly” as it originally appeared. The Fly by William Blake Little fly, Thy summer’s play My thoughtless hand Has brushed away. Am not I A fly like thee? Or art not thou A man like...
What did contemporary scholars think of Edgar Lee Masters (1868-1950) during his lifetime? Here’s an interesting biography and analysis published in 1918, written by popular Yale professor William Lyon Phelps. Edgar Lee Masters was...
Classics-Based Writing Resource / Poetry
by EILeditor · Published January 8, 2015 · Last modified August 17, 2020
THE VILLAGE BLACKSMITH by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Under a spreading chestnut-tree The village smithy stands; The smith, a mighty man is he, With large and sinewy hands; And the muscles of his brawny arms...
Robert Frost Resources Robert Lee Frost (1874 – 1963) was a highly-regarded American poet known for realistic depictions of New England rural life as well as his use of American colloquial speech. His work used homespun...
In the Bleak Midwinter by Christina Georgina Rossetti In the bleak midwinter Frosty wind made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, Water like a stone; Snow had fallen, snow on snow, Snow on snow,...
Christina Rossetti Biography Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830 – 1894) was an English poet who wrote a variety of romantic, devotional, and children’s poems. She is famous for writing the words to the Christmas carol In the Bleak Midwinter. The Life...
Classics-Based Writing Resource / Poetry
by Janice Campbell · Published December 1, 2014 · Last modified December 23, 2020
Christina Rossetti’s classic Christmas carol, “In the Bleak Midwinter,” offers a vivid poetic look at the Incarnation. In a similar way, her less-known Advent poems describe the season of waiting and watching. Advent (1851) ‘Come,’ Thou dost say...
Here’s the Everyday Educator — our annual newsletter handout. It has book lists and helpful articles about homeschooling topics. We’d rather be sharing it in person, but for now, you can download the Everyday Educator here. I hope you enjoy it!
Resources
