Poems for the Very Young Book

This book compiles a range of poetry for children of all ages ranging from themes such as difficulties in getting dressed, to memories of childhood games, to the completely and utterly nonsensical rhymes such as Ping-Pong: an onomatopoeia poem depicting the physical interaction between four playful canines in a park until a much larger dog intervenes and scares the brood off.

Michael Rosen's selection of poems keeps the reader entertained for hours. Some of the poems are not rhythmical at all, which for a young reader negates the idea of the book being solely about poems. This then opens up the child's mind to all possibilities and interpretations of various texts, poetic or not. I for one was fascinated with the concept and immediately I begun attempting my own versions of poems.

I would utilise this book during a KS2 English lesson to encourage children to write their own poems based on a topic of interest, for example; poems related to the highly televised events of the London 2012 Olympics. This would not only encourage children's English language skills but would also make children aware of what is taking place in the media at present, subsequently encouraging them to become more active.

'Poems for the very young' is not a book just for the very young as the title implies, but for people who are young at heart!!!