Best Poetry Homeschool Curriculum for Middle School

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Top Picks for Homeschool Poetry Curricula for Middle School:

Poetry is a wonderful part of language arts. While most language arts homeschool programs do include some poetry study, some homeschooling families like to study poetry in a more focused way. If you’re looking for a homeschool poetry curriculum for your middle school student, you’ll find there are now several great options on the market. Some of these programs are unit or semester-length studies, while some are intended to be used over the course of a whole school year or even over multiple years. You’ll also find that some programs focus exclusively on studying famous poets and memorizing their works, while others are geared more toward introducing poetic devices and teaching students how to actually write poems themselves. 

We’ve listed some of our favorite homeschool poetry curricula at the top of this article. For more information on each one, keep reading. If you’re interested in other homeschool language arts curriculum, check out our articles Best Language Arts Homeschool Curriculum – Middle School and Best Homeschool Writing Curriculum for Middle School. And if you’re looking for homeschool poetry curriculum for an older or younger student, see our recommendations at Best Poetry Homeschool Curriculum for High School and Best Poetry Homeschool Curriculum for Elementary. 

Grammar of Poetry

Matt Whitling

If you’re looking for a full-year poetry curriculum that really zones in on the mechanics of writing poetry, consider Matt Whitling’s Grammar of Poetry. Whereas some programs focus primarily on famous poets and their works, this one is organized according to central poetic devices such as simile, rhyme, and meter. Students will learn what each of these devices is and how it is effectively used in poetry. Through a variety of exercises, they will practice using these devices in their own writing. 

The value of this course really extends beyond just learning to write poetry. This curriculum teaches a great deal about the English language itself, and it therefore might be a suitable stand-in for any middle school language arts program, especially if your student has already learned many of the fundamentals of middle school language arts, has an interest in poetry or writing, and is self-motivated.

To begin this program, you’ll need to purchase the Grammar of Poetry text and the accompanying Grammar of Poetry: Teacher’s Edition. Although not required, a Grammar of Poetry DVD Course is also available and does an excellent job of guiding students through the program’s core concepts.

Poetry for the Grammar Stage

Memoria Press

If you’re looking for a curriculum that will introduce your student to great classic poetry while also teaching him or her how to effectively read and understand poetry, consider the wonderful curricula options offered by Memoria Press. The poems in this program are chosen to correlate with the literary selections from Memoria Press’s literature guides, but the program itself can be easily used on its own or as a supplement to any good middle school language arts curriculum. 

This program is taught poem by poem, making it easy to organize one or two lessons around a particular poem. After each poem is read, the student is given several tasks to complete, such as copywork, vocabulary study, a poetry analysis exercise, and a set of comprehension questions. Blank boxes are also included in which artistically-inclined students can make an illustration for the poem. The accompanying Teacher Guide gives examples of suitable answers. 

This program is intended to be used over a four-year period from grades 3-7, but in reality it can be started at any point in the late elementary or middle school years, and depending on your pace it need not necessarily take a full four years to complete. Students who have advanced beyond this program or are ready for a more challenging poetry curriculum may want to start Memoria Press’ British poetry series, written for grades 8 and up.

To begin Poetry for the Grammar Stage, you’ll need to purchase the Poetry for the Grammar Stage Anthology, Poetry for the Grammar Stage Student Guide, and Poetry for the Grammar Stage Teacher Guide, all available at both Christian Book and on the Memoria Press website.

Cottage Press Poetry Readers

Another wonderful resource for teaching poetry in the homeschool setting is the multi-volume Poetry Reader series from Cottage Press. Cottage Press is known for its gentle, nature- and art-inspired language arts curricula inspired by the philosophies of Charlotte Mason. Mason believed that poetry should delight and uplift, and these readers embody that ideal. Their structure is intended to allow students to really enjoy each poem one by one, ideally in the family setting. There is no testing or assessment, and students of all ages can work through these readers at whatever pace they choose.

We love the structure of these readers. Each one features three different poets, providing extensive biographical information and including at least a dozen examples of his or her poetry. Volume 1 focuses on Burns, Tennyson, and Herbert; Volume 2 on Wordsworth, Milton, and Longfellow; and Volume 3 on Keats, Donne, and Scott. Three more volumes, yet to be published, are planned in this series, and they will undoubtedly feature more of the best poets in the English language. Selections from Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets are also included in each reader. 

Each volume of these Poetry Readers can be used over a full school year of study, or longer depending on your pace. Students who work through all of the currently available and in-progress volumes will undoubtedly obtain a comprehensive and rich foundation in poetry, as well as a deep love for the poems themselves.

Moving Beyond the Page Poetry Units

If you are looking for a unit-study approach to teaching poetry to your middle schooler, consider the excellent options available from Moving Beyond the Page. This curriculum is a great option for kids who are self-motivated, creative, and love learning. Moving Beyond the Page uses an approach that combines Charlotte Mason, Classical, Waldorf, Montessori, and Unschooling teaching philosophies. One of the hallmarks of its curriculum is the way it provides a unique theme-based interdisciplinary approach to learning. While this program is not religious, it does aim to teach positive character traits through its lessons. 

Moving Beyond the Page offers three different poetry unit studies for kids in the middle school years. While many homeschoolers use these poetry packages in conjunction with other Moving Beyond the Page curricula, they can also be used as stand-alone units. Each one will take 2-3 weeks depending on your pace. 

The first of these is the Poetry unit intended for ages 9-11. Many students that use this unit are fifth graders, but it is also appropriate for kids in sixth grade. The unit covers themes such as parts of speech, rhyme, haiku, art and poetry, and the poetry of Robert Frost. The second option is the British Poetry unit, intended for kids ages 11-13. Students will explore poetry themes including rhyme and meter, figurative language, and tone. The third option available is the Great American Poets unit, intended for kids ages 12-14. This unit will consider important poetry themes and devices within the context of America’s great poets, from Edgar Allen Poe to writers of the Harlem Renaissance. 

These units can be purchased as individual packages at the Moving Beyond the Page website. They are available in both hard copy and online formats.

A Young Scholar’s Guide to Poetry

Bright Ideas Press

If you are looking for a wonderful, year-long poetry course that will expose your child to some of the most famous poets in the English language and teach the fundamentals of analyzing poetry, we highly recommend A Young Scholar’s Guide to Poetry by Bright Ideas Press. This is a hands-on program that incorporates maps, timelines, puzzle cards, games, coloring pages, and more. Students will study the biographies of famous poets while also learning how to effectively read and analyze poems.

We love the structure of this 32-week program, which introduces students to a new poet each week. These poets are among the most beloved in the American and British traditions, and include figures such as William Shakespeare, Dylan Thomas, Edward Lear, Emily Dickinson, Edgar Allen Poe, and Robert Frost. Each lesson contains two parts: the first part provides a biography of the poet, while the second uses an example of his or her work to teach about a certain theme or device in poetry, such as structure, sonnet, haiku, or free verse. 

A Young Scholar’s Guide to Poetry is available as a PDF download at Christian Book.

Linguistic Development Through Poetry Memorization

Andrew Pudewa/Institute for Excellence in Writing

If you are looking for a program that will have your child memorizing many great poems, and retaining those poems in their memories for a lifetime, consider Linguistic Development Through Poetry Memorization by Andrew Pudewa and the Institute for Excellence in Writing. This curriculum is unique in the extent to which it focuses on the value of memorization, an important learning tool that has been abandoned within many modern educational philosophies. Following five levels of difficulty, students will learn over 100 famous poems and speeches during the course of this program, which will likely take more than a single school year to complete.

One of the wonderful things about this program is the audio CDs, which allow students to listen to the poem and speech selections throughout the day, in the car, on their own device, or however you as the parent see fit. The teacher’s manual provides an easy-to-follow structure for leading your child step-by-step through the memorization process, beginning with shorter, simpler poems and eventually building up to longer, more challenging ones. This curriculum can be used at any age and is an excellent supplement to any language arts program you may be using. The Teacher’s Manual, Student Book, and CDs can be purchased individually or as a set.

Poetry Comprehension

Mark Twain Media

If you are looking for an inexpensive, workbook-style poetry curriculum, consider Poetry Comprehension by Mark Twain Media. Designed specifically for kids in grades 6-8, this curriculum uses short, simple lessons to teach important poetic devices such as allusion, metaphor, and simile. It also introduces students to many classic poems, such as Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven” and Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken”. Assessment questions are included to make sure students understand the concepts they are learning. 

Although this curriculum is fairly simple, lacking some of the bells and whistles of other programs, it nevertheless will provide students with a solid introduction to poetry. Most middle school students will be able to work through this curriculum on their own, especially those with strong language arts skills. Lessons are short and focus on one concept at a time. This program requires no prep time for parents, and it’s a great overall option if you’re looking for a straightforward and concise introduction to poetry for your middle schooler. 

Conclusion

If you are looking for a homeschool poetry curriculum for your middle school student, you have some great options to choose from. If you are homeschooling younger or older kids, don’t forget to also check out our articles Best Poetry Homeschool Curriculum for High School and Best Poetry Homeschool Curriculum for Elementary. And if you’re looking for other language arts curriculum for your homeschooled middle schooler, see Best Language Arts Homeschool Curriculum – Middle School and Best Homeschool Writing Curriculum for Middle School.