Poetry & literacy resources by published children's poet.
I also lead poetry workshops for UK primary schools.
Website: katewilliamspoet.com
Book news - Squeak! Squawk! Roar! Animal poems - out 9th January '25. Publisher: Otter-Barry Books.
Poetry & literacy resources by published children's poet.
I also lead poetry workshops for UK primary schools.
Website: katewilliamspoet.com
Book news - Squeak! Squawk! Roar! Animal poems - out 9th January '25. Publisher: Otter-Barry Books.
An inspiring seascape with gaps to write words and phrases in, for Yrs 2-6, as a starter sheet for poetry or creative writing, or a picture poem in its own right, use adaptable for different aims, ages and abilities. Also provided: the picture free from word gaps; guide sheet for teachers.
The 15 white writing slots in and around this inviting scene offer scope for expressive describing words, similes and phrases.
GUIDE: the accompanying teacher’s guide sheet provides a comprehensive list of word and simile ideas for use as spurs and examples for students.
USES: Literacy - building vocabulary, simile-writing, preparing for poetry or descriptive writing;
Topic enhancement: a simple, effective way to enthuse pupils in topics, e.g. seaside, ocean, seasons, weather, water, coastlines, sea pollution or global warming, while also enhancing literacy.
Time filler: offers learning through fun for any spare 10 minutes.
See my other words-in-gaps sheets too.
Sea-themed haiku poetry - lesson plan, including 3 frames with gaps to fill, 3 starter lines, information about haiku and how they work, warm-up tips, and a whirl of ocean thoughts to spur discussion and writing ideas.
The sea has wonderful potential as a poetic theme, possessing such a wealth of features and variables, including many contradictory ones: it can be both deep and shallow, warm and freezing, colourful or grey as iron, gentle or savage. It’s fresh, yet ancient, fun, yet formidable. It offers up a kaleidoscope of colours, sounds and moods. A haiku looks so small and simple, yet it can convey any concept you like, with impact.
For more themes, see my Trees, Birds, Butterfly, and Dragon Haiku sheets too.
Rhyming couplets to celebrate the end of the school year with your class. Pick and build together, perhaps adding in your own contributions too. Set to music? Perform in assembly? Lots of fun and food for thought as well in these two pages of specially crafted rhymes. I’m a well-published children’s poet, and use my rhymes with children in my school workshops. They bring lessons and learning alive for children, also building self-confidence and PSHE skills.
Please note: rhymes presented in random order.
Here’s a summery video-poem, with music & pictures:
https://youtu.be/wdQJtlPJpeQ
Young children will enjoy picking an item or more from this exciting jungle scene to complete the given phrase below - I can see…, sounding out the word and having a go at writing it. If help is needed in getting started, help children identify and select an item from the picture (e.g. tiger, flower, spider), and clarify the first sound and letter. Able writers could add a describing word or extra items. Colouring could be presented as a reward for the writing effort. This resource promotes an understanding of the natural world, including plants, animals and mini-beasts, and the concept of jungle or rain forest, supporting related studies. It also promotes literacy, fine motor control, colour sense, shape and pattern appreciation, and more. See my other wildlife writing + colouring sheets for a variety.
Bring fun and laughter into your space studies with this two-page, quick-fire roll of crazy, snappy rhymes about aliens, rockets, stars and more! Most are couplets, with a few 4-line verses too, and all are bonkers! They’ll inspire variations and brand new rhymes from your class, boosting their literacy skills.
The rhymes are my own, and I’ve used some in my space poetry sessions.
TIPS for class rhymes - I recommend starting with “space”, eliciting a list of single words that rhyme with it to write below. Then fill up the line leading up to “space”, e.g. I saw an alien up in space, and finally think up a line to end with your rhyming word, e.g. She was doing up her lace. Have fun!
**SEE ALSO ** - PLANET poetry frame (Yrs 2-4) - https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/planet-poetry-frame-ys-2-4-12018025 + Planet picture-poem frame (KS2) - https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/planet-picture-poem-frame-ks2-guidance-sheet-11886984
This attractive ocean picture and simple phrase-starter will inspire young children to get writing and colouring. The Ideas Sheet offers suggestions for warm-up, word-prompting, similes and further development from this simple resource.
See also my Phonics in the Sea - 10 big, bright words to read on a seaside photo: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/phonics-in-the-sea-10-words-to-read-12112315
Robin colouring sheet for young children. An attractive, educational, black and white drawing of a young robin, just hatched, cracked egg nearby, in a springtime setting. Clear lines to shade between, with interesting shapes and colours to consider. See my other colouring sheets (mostly approx. pp. 6-8 in my catalogue), including hedgehog, squirrel, rabbit, butterfly, meadow and seaside.
This haiku-writing support on the theme of the Coronavirus offers a complete lesson plan for poetry development. It includes 6 haiku frames with gaps to fill, 2 example poems written by this writer (published poet), tips for preparation, guidance and development, and (at the start) key information about haiku and how they work.
This thorough and clearly presented teacher resource will support poetry, literacy, PSHE, pandemic and lockdown discussion, current affairs discussions, and even maths (syllable counting)!
Haiku are fun for older children, being short and offering the syllable number challenge. See my other haiku frames here for more.
A fun, attractive, seasonal writing and colouring sheet for creative expression and language-stretching, celebrating autumn leaves - their movements and colours. Similes, action words and description are invited on the lines, which wave like the floating leaves.
Preparation: let children watch leaves flying and falling, and gather some to inspect and spin. Discuss the leaves’ movements through the air - gliding, floating, darting, whooshing, dancing, skipping, cartwheeling, etc. Also discuss the colours, eliciting exotic ones - lemon yellow, crimson, bronze… Think up similes together too, before handing out the sheets.
See also my easier versions, and other leaf and tree writing resources, for a wide range.
Autumn leaves picture poem activities. Writing and colouring sheets for all stages from Reception to Ys 2-3. Describing words, similes, movement words and more are invited on these beautiful, inspiring, leafy sheets. Supports seasonal study and literacy together.
Warm up tip: combine with outdoor fun watching leaves blowing off trees and gathering fallen ones. Examine, discuss and launch them together, then fly and spin like leaves yourselves, building language and imagery as you go.
Very popular in my workshops.
Sixteen animal writing & colouring sheets for young children, supporting phonic and letter recognition, handwriting, spelling, animal name learning, animal and nature appreciation, colouring control, colour differentiation, and lots of fun!
Animals: dogs, cats, rabbit, frog, robin, hen, hedgehog, squirrel, fish, fox, bats, pigs, butterfly and snail.
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Attractively illustrated phonics writing sheet, with pale colours (assorted) for writing over.
Text - 3 lines:
hello hens
hello bat
hello big dog
There is also a ‘hello’ heading to colour in.
These simple words make meaningful sentences - cheerful greetings, engaging children and helping them to start reading.
I have many other phonics sheets in this catalogue.
‘My leaf’ is the title of this colouring sheet, but there are several extra leaves, of different shapes, floating and falling around the main one, reflecting the variety of leaf types to be found in our woods and parks. Some of the leaves are curling, perhaps representing autumn or just their natural tendency to curl and twist.
**SEE ALSO - **
**Mini-beasts colouring sheet - https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/minibeasts-colouring-sheet-12049563 + **
Butterfly colouring sheet - https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/butterfly-colouring-sheet-12043732 +
3 colouring sheets with tints + hints (nature-themed) - https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/colouring-sheets-with-tints-hints-3-11929704
Sh words to read and write, illustrated:
fish, ship, shark, shell .
Text in soft colours for over-writing. Lines below for re-writing, independently.
‘sh’ can also be over-written, at top and bottom of this full, A4 page.
Simple, attractive, motivating activity. See my other Phonics sheets for more sound-writing.
4 star-themed activities for young children:
Sparkly star - phonics + hand-writing,
My star is - creative writing (3 grades),
Hello Star! - action rhyme + development ideas,
Star colouring sheet.
Halloween fun! A sheet of magic spell rhyming couplets to complete - all guided towards happy, innocent wishes.
Four couplet frames + two blank lines for an independent one.
Example:
Wind, rain, snow and sun -
Let today be __ and fun!
PS: See my new Poetry How-To Videos, featuring Fireworks, Dragons & Space - so far: Kate Williams - YouTube
This is a punchy, fun, rhyming poem that raises awareness of, and concern about, the climate crisis. I wrote it with schools in mind and am offering it free, as with all my climate crisis poems. (More to come.)
This 61-word, springtime story is easy to read.
Newly independent readers will enjoy the little tale unaided, while those on the brink may need a little support as they sound out the words or make semi-informed guesses from the context.
See my other stories for more confidence-building reading practice.
This funny 60-word story is easy to read.
Newly independent readers will enjoy reading it alone, while those on the brink will benefit from adult support as they sound out the words or make wise guesses.
The text offers a wide range of phonics and familiar words, while keeping the reader engaged.
See my other stories for more reading practice.
A woodland poem example, featuring description, presented over a colourful autumn wood photo.
Writing frame also included.
Repetition of the opening line also features in this simple format.
**Offers a framework and idea spurs **for KS2 writers, and for KS1 verbal contributions.
Warm-up: go outside to experience trees (and woods?) with all the senses. Then discuss - what did the children notice? What creatures might live there, and what are they like? How would the trees be in different seasons? What might they be like on Halloween night? Enact trees together, then pretend you’re walking through a wood, finding “treasures”.
You’ll find more poem guides and poetry themes here at my TES shop.