This year’s theme is LIGHT. We have wonderful education resources available to you here, to use in the run up to National Poetry Day 2015 on 08 October. Whatever you do, share your plans with us on Twitter with hashtag #nationalpoetryday.

Here is a sheaf of glorious lesson plans and activities on the theme of Remember. There is something for every age group and really excellent poets are involved, so download and read through them all when seeking inspiration. If you like any one in particular, let its creators know: all the NPD poetry partners – from England, Scotland and Wales – have been involved.

National Poetry Day 2017 is on 28 September and the theme is freedom. It’s about everybody sharing poetry, reading poetry, writing poetry, enjoying poetry, and living poetry! For schools this can be a chance to make more of something already enjoyed throughout the school or it can be a launch pad for new experience and enjoyment. Based on a four day festival of poetry run with Hull primary schools as part of the No Limits Learning Programme, here is a pack of tips and activity ideas to help schools celebrate poetry on National Poetry Day and beyond.

National Poetry Day 2017 is on 28 September and is a chance for everyone to share poetry, read poetry, write poetry, and enjoy poetry. Use this resource created by CLPE (Centre for Language in Primary Education) to inspire children to write their own poem based on Matt Goodfellow's When I Swing.

National Poetry Day (October 4th, 2018) is an annual celebration of poetry and all things poetical. It is about everybody sharing poetry, reading poetry, writing poetry and enjoying poetry. Use this pack of tips and activity ideas and join in the celebrations – not only on National Poetry Day itself but all year round. It’s full of activities schools can do (primary and secondary) and also contains book recommendations.

Born of Water: a reading and writing activity for KS3. For National Poetry Day 2013 by Mandy Coe. Based on the poems Tornado by Rachel Rooney and Fog by Carl Sandburg.

Use this magnificent new lesson plan to spark off classroom discussion and inspire students to write their own poetry. It is written by poet Cheryl Moskowitz and features a huge variety of poems, all loosely related to the theme of stars. This lesson plan features a poem by Christina Rossetti.

National Poetry Day 2017 is on 28 September. It’s about everybody sharing poetry, reading poetry, writing poetry, and enjoying poetry. This activity has been created specially by the Poetry School. The Poetry School is a national organisation running classes and projects to teach poetry. This resource features the poem The New Colossus by Emma Lazurus, which is engraved onto the Statue of Liberty in New York, as a starting point for discussion and a writing exercise.

Here’s a set of eight new poems for primary school children by five leading contemporary children’s poets. To keep in touch by Liz Brownlee Remembering by Liz Brownlee The Family Book by Brian Moses Poets are Photographers by Paul Cookson Remembering is our duty by Paul Cookson Dear Mug by Roger Stevens In an old dog’s memory by Brian Moses Whole body memory by Jan Dean

Cut up and shuffle the images and verses. For National Poetry Day 2013 by Mandy Coe. Designed to encourage close-reading and collaboration, this activity of matching different bodies/forms of water with its corresponding poem can be done in pairs or groups. Adapt the game for different age-groups by deleting the more obvious titles!

One of a series of National Poetry Day teacher resources on the theme of Messages. "A Note Can Be A Poem " draws on a celebrated short William Carlos William poem ('This is Just to Say'). The resource fosters creative and critical thinking around poetry and is part of a collaborative effort between the National Poetry Day partners, who include the Poetry Society, Apples and Snakes, and the Scottish Poetry Library. For KS3, KS4 and KS5

National Poetry Day 2017 is on 28 September. It’s about everybody sharing poetry, reading poetry, writing poetry, and enjoying poetry. This activity by Sophie McKeand, Young People’s Laureate for Wales, for Literature Wales, the National Company for the development of literature in Wales, uses the Mask of Anarchy by Shelley and a new poem specially written by Sophie to consider freedom, and poetry as a tool for this.

One of a series of National Poetry Day teacher resources on the theme of Messages. "Poetry in Frames" draws on the poetry of Taliesin. The resource fosters creative and critical thinking around poetry and is part of a collaborative effort between the National Poetry Day partners, who include Literature Wales, the Poetry Society, Apples and Snakes, and the Scottish Poetry Library. KS3 - KS4 - KS5

Use these posters to remember and to remind. These images, free to print out and share, make a great centrepiece for a poetry display on a wall. Or print out lots, use them in selfies and/or as the cover of a classroom/reading group anthology? Above all, share the results using #thinkofapoem, so that by the time National Poetry Day arrives, on October 2, you’re part of the biggest celebration of poetry ever held. Write out your favourite poem, print out a sticker, and even hold up the poster in Welsh.

A comprehensive poetry analysis lesson plan for KS3 English students that uses Casia Wiliam’s poem ‘Help’ to encourage students to think more deeply about poetic voices and different meanings a poet might be trying to convey. Includes a copy of Casia William’s poem as well as links to external websites which discuss climate change in more detail.

Featuring great poems around this year’s theme, Refuge, our free resources are full of ways to get students reading, discussing, performing, and writing – no matter their confidence level. They’re ready to go as worksheets, or you can use them as prompts and thought starters for your class activities. They’re designed by cross-curriculum experts to be used in all sorts of subject lessons, with materials available all the way from KS1 to KS5. By engaging your classes with poetry, you’ll give them their own refuge to express themselves and think about the world around them differently.

Handfish and Jellyfish: writing, games and paper cut-outs for KS1. For National Poetry Day 2013 by Mandy Coe. Based on a poem by Roger McGough This activity includes writing poems, performance, colouring in cut-outs and a film-clip – all exploring NPDs theme of ‘water’. Depending on your Year Group, this activity can be broken into a series of short activities, or linked together and expanded to include an exploration of the water cycle and writing a short poem on the journey of one drop of water.

Featuring great poems around this year’s theme, Refuge, our free resources are full of ways to get students reading, discussing, performing, and writing – no matter their confidence level. They’re ready to go as worksheets, or you can use them as prompts and thought starters for your class activities. They’re designed by cross-curriculum experts to be used in all sorts of subject lessons, with materials available all the way from KS1 to KS5. By engaging your classes with poetry, you’ll give them their own refuge to express themselves and think about the world around them differently.

Use this magnificent new lesson plan to spark off classroom discussion and inspire students to write their own poetry. It is written by poet Cheryl Moskowitz and features a huge variety of poems, all loosely related to the theme of stars. This lesson plan features a poem by Christina Rossetti.

Cut out the jellyfish and fill it with words or a poem. Hang them up with string to make a display. For National Poetry Day 2013 by Mandy Coe. Goes with the Handfish and Jellyfish lesson plan for KS1.