How to Get Kids Excited about Reading
Poetry: Make It Fun! 

1. Read poems that your audience will thoroughly enjoy.

2. Try to find poems that your audience can relate to. One very effective way is to match the audience with poems based on their personal interests.

3. Read poetry aloud, and/or recite it from memory. You will need to practice your reading and performance skills.

To make "performing" poetry fun:

• Perform in costume and with props. For example, "The Chap Who Disappeared" by John Ciardi (A Bad Case of the Giggles) could be read by someone in pyjamas.
• Use accents when performing poems. "I saw a Jolly Hunter" by David McCord (Kids Pick the Funniest Poems) is cute when read with a British accent.
• Use gestures when performing poems.
• Read poems together as duets.

4. Give your audience a chance to get into the act by performing poems interactively.

• Invite your audience to make the slurping, whistling, snapping, snoring sounds-as they come up in the poem.
• Ask your audience to supply sniffling and sneezing sounds, as needed.

5. Celebrate special occasions with poetry.

6. Read poetry every day, or as often as you can.