There is a funny train of thought about summer poems for kids and that is, why study them? Ok, so maybe it isn’t “funny” but it is a trap I fell into myself and before we hop into these great poems about summer, I want to explain why I think they are a good idea to read with your kids.
One might think that if the kids are on summer vacation, why make them study poems about summer? Why even bother creating this roundup of fun poems about summer for kids? Let’s make a list and maybe I can convince you what a good idea this is.
- Poetry is enjoyable and should be encouraged as casual reading just like fiction
- These can be used as summer poems for school for those of you who school year round
- These can also be used as summer poems for school for those of you in the southern hemisphere who are actually in session during the summer months
- Poetry teaches the cadence of language
- Poetry teaches kids to use words to express their thoughts and feelings
- Poetry increases vocabulary
- These poems about summer for kids increase imaginations and encourage word pictures
- Poems about summer for kids help them see what they have to be grateful for (these gratitude journals are great for that as well!)
- Research shows that poetry makes kids better learners
- Poetry helps build early literacy skills
- These poems about summer for kids will build an awareness of words
I’ve divided these poems up into the following categories, however, most of them fit more than one so if you don’t see what you are looking for, keep scrolling, it might be here yet!
- Short summer poems
- End of summer poems
- Famous summer poems
- Summer poems that rhyme
Short Summer Poems
Our kids will enjoy the short summer poems best if they are not loving this study, so this is a great place to start for your reluctant poets.
Mud by Polly Chase Boyden
If you’ve ever walked barefoot after a summer rain, you might agree with this poet!
Mud is very nice to feel
All squishy-squash between the toes!
I’d rather wade in wiggly mud
Than smell a yellow rose.
Nobody else but the
rosebush knows
How nice mud feels
Between the toes.
The Book of Nature by Charter Keeler
There are many good books, my child,
And a very good book for you
Is the book that is hid in the greenwood wild,
All bound in a cover of blue.
‘Tis the book of the birds and the bees,
Of the flower, and the fish in the brook:
You may learn how to read if you go to the
Trees
And open your eyes and look.
Summer Song by William Carlos Williams
Wanderer moon
smiling a
faintly ironical smile
at this
brilliant, dew-moistened
summer morning,—
a detached
sleepily indifferent
smile, a
wanderer’s smile,—
if I should
buy a shirt
your color and
put on a necktie
sky-blue
where would they carry me?
In the Mountains on a Summer Day by Li Po
Gently I stir a white feather fan,
With open shirt sitting in a green wood.
I take off my cap and hang it on a jutting stone;
A wind from the pine-trees trickles on my bare head.
End of Summer Poems
There is something wonderful about seasons, the way they ebb and flow, providing the changes we need whether or not we think we do. The end of summer is no different!
The Summer’s End by Patricia A Fleming
The familiar rhythm of the cricket’s chirps
Create the soundtrack for each day,
Echoing Summer’s end
And that Autumn’s on her way.
The stifling heat of the summer sun
Is now tempered by the clouds.
Those fluffy, cotton August clouds,
That soft breezes push about.
Shadows falling everywhere
As the sun plays peek-a-boo.
Losing her strength with each new day,
A sure sign that summer is through.
As the lazy, carefree summer days,
Reluctantly draw to an end.
Excitement grows for what’s ahead,
As school days and the Fall begin.
And no matter how the years may pass,
And how old I come to be,
I’ll always love this time of year,
As it holds such fond memories
Of sitting with my childhood friends,
Recalling all our fun
While running, swimming, and riding bikes
Beneath the summer sun.
And sharing all our hopes and dreams.
As the future stirs us on.
Knowing as we sit on that late August eve,
Summer’s ending, but her memory lives on.
But there’s also a haunting sadness sometimes.
That I feel when those dark shadows fall.
And that my greatest adventures in life
Are just memories, now aroused by those sweet cricket calls.
A Song for Twilight by Nancy Byrd Turner
This poem is not about the end of summer, but the end of the day.
In all the folds of heave, the stars
Are still as huddled sheep.
The tired birds, their songs all said,
In treetops are asleep.
A slow wind walks the quiet world
With little steps and light,
And sings a drowsy lullaby-
Good night, good night, good night.
Famous Summer Poems
It was difficult to choose which poems to put in the famous summer poems category because I have no idea how to gauge how well known they are. The summer poems for kids in this category come from well known poets.
Bed in Summer by Robert Louis Stevenson
In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candle-light.
In summer, quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.
I have to go to bed and see
The birds still hopping on the tree,
Or hear the grown-up people’s feet
Still going past me in the street.
And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play,
To have to go to bed by day?
Summer in the south by Paul Laurence Dunbar
The oriole sings in the greening grove
As if he were half-way waiting,
The rosebuds peep from their hoods of green,
Timid and hesitating.
The rain comes down in a torrent sweep
And the nights smell warm and piney,
The garden thrives, but the tender shoots
Are yellow-green and tiny.
Then a flash of sun on a waiting hill,
Streams laugh that erst were quiet,
The sky smiles down with a dazzling blue
And the woods run mad with riot.
Summer Stars by Carl Sandburg
Bend low again, night of summer stars.
So near you are, sky of summer stars,
So near, a long-arm man can pick off stars,
Pick off what he wants in the sky bowl,
So near you are, summer stars,
So near, strumming, strumming,
So lazy and hum-strumming.
Warm Summer Sun by Mark Twain
Warm summer sun,
Shine kindly here,
Warm southern wind,
Blow softly here.
Green sod above,
Lie light, lie light.
Good night, dear heart,
Good night, good night.
Summer Poems that Rhyme
These summer poems are great for Kindergarten, preschool, and any other young learner. While most of the poems in this post rhyme, these ones have particularly good rhythm and are enjoyable to both read and listen to.
Barefoot Days by Rachel Field
In the morning, very early,
That’s the time I love to go
Barefoot where the fern grows curly
And the grass is cool between each toe,
On a summer morning – O!
On a summer morning!
That is when the birds go by
Up the sunny slopes of air,
And each rose has a butterfly
Or a golden bee to wear;
And I am glad in every toe –
Such a summer morning – O!
Such a summer morning!
Summer’s Splendor by the Sea by Patricia L Cisco
Summer’s splendor by the sea,
a gentle, blue serenity.
Caressing rays of golden sun,
blushing, bronzing all who come.
Enticed by its romantic lure,
lovers stroll the sandy shore.
Hushing rhythm of the waves
and salty, misty ocean sprays.
Sea birds echo call of cries,
pierce the deep blue azure skies.
Dolphins dancing on their way
across the sea out to the bay.
A glistening, shiny, sun-soaked day.
All young and old alike at play,
building castles by the sea,
jumping waves and spirits free.
No place on earth as perfect to be
as summer’s splendor by the sea!
Summer Time by William Wilson
The fun thing about this poem is that it is also an acrostic poem. It’s well done and an excellent example of this style of poetry.
Sun shines on your skin and mine
Until it sets way after nine.
Memories made with a cold drink in hand.
Moments to cherish with feet in the sand.
Everyone laughing, smiles on every face.
Remember the moments, those were the days.
Turn up the music, sing it out loud.
Indigo skies, no sign of a cloud.
Mutter the words that no one will know.
Everlasting memories; where does time go?
Afternoon on a Hill by Edna St.Vincent Millay
I will be the gladdest thing
Under the sun!
I will touch a hundred flowers
And not pick one.
I will look at cliffs and clouds
With quiet eyes,
Watch the wind blow down the grass,
And the frass rise.
And when the lights begin to show
Up from the town,
I will mark which must be mine,
And then start down!
Check out the rest of the series!
https://lessonsfromhome.co/14-autumn-poems-for-kids-to-put-you-in-the-mood-for-fall/
https://lessonsfromhome.co/14-delightful-winter-poems-for-kids-of-all-ages/
15 Delightful Spring Poems for Children
I love summer! Summer is hot.
It’s sun and shade.
It’s water to wade.
It’s frogs and bugs.
It’s grass for rugs.
It’s eating outside.
It’s a tree-swing ride.
It’s tomatoes and corn.
It’s dew in the morn.
It’s dogs and boys
And lots of noise.
It’s a hot sunny sky.
It’s summer. That’s why…..
I love summer.
In the summer when the days are hot,
I like to find a shady spot,
And hardly move a single bit
And sit, and sit, and sit, and sit.
Summer sun in the sky
Shining, shining up so high
Makes it warm for outside fun
To play at the park and run
To swim, hike, and fish
And go on a picnic, if you wish!
Poems about Summer Rain
Sometimes summer rain will ruin our plans, but more often then not, we find it refreshing. On my recent trip to Florida, I was surprised at how it rained every day there in the summer. It was not at all like the weather in my northern midwest home.
Summer Rain by Debbie Hasbrook
I know it can’t be summer,
It’s raining and raining outside.
The thunder cracks and lightening smacks,
I’m glad that I’m inside.
Then all of a sudden the sun peeks through,
As if to say hello,
I guess it needs to rain sometimes,
For the flowers and trees to grow.
I hope you love this round up of summer poems for kids as much as I do! Which was your child’s favorite? Be sure to leave a comment below!
About the author
