Acrostic Poems for Young Learners

Kids these days have all kinds of distractions– TV, video games, computers– you name it. With all the technology so close at hand, it's easy for more traditional pastimes, such as reading, writing and poetry, to slide by the wayside. Yet if writing and poetry can be introduced in fun and exciting ways, children can learn to appreciate the finer things at an advantageous young age.

An acrostic poem is a great activity for poetry lovers (and poetry lovers to-be) of young ages. In an acrostic poem (pronounced ah-CROSS-tik), the beginning letter of each line spells a word, which is often the poem's theme. Example:

Charming feline,
Asleep on my lap,
Tabby purrs.

There are several different activities with acrostics to choose from, depending on the age and level of the participants.

Name Acrostic. Level = Easy
In the name acrostic, the poet begins each line with one letter from his or her name (or the name of the person whom the poem is being written for). Each letter corresponds to an adjective or short phrase that describes the person. Example:

Smart
Always laughing
Marvelous

This is a good way to teach adjectives to younger kids. Encourage them to think of several different adjectives for each letter. This kind of acrostic also works with objects, wherein the object spelled out is described.

Standard Acrostic. Level = Intermediate
Once the novelty of names and objects wears off, try having the young poets make acrostics for larger themes, such as emotions, love, the seasons, etc.

Double Acrostic. Level = Difficult
Older kids can participate in acrostic writing too! To give them an extra challenge, they will need to spell a word with the first letter of each line, and another word (or the same word) with the last letter of each line. Example:

Can't get along, and
Are always ready to
Tumble on the rug

Mnemonic Device. Level = Varied
Another great functions of acrostic poems is as mnemonic devices– memory helpers. Teaching children the planet names, months, and days of the week, can be made fun with acrostic poems. For example, a way to memorize the planets in the solar system:

My
Very
Excellent
Mother
Just
Served
Us
Nine
Pizzas

Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
Uranus
Neptune
Pluto

*Note: Those of you who subscribe to the Pluto's-Not-A-Planet theory may with to replace Nine Pizzas with Nachos.

Other mnemonic acrostic poems can be found in books or on the internet with a quick search. Or, if you're feeling adventurous, you can work with your young learners to come up with a fun acrostic of your own.


Writing poetry can be a great family activity– something to do on a rainy day, and can even be accompanied with other arts and crafts, such as drawing, painting, sculpting clay. Even in today's modern society, an appreciation and understanding of words can take us a long way.