How poems can instill an appreciation for animals and the natural world in children

How does poetry stimulate the imagination? In this first assignment you will examine its role in the development of appreciation in the natural world and in developing imagination in children.

Select one poem from among those read this week in each of the following sections:

Animals and Nature

Poems to Stimulate the Imagination

Verse, Riddles and Wordplay, or Nonsense

Write a 350- to 700-word paper wherein you explain the following:

Your choice of poems

How poems can instill an appreciation for animals and the natural world in children

The role of rhythms, moods, images, and patterns in your chosen poems

How the rhythms, moods, images, and patterns in your chosen poems add to or detract from the poem

How poems can stimulate imagination in children

The benefits of teaching poetry to children