Explore and analyse poems, learn about the lives of great poets and find ideas for developing creative responses to poetry.
We have gathered together a range of resources from Art UK and our Partner Collections to inspire you. Some of the suggested resources are designed specifically for schools and teachers. Others are written for a general audience but could be used to provide ideas and contextual information for teaching, or might be useful for older students and lifelong learners.
Art UK: art and poetry resources
Ian Hamilton Finlay's visual poetry (Primary students)
Learn about the visual poetry of Scottish artist and writer Ian Hamilton Finlay and then have a go at creating artworks inspired by poetry and wordplay.
How can poetry be used to inspire art? (Secondary level students)
Find suggestions for analysing Dylan Thomas's poetry, discover how his words inspired Welsh painter Ceri Richards and explore activities for creating artworks inspired by poetry.
Aberystwyth University School of Art Museum and Galleries
Robert Burns and Kenny Hunter (Secondary level)
This resource includes an exploration of Robert Burns' poem To a Mouse written in 1785 and the sculpture Monument to a Mouse by Scottish artist Kenny Hunter inspired by the poem.
Bradford Museums & Galleries (Primary and Secondary students)
Bradford Museums & Galleries developed this resource in partnership with the National Literacy Trust Hub in Bradford, Bradford Council’s Music and Arts Service and the Bradford Literature Festival. It offers a wide range of stand-alone poetry activities for the classroom to encourage students to engage with creative writing and performance poetry.
IWM Refugees and Evacuees: Letters and Poetry (Primary and secondary students)
Explore the rhythms of words with writer and performance poet Hafsah Aneela Bashir and create a poem based on thoughts of home, using the letters of a teenage refugee as inspiration.
National Museum of Wales: From the Sky, I can see… (Primary students)
Use the story of amazing Welsh aeroplane pioneer Charles Horace Watkins and his plane Robin Goch as inspiration for a creative writing activity with this National Museum of Wales resource for primary students.
Oxford University: First World War Poetry Digital Archive
(All ages)
Discover the lives and work of the First World War poets and explore an online repository of over 7,000 items of text, images, audio, and video for teaching, learning, and research. The resource includes a series of specially developed educational resources.
The British Library: poetry and performance (Secondary students and 16+)
Listen to well-known figures read poetry by some of Britain and America’s most distinguished poets. Explore the connection between the poets' lives and their work, study interpretations of their poetry and access suggested classroom activities.
The Robert Burns Birthplace Museum is dedicated to the life of the Scottish Bard. Visit the Museum's website and find out about his life and work. Although not specifically designed for schools as a learning resource it can be used to support lesson plans and study.
National Trust for Scotland, Robert Burns Birthplace Museum
The National Library of Wales: Dylan Thomas (All ages)
This online exhibition celebrates the life and work of Dylan Thomas through archive materials from the National Library of Wales. The archive materials can be used to support lesson plans and study.
National Portrait Gallery: Picture the Poet (All ages)
See the faces of over 50 poets working in Britain today and explore accompanying resources that suggest ways in which photography and portraiture can support and shape creative poetry making.
