Courage Out Loud
A collection of poems
About being brave and
Facing your fears
25 Poems of Power
To be read aloud
Shared
Enjoyed
Performed
Considered
Discussed
Perfect poems
For moments
When we need
Reminding
Reassuring
That we are
Courageous too

A book to
Boost confidence
Inspire creativity
Nurture readers
Support writers
Celebrate courage
Validate feelings
In a range of
Real life scenarios

A book about
Word play
Choral speaking
Collaborative writing
The fun found in
The spoken word
In performing poetry

This brilliant book
Written by Joseph Coelho
Our current children’s laureate
And illustrated with
Vibrant joyful artwork by
Daniel Gray-Barnett
Is forming the focus
Of our work this week

We are going to
Read the poems
Perform the poems
Write our own versions
Of our favourite poems
We are going to illustrate
Joseph’s poems and
Our own
We are going to
Have fun with poetry
Exploring together
The magic of language
The power of words

DIVING
Is a great poem
About facing a fear
And linking that fear
To favourite fairy tales
Joseph encourages children
To think of a fear
That they have faced
And express how
It made them feel
With the help of
Characters
Settings and objects
From traditional tales
I cannot wait to do this
With my wee ones

A QUIET LITTLE WORD
Is a beautiful poem
That I feels lends itself
To choral speaking
To performing together
As a group
We are going to do this
Using our voices to
Create different volumes
Changes of rhythm
And add echoes
I cannot wait to get
Creative with this poem
About how words
Can make worries
Feel better

IN A CASTLE
Is a sestina
Sestinas use the same
Six ending words
In each verse
But in a different
Pattern each time
We are going to
Illustrate this poem
As Joseph suggests
In the book

WILL YOU READ?
This poem will
Resonate with many
Children and adults alike
Who do not like to speak out
Who worry about
Reading aloud
We are going to read
This poem in pairs
To support one another
And build up courage
We are going to
Experiment with using
Our voices in different ways
Just like Joseph
Suggests in the
Preface to this poem
About facing the fear
Of standing up and
Reading aloud to others

We love LIMERICKS
Here at Edspire HQ
They are great fun to
Read, write and
Perform with gusto!
We will have a lot
Of fun with these

EDDIE’S PAINTING
Reminds me of the book
Ish
It is a story about
Persistence
Resilience
About having the
Courage to keep on
Keeping on
To try, try and
Try again
Until you get it right
We will be talking
About the things
We work hard
The things we
Practise to make progress
And we will try
To recreate
Eddie’s painting

Joseph Coelho
Has such a talent
For sparking children’s
Imaginations
His ideas for
Exploring poetry
With children
Are wonderful
They are fun
They bring out
Children’s ideas
Build their confidence
They get them
Talking
Thinking
Feeling
Playing with words
The idea of writing
A poem that tells
The story of
Your search for
Your voice
Is genius!
I cannot wait to see
What my children
Come up with
In response to
FINDING YOUR VOICE

I cannot wait to see
What my children think
Bravery looks like
As they write poems
About unusual things
Being brave

I think that this book
Will help so many children
Find their brave
Face their fears
I think that this book
Will help so many children
Conjure confidence
Capture courage
With their poetry
And their in their
Daily lives

As a child
A teenager
As an adult
I have written poetry
Read poetry
Listened to poetry
I have always loved
Word play
Painting pictures
With words
As a teacher
As a parent
I love exploring poetry
With my children
And this book
Joseph’s other books
Joseph’s poetry prompts
And the works of
Many other talented poets
Provide the perfect
Place to start

Reading a poem is courageous
Will you be courageous today?