The 72 Best Poems for Middle and High School

For the English teacher, there may be no more difficult task than wooing struggling readers into a love of poetry. The measured language, frequent “double meanings,” and invisible rule-following or rule-breaking all combine to trouble even the most engaged students, often leading to a level of repulsion and distrust engendered by few other art forms. In other words, lots of kids hate poetry and think it’s dumb, and it’s our job to convince them that that’s maybe not true. In the worthy and noble pursuit of changing that perception, I humbly offer a list of my favorite poems for use in the English classroom. I also attempt to offer as much relevant lesson-planning information as I can to help you decide which works are right for your students.

First, here are the five poems students are not allowed to leave my room without reading:

#1 “The Rose that Grew from Concrete” by Tupac Shakur

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Synopsis: The writer compares his childhood to a rose growing from concrete in this brief yet powerful poem.

Reading Level: 6th grade+

Themes: Growing Up, Great Expectations, Stereotypes

Literary Devices: Metaphor, Memoir

Student Interest Level: 10/10

Notes: Author is one of the most influential artists in American music history, and his life story is captivating in its own right. He has a lot of songs that are great for comparison work or just reading/analyzing on their own. The author’s biography obviously encourages interest (especially among males) and offers the opportunity to discuss the place of a writer in his work.

#2 “Mosquitoes” by Aimee Nezuhkamatetil

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Synopsis: A young woman observes the changes in the relationship between herself and her star-gazing father in this call-back to Robert Hayden’s “Those Winter Sundays.”

Reading Level: 7th grade+

Themes: Family, Loss, Growing Up

Literary Devices: Time lapse

Student Interest Level: 9/10

Notes: Great poem to compare to the landmark poem it is modeled after.

#3 “The Gift” by Li Young Lee

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Synopsis: A son revisits a small childhood moment with his father as he removes a splinter from his wife’s hand, attempting to conjure the same gentle nature with which his father once treated him.

Reading Level: 9th grade+ (worth a shot in middle school, but certainly not a straightforward read even for high school)

Themes: Memory, Role Model, Familial and Romantic Love

Literary Devices: Metaphor, Interaction with Reader

Student Interest Level: 8/10

Notes: Fascinating writer biography

#4 “Sonnet 18” by William Shakespeare

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Synopsis: The narrator addresses the object of his affection, primarily comparing her to the best qualities of summer.

Reading Level: 9th grade+; Again, worth a shot in middle school, but the language is intimidating to say the least

Themes: Love, Selfishness, Eternity

Literary Devices: Metaphor, Analogy, Simile, Rhyme Scheme, Meter, Sonnet form (obviously)

Student Interest Level: 7/10