"The thing is," Charlotte Mason said in a book she wrote for children, "to keep your eye upon words and wait to feel their force and beauty; and, when words are so fit that no other words can be put in their places, so few that none can be left out without spoiling the sense, and so fresh and musical that they delight you, then you may be sure that you are reading Literature, whether in prose or poetry. A great deal of delightful literature can be recognised only by this test." (Ourselves Book I)

This book contains a selection of poems carefully chosen for the use of students using the AmblesideOnline Curriculum, Year Six, but enjoyable for those of all ages. In addition, we have included our own biographical and teaching notes.

These are not just poems: they are friends who touched our hearts, made us smile, helped us see the world in a new way, helped us give words to what we were already seeing.