What do you think of when you think of poetry? It can mean a variety of things to different people, but generally speaking poetry is a work of literature expressing emotion through the use of distinct rhythm and style. Learning to express emotion is not often prioritized and why many of us (me included) have such a hard time understanding and enjoying poetry. Instead, we are told as kids to dissect a poem for hidden meanings and intellectually find its message. But what if we approached poetry differently? Many of the first books read to us as children are rhythmic poetry. Picture books are often in verse. Their purposes are not only to help kids learn, but to emotionally engage with a story's ideas through rhyme. As children get older, rhyming seems to be emphasized quite a bit less in favor of other means of learning.