Remembering Poetry, Learn’t by Heart

There was a time when every schoolchild was expected to memorize poems and recite them aloud. (Am I dating myself when I remember having to stand in front of my 4th grade class and say Blake’s unforgettable lines, “Tyger, tyger, burning bright”?) Not so much these days, although Poetry Out Loud, the national recitation contest now in its 3rd year, is working to bring memorization and recitation back in a big way. And one Minnesota grandmother is doing her part:

from The Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune:
“Guest editorial: Dollar in pocket puts poem forever in heart,” by Kathleen Coskran
“I am now paying my grandchildren to memorize poetry. Like my mother, I too believe in the power of language to soothe and to heal; to inspire and to calm. Poetry is to be spoken aloud, learned by heart; a poem spoken in the music of your own voice becomes a part of you, and if you learn it when you are young, you will have it forever.”

What poems have you committed to memory? What do you think of this method of motivating kids to learn poems?