Storybird - A Favorite Resource

Do you struggle with poetry or find it hard to make more interesting for students? I recommend the website Storybird, one of my favorite resources for teaching poetry!

Storybird is a great website that I used to teach a poetry and short story unit to a grade 12 ELA course during a placement of mine.

Storybird allows you to set up an account as a teacher and set up your own class through a code which they enter then set up their account.

One of my students' projects on Storybird

I found this to be a great website to teach poetry, mainly to get my point across that poems can really be anything. They don't always have to rhyme, follow certain form or guidelines, etc. Storybird allows for the freedom for students to experiment with making poems but also scaffolds by providing the words for them. This was the selling feature that made me decide to use this website in the class to get students into poetry.

The students really enjoyed Storybird because it made writing poetry less daunting and actually enjoyable for once. They even made a few when I only asked for one! I was also impressed with the results of their Storybird projects.

The student first chooses a photo/illustration from Storybird. They get these illustrations from different artists around the world! This part of the Storybird process is what took the most amount of time with my students. Once they choose a photo, words appear on the sides of the screen for them to choose from. If they do not like the words supplied, they can click a refresh button and new words will come up.

Once finished, all of your class' work will be seen by your class only. There are privacy settings where you can choose to have work public or private. Students are able to comment and "like" fellow students' work as well! (Don't worry - there is an option for you to approve before they post comments!) By allowing students (and parents) to see and interact with student work, the students are motivated to put their best work forward.

A few of the many courses students can take!
Some for all grades!

Students can also earn crowns and badges through their writing. Ways to earn badges include writing every day, winning challenges, and "finding" special badges through different actions on Storybird. To earn crowns students must write every day on Storybird. These crowns can be used to download their own work to their computer. Crowns may also be used to "pay" for courses on writing that are offered through Storybird. Challenges are offered through Storybird where students can choose their challenge, but there will be a prompt or some sort of requirement for their writing.


Another feature that Storybird allows for is actually ordering the print or book that they create! I thought this was such a cool feature to have. They even have options to do a fundraiser for your own school.

If you ever find yourself having to teach poetry for any grade, Storybird is a great website to keep in mind! Watch this video to see what Storybird is all about!