Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) is best remembered for Treasure Island, but in 1885 he published a small book of poems written as if from inside a child’s head. A Child’s Garden of Verses draws on his own Scottish childhood, much of it spent ill in bed: toy ships sailing over the counterpane, the lamplighter passing at teatime, a shadow that grows and shrinks, and summer bedtimes that come while it is still light outside.
The poems are short, musical and easy to remember, which is why families and homeschoolers have used them for recitation and copywork for well over a century. Each poem below has its own page with the full text and a read-aloud.
New to Stevenson? Start with Rain, which is only four lines long, then try My Shadow and The Swing.
Press Play Once
Watch 13 poems from A Child’s Garden of Verses together in one 18-minute compilation video. ✦ Watch on YouTube
The Poems
Tap a title to read the full text and watch its read-aloud.
- Bed in SummerWhy go to bed while it is still light outside?
- The CowA friendly red-and-white cow and cream for apple tart.
- Escape at BedtimeA child slips outdoors and sees a sky full of stars.
- Foreign LandsThe whole world, seen from the top of a cherry tree.
- The HayloftPiles of fresh-cut hay become mountains to climb.
- The LamplighterWatching Leerie light the street lamps at teatime.
- The Land of CounterpaneSick in bed, a child turns the blankets into hills and seas.
- The Land of NodEach night, a journey alone to the land of dreams.
- The MoonThe moon shines on cats, bats and harbour quays.
- My ShadowA shadow that grows, shrinks and stays in bed.
- RainJust four lines long: a perfect first poem to learn.
- The SwingUp in the air and over the wall.
- The WindA child talks to the wind, which never shows itself.