Poetry Meets Children came to life in 2022 but started fully in 2024, shortly after I wrote A Tender Awakening, a book about empathy, happiness, and emotional intelligence, written in free verse. It wasn’t poetry tied to rigid lines and stanzas. It was raw, direct, and pure, just like children.
That book opened my eyes to a deeper longing: I wanted to raise kids who are emotionally aware, empathetic, and happy. Kids who understand that it’s okay to be different, and that they don’t need a template to be themselves.
Growing up, I didn’t have poetry, not in a way that was accessible or inviting. I wish someone had introduced me to it earlier, made it feel simple and alive, something I could use as a tool to express myself.
That gap became my motivation. I wanted to teach children not just poetry, but also how to feel. That’s how the poetry workbook was born. It covers the basics, figures of speech, forms of poetry, rhyme, even word games, but at its heart, it’s about helping them express who they are.
Because to me, poetry isn’t really about rhyme or rhythm. It’s about expression. And that’s what I want them to see. It’s not reserved for the wise or elite. It’s for everyone. It’s for them.
When I came to Kwara for NYSC, my primary assignment involved working with children. And I noticed something right away, they were afraid to express themselves. They treated every sentence like a potential mistake.
They second-guessed everything. So, I started telling them, “Permission has been granted to you, dear child. To speak. To be.” And something changed in them after that. It was subtle, but real.
In their third term (June/July 2024), I asked the principal if I could start a poetry club. I just wanted to create a space where these kids could breathe.
Every day, I’d write affirmations on the board: I am young. I am beautiful. I am kind. I am loved. I am not afraid to be. I don’t even remember all of the affirmations anymore, but they do.
They recite them daily now, with smiles, with confidence. And honestly, that’s all I’ve ever wanted: to give them more than poetry. To give them awakening.
These children are educationally disadvantaged, and this is my small way of giving back. I hope that one day, they grow up and do the same for others.
What drives me is simple: the desire to raise children who are self-aware, expressive, and emotionally grounded. Kids who know it’s okay to be where they are, even if that place is uncertain. Kids who can find joy and presence in the journey. Because life isn’t just about “getting there.” What if the journey itself is the destination?
I want them to meet people, enjoy moments, and understand that it’s perfectly okay if what works for one person doesn’t work for them.
I want them to know that acceptance is a good thing, that hope is beautiful, and that they are allowed to dream. I let them daydream during our sessions. I teach them to roam freely in their minds. To imagine wildly. To believe.
They feel like they need permission for everything, and that’s why I keep saying it: Permission has been granted. Permission to be a child. To be human. To play, to learn, to unlearn. To grow.
At the core of it all, my goal is simple: help more children express themselves. Through poetry, through writing, through words, or even through silence, if that’s what they need.
In Kwara, I visited three schools, one orphanage and their Juvenile correctional home. Two weeks into the project, and I felt so proud. I visited the juvenile home every Thursday, the orphanage every Friday, and the schools during the week.
We had so much progress. Real, tangible growth. At the juvenile home, I taught in Pidgin and used A Tender Awakening. The workbook didn’t connect with them as well because it needs to be more conversational.
But, at the orphanage, we used both the book and the workbook. The change was visible. You could see it in their eyes, their curiosity, their hunger, their joy.
I had beautiful days I wish you could have witnessed; days filled with a spark, a quiet willingness to try. You would’ve seen it too. It was the most rewarding feeling I’ve ever known. In Kwara, I met a total of 77 children.
This project feels like a purpose. Like I’m walking the path I was meant to walk. Like I’m finally doing something that brings light. I feel so proud, and I know that five years from now, I’ll look back on this season and recognize it as the beginning of something truly special.
My friends, God bless them, raised the money we needed to print the books so we could give them out for free. None of the kids pay for anything. Everything is given to them. And honestly, it’s been incredible.
Truly, I wouldn’t trade this for anything.
We are now in Rivers State. We started on the 12th of May 2025 and are six weeks into our nine-week residency. We’ve met over 200 children across three schools, three orphanages and one Batcher village.
We have two schools scheduled for this week and a visit to the Port Harcourt Remand Home throughout next week.
We are connected by the words we tell.
This is the beginning of something that feels like purpose. If you’d like to keep up with our journey on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook; support the work, or simply witness more of these small awakenings, you’re welcome to walk with us. Because children everywhere deserve the space to feel, to write, to dream. –Delight Chilegide Olumati
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