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Quiz about Classic Childrens Poems
Quiz about Classic Childrens Poems

Classic Children's Poems Trivia Quiz


Some well-known and well-loved poems from Grandma's time!

A multiple-choice quiz by austinnene. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
austinnene
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
282,361
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
7 / 10
Plays
1489
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. Here is the first verse of a funny poem by Ogden Nash. See if you can guess what goes in the blank.

"Belinda lived in a little white house,
With a little black kitten and a little gray mouse,
And a little yellow dog and a little red wagon,
And a realio, trulio, little pet ___"
Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. "I know a funny little man, as quiet as a mouse,
Who does the mischief that is done in everybody's house!"

Who's this miscreant (look it up, kids!) of verse?
Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. What word do you think goes in the blank?

"I have a little ____ that goes in and out with me,
And what can be the use of him is more than I can see.
He is very very like me from the heels up to the head;
And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed."

Funny thing about this guy, he's never around in the dark...
Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. And now for some sailors:

"____, ____, and ____ one night
Sailed off in a wooden shoe,-
Sailed on a river of crystal light,
Into a sea of dew."

Who were those guys?
Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. This is the start of a famous poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who also wrote "Hiawatha". Can you guess its title?

"Between the dark and the daylight
When night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day's occupations
That is known as ____
____
____."
Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. Here's a weird one for you! Any idea who wrote this poem? Here's how it starts:

in Just-
spring when the world is mud-
luscious the little balloonman

whistles far and wee

and eddieandbill come
running from marbles and
piracies and it's
spring
Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. This poem is usually called " 'Twas The Night Before Christmas" and many people know it. It begins:

" 'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there."

Can you guess its other name, along with the name of the author?
Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. A famous American poet wrote this tiny poem, called "Fog". Who was it?

"The fog comes
on little cat feet.

It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then, moves on."
Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. This is a sad and beautiful poem by a guy who knew how to write a scary story when he wanted to! -- but not this time. Here's how it starts:

"It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea
That a maiden there lived, whom you may know
By the name of ____ ____;"

What do you think goes in the blank?
Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Here is a poem by James Whitcomb Riley. It's about someone who has been in comics and on Broadway.

"Little ____
____'s come to our house to stay,
An' wash the cups and saucers up, an' brush the crumbs away,
An' shoo the chickens off the porch, an' dust the hearth, an' sweep,
An' make the fire, an' bake the bread, an' earn her board-an'-keep;
An' all us other children, when the supper things is done,
We set around the kitchen fire an' has the mostest fun
A-list'nin' to the witch tales 'at ___ tells about,
An' the Gobble-uns 'at gits you
Ef you
Don't
Watch
Out!"
Hint





Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Here is the first verse of a funny poem by Ogden Nash. See if you can guess what goes in the blank. "Belinda lived in a little white house, With a little black kitten and a little gray mouse, And a little yellow dog and a little red wagon, And a realio, trulio, little pet ___"

Answer: Dragon

Ogden Nash, who was born in New York in 1902, was famous for writing "light verse" (funny stuff). This poem is called, "The Tale of Custard the Dragon", and it's quite long--fourteen verses. Custard is kind of a timid fellow, but when a pirate shows up, well, I don't want to spoil the story.
2. "I know a funny little man, as quiet as a mouse, Who does the mischief that is done in everybody's house!" Who's this miscreant (look it up, kids!) of verse?

Answer: Mr. Nobody

Mr. Nobody is real, I can attest to that! He lived in our house for about 10 years. I'd come upon a big mess and say, "Kids, who did this?" and sure enough, they'd tell me, "NOBODY"! I was glad when he decided to move out! (He had a cousin named I Don't Know...)

Mr. Nobody was written by----nobody! The author is unknown.
3. What word do you think goes in the blank? "I have a little ____ that goes in and out with me, And what can be the use of him is more than I can see. He is very very like me from the heels up to the head; And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed." Funny thing about this guy, he's never around in the dark...

Answer: Shadow

Robert Louis Stevenson wrote this poem about his shadow. It's called "My Shadow". He also mentioned he couldn't see him early in the morning, before the sun came up. Stevenson wrote books, too. Probably his best-known work is "Treasure Island".
4. And now for some sailors: "____, ____, and ____ one night Sailed off in a wooden shoe,- Sailed on a river of crystal light, Into a sea of dew." Who were those guys?

Answer: Wynken, Blynken, and Nod

This poem, "Wynken, Blynken, and Nod", by Eugene Field, is about a child going off to sleep. As the poem says--"Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes, And Nod is a little head."
5. This is the start of a famous poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who also wrote "Hiawatha". Can you guess its title? "Between the dark and the daylight When night is beginning to lower, Comes a pause in the day's occupations That is known as ____ ____ ____."

Answer: The Children's Hour

A long time ago, when this was written, there was no TV, no computer, no radio, and people really enjoyed sitting down to talk or play a game together. When parents were done with their chores in the late afternoon or early evening, they welcomed playtime with their children for a little while.
6. Here's a weird one for you! Any idea who wrote this poem? Here's how it starts: in Just- spring when the world is mud- luscious the little balloonman whistles far and wee and eddieandbill come running from marbles and piracies and it's spring

Answer: e e cummings

The poem is "Chanson Innocente (Innocent Song)" by e e cummings, a poet and playwright from Boston who wrote many poems in this funny style. He was really very well-educated! The lack of punctuation and unusual spacing between words helps to get across the feeling he wants you to have in reading his works. His initials stand for Edward Estlin, which I guess is why he went by "e e".
7. This poem is usually called " 'Twas The Night Before Christmas" and many people know it. It begins: " 'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there." Can you guess its other name, along with the name of the author?

Answer: "A Visit from St. Nicholas" by Clement Moore

Clement Moore was born in New York in the 1700s. He was a professor who taught Greek and Asian literature. "A Visit from St. Nicholas" is probably the most famous thing he ever wrote.
8. A famous American poet wrote this tiny poem, called "Fog". Who was it? "The fog comes on little cat feet. It sits looking over harbor and city on silent haunches and then, moves on."

Answer: Carl Sandburg

Carl Sandburg wrote poems and stories and books. One of his most famous books was about Abraham Lincoln. The other writers in this question are from England. This style of poetry, with no rhyme and no real rhythm, is called "free verse".

Oh, yeah, and "to sit on one's haunches" means to squat down.
9. This is a sad and beautiful poem by a guy who knew how to write a scary story when he wanted to! -- but not this time. Here's how it starts: "It was many and many a year ago, In a kingdom by the sea That a maiden there lived, whom you may know By the name of ____ ____;" What do you think goes in the blank?

Answer: Annabel Lee

"Annabel Lee" was the last complete poem Edgar Allan Poe wrote before he died in 1849 at the age of 40. No one knows for sure if he had a real woman in mind or not. Poe wrote many poems, and he is sometimes given credit for being the first person to write short stories and detective stories.

His poem, "The Raven", is one of the most famous poems by American writers. He wrote some very scary stories, too.
10. Here is a poem by James Whitcomb Riley. It's about someone who has been in comics and on Broadway. "Little ____ ____'s come to our house to stay, An' wash the cups and saucers up, an' brush the crumbs away, An' shoo the chickens off the porch, an' dust the hearth, an' sweep, An' make the fire, an' bake the bread, an' earn her board-an'-keep; An' all us other children, when the supper things is done, We set around the kitchen fire an' has the mostest fun A-list'nin' to the witch tales 'at ___ tells about, An' the Gobble-uns 'at gits you Ef you Don't Watch Out!"

Answer: "Little Orphant Annie"

James Whitcomb Riley has been called "The Children's Poet". He wrote many poems like this one, where he made it sound the way the people talked--that's called "dialect". When Riley wrote this poem, he called the girl "Little Orphant Allie", but the printer made a mistake and it became "Little Orphant Annie" forevermore.

All these poems--and many more--can be found in "Favorite Poems Old and New" by Helen Ferris. It was published in 1957. A newer version is also available, by Helen Ferris Tibbets.
Source: Author austinnene

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