PDF resource pack and free event
KS1, KS2, KS3
Years 1-9
What is Michael Rosen Day?
Michael Rosen Day, set up in 2024, is a celebration of national treasure, poet and author Michael Rosen. The day is all about making reading, listening to and writing poetry fun, enjoyable and accessible for all.
The day is organised by Walker Books, in partnership with Puffin, HarperCollins Children’s Books, Bloomsbury Children’s Books, Hachette Children’s Group and Read for Good.
When is Michael Rosen Day?
Michael Rosen Day takes place on Thursday 13th November 2025. Register now for your free resources to start planning your celebration.
What is this year’s theme?
This year’s theme is ‘Funny Food’, inspired by Michael’s feast of fabulous food poems.
Get involved
Free online event with Michael Rosen
Michael will be delivering a special virtual live event at 10am where he performs his most-loved funny food poems, including Hot Food.
Children’s poetry competition
Enter the funny food poetry competition and you might win a signed Michael Rosen book bundle and your poem read by Michael at the live poetry party event.
Find out more at michaelrosen.co.uk/michaelrosenday.
Download the resource pack
This Michael Rosen Day activity pack offers eight flexible activities for Early Years through to KS3, each inspired by one of Michael’s books.
Children can explore rhythm and rhyme, describe feelings through food metaphors, invent funny foods, write sensory poems and even flip Rosen’s famous Hot Food into “cold food” versions.
Older pupils are encouraged to unlock memories through food poetry and experiment with silly, surreal verses in the Wordplay Lab.
Each activity includes step-by-step guidance, performance opportunities and templates such as rhyming recipe cards, spaghetti word banks, memory jar slips and mix-and-match poetry sheets.
The pack encourages performance and sharing, culminating in a Poetry Feast Performance at the end of the day.
With tips for displays, cross-age buddying and family involvement, it provides everything schools need to make Michael Rosen Day a joyful nationwide celebration of creativity, humour and the power of poetry.
Q&A with Michael Rosen
Q) How does it feel to be a living legend?
A) A long time ago, there used to be a joke – not mine – about someone being ‘a legend in their own lunchtime’. If I could be a legend in several lunchtimes, I would be very proud.
Q) What will you be getting up to on Michael Rosen Day?
Doing exactly what I’m told to do. I’m very biddable when it comes to big occasions. This feels very, very big, so you can be absolutely sure I will be there. I will also eat some raisins, in order to prove that my real name is ‘Michael Raisin’.
Q) What would you like to say to teachers?
I just hope that teachers can find time in their very busy curriculum to fit in reading for pleasure and talking about books without worrying too much about comprehension during those times. Reading books teaches children a huge amount anyway.
Michael Rosen’s manifesto for reading
- Read as many different types of books as you can – books give you language, thoughts, ideas and feelings.
- Books show you places and cultures very near and dear to you – and others you may not have come across before. Books can take you anywhere.
- Books help you to walk in other people’s shoes, and to see things from someone else’s point of view.
- Read books, share books, talk about books and, most importantly, CHOOSE what YOU want to read. It’s your imagination, so choose what you want to feed it.
- Books are for EVERYONE!
Browse more Michael Rosen resources.
