Get creative at Poets House
This Battery Park City gem has an awesome Children's Room where kids can read classic and contemporary works from Shakespeare to Seuss. Young visitors are encouraged to compose their own odes on old-fashioned manual typewriters, and there's a weekly Tiny Poets Time for toddlers on Thursdays at 10am. Poets House also hosts family events on select weekend mornings for school-age kids, and is currently exhibiting a cool retrospective of children's author and illustrator Douglas Florian's work. Florian will read from his two latest animal-centric books, Poem Runs and UnBEElievables, on Sunday, April 15 at 11am. On Sunday, April 29, Writopia will host a poetry workshop for children ages 10 to 18, which culminates in an open mic. All children's programming at Poets House is FREE.
 

Tour a historic site
NYC has been home to many great bards, including lauded 19th-century poet Edgar Allan Poe, who lived in the Bronx for the last few years of his life. You can visit his little wooden cottage, located at Kingsbridge Road and the Grand Concourse, on weekends for $5 for adults, $3 for children. The historic house recently reopened after undergoing renovations, and features Poe's rocking chair and other belongings.

Twas the Night Before Christmas author Clement Clarke Moore was born in NYC, has two parks named in his honor and is buried in Harlem's Trinity Church Cemetery, where his famous Christmas poem is recited every December. FREE

Walt Whitman's birthplace in West Hills, Long Island is now a museum. Visitors can learn about the 19th-century poet's legacy as the father of free verse. The Walt Whitman Center hosts an entire Poetry in Performance season as well as other special events, and features portraits, letters, manuscripts and Whitman's actual voice on tape. Admission is $6 for adults, $4 for children.
 

Take a poetic promenade
The Academy of Poets' website lists local DIY walks that focus on some of our most celebrated poets like Langston Hughes in Harlem, Walt Whitman in Soho, and Edgar Allan Poe's Publishers Row. The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine is home to the American Poets' Corner, stone slabs bearing names and quotes of famous bards.

You can also stroll down Central Park's Mall and Literary Walk, where you'll find statues of Scottish poets Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott, and American bard Fitz-Greene Halleck, beloved in his time but little known today. FREE

Hit your local library
You can discover new poets all year-round at NYC's libraries. Many branches are hosting special National Poetry Month events throughout April.

Elementary schoolers can head to the Bronx's Woodstock Library for Poet's Corner, a series of FREE poetry workshops on Fridays at 3pm.

Multiple NYPL branches are hosting FREE Well Versed: Urban Word poetry writing workshops for teens. Visit the NYPL for a complete schedule.

Urban Stages theater company performs the interactive kids' show Blown Away by Poetry at multiple NYPL branches throughout April. Every performance is followed by a poetry writing workshop. Visit the website for a complete schedule.

Brooklyn's New Lots Library hosts Phat Phun Tuesday National Poetry Month Special, a FREE seminar run by African-American poet and Angeli Rasbury for tweens and teens on Tuesdays at 3pm.

Experience live poetry
Perhaps the best way to get in touch with your inner poet is to see other poets perform on stage. The Apollo Theater presents Urban Word NYC's Annual Teen Poetry Slam Grand Final on Saturday, April 7 at 7pm, when 20 finalists vie for spoken word greatness. $20 for adults, $12 for children.

At the Brooklyn Children's Museum, kids can catch Climbing Poetree's multimedia show Hurricane Season: The Hidden Connections in Water on Saturday, April 14 at 1pm. Using video, shadow puppetry and collage, this poetic performance focuses on current environmental and political problems. Free with admission: $7.50.

And you can get in on the poetry action yourself on Poem in Your Pocket Day on Thursday, April 26. New Yorkers are encouraged to share their favorite poems throughout the day, and Bryant Park will host a special youth poetry slam.