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Christopher Columbus Poems

In 1492

In fourteen hundred ninety-two
Columbus sailed the ocean blue.

He had three ships and left from Spain;
He sailed through sunshine, wind and rain.

He sailed by night; he sailed by day;
He used the stars to find his way.

A compass also helped him know
How to find the way to go.

Ninety sailors were on board;
Some men worked while others snored.

Then the workers went to sleep;
And others watched the ocean deep.

Day after day they looked for land;
They dreamed of trees and rocks and sand.

October 12 their dream came true,
You never saw a happier crew!

"Indians! Indians!" Columbus cried;
His heart was filled with joyful pride.

But "India" the land was not;
It was the Bahamas, and it was hot.

The Arakawa natives were very nice;
They gave the sailors food and spice.

Columbus sailed on to find some gold
To bring back home, as he'd been told.

He made the trip again and again,
Trading gold to bring to Spain.

The first American? No, not quite.
But Columbus was brave, and he was bright.

Columbus Day

Across the world,
Columbus,
you dreamt your wild schemes.

You slept on decks
of sailing ships;
you nailed the wooden beams.

You coaxed west wind
into the sails;
you mended tattered seams.

Across the world,
Columbus,
you brought your wild dreams.

~Myra Cohn Livingston
From the book Celebrations

COLUMBUS

When Columbus was a little boy,
He lived beside the sea.
He watched the ships sail in and out
And wished that he could be ______
A sailor, a sailor, to sail across the sea,
A sailor, a sailor, to skip before the breeze.

FOR COLUMBUS DAY

Long ago most people thought
The world was flat.....we know it's not.
Columbus said, "The world is round!"
That's how America was found.

Christopher Columbus Songs

Columbus' First Voyage
to the tune of "Mary Had a Little Lamb"
Columbus sailed the ocean blue,
Ocean blue, ocean blue.
Columbus sailed the ocean blue
In 1492.

He sailed west to reach the east,
reach the east, reach the east,
He sailed west to reach the east
In 1492.

Asian shores he never reached,
Never reached, never reached,
Asian shores he never reached,
In 1492.

Instead, a whole new land he found,
Land he found, land he found,
Instead, a whole new land he found,
In 1492.

*****

Columbus Sailed the Ocean Blue
to the tune of "Old MacDonald Had a Farm"
Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492.
Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492.
With three tall ships, 120 men,
sailing on, sailing on, sailing on, on, on, on --
Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492.

He proved the earth was round, not flat, in 1492.
He proved the earth was round, not flat, in 1492.
With three tall ships, 120 men,
sailing on, sailing on, sailing on, on, on, on --
He proved the earth was round, not flat in 1492.

***

If You Dare to Have a Dream
(to the tune of "It's a Small World")
When you're laying awake
And your thinking of
All the things you would do
If you only could,
Don't be fooled, don't forget,
You may be young, but yet
You can make your dream come true.

Chorus:
Work to make your dream come true.
Work to make your dream come true.
Work to make your dream come true.
It's a job that you can do.

If you roll up your sleeves
And determine that
You'll succeed, yes SUCCEED,
No matter what,
You can reach all your goals,
Make your dreams all come true.
All it takes is work, work, work.

***

Sail Your Ship
to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat."
Sail, sail, sail your ship.
Sail it night and day.
Look for land, look for land
All along the way.

***

COLUMBUS
(sung to tune of "Eensy-Weensey Spider")

Columbus was a sailor who thought the world was round.
He asked for ships but many turned him down.
He went to ask the King and Queen of Spain,
And he told them of the gold and spices they would gain!

He had to wait six years for the king and queen to say,
"We'll give you ships so you can sail away."
It was the year of 1492
When Columbus sailed from Spain with his tough and able crew.

They sailed upon the ships out of sight of any land.
Things didn't go exactly as they'd planned.
They begged Columbus to turn and head for home.
But Columbus urged them onward across the sea and foam.

On October the 12th of 1492
A sailor sighted land and yelled to the crew!

Columbus went ashore and claimed the land for Spain,
He was thankful that his voyage had not been made in vain.

About Christopher Columbus

Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa, Italy in 1451.

He wanted to find a trade route to get to India and China because land travel was risky.

After King Henry of Portugal declined his request for ships and sailors to discover the way to the Indies, he approached Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain.

Columbus set sail with three ships: the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria and ninety sailors on August 3rd, 1492.

They stopped for supplies on the Canary Islands and left on September 6.

On October 12, they landed in Haiti.

He thought he was in the Indies and called the natives Indians. He named the island San Salvador and claimed it for the King and Queen of Spain.

He returned with two ships to Spain, leaving some sailors on the island.

He then returned to the island with 17 ships and 1500 men. He then sailed to other islands including, Honduras, Venezuela, and Panama. It is believed that he also reached the coast of Florida, although this fact is sometimes disputed.

He died in Spain in 1506.

Christopher Columbus Art & Craft & Activities

SHIPS OF CLAY

MILK CARTON SHIPS

SHIP IN A BOTTLE

Make Paper Boats

Milk Carton Galleon

Craft and Activities

You may want to print this poem on the sail:

In fourteen hundred ninety-two
Columbus called aboard his crew.
Mighty strong and brave was he,
As he sailed across the sea.

COLUMBUS SHIP

You can write this poem on the sail:

Christopher Columbus sailed across the sea in 1492.
Christopher Columbus said he had a notion to prove
the world was round for all of you.

Activities

Plot on a map or globe the probable routes that Columbus took.

Make a three-dimensional model of one of Columbus' ships, the Nina, the Pinta, or the Santa Maria, using construction paper and a plastic bleach bottle or oatmeal box.

Dramatize the departure, landing, or return of one of Columbus' voyages.

Christopher Columbus Sink or Float Experiment

Read a book about Christopher Columbus and his Voyages to the New World. As an introduction to this experiment, ask to the students:

"Why do you think, Columbus thought his boat would sink ?"

Then, explain the experiment to class. Allow each student to pick out an object.
Have children come up one at a time and predict whether the object will float or sink; they will record their predictions.
Have children place their objects in the water, and write down their observations.

COLUMBUS DAY HISTORY

Christopher Columbus was a great explorer who lived long, long ago. He traveled across a big ocean with three ships called the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. At night Columbus used stars to find his way. In the daytime he used a compass.

Once, after sailing a long time, Columbus and his men thought they had landed in India. Columbus called the people he met there Indians. But he wasn't in India at all. He was in America on October 12, 1472. He landed on an island now known as San Salvador.

In 1934 President Roosevelt proclaimed October 12 as Columbus Day. It is now celebrated throughout the Americas, in Puerto Rico, Central and South America, and Canada. Columbus Day is now observed on the second Monday in October.

Christopher Columbus Voyages Timeline

The First Voyage:

1492/8/2 Departs from Palos, Spain

1492/10/12New world sighted at 2:00 a.m. by Rodrigo de Triana.

1492/10/29Arrives at Cuba.

1492/11/22Martín Alonso Pinzón, captain of the Pinta, deserts the expedition off Cuba.

1492/12/1Columbus arrives at Hispaniola.

1492/12/25Flagship Santa Maria sinks off Hispaniola. Columbus founds La Navidad.

1493/1/16 Columbus departs Hispaniola for Spain.

1493/2/15 Sights Santa Maria Island in the Azores.

1493/3/15 Returns to Palos, Spain.

The Second Voyage:

1493 September The Grand Fleet of 17 ships departs Cadiz.

1493/11/22Arrives at Hispaniola.

1493/12/8Founds new colony of La Isabela.

1494/4/30Arrives at Cuba.

1494/5/5Arrives at Jamaica.

1496/3/10Departs from La Isabela for Spain.

The Third Voyage:

1498/5/30 Departs from Sanlucar, Spain, with six ships

1498/6/19 Arrives at Gomera (Canary Islands)

1498/7/31 Arrives at Trinidad.

1498/8/13arrives at Margartia.

1498/8/19 Arrives at Hispaniola.

1500 OctoberColumbus is arrested and sent home in chains.

The Fourth Voyage

1502/5/11Departs from Cadiz, Spain, with four ships.

1502/6/29Arrives at Santo Domingo, Hispaniola.

1504/11/7 Columbus returns to Spain

1506/5/20 Columbus dies at Valladolid.

America	Spain	Ship	Pinta
Nina	Santa Maria	King	Queen

Indians	land	sink	look
sail	voyages	travel	island