The lists below will help teachers who want to make poetry sparkle in their classrooms.
See what is in store for Student Day of Poetry, 2012.
Spoken word and literacy empowerment programs
- Creative Exchange for Social Change: Performance Art on Student Day of Poetry Combining violins, hip hop, modern dance and slam poetry, the Anna Myer company brings an exciting new program to this year’s Student Day of Poetry.
- Poetry Out Loud Contests in Massachusetts The nationwide Poetry Out Loud contest, sponsored by the Poetry Foundation, is holding statewide contests.
- First Wave Comes to Student Day of Poetry The University of Wisconsin offers the first degree in the country to offer college students a chance to study spoken word and hip hop arts.
- Spoken word — the Durability of a Universal Tradition Here is a story about what MassPoetry is doing in this area.
- Report on a Student Day of Poetry: “Every single kid is engaged!” Lisa Stott, a teacher at the Wetherbee School in Lawrence, led a day long program in poetry that had students, teachers and administrators excited.
- Books of Hope brings creative writing workshops to at-risk urban and immigrant youth in the communities where
they live. - Performance Is Key to Getting Students Hooked on Writing Poetry An interview with Dr. Susan Weinstein, Associate Professor at Louisana State University, who says, “Nothing convinces people of the value of sharing poetry like experiencing its effect on students.”
- Nicole Rodriguez Wins Award for Spoken Word Volunteer Work Rodriguez wins the President Volunteer Service Award. The students she works with were brought to a place where they were respectful of each other and were comfortable sharing their writing. Peer feedback and editing became really supportive and constructive.
Tips on teaching poetry
- MassLEAP Collective is a network of artists, educators, and students working together to create a vibrant youth poetry community in Greater Boston. Sponsored by Mass Poetry, it connects teaching artists with schools and other organizations to help provide opportunities for youth in the Commonwealth.
- Poetry 180, sponsored by the Library of Congress, provides a poem a day, especially selected for high school students.
- The Academy of American Poets provides resources, lesson plans, and tips for teaching poetry. Plus they have a wonderful teacher’s forum where teachers can discuss their experiences and browse hundreds of ideas and questions teachers have about teaching poetry.
- Poetry Out Loud, sponsored by the Poetry Foundation and the National Endowment of the Arts, encourages the oral expression of poetry and sponsors an annual contest for the best recitation of a poem by a high school student. It also provides a teacher’s guide to getting students involved.
Publications and contests for high school students
- Newpages.com lists dozens of sites that publish poetry written by high school students. In addition the site lists contests designed for students. The contest includes essays and fiction as well as poetry.
- Winning Writers also lists resources for students.
- Angelfire lists resources for students who want to publish.
- Student Publishing Program sponsored by Lexington High School gives secondary students the skills and the confidence to publish.
Stories we’ve published on teacher programs
- Teachers Practice What They Teach – Poetry
- The MassPOP Poetry Retreat for High School Teachers at the Boston Athenaeum
- Woodberry Poetry Room The Woodberry Poetry Room at Harvard University announces the creation of a new website that offers rare and heretofore inaccessible recordings of famous poets from its historic archive.
