- BY: Noel Quinones
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Sometimes words are not enough to convey what we are trying to say. The 8th graders of Clinton thought about what objects, animals, or ideas meant a lot to them before reading “Our Tree’s […]
- BY: Leslie Reese
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Last week Brennemann 5th graders talked about the blues as a feeling of sadness, and as a musical form created by African-Americans in the late 1800s. We watched video of our example blues song, […]
- BY: Leslie Reese
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For our 4th sessions, I asked Nettelhorst 2nd graders to think about the kind of world they want for themselves and others. We talked about serious hopes – such as safety for all children […]
- BY: Timothy David Rey
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Students were instructed to grab a book and find words and passages that stood out to them, or to use random words as the starting point for a poem. They were then instructed to […]
- BY: Cai Sherley
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One of my favorite forms of poetry is the exquisite corpse (beautiful body) — a poem written by multiple poets, often without knowing what the previous poets have written. Last week, Hyde Park wrote […]
- BY: Mayda del Valle
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This week, we read an incredible poem by Gina Valdes, called The Hands. We talked about the concept of symbolism in poetry and what hands symbolize in Valdes’s poem. Our discussion about this poem […]
- BY: Cai Sherley
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This past Monday was a bittersweet day at Lawndale. Our last session marked the end of a residency full of games, conversations, and yes — poetry. We also had the entire 8th grade reunited […]
- BY: Cai Sherley
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This past Monday at Howe, we merged poetry & rap with their intuitive collaborator — basketball. We began by defining poetry — getting creative with words to express emotions. Then we explored other places […]
- BY: Joy Young
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For our week 18 of poetry, O-School students explored ideas about memories. We discussed the importance of remembering. Whether it’s remembering happy moments such as birthday parties or family vacation, or sad memories like […]
- BY: Maya Odim
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Students read Gwendolyn Brooks, “Young Heroes II | For Don at Saalam”, and we talked and wrote about what a hero is an where we find ours. There is no one mold for a hero […]
- BY: Maya Odim
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Students read Nayyiryh Waheed’s poem “fresh” and wrote about what it means to be on the way or almost to something —maybe a goal, maybe an event— and what we might think about to […]
- BY: Maya Odim
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Students read “Life Doesn’t Frighten Me” by Maya Angelou, and wrote poems about their fears, overcoming them and ways they will help help protect others and help them overcome fear. In the words of […]
- BY: Joy Young
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Twain 6th graders became mind readers for their 6th week of poetry. I asked students, if you could look inside someone’s head, what interesting things would you find? Most students wished they knew what […]
- BY: Teresa Dzieglewicz
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Today, we explored Dada poetry. We talked about how Dada artists were dealing with a world at war and post-pandemic and how they decided art should be random and meaningless. We discussed whether or […]
- BY: Noel Quinones
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The first step to building empathy is putting ourselves in the experiences of another, especially if that other can’t speak. The 7th graders of Clinton asked themselves what inanimate objects, animals, or fictional characters […]
- BY: Noel Quinones
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The first step to building empathy is putting ourselves in the experiences of another, especially if that other can’t speak. The 8th graders of Clinton asked themselves what inanimate objects, animals, or fictional characters […]
- BY: Leslie Reese
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Today Brennemann 2nd graders read two “little” poems written by Nikki Grimes: “Moon” and “Shower.” Both poems had six lines or less, yet they packed a lot of interest. As a group we worked […]
- BY: Joy Young
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This year marks Poetry Out Loud’s 20th Anniversary and there is much to celebrate. On Thursday May 8, 2025, Isavel Mendoza, a 12th-grade student at Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts in […]
- BY: Joy Young
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Twain 5th students became comedians for their 6th week of poetry. Poetry can help us make fun of ourselves and the world around us. Sharing jokes and laughter connects people. Together we read Lesléa […]
- BY: Ola Faleti
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The first Friday in May commemorated the end of my 6th and 7th grade residencies at Waters Elementary…how fast a school year flies by. 7th graders celebrated by writing a class exquisite corpse poem […]
- BY: Teresa Dzieglewicz
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I got to make a special visit to the 2nd grade today. They’ve clearly had an amazing teacher with Ms. Leslie and they were very enthusiastic about poetry. We read Nikki Giovanni’s “Knoxville, TN” […]
- BY: Timothy David Rey
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Students read a student poem that used personification to talk to a star before trying their hands at their own poems addressing something… bigger than themselves, while using words from legendary poet/teacher Kim Addonizio’s […]
- BY: Noel Quinones
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We all have sounds we adore and sounds that make us cringe. The students of MLA asked themselves what these sounds were for them before we read “Sweet Like a Crow” by Michael Ondaatje. […]
- BY: Madison Mae Parker
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This past week at Smyser Elementary, we learned about the power of repetition with the poem “When to Write” by Sophia Thakur. Students were challenged to write their own poem about a favorite activity […]
- BY: Madison Mae Parker
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This last week at Henry, we watched and read Ariana Brown’s poem “Ode to the City Bus.” Poets spent the day learning about extended metaphors and reviewed what an ode is. Each student was […]
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“Writing poetry makes me feel like I can see myself, like I can see my reflection, but not in a mirror, in the world. I write and I know I can be reflected.”
-Oscar S.
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“Writing poetry is like your best friend.”
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