April is National Poetry Month – Dear Poet Project

In the spirit of Rainer Maria Rilke‘s Letters to a Young Poet, in which Rilke replies to letters from a young military cadet and aspiring poet asking for his advice, the Academy of American Poets is inviting students to engage with poetry by handwriting letters to some of the poets who serve on the Academy’s Board of Chancellors.  Please share the information below with the students in your community!

Any young person is encouraged to participate! Here’s how:

1) Read some of the poems written by the Academy’s Chancellors. Here are some suggested poems to read and respond to:

Latin & Soul by Victor Hernández Cruz

Cherry Blossoms by Toi Derricotte

Broadway by Mark Doty

[Where do words come from?]    by Vénus Khoury-Ghata,    translated by Marilyn Hacker

You and I Belong in This Kitchen    by Juan Felipe Herrera

Fall by Edward Hirsch

A Hand by Jane Hirshfield

Famous by Naomi Shihab Nye

Nothing in That Drawer by Ron Padgett

This Bridge, Like Poetry, is Vertigo    by Marie Ponsot

Comet Hyakutake by Arthur Sze

Fast-Speaking Woman by Anne Waldman

2) Compose a one to two page handwritten letter sharing your questions and thoughts about the poem with its author. (Be sure to include your age and grade, along with a return address if you hope to receive a response).

3) Send your letter to:

Dear Poet Project c/o Academy of American Poets75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901

New York, NY 10038

Select letters may receive a reply from the poet and be featured on the Academy’s website, Poets.org!

Source:  http://www.poets.org/page.php/prmID/619

Related articles

• National Poetry Month 2013 ~ Student Posters (Amy) (hamy10.wordpress.com)
• April 1, 2013 – National Poetry Month (rhapsodyinbooks.wordpress.com)
• 30 Ways to Celebrate- Poets.org – Poetry, Poems, Bios & More (hcslearningcommons.org)

Celebrate Poem in Your Pocket Day!!!

The Academy of American Poets celebrates Poem In Your Pocket Day today!

 

Below is the description of the celebration from the Academy of American Poets:

The idea is simple: select a poem you love during National Poetry Month then carry it with you on Poem In Your Pocket Day, sharing it with co-workers, family, and friends.

Celebrate on April 26, 2012.

Poem In Your Pocket Day has been celebrated each April in New York City since 2002, and nationwide since 2008. Each year, parks, bookstores, workplaces, and other venues burst with open readings of poems from pockets.

Click a pocket below to download and print poems to share with others, or browse other poems for your pocket.

I’d love to hear what poems you shared today!!!

Exquisite Haiku: Spring Salutations

A friendly hello

Easy exchange of ideas

Lightness of being

by Michelle Lynn Thompson 04/14/2012

30 Days, 30 Poets – Online Poet Marathon on the Academy of American Poets’ Tumblr

 

On April 1, the Academy of American Poets will kick off its 2nd annual celebration of “30 Days, 30 Poets” for National Poetry Month. This April, 30 dynamic poets will take over curation of the Academy’s Tumblr. Each featured poet will have 24 hours to post an array of ephemera—in the form of text, images, audio, and video—before passing the baton. The Tumblr takeover follows 2011’s lauded “30 Days, 30 Poets” on the Academy’s Twitter feed.

Follow the Academy of American Poets on Tumblr to keep up-to-date on the latest poetry posts: http://poetsorg.tumblr.com.

Celebrate National Poetry Month: Sidewalk Chalk and Poetry

 

National Poetry Month is about sharing and celebrating the wonder of poetry, and what better way to celebrate than by putting poetry in a public place? Go one step beyond hopscotch squares and write a poem in chalk on your sidewalk!

Pick a favorite line from a poem and choose a clean piece of sidewalk or pavement to write on. You can search for a poem on Poets.org or check your bookshelf for an old favorite. Use brightly colored chalk to attract attention to your work, and add drawings or artistic flourishes to create some extra fun.

Parents can hold a neighborhood poetry contest, with all the participants’ poems written along the sidewalks. Passersby will pause to read the lines and you’ll have put a little poetry into someone’s path.

www.poets.org

April is National Poetry Month

The 2012 National Poetry Month poster, designed by Chin-Yee Lai.

National Poetry Month is a month-long, national celebration of poetry established by the Academy of American Poets. The concept is to widen the attention of individuals and the media—to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our complex poetic heritage, and to poetry books and journals of wide aesthetic range and concern. Poets.org hopes to increase the visibility and availability of poetry in popular culture while acknowledging and celebrating poetry’s ability to sustain itself in the many places where it is practiced and appreciated.

Visit poets.org for information about how you can engage in the celebration!