Each Wednesday, with the permission of these young poets and their families, I'll publish some of the juicy and colorful produce harvested from my after-school and classroom projects. (The busyness this week is because I concluded SING A STORY, PLAY A STORY programs featuring BARTHOLOMEW & THE OOBLECK at two schools and published an anthology of 16-20 poems for each.) It has also been part of this dream to provide a place for elementary-aged kids all over, with the help of their teachers and parents, to submit poems for online publication. As far as I'm aware, there is otherwise no online journal of poetry by children, and I aim to fill that gap! (Anybody want to work towards that with me? I'm pretty sure that will take more than one person to pull off.)
As for my own work, I'm busy as a bee keeping up with the February Poetry Project with Laura Shovan and 40 others. A daily prompt is posted and with this year's theme of STORY, I'm doing some work that feels new and stretchy to me. Here are two drafts that bear some connection (and some weight hee hee), one personal and true and one imagined and true in a different way. Thanks to Scott Rhoades and Kathy Mazurowski for the prompts that led to these.
And thanks to Carol Varsalona (who sent a lovely postcard in a beautifully calligraphed envelope) at Beyond Literacy Link for hosting us today with her characteristic warm and fuzzy welcome!
Oh, my gosh, Heidi! You are SO busy. But, this post makes my heart happy. What a work of love you are providing to kids, the current AND future poetry community. I hear you on busy. If you are working with kids...you are busy! But, it's all good stuff. I love how your poem looks like the photograph and that you've used so many words that have more than one meaning. Classic you!
ReplyDeleteSending you blessings for all of your lovely, fruitful, poetic "burdens."
ReplyDeleteHeidi, your busyness is all to promote poetry. I love your idea of helping students write. As for your poem entries in Laura's challenge, I truly enjoyed 1985 when I read it but refreshed my memory here. I missed your poem on the Irish countryside. I love the format that looks like a model of the stone structure. May your days be blessed with busyness when it involves poetry.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes in this new venture, Heidi. There were few places my students could send their poetry to when I taught, but a few published magazines were still around. How wonderful is your idea to create a place for young poets! And, I loved your poems on FB & still love the stories told and the presentations, too. See you on FB!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations Heidi on starting this venture. I know from experience it will be so appreciated by the students and their families. When I ran a third grade writer's circle for six years, 33 of 36 of my student poets were published in the Young American Poetry Digest. It wasn't adjudicated but obviously they didn't accept everything. My son, and a few others, had his poems "Darkness" and "into the Light" published by an adjudicated poetry anthology. It is a great thing for all students but especially, in my opinion, for the gifted student population. Congratulations again! I hope it is a huge success!
ReplyDeleteWow, Heidi - you are rockin' and rollin'! Congrats on all, and what intriguing, wonderful poems you've shared here. And, I'll email you....
ReplyDeleteHeidi, that's a great idea about publishing kids' poems. 1985 is wonderful--what an experience!
ReplyDeleteMany young budding poets will be very happy to have a place for their poems, what a wonderful project, all the best with it! I'm enjoying reading all your poetic outpourings in Laura's FB group, yes, as Linda B said, see you there!
ReplyDeleteWow! You have been quite busy. I love the idea of publishing kids poetry online. Back when I was teaching my middle school students each had their own blog to publish their writing, and some of them would have loved a wider audience. I enjoyed reading both your poems again.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful story-poems, Heidi... I will look forward to reading WhisperShout Wednesday gems!
ReplyDeleteYou are so busy and so inspiring, Heidi!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Karen, Heidi. You are both busy and inspiring! I loved the story poem you shared on FB and am excited to watch your newest venture grow. Such exciting times!
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