Tune In To Poetry

This morning I made an appearance on “The  Mo Show” on Valley Free Radio. I was there to talk about … what else? Poetry, of course. Rather than write about it (especially because I’m a little sleepy now, having gotten up at some ungodly hour to arrive at the recording studio on time), I’ll invite you [...]

H’s Haiku in Sound

H. missed our big poetry reading, the one she’d practiced and practiced for. That surprised me. Her love of poetry is no secret around our school. On the other hand, I realized she might have stayed home out of fear. H. is militantly shy. Getting her to speak in class was one hurdle her other [...]

Annabel Lee and a Lesson in Existential Angst

I entered the classroom on a hot, humid Monday morning, after a hot, humid weekend. Before even saying hello to the dozen or so teen mothers seated at their desks, I began to recite:
“It was many and many a year ago …” and continued through all six stanzas of Edgar Allan Poe’s classic poem, “Annabel [...]

A Singular Sloth

Details, I tell my students, bring the poem to life. Recently I saw how details bring life to me.
On my recent trip to Costa Rica, I met Millie, an orphaned sloth. Since she was not raised by her mother, Millie can’t return to the jungle, and thus lives a quiet life swinging from a wicker [...]