Viewing entries tagged
poetry

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SPOTLIGHT! WORDS OF WISDOM FROM INSTRUCTOR Q!

We've been talking to our instructors about what makes them tick - as teachers, as writers and as language lovers! Enjoy learning a little more about Northern Virginia instructor Qinglan "Q" Wang.

What do you learn from your students? I love learning how my students see the world as a place full of color and endless possibilities!
 
How has teaching impacted your craft? Teaching has brought the art of improvisation and sharpening of writing technique to my personal writing.

What is a favorite word of yours? Use it in a sentence!  Mesmerize -- The glint of sun from the pond mesmerized the girl.
 
Share with us a quote or a poem that has been meaningful to you.

Porcupines by Marilyn Singer

Hugging you takes some practice.

So I'll start out with a cactus.

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Why Not Write Wednesday: Shakespeare 400

 

This week, language lovers around the world are celebrating 400 years since the death of Shakespeare (and 452 years since his birth!). Celebrations of Shakespeare's life and work have been happening across the globe and will continue through this year. In honor of the Bard, try your hand at writing (or re-writing) a sonnet. A Shakespearean sonnet has 14 lines - 3 quatrains of 4 lines each followed by a rhyming couplet that resolves the theme or problem set in the quatrains. The rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG

If thou needs inspiration, here is Sonnet #18:

Shall I compare thee to a summer's day

Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer's lease hath all too short a date:

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed,

And every fair form fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed:

But they eternal summal shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st,

Nor shall death brag thou wand'rest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st,

So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Share your writing with us! Post your sonnet in the comments section of our blog!

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SPOTLIGHT! WORDS OF WISDOM FROM INSTRUCTOR EMILY PHILLIPS

We've been talking to our instructors about what makes them tick - as teachers, as writers and as language lovers! Enjoy learning a little more about longtime Bay Area instructor Emily Phillips.

What do you learn from your students? So many things! How to be brave, how to be silly, how to let go, how to be a better teacher, a better person...and the list goes on.
 
How has teaching impacted your craft? It has prompted me to follow the advice I give them: don't take my first drafts too seriously, take risks, think of the 5 senses and use strong active verbs. Be brave and have fun!

What is a favorite word of yours? Use it in a sentence!  What a preposterous question! All words are my favorite.
 
Share with us a quote or a poem that has been meaningful to you.

The Black Snake
by Mary Oliver

When the black snake
flashed onto the morning road,
and the truck could not swerve--
death, that is how it happens.

Now he lies looped and useless
as an old bicycle tire.
I stop the car
and carry him into the bushes.

He is as cool and gleaming
as a braided whip, he is as beautiful and quiet
as a dead brother.
I leave him under the leaves

and drive on, thinking
about death: its suddenness,
its terrible weight,
its certain coming. Yet under

reason burns a brighter fire, which the bones
have always preferred.
It is the story of endless good fortune.
It says to oblivion: not me!

It is the light at the center of every cell.
It is what sent the snake coiling and flowing forward
happily all spring through the green leaves before
he came to the road.
 

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Read It Here First! Peek into words at King Harrington School

Although snow delayed the spring session at King Harrington School in Cambridge, Massachusetts, our young writers are off to a great start! They've begun to show their love of writing through 6 word messaging, poetry & Valentines!

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Inclusive Schools Week 2015: Sharing our Gifts

This week is Inclusive Schools Week and across the nation educators, students and parents are using the opportunity to celebrate how far we have come and explore what more we can do to include and educate all students, regardless of disability, race, gender, socio-economic status, language, cultural heritage or other factors.

On Monday, December 7th, San Francisco public schools held a kick off event on the steps of City Hall where dignitaries, educators, parents and students spoke about the importance of inclusion in their lives. "Take My Word For It!" was proud to have one of our students read a poem at this event. This year's ISW theme is "sharing our gifts" and we hope many students can use the gift of poetry to get them through the hard times in life.

Patrick reading a poem at City Hall that he wrote during a "Take My Word For It!" in-school poetry residency at his elementary school.

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Summer is here! Hear from our first campers in SF

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Summer is here! Hear from our first campers in SF

While yesterday marked the first official day of summer, some of our young writers have been out of school for weeks and have already experienced the joy that is SUMMER CAMP! Our first on-demand camp this year explored poetry, portraits and personification in San Francisco with teacher Jenny. Enjoy some of their pieces from their week-long camp.

Each camper proudly read her work aloud - this is one of our favorite moments of each "Take My Word For It!" session. Thank you for sharing your work, girls!

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