The picture to the left is the official 2009 National Poetry Month poster, designed by renowned illustrator and graphic designer Paul Sahre, featuring a fogged window on which handwritten lines from poet T. S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" question "Do I dare disturb the universe?" To view a gallery of NPM posters from past years, click here.Beginning in 1996, The Academy of American Poets inaugurated April as National Poetry Month, a celebration which "… brings together publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, schools, and poets around the country to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture." There are a million ways to celebrate – on paper (writing and reading poems, of course), in the classroom, in public performances, etc. In this post I will share some great web-based resources to help you plan your own celebration.
Whether you are a poet, a teacher of children or adults, a librarian, a bookseller, or just somebody who cares about poetry, the place to start in your NPM exploration is the source – The Academy of American Poets. Here you will find such resources as:
- For Teachers: Creative and inexpensive suggestions for making poetry a more important part of school life during April and throughout the year.
- Poetry Read-a-thon: Instructions for motivating students to enjoy poetry in the classroom.
- For Librarians: Low cost suggestions to develop greater visibility for poetry during April and throughout the year.
- For Booksellers: Use these ideas during National Poetry Month and year-round to sell more poetry.
- 30 Ways to Celebrate NPM: A month’s worth of poetry activities that any community can take part in.
Here are more great NPM resources gathered from all across the web:
The History of National Poetry Month – an informative article by Gregg Wisniewski, of Poetry.com "Started by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month has become a celebration of poetry, poets, books, and magazine articles written to increase awareness of poetry in the public, as well as within the media. The month of April was chosen by the academy because it is a month when all schools can participate. This month focuses on the work of both past and present poets…."
The Crayola Company offers an array of free NPM resources for kids, including printable coloring and activity pages, craft ideas and 28 complete lesson plans.
Read*Write*Think offers this classroom activity in honor of National Poetry Month. "Introduce your students to a variety of poetic forms. Assign one or two students each day as “poet of the day” for the month of April. Then provide students with several models for creating different forms of poetry. You might use Shape Poems, Acrostic Poems, Diamante Poems, or Instant Poetry Forms to do this….
Infoplease has put together a nice collection of NPM links for adults, with a few things for kids thrown in as well. Here you will find Special Features on William Shakespeare, a Glossary of Poetry Terms, Notable Poets, Recommended Poetry Sites, Excellent Kids' Poetry Books, Poetry & Quotations, Poets on Poetry, Spring Poetry, Summer Poetry, Fall Poetry, Memorial Poetry, War Poetry, Winter Quotations, Quotes from Love Poems, Love Poems on the Web, Quizzes & Crosswords & Fun Stuff, Poetry Terms Hangman New!, Meter, Rhyme Scheme, and Forms of Poetry Quiz, Walt Whitman Quiz, Can you identify these poets? Quiz, Poetry Terms Quiz, Name the Poet Quiz, Poetry Movements and Genres Quiz, Poetry Crossword, Shakespeare Crossword, plus links to 30 or so classic poets whose works are in the public domain.
Wild Rose Reader - Retired elementary school teacher and school librarian Elaine Magliaro has put together a fabulous set of links to NPM resources, mostly aimed at kids. If you are a public or homeschool teacher, this one site should be able to provide you with everything that you need to plan a terrifc National Poetry Month for your students!
Poems Out Loud - Join Robert Pinsky for National Poetry Month! Robert Pinsky, beloved for his ability to bring poetry to life, will be blogging about the fine art of reading poems…out loud. Many poets will be joining him throughout the month including Eavan Boland, Kim Addonizio, Todd Boss, Li-Young Lee, and many more. Poetry was never meant to be quiet.
