White Knuckles

by Amy Shultz

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A poem is assigned, and the room full of educators erupts into nervous laughter. Then a hush falls over the crowd, followed by symptoms of white knuckles, clenched jaws, and always an outbreak of questions like, "Will we have to read it out loud?" The result of a simple assignment is panic.

In another scene are dozens of teenagers, waiting their turn at the microphone. The poetry Slam is about to begin. The audience will experience a variety of poems, including hip hop, free verse, limericks, love poems, and even comic routines. The students almost strut up to the microphone. The result of hours of crafting and revision is applause.

Sharing a poem with others takes pure guts. So how did these students, deep in the teenage stage of uncertainty become self-assured writers?

Among educators, there is an emerging belief that poetry is valuable in building both our students’ literary abilities and also their emotional intelligence. In their condensed format, poems require the writer to be a magnifying lens, achieving focused ideas, accurate imagery, and concise language.

The study of poetry nurtures the whole person, granting an outlet for passionate emotions and a safe venue to try on different points of view. As a result, teachers are working to become proficient in both challenging skills and celebrating the whole student. Walking this balance encourages skillful, meaningful writing of any style, not just poetry.

Poetry hangs in limbo in today’s classrooms. In some, poems may be critiqued and scrutinized for every discernable meaning. Red pens fly across incorrect spelling and grammar mistakes. In other classrooms, a variety of poems are read and written every day. Only some of these works are assessed as a final product, but all are celebrated as attempts to skillfully communicate ideas, opinions, and reflections. The panic of the poetry assignment, along with its white knuckles, is giving way to applause.

Amy Shultz

Amy Shultz, former fourth grade teacher, works as a facilitator for the Buddy Teaching and Learning Center. She also writes for The Write Connection newsletter and The Writing Site, under the Buddy System Project.

This featured article appeared in Volume 1, Number 3 issue of the Write Connections quarterly newsletter. View other archived newsletters , a topical organization of all newsletters, or sign-up to receive notification when the next newsletters are ready to download.