Showing posts with label poetry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label poetry. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Monday, June 03, 2013
June 3: "Casey at the Bat" Day
Today is the anniversary of the publication of one of the most popular of all American poems. Casey at the Bat was first published in the San Francisco Examiner on June 3, 1888. The author of poem was Ernest L. Thayer, a college friend of Examiner editor William Randoph Hearst. Thayer had worked with Hearst in college as a member of the staff of the Harvard Lampoon. When the poem was published it did not have Thayer's name; instead, his Lampoon nickname "Phin" was used. This lead to future disputes about the actual author of the poem.
While Thayer was certainly the writer, another man should probably be given credit for popularizing the poem. The actor William De Wolf Hopper first performed the poem to an audience that included members of the New York and Chicago baseball clubs in August 1888. Hopper's recitation was met with enthusiastic reviews, and he continued to share "Casey" with audiences around the country until it became not just America's favorite poem about baseball, but one of America's favorite poems period.
CASEY AT THE BAT
The Outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day:
The score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play.
And then when Cooney died at first, and Barrows did the same,
A sickly silence fell upon the patrons of the game.
A straggling few got up to go in deep despair.
The rest Clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast;
They thought, if only Casey could get but a whack at that -
We'd put up even money, now, with Casey at the bat.
But Flynn preceded Casey, as did also Jimmy Blake,
And the former was a lulu and the latter was a cake;
So upon that stricken multitude grim melancholy sat,
For there seemed but little chance of Casey's getting to the bat.
But Flynn let drive a single, to the wonderment of all,
And Blake, the much despised, tore the cover off the ball;
And when the dust had lifted, and the men saw what had occurred,
There was Jimmy safe at second and Flynn a-hugging third.
Then from 5,000 throats and more there rose a lusty yell;
It rumbled through the valley, it rattled in the dell;
It knocked upon the mountain and recoiled upon the flat,
For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat.
There was ease in Casey's manner as he stepped into his place;
There was pride in Casey's bearing and a smile on Casey's face.
And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly doffed his hat,
No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Casey at the bat.
Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt;
Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt.
Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip,
Defiance gleamed in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip.
And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air,
And Casey stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there.
Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped-
"That ain't my style," said Casey. "Strike one," the umpire said.
From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar,
Like the beating of the storm-waves on a stern and distant shore.
"Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted someone on the stand;
And its likely they'd a-killed him had not Casey raised his hand.
With a smile of Christian charity great Casey's visage shone;
He stilled the rising tumult; he bade the game go on;
He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the spheroid flew;
But Casey still ignored it, and the umpire said, "Strike two."
"Fraud!" cried the maddened thousands, and echo answered fraud;
But one scornful look from Casey and the audience was awed.
They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,
And they knew that Casey wouldn't let that ball go by again.
The sneer is gone from Casey's lip, his teeth are clenched in hate;
He pounds with cruel violence his bat upon the plate.
And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go,
And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.
Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;
But there is no joy in Mudville - mighty Casey has struck out.
--Ernest L. Thayer
Today's Challenge: Step Up to Bat and Recite!
Read through "Casey at the Bat"; then, get a group of people together to do a reader's theater rendition of the poem. Get everyone involved in sharing the narrative of Casey and his hubris as he steps up to the plate, certain that he will bring victory to Mudville. Have the kids recite it before a baseball game or at a family picnic.
Quote of the Day: If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there is a man on base. --Dave Berry
While Thayer was certainly the writer, another man should probably be given credit for popularizing the poem. The actor William De Wolf Hopper first performed the poem to an audience that included members of the New York and Chicago baseball clubs in August 1888. Hopper's recitation was met with enthusiastic reviews, and he continued to share "Casey" with audiences around the country until it became not just America's favorite poem about baseball, but one of America's favorite poems period.
CASEY AT THE BAT
The Outlook wasn't brilliant for the Mudville nine that day:
The score stood four to two, with but one inning more to play.
And then when Cooney died at first, and Barrows did the same,
A sickly silence fell upon the patrons of the game.
A straggling few got up to go in deep despair.
The rest Clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast;
They thought, if only Casey could get but a whack at that -
We'd put up even money, now, with Casey at the bat.
But Flynn preceded Casey, as did also Jimmy Blake,
And the former was a lulu and the latter was a cake;
So upon that stricken multitude grim melancholy sat,
For there seemed but little chance of Casey's getting to the bat.
But Flynn let drive a single, to the wonderment of all,
And Blake, the much despised, tore the cover off the ball;
And when the dust had lifted, and the men saw what had occurred,
There was Jimmy safe at second and Flynn a-hugging third.
Then from 5,000 throats and more there rose a lusty yell;
It rumbled through the valley, it rattled in the dell;
It knocked upon the mountain and recoiled upon the flat,
For Casey, mighty Casey, was advancing to the bat.
There was ease in Casey's manner as he stepped into his place;
There was pride in Casey's bearing and a smile on Casey's face.
And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly doffed his hat,
No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Casey at the bat.
Ten thousand eyes were on him as he rubbed his hands with dirt;
Five thousand tongues applauded when he wiped them on his shirt.
Then while the writhing pitcher ground the ball into his hip,
Defiance gleamed in Casey's eye, a sneer curled Casey's lip.
And now the leather-covered sphere came hurtling through the air,
And Casey stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there.
Close by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped-
"That ain't my style," said Casey. "Strike one," the umpire said.
From the benches, black with people, there went up a muffled roar,
Like the beating of the storm-waves on a stern and distant shore.
"Kill him! Kill the umpire!" shouted someone on the stand;
And its likely they'd a-killed him had not Casey raised his hand.
With a smile of Christian charity great Casey's visage shone;
He stilled the rising tumult; he bade the game go on;
He signaled to the pitcher, and once more the spheroid flew;
But Casey still ignored it, and the umpire said, "Strike two."
"Fraud!" cried the maddened thousands, and echo answered fraud;
But one scornful look from Casey and the audience was awed.
They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,
And they knew that Casey wouldn't let that ball go by again.
The sneer is gone from Casey's lip, his teeth are clenched in hate;
He pounds with cruel violence his bat upon the plate.
And now the pitcher holds the ball, and now he lets it go,
And now the air is shattered by the force of Casey's blow.
Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout;
But there is no joy in Mudville - mighty Casey has struck out.
--Ernest L. Thayer
Today's Challenge: Step Up to Bat and Recite!
Read through "Casey at the Bat"; then, get a group of people together to do a reader's theater rendition of the poem. Get everyone involved in sharing the narrative of Casey and his hubris as he steps up to the plate, certain that he will bring victory to Mudville. Have the kids recite it before a baseball game or at a family picnic.
Quote of the Day: If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there is a man on base. --Dave Berry
Friday, May 31, 2013
May 31: Barbaric Yawp Day
One of the great contributions that Whitman made to poetry was his experimentation with free verse. Without regular meter or rhyme, free verse combines rhythm, repetition, and parallelism to create music for the reader’s ears. Whitman’s verses with their optimistic, robust tones, celebrated the individual, painted images of democratic America, and reveled in the colloquial language of its common people.
Characteristic of his break with traditional verse, Whitman begins his epic Leaves of Grass with no mention or invocation of a muse; instead, he audaciously focuses on himself:
I celebrate myself, and sing myself,
And what I assume you shall assume,
For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you.
Who can forget the scene in the movie Dead Poet’s Society, where Mr. Keating, played by Robin Williams, writes one of Whitman’s lines on the blackboard to inspire his students to leave self-consciousness behind and embrace their individual creativity?
I sound my barbaric yawp over the roofs of the world.
Whitman died in 1892, but his poetry lived on, inspiring the unique voices of American poets of the 20th century.
Today’s Challenge: Famous First Lines
Below are the first lines of some of the best known American poems. Read each line and see if you can identify the poet.
1. O Captain my Captain! our fearful trip is done,
2. There is no frigate like a book.
3. Whose woods these are I think I know.
4. What happens to a dream deferred?
5. So much depends
6. The outlook wasn’t brilliant for the Mudville nine that day,
7. Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
8. By the shore of Gitchie Gumee,
9. Hog butcher for the world,
Quote of the Day: Language is not an abstract construction of the learned or of dictionary makers, but something arising out of the work, needs, joys, tears, affections, tastes of long generations of humanity, and has its bases broad and low, close to the ground. --Walt Whitman
Answers: 1. Walt Whitman 2. Emily Dickinson 3. Robert Frost 4. Langston Hughes 5. William Carlos Williams 6. Ernest L. Thayer 7. Edgar Allen Poe 8. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow 9. Carl Sandburg
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
To Memorize or Not to Memorize?
Memorization of anything by rote these days gets a bad rap. Teachers are supposed to take students to the upper echelons of Bloom’s Taxonomy, so wasting time on memorized poetry recitations has fallen out of style, a relic of a past age when it seemed that every high school junior memorized The Prologue to Chaucer’s Canterbury
Tales.
I confess, however, to seeing value in memorization of quality passages of prose and poetry. I’ve required students to do if for years now, making them stand before the class and present what I call their “Memory Anthology.” I don’t know of any studies that show great cognitive benefits for this practice, but from doing it myself and from watching my students, I know that it makes them take a text, read it, re-read it, write it, and read it aloud several times. Doing this with a passage of great writing, I believe, allows them to immerse themselves in the language in a way that we seldom do anymore. It is close reading, and the best recitations are done by students who have made the passage their own. Careful, close reading reveals the subtleties of a passage’s tone, diction, and imagery. I’ll never forget a recitation of Emma Lazarus’ New Colossus presented by one of my students, a six-foot-one-inch blonde. When she got to the third and fourth lines of the poem, she put in a slight pause that made me see the poem in a new way:
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty - - - woman
That one very intentional pause revealed so much about the student’s understanding of the entire poem. She didn’t just know it by rote; she knew it in her bones. She made the poem her own, and by sharing it with us, she reminded us that words still have the power to touch us and to shake us awake.
I recently read an article in the New York Times by Jim Holt, author of the book Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One: A History and Philosophy of Jokes. In talking about his hobby of daily memorization of poetry, he used a brilliant metaphor to describe what he gets out of the exercise, once he has committed a poem to memory: “I’ll be the possessor of a nice big piece of poetical real estate, one that I will always be able to revisit and roam about in.” That’s my hope for my students -- I want them to be property owners. It would by nice if they have a passage from Hamlet to quote in their AP essays, but it would be even better if they owned an acre of verse that they can recite to their children and maybe even their grandchildren. Who doesn’t want a huge estate, lots of acreage, and no property taxes?
Note: Holt was recently interviewed about his poetry memorization on the NPR program On Point.
Tales.
I confess, however, to seeing value in memorization of quality passages of prose and poetry. I’ve required students to do if for years now, making them stand before the class and present what I call their “Memory Anthology.” I don’t know of any studies that show great cognitive benefits for this practice, but from doing it myself and from watching my students, I know that it makes them take a text, read it, re-read it, write it, and read it aloud several times. Doing this with a passage of great writing, I believe, allows them to immerse themselves in the language in a way that we seldom do anymore. It is close reading, and the best recitations are done by students who have made the passage their own. Careful, close reading reveals the subtleties of a passage’s tone, diction, and imagery. I’ll never forget a recitation of Emma Lazarus’ New Colossus presented by one of my students, a six-foot-one-inch blonde. When she got to the third and fourth lines of the poem, she put in a slight pause that made me see the poem in a new way:
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty - - - woman
That one very intentional pause revealed so much about the student’s understanding of the entire poem. She didn’t just know it by rote; she knew it in her bones. She made the poem her own, and by sharing it with us, she reminded us that words still have the power to touch us and to shake us awake.
I recently read an article in the New York Times by Jim Holt, author of the book Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One: A History and Philosophy of Jokes. In talking about his hobby of daily memorization of poetry, he used a brilliant metaphor to describe what he gets out of the exercise, once he has committed a poem to memory: “I’ll be the possessor of a nice big piece of poetical real estate, one that I will always be able to revisit and roam about in.” That’s my hope for my students -- I want them to be property owners. It would by nice if they have a passage from Hamlet to quote in their AP essays, but it would be even better if they owned an acre of verse that they can recite to their children and maybe even their grandchildren. Who doesn’t want a huge estate, lots of acreage, and no property taxes?
Note: Holt was recently interviewed about his poetry memorization on the NPR program On Point.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
July 10: Clerihew Day
Edward Oz
Writes everyday because
English never fails to amaze
Just read today's post on Word Daze
Today is the birthday of Edmund Clerihew Bentley whose middle name became a form of light verse.
Bentley made a name for himself with a classic work of detective fiction called Trent's Last Case, but he is best known for the four-line verse form that bears his middle name: the clerihew.
The clerihew is a biographical form that begins with the subject's name (or at least contains the name in the first line). It is made up of two rhyming couplets (thus the rhyme scheme is AABB). The only other requirement of the form is that it should be light hearted or humorous.
Bentley's Biography for Beginners, published in 1905, was his first collection of verse. He followed this up with additional volumes of verse in 1929 and 1939.
Here are a couple of examples of Bentley's clerihews:
Edward the Confessor
Slept under the dresser.
When that began to pall,
He slept in the hall.
The art of Biography
Is different from Geography.
Geography is about maps,
But Biography is about chaps.
Today's Challenge: Terse Verse
Try writing your own clerihews.
-Write one about a friend, and use in a birthday card.
-Write about someone in the news.
-Write an autobiographical one as your epitaph.
-Write one about your favorite fictional character.
Examples written by Edward Oz:
Samuel Backman
Took on Superman.
It was a long night.
He forgot his Kryptonite.
Prince Hamlet was sad
Because his uncle killed his dad.
He talked to his father's ghost after dark.
Something's rotten in the state of Denmark.
Word of the Day: Terse (Adjective): Brief and to the point; effectively concise.
Quote of the Day: The art of biography is different from geography. Geography is about maps, but biography is about chaps. -Edward Clerihew Bentley
1 - Brandreth, Gyles. The Book of Classic Puzzles and Word Games. London: Chancellor Press, 1985.
2 - Holman, C. Hugh and William Harmon. A Handbook to Literature (Sixth Edition). New York: Macmillian, 1992.
Writes everyday because
English never fails to amaze
Just read today's post on Word Daze
Today is the birthday of Edmund Clerihew Bentley whose middle name became a form of light verse.
Bentley made a name for himself with a classic work of detective fiction called Trent's Last Case, but he is best known for the four-line verse form that bears his middle name: the clerihew.
The clerihew is a biographical form that begins with the subject's name (or at least contains the name in the first line). It is made up of two rhyming couplets (thus the rhyme scheme is AABB). The only other requirement of the form is that it should be light hearted or humorous.
Bentley's Biography for Beginners, published in 1905, was his first collection of verse. He followed this up with additional volumes of verse in 1929 and 1939.
Here are a couple of examples of Bentley's clerihews:
Edward the Confessor
Slept under the dresser.
When that began to pall,
He slept in the hall.
The art of Biography
Is different from Geography.
Geography is about maps,
But Biography is about chaps.
Today's Challenge: Terse Verse
Try writing your own clerihews.
-Write one about a friend, and use in a birthday card.
-Write about someone in the news.
-Write an autobiographical one as your epitaph.
-Write one about your favorite fictional character.
Examples written by Edward Oz:
Samuel Backman
Took on Superman.
It was a long night.
He forgot his Kryptonite.
Prince Hamlet was sad
Because his uncle killed his dad.
He talked to his father's ghost after dark.
Something's rotten in the state of Denmark.
Word of the Day: Terse (Adjective): Brief and to the point; effectively concise.
Quote of the Day: The art of biography is different from geography. Geography is about maps, but biography is about chaps. -Edward Clerihew Bentley
1 - Brandreth, Gyles. The Book of Classic Puzzles and Word Games. London: Chancellor Press, 1985.
2 - Holman, C. Hugh and William Harmon. A Handbook to Literature (Sixth Edition). New York: Macmillian, 1992.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
September 20: Recitation Day
Today is the birthday of Donald Hall, American poet and the 14th U.S. Poet Laureate. He was born in New Haven, Connecticut in 1928, and when he was only sixteen, he attended the Bread Loaf Writers' Conference. In his 50-year career as a writer, Hall has published poems, essays, letters, children's books, and literary criticism (1).
In 1985 Hall wrote a short essay for Newsweek's "My Turn" column entitled "Bring Back the Out-Loud Culture" where he challenged readers to return to reading and reciting aloud:
Good readers hear what they read even though they read in silence: speed reading is barbaric. When we read well, in silence, we imagine how the words would sound if they were said aloud. Hearing print words in the inward ear, we understand their tone. If we see the sentence "Mr. Armstrong shook his head," the inner voice needs to understand whether Mr. Armstrong disapproved or was outraged -- before the inner voice knows how to speak the words.
If when we read silently we do not hear a text, we slide past words passively, without making decisions, without knowing or caring about Mr. Armstrong's mood. We might as well be watching haircuts or "Conan the Barbarian." In the old Out-Loud Culture, print was always potential speech; even silent readers, too shy to read aloud, inwardly heard the sound of words. Everyone's ability to read was enhanced by recitation. Then we read aggressively; then we demanded sense (2).
Although written in 1985, Hall's words are as true today as ever.
Today's Challenge: Out-Loud Renaissance
Read something aloud today: quality poem or a passage from a good book. Challenge yourself this week to commit a favorite poem or passage to memory. See if it helps you pay more attention to the written word.
Quote of the Day: We must encourage our children to memorize and recite. As children speak poems and stories aloud, by the pitch and muscle of their voices they will discover drama, humor, passion, and intelligence in print. In order to become a nation of readers, we must again become a nation of reciters. -- Donald Hall
Sources:
1 - http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/264
2 - Hall, Donald. "Bring Back the Out-Loud Culture." Newsweek 15 April 1985: 12.
In 1985 Hall wrote a short essay for Newsweek's "My Turn" column entitled "Bring Back the Out-Loud Culture" where he challenged readers to return to reading and reciting aloud:
Good readers hear what they read even though they read in silence: speed reading is barbaric. When we read well, in silence, we imagine how the words would sound if they were said aloud. Hearing print words in the inward ear, we understand their tone. If we see the sentence "Mr. Armstrong shook his head," the inner voice needs to understand whether Mr. Armstrong disapproved or was outraged -- before the inner voice knows how to speak the words.
If when we read silently we do not hear a text, we slide past words passively, without making decisions, without knowing or caring about Mr. Armstrong's mood. We might as well be watching haircuts or "Conan the Barbarian." In the old Out-Loud Culture, print was always potential speech; even silent readers, too shy to read aloud, inwardly heard the sound of words. Everyone's ability to read was enhanced by recitation. Then we read aggressively; then we demanded sense (2).
Although written in 1985, Hall's words are as true today as ever.
Today's Challenge: Out-Loud Renaissance
Read something aloud today: quality poem or a passage from a good book. Challenge yourself this week to commit a favorite poem or passage to memory. See if it helps you pay more attention to the written word.
Quote of the Day: We must encourage our children to memorize and recite. As children speak poems and stories aloud, by the pitch and muscle of their voices they will discover drama, humor, passion, and intelligence in print. In order to become a nation of readers, we must again become a nation of reciters. -- Donald Hall
Sources:
1 - http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/264
2 - Hall, Donald. "Bring Back the Out-Loud Culture." Newsweek 15 April 1985: 12.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
March 22: Poetry 180 Day
Today is the birthday of American poet Billy Collins. He was Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001-2003. Born in 1941 in Queens, New York, Collins didn’t publish his first book, The Apple That Astonished Paris (1988), until he was in his forties.
As poet laureate, Collins created a unique anthology to revive verse in American schools, called Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry. With this program Collins set out to end the notion that high school is "the place where poetry goes to die." Instead, he wanted students to see that poetry was meant to be read for enjoyment, read aloud over the school intercom, and shared. In short, Collins hoped to "suggest to young people the notion that poetry can be a part of everyday life as well as a subject to be studied in the classroom."
Collins published a second anthology of poems in 2005 so that readers can enjoy year-round poetry. It’s called: 180 More: Extraordinary Poems.
To visit Poetry 180 online go to: www.loc.gov/poetry/180/ To honor Poetry 180 Day and Billy Collins vision, read at least one poem aloud. Read it to your family at dinner, read it to your colleagues around the water cooler, or grab a megaphone and shout it from the rooftops!
Here’s a short poem to get you started:
DUST OF SNOW
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
--Robert Frost
Today's Challenge: Today is also the birthday of Canadian actor William Shatner (born 1931). In honor of the man who brought us Where. No. Man. Has. Gone. Before. Select a short poem and recite it like the captain – as though Every. Word. Is. Its. Own. Sentence.
Quote of the Day: Every word was once a poem. –Ralph Waldo Emerson
As poet laureate, Collins created a unique anthology to revive verse in American schools, called Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry. With this program Collins set out to end the notion that high school is "the place where poetry goes to die." Instead, he wanted students to see that poetry was meant to be read for enjoyment, read aloud over the school intercom, and shared. In short, Collins hoped to "suggest to young people the notion that poetry can be a part of everyday life as well as a subject to be studied in the classroom."
Collins published a second anthology of poems in 2005 so that readers can enjoy year-round poetry. It’s called: 180 More: Extraordinary Poems.
To visit Poetry 180 online go to: www.loc.gov/poetry/180/ To honor Poetry 180 Day and Billy Collins vision, read at least one poem aloud. Read it to your family at dinner, read it to your colleagues around the water cooler, or grab a megaphone and shout it from the rooftops!
Here’s a short poem to get you started:
DUST OF SNOW
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
--Robert Frost
Today's Challenge: Today is also the birthday of Canadian actor William Shatner (born 1931). In honor of the man who brought us Where. No. Man. Has. Gone. Before. Select a short poem and recite it like the captain – as though Every. Word. Is. Its. Own. Sentence.
Quote of the Day: Every word was once a poem. –Ralph Waldo Emerson
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
March 22: Poetry 180 Day
Today is the birthday of American poet Billy Collins. He was Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001-2003. Born in 1941 in Queens, New York, Collins didn’t publish his first book, The Apple That Astonished Paris (1988), until he was in his forties.
As poet laureate, Collins collected a unique anthology of poetry to revive poetry in American schools, called Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry. With this program Collins set out to end the notion that high school is "the place where poetry goes to die." Instead, he wanted students to see that poetry was meant to be read for enjoyment, read aloud over the school intercom, and shared. In short, Collins hoped to "suggest to young people the notion that poetry can be a part of everyday life as well as a subject to be studied in the classroom."
Collins published a second anthology of poems in 2005 so that readers can enjoy year-round poetry. It’s called: 180 More: Extraordinary Poems.
To visit Poetry 180 online go to: www.loc.gov/poetry/180/
To honor Poetry 180 Day and Billy Collins vision, read at least one poem aloud. Read it to your family at dinner, read it to your colleagues around the water cooler, or grab a megaphone and shout it from the rooftops!
Here’s a short poem to get you started:
DUST OF SNOW
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
--Robert Frost
Challenge: Today is also the birthday of Canadian actor William Shatner (born 1931). In honor of the man who brought us Where. No. Man. Has. Gone. Before. Select a short poem and recite it like the captain – as though Every. Word. Is. Its. Own. Sentence.
Quote of the Day: Every word was once a poem. –Ralph Waldo Emerson
As poet laureate, Collins collected a unique anthology of poetry to revive poetry in American schools, called Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry. With this program Collins set out to end the notion that high school is "the place where poetry goes to die." Instead, he wanted students to see that poetry was meant to be read for enjoyment, read aloud over the school intercom, and shared. In short, Collins hoped to "suggest to young people the notion that poetry can be a part of everyday life as well as a subject to be studied in the classroom."
Collins published a second anthology of poems in 2005 so that readers can enjoy year-round poetry. It’s called: 180 More: Extraordinary Poems.
To visit Poetry 180 online go to: www.loc.gov/poetry/180/
To honor Poetry 180 Day and Billy Collins vision, read at least one poem aloud. Read it to your family at dinner, read it to your colleagues around the water cooler, or grab a megaphone and shout it from the rooftops!
Here’s a short poem to get you started:
DUST OF SNOW
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part
Of a day I had rued.
--Robert Frost
Challenge: Today is also the birthday of Canadian actor William Shatner (born 1931). In honor of the man who brought us Where. No. Man. Has. Gone. Before. Select a short poem and recite it like the captain – as though Every. Word. Is. Its. Own. Sentence.
Quote of the Day: Every word was once a poem. –Ralph Waldo Emerson
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