• What is Poetry Out Loud?
• How can schools get involved?
• Are there prizes?
• Poetry Out Loud, a national initiative
• Frequently Asked Questions about Poetry Out Loud
• 2008 Minnesota Poetry Out Loud highlights
• 2007 Minnesota Poetry Out Loud highlights
• 2006 Minnesota Poetry Out Loud highlights

2010 Regional Competition Schedule

What is Poetry Out Loud ?

Poetry Out Loud is a fun, participatory way to teach poetry and meet English/language arts requirements.

There has been a recent resurgence of poetry as an oral art form, as seen in the slam poetry movement and the immense popularity of hip-hop music. Poetry Out Loud builds on that momentum by inviting the dynamic aspects of slam poetry, spoken word, and theater into the English class.

Through Poetry Out Loud, high school students learn about great poetry through memorization, performance, and competition. They also master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about their literary heritage.

Free, standards-based curriculum materials are available for all participating schools. Participating schools also have the opportunity to work with professional poets who give workshops on poetry recitation for students.

Poetry Out Loud is modeled on the national spelling bee. Schools host their own contests. School winners compete in regional contests. Regional winners compete in the state contest. State winners will advance to the national finals which will be held April 25-27, 2010, in Washington, DC.

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How can schools get involved in Poetry Out Loud ?

Any public or private high school in the state is welcome and encouraged to participate.

Poetry Out Loud satisfies more than half of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) English language arts standards, and more than half of Minnesota’s language arts standards.

Participating schools receive free course and curriculum materials including print and online poetry anthologies, a program guide to help instructors teach recitation and performance, and an audio CD featuring well-known actors and writers reading great poems.

The teacher’s guide includes all elements that a teacher needs to implement the program, from tools to help students memorize and perform great poetry, to optional lesson plans to give students the opportunity to discuss poems and to write poetry of their own.

The schedule and curriculum are designed to fit into a teacher’s busy schedule. The program takes place in the classroom over a two- to three-week period, according to each teacher’s interest and schedule, and will not require full class periods during that time. 

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Timeline for 2010 Poetry Out Loud including deadlines

• September 2009—Teacher workshops
• October 30, 2009—Registration deadline for the year
• January 29, 2010—School competitions deadline
• January 14, 2010—Teaching artist request deadline
• February 1, 2010—School winner information due
• February 11–12; 18–20, 2010—Regional competitions (tentative)
• February 24, 2010—Student information for state participation due
• March 8, 2010—State competition (tentative)
• April 25-27, 2010—National competition

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Are there prizes?

State prizes

The Minnesota state winner will receive $200 and an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, DC, to compete for the national championship. The trip expenses for one adult chaperone also will be covered. The Minnesota winner's school will receive a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry books.

One runner-up in Minnesota will receive $100. His or her school will receive $200 to purchase materials for the school’s library.

Each participating student will receive poetry books donated by Minnesota’s literary organizations including Graywolf Press and Milkweed Editions, and other exciting prizes.

National prizes

The national winner will receive a $20,000 college scholarship. In total, $50,000 in scholarships and school stipends will be awarded to students who participate in the national finals.

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What are the most popular poems selected by students?

State 2006

1. Harlem—Langston Hughes
2. Jabberwocky—Lewis Carroll
3. O Captain! My Captain!—Walt Whitman
4. Over the Roofs—Sara Teasdale
5. Romance—Claude McKay

State 2007

1. A Psalm of Life—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
2. Hysteria—Dioniso Martinez
3. Preludes—T. S. Eliot
4. Still I Rise—Maya Angelou
5. Sweetness—Stephan Dunn

Regional 2008

1. A Psalm of Life—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
2. Annabel Lee—Edgar Allen Poe
3. Fire and Ice—Robert Frost
4. We Wear the Mask—Paul Laurence Dunbar
5. The Road Not Taken—Robert Frost

State 2008

1. A Psalm of Life—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
2. Annabel Lee—Edgar Allen Poe
3. Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night—Dylan Thomas
4. Forgetfulness—Billy Collins
5. Jabberwocky—Lewis Carroll

Regional 2009

1. Alone—Edgar Allen Poe
2. Annabel Lee—Edgar Allen Poe
3. Beat! Beat! Drums!—Walt Whitman
4. Fire and Ice—Robert Frost
5. Harlem—Langston Hughes

State 2009

1. A Psalm of Life—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
2. Annabel Lee—Edgar Allen Poe
3. Detroit, Tomorrow—Philip Levine
4. I Am!—John Clare
5. A Country Boy in Winter—Sarah Orne Jewett

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Poetry Out Loud: A national initiative

Poetry Out Loud is a national program, cosponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. It was launched in high schools across America in the spring of 2006 with tens of thousands of students participating. Nationwide, over 100,000 students competed in Poetry Out Loud last year.  The program will continue to grow during the 2009-2010 school year, culminating in the 2010 National Finals in Washington, DC, in April 2010.

For more information about the national Poetry Out Loud initiative visit: www.poetryoutloud.org
The Web site contains educational resources for teachers and students, including standards-based educational materials, tips on hosting a school contest, and “find a poem” search tools.

The National Endowment for the Arts is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts—both new and established—bringing the arts to all Americans, and providing leadership in arts education.

The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, is an independent literary organization committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture.

The Minnesota State Arts Board coordinates Poetry Out Loud in Minnesota. This is the fifth year that Minnesota high school students will have the opportunity to participate in Poetry Out Loud.

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2009 state competition

Eighteen students competed for the title of Minnesota's poetry recitation champion at the 2009 Poetry Out Loud State Competition on Monday, March 9, at The Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul.  

Thandisizwe Jackson-Nisan, a senior at MTS Technology High School in Minneapolis, was named the 2009 champion. Shewent on to compete against fifty students for the national title in Washington on April 26-28, 2009.

Minnesota’s 2009 Poetry Out Loud champions

Other state competition participants

• Jaci Adcock, Rushford-Peterson High School
• Petra Bachour, Eden Prairie High School
• Luke Christianson, Mounds View High School
• Alexandra Cross, Round Lake High School
• Jacob P. Gunvalson, Clearbrook-Gonvick High School
• Rebecca Jesme, Fosston High School
• Matt Larson, Cotton High School
• Shirley Liao, Eastview High School
• Mackenzie McCann, Milaca High School
• Christina Serena, Babbitt-Embarrass High School
• Luke Smit, Wabasha-Kellogg High School
• Joseph Vital, Brooklyn Center High School

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