This month is National Poetry Month and many Literature-lovers are excited. The concept of honoring poetry in the month of April was created by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, and the tradition in April continues each year. 

As a public school, Wayne Hills has English teachers who find this very important and do what they can to bring awareness. Ms. Caamano, an English teacher at Hills said, “In my class, we will be starting The Odyssey which is a form of poetry (epic poetry) and my hope is to have the students investigate how although the style of poetry has changed over time, we still today use it to tell the story of what it means to be alive. My hope is to share some of my favorite poems throughout the unit and have students reflect on how their stories are forms of poetry. ” Also, Ms. Caldwell said, “In the library, I am hosting poetry celebration days, where English classes will come to the library for a period.  I have a display of poetry books, as well as novels in verse, for students to check out, and will also have a number of stations for students to do poetry-related activities, such as writing blackout poems, guided poems, imitations poems, poems in your pocket, and more!  I’ve been working with Ms. Foster, the librarian at Wayne Valley, to put this together, and currently have 24 classes signed up to come in. I have also created a virtual library on our Wayne Hills Library website, which highlights poetry, novels in verse, poets, poetry readings, and magazines about poetry.”

There are many ways to celebrate poetry month, for people who want to participate. Writing poems, reading poems, and getting educated on the different types of history are many ways to understand how poems work and why they’re so classic. Many people have different experiences with poetry and how they started to understand its significance. For example, Ms. Caamano said, “Poetry has been an integral part of my experience with literature. When I was in high school I took a Prose and Poetry course that changed my life. It was a class dedicated to writing our own pieces of creative fiction and I began writing poetry to deal with the hardships I was experiencing in my life, as well as just to cope with the inevitable transitions that occur as you near the end of high school and the start of college. I had the privilege of teaching that same class six years later when I was a student-teacher. The class was predominantly seniors from all different walks of life and it was in that class that I saw something amazing happening to them. Through writing poetry and sharing it with their peers, we built a strong community founded on the shared experience of creating art from life. I have always felt that poetry is a window to the experience of the soul and there is something so human about it.”

While April is National Poetry Month, National Poetry Day and World Poetry Day aren’t even in the month. The different poetry-appreciation celebrations occur on the first Thursday of October and March 21st, encouraging many people to read and share poems with loved ones. 

The month of April celebrates many different things, but poetry appreciation isn’t normally what comes to mind, so is the concept underappreciated? About 12% of adults actually read poetry for recreational purposes, so it is not likely that many people recognize April for its honor of poems and poets. The idea of the month is to understand the American Poet’s legacy that has been carried on through making achievements with writing and the stories that people make up and/or experience.  Ms. Caldwell said, “I…feel that highlighting poetry allows teachers and librarians to spotlight additional writers, and remind students that great writing comes in many forms and many voices.”

No matter the poem – Sonnet, Haiku, Cinquain, American poets have done a lot for the education of young students everywhere. The combination of speech and song that a poem contains presents a lot of emotion and sensitivity in literature to many.