Poetry Out Loud FAQs
It’s January, which means it’s time to dust off your recitation skills because it’s Poetry Out Loud time! This competition brings a lot of joy to many people, but some people do not even know what it is. The positive benefit and opportunity of this program is too valuable to remain under the radar for many students in our school, so we compiled a list of FAQs about the program answered by the wonderful Mrs. Link.
1. What is Poetry Out Loud? 2. How can students sign up? 3. When are the dates for the competition? 4. How many poems do students have to memorize? 5. Is it a competition? How do people win? 6. What are the benefits of participating in something like this? 7. Where should someone go to find poems? 8. Where can someone go to get help with recitation? 9. Will we have to recite in front of a class or a panel of judges? How are poems scored? 10. Is there anything else people should know about the competition?
1. Poetry Out Loud is a national poetry recitation competition that encourages students to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation, as well as build student confidence and work on their public speaking skills. Schools from all over the country participate each year. In the spring, one finalist from each state goes on to compete in the finals in Washington D.C. where he/she has a chance to win $20,000. 2. Students can sign up by coming to the try outs on Tuesday, January 23, after school in my room (Gold 111). Interested students need to recite one poem at tryouts, and two for the school finals competition on January 30th. 3.The school tryouts are Tuesday, January 23rd, right after school, and the school finals are Tuesday, January 30th, at 7PM in the little theater. 4. Students need to recite one poem for the school tryouts, and two for the school finals. If a student makes it to the state finals, he or she will need to recite a third poem. 5. It is a competition! Each school sends one winner onto the state semi-finals, and one winner is selected from each state to compete in the national finals in Washington D.C. The trick to winning is not just being able to recite the poem, but to convey the meaning of the poem to the audience. 6. Poetry Out Loud is a great way to build confidence, and work on public speaking skills. It's also a great way to read and learn about some awesome poems that you might not see elsewhere. 7. Students must select their poems from the Poetry Out Loud website. (poetryoutloud.org) 8. If you're looking for help with your recitation, your teachers are here to help! Talk to your English teacher and he/she will able to give you feedback on both your understanding of the poem and your performance. It is also helpful to watch videos of previous contestants to see how they interpret poems. 9. The school finals are a public event. The little theater is usually a packed house, and there will be a panel of judges who will score the performers using the Poetry Out Loud rubric. (The rubric is on pages 20-21 of the teacher guide) 10. It's a lot of fun, and someone from Norwell has made it to the state finals four of the last five years!
We hope these questions and answers gave some helpful information about the competition and inspired you to participate. It’s not too late to sign up! Come and explore the wonderful world of language and appreciate the beauty of a poem well recited.
