All posts in Joy Young

Home for Everyone: Student Poems for Palestinians

With hate crimes targeting the Muslim community on the rise, many people listening to the news about violence affecting Palestinians may feel a sense of helplessness, not knowing how to help or talk about […]

Dreaming with Twain 4th graders

For their 4th week of poetry 4th graders explored ideas about dreams. Students were asked to define what dreams are and describe different types of dreams. The responses given were mind-blowing. Dreams can be […]

We Are Family @ Twain 4th grade

For their third week of poetry, Twain 4th graders explored the meaning of family. I asked students “Where do you fit in your family?” Students thought about the positive and negative aspects of being […]

Sensing Memories with Twain 4th graders

For their second week of poetry Twain 4th graders went back in time. They explored some of their earliest memories. Students were asked, “What are memories? Which memories are special to you?” The majority […]

How to eat a poem with Twain 4th graders

I’m excited to return back to Twain Elementary to teach poetry. This time I will be working with the 4th graders on Mondays. I felt welcomed by students who were so friendly and excited […]

New Poems from A Teen Poetry State Champion

Be in the lookout for this up-and-coming teen writer Yohanna Endashaw, who has just released her self-published book of poems, “Maturing In Free Verse.” Book description: This is her journey, as a Black teenage […]

Remember Who You Are

For their 10th and final day of poetry, Twain 6th graders explored ideas about memories. We discussed the importance of remembering. Whether its remembering happy memories such as birthday parties, family vacations, and first […]

Let’s Celebrate with Poetry at Twain!

There was so much to celebrate for 6th graders during their ninth session of poetry. There was a pop-up poetry event for 5th and 6th graders in the school auditorium, where Chicago Poetry Center […]

Letters delivered to you from Twain 6th graders

For their 8th week of poetry Twain 6th graders explored epistolary poetry. Epistolary poems are poems that can be written as letters, notes, or diary entries. We discussed the different ways people communicate with […]

Who? Where? What? Why? When? How? Twain 6th graders want to know!

For their seventh week of poetry Twain Elementary 6th graders explored the purpose of asking questions. They were asked “Why do people ask questions?” and “Does every question have to have an answer?” Most […]

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I’M FROM THE CITY LIGHTS / STREAMING OUT IN THE NIGHT / AND HUGE SKYSCRAPERS / TOWERING OVER THE LAKE – MELISSA E., 7TH GRADE POET