The cover of the 2023 issue of NJEJ

NJ English Journal’s “Reviving Engagement in ELA”

It is my pleasure to announce the publication of the 2023 issue of New Jersey English Journal: “Reviving Engagement in English Language Arts.”

“This issue addresses a variety of topics, including student-centered writing instruction, early
childhood vocabulary acquisition, and fan fiction.” (Editors’ Note).

The issue features 8 articles and 3 poems related to the theme. Congratulations to the 15 writers whose work is included, and thank you to the reviewers and editorial board members for your contributions to this project. Special thanks to my co-editors, Susan Chenelle and Dr. Katie Whitley. We hope you enjoy this issue and share it widely! [ . . . ]  Read More

Embark Upon a New Decade of English Language Arts in NJEJ 2020

My co-editor Dr. Emily Hodge and I are thrilled to announce the publication of the 2020 issue of New Jersey English Journal: “What’s Next? Embarking Upon a New Decade of English Language Arts.”

“This issue addresses a variety of topics, including Young Adult literature, social justice, artificial intelligence, climate change, and mindfulness. We are proud to share work from writers across the country, including pieces by first-time authors, graduate students, and early-career teachers” (Editors’ Note). [ . . . ]  Read More

Congrats to Local NYTimes Poetry Contest Winner!

Congratulations to rising senior Brianne K. for being selected as a winner of The New York Times annual poetry contest! Her blackout-style poem, “Triggers,” is prominently featured on the NYTimes website, alongside the other winning selections.

My high school students all wrote beautiful poems, and they were especially proud to see a classmate’s entry selected as a winner. For more information about how students crafted their poems, see this post.

Brianne’s powerful and timely poem (pictured below) reads, “to be in a School is to survive algebra, social studies, and gun violence.”

The NYTimes also published the following author’s note about the inspiration for her poem:

As a tribute to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas school shooting tragedy, my poem is 14 words to symbolize the day that innocent students, sons, daughters, teachers, and friends lost their lives and loved ones on February 14th, 2018.

Image by Brianne K.

Congrats to Brianne on behalf of her teachers and classmates!

Celebrating National Poetry Month with Blackout Poetry

In honor of April’s National Poetry Month, my students created Blackout Poetry for the New York Times Annual Spring Poetry contest.

To introduce the task, I first shared Austin Kleon’s “How to Make A Newspaper Blackout Poem” video, and then shared the New York Times contest website and rules. Lastly, we searched for inspiration on Twitter, looking up the hashtags #newspaperblackout and #blackoutpoetry and finding countless student examples. For many students, looking at mentor texts generated some healthy, competitive energy.

The activity fit perfectly into our modern and postmodern fiction course— students noticed the “fragmented” nature of the found poetry exercise, and also commented on the modern feel of their short but powerful poems. I also timed our poetry writing day to coincide with state testing, so the exercise itself brought a welcome change of pace.

Here’s an example of a poem we read for inspiration:

“Neighbors” by Austin Kleon. Shared on Twitter via @hutchowen.

When all three of my classes had completed their poems (and submitted photographs of their work to the New York Times contest), one class suggested that we create a hallway display. That class worked together to first mount the poems against white paper, and then arrange them on a large bulletin board in a high-traffic hallway.

“Blackout Poetry” bulletin board featuring poems by 11th and 12th graders at Northern Highlands Regional High School. Board designed by Lauren Zucker’s period 2 students.

Here are some fantastic student examples (shared with permission):

“This mother is abandoning her young daughters for another woman and freedom.” Blackout poem (“Midlife Crisis”) by Matt S. (11th grade).
“Civilization has been morons who dictate what we should debate. social media.” Blackout poem (“Social Savages”) by Olivia R. (11th grade).
“to be in a School is to survive alegbra social studies and gun violence.” Blackout poem (“Triggers”) by Brianne K. (11th grade).
“During the somber hours before dawn, He smiles.” Blackout poem by Ryan P. (11th grade).
“Who kept it all together? / someone who most probably wouldn’t recognize the real star the beating heart / The single best thing that ever happened writers.” Blackout poem (“The Real Hero”) by Nick O. (12th grade).
“8:45 am bombs shattered 200 people / The attack left blood, limbs and heads.” Blackout poem (“Blasts Kill” ) by Kristen S. (11th grade).

How did you celebrate April’s National Poetry Month? It’s not too late to get your students involved in this contest! All entries must be received by Thursday, May 9.

Poetry for the Reluctant Poet

In honor of National Poetry Month, here’s a poetry lesson that can inspire writers of all ages.

On Valentine’s Day, a day when emotions are heightened in high school, for better or worse, I trotted out an assignment that would invite students to have fun writing poetry. These were ninth graders—generally willing to play along when I call something fun even if they don’t think it is—but I did my best to present them with options they’d find inherently appealing. They even laughed politely when I joked that if they wanted, they could write their poem on colored paper and cut it out in a heart shape.

I introduced them to the epistle, a poem in the form of a letter. I’d like to think that they were as interested in my definition of the word as they were in the sound of the word itself. They first responded with giggles, but after some coaxing, joined me, unabashedly pronouncing “epistle” in chorus while I repeatedly pressed the speaker icon on Merriam Webster, my computer corroborating our pronunciation.Screen Shot 2017-04-02 at 12.54.25 PM.png

I went over some options for the “recipient” (audience) of their epistle, starting with the classic love poem. I reminded them that love poems aren’t always interesting to people outside of the relationship. Then, I shared several variations.

Potential Subjects/Recipients:

  • (classically) someone you love or hate
  • (more subtle) someone you want to thank, or someone who is annoying you
  • a public figure or celebrity (dead or alive)
  • a fictional character
  • a person you don’t know but interact with (e.g., the mail carrier, the pizza delivery person)
  • the inventor/creator of something
  • an object or animal
  • to a real audience (you can actually share it)
  •  [ . . . ]  Read More