Samaa Abdurraqib visited our middle school students on Tuesday, April 12 for a series of readings and workshops. Samaa, a local poet, was able to join Friends School of Portland for National Poetry month with a generous grant from the Maine Literacy Foundation. Samaa led three interactive workshops with students reading her original poetry and that of Wanda Coleman and Terrance Hayes. After students read works by other poets, each student took time to write their own American Sonnet, a form of a sonnet that comes with many freedoms but should have 14 lines. "Samaa validated students' work and ideas. She brought a good sense of humor that students really connected with," shared one middle school teacher.
Middle school students shared their experiences:
"I hadn't heard of Wanda Coleman or Terrance Hayes before. I really liked their poems and how Samaa explained that she didn't always know what a poem is about. But that she knows when she likes one!" - Eighth-grade student
"She was really cool." - Sixth-grade student
"I liked her poems and the poems that she shared." - Seventh-grade student
"It was really cool to talk and hear from someone who writes and publishes poems. She was really honest about if she liked the poem or not, and if she knew exactly what an author meant. I liked knowing that a poet just likes things and tries things out." - Fifth-grade student
At the end of the day, fifth and sixth-grade students shared their poetry in a simple coffee house reading with their younger buddies. First and second-grade students were thrilled to share their appreciation and acknowledgments of their older buddies' work!
"I really liked the words you chose."
"You are brave for reading."
"I liked all the poems."
"Can we hear more? I liked them all!"
Take a listen to Samaa reciting her poem "The Hard Part" here.