Found out about this great opportunity for a school student to be a Poet Laureate 🙂
How much fun would that be!
Here are the details from the Australian Poetry website.
‘Australian Poetry has initiated a School Poet Laureate Program which offers students the opportunity to be a Poet Laureate in their school. Responsibilities of a Laureate include liaising with a teacher at the school, other students and peers and Australian Poetry in regard to poetry-related activities happening in the school and asking Australian Poetry for opportunities which benefit the school and students.
The benefits for the Laureate are they are provided with leadership responsibility, connection to Australian Poetry, leading poets and poetry organisations as well as opportunities for publishing, work placement options, readings and personal and professional growth in the area of literature and the arts.
For more information, contact Australian Poetry at eliza@australianpoetry.org or by calling the office on 03 9094 7828.’
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On an almost unrelated note, my 9 year old girl Tessa recently drew a series of cartoons for her imaginary world called ‘Tessa Landers’.
She bought one cartoon to my attention (while trying not to giggle).
It was a cartoon of two vikings.
One viking is holding up a long sheet of paper (Tessa informs me it is a poem).
The viking is reading the poem to the other viking.
The other viking has a thought balloon rising above his horned hat.
In the thought balloon are ZZZ’s.
Yes, the 2nd viking is bored out of his brain with the poetry reading.
Very funny Tessa (I am not amused, said Mum, while pulling the dagger from her broken heart 😉 )
So looks like Tessa won’t be interested in being a School Poet Laureate!
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Gabe Feathers McGee 
Thanks for this, GB – I am going to try to integrate it with my Science in Schools activities – given that the ‘link’ person at the school is the librarian!!
d.
fantastic d – spread the word 🙂
That’s a great programme!
Yes, and some lucky student 🙂
An inspired idea, Gabrielle. Do you think, maybe, too much time is spent telling kids what constitutes great poetry, rather than encouraging them towards experimenting with their own poetic expression?
I think you need a combination of both Martin – some schools hardly touch poetry it seems (it varies from school to school). Back when I was at school they threw you in the deep end, telling us to write a poem, without giving us any clue how to go about it (which just makes you want to give up).
Seems a wonderful idea, worth expanding to other countries and cultures. It could do really well here, if launched with energy and drive.
And, said he regretfully, time to spare …
I think this is a new progam but definitely worthwhile colonialist 🙂
Any program to encourage art and creativity is good.
I like a lot Tessa’s cartoon!
True Benedicte – I will tell Tessa you like her cartoon 🙂
Kids can so easily read the moms’ minds and thus know all the buttons to push. Well, it’s a demonstration of how deep the love is that they notice just everything! And pushing the buttons must be awfully tempting ….
Hmmm, actually “noticing everything” sounds like good qualifications for poetic creativity. Don’t give up on her being poet laureate!
haha – thanks Aletha – I won’t give up just yet (I think she is going to be a comedian anyway) 😉
and if she isn’t poet laureate now, she could be later, but she definitely is cartoon laureate haha!
haha yes, cartoon laureate Tessa – I think being a cartoonist would be such a fun thing to be tipota 🙂
Tessa, that cartoon is hilarious! Wish I could see it.. scan please!
Thanks Graham – Tessa has agreed that I can scan one soon 🙂 watch this space!
Loved Tessa’s cartoon. Will she start her own blog?
haha – thanks Jane – she has enough material but maybe not!
What a great program that is!
I agree, you should scan this cartoon in for us to see … what a cheeky illustrator Tessa must be. At least she had a dig through an artistic creation. 😉
That’s right Tracey – she is very creative 🙂
Haha – Tessa has a wonderful sense of humour 😀
The SPLP is a great way to get kids involved in poetry
It is bluebee 🙂 and she does have a good sense of humour – she is a comedian in the making (makes up her own jokes and stuff).
Ah, if only my daughter was under your school system: she’d love to do a job like that. I love the cartoon. What a clever girl 😉
Thanks Kate. I am sure a bit of lobbying could arrange a similar program – you never know 🙂
Lovely idea!
Thanks adeeyoyo 🙂
Some are meant to be poets and some are not but does sound like Tessa has a wonderful sense of humor and we all need that at one time or another. 🙂
we certainly do Renee – especially when the zombie shuffle comes along 😉
Great idea about the school poet laureate. I am killing myself laughing about Tessa’s vikings. What a character 😆
hahaha – thanks Selma (she is a chip off her Dad) 🙂