A Blog of Seattle Arts & Lectures
by Gabriela Denise Frank Throughout time, the powers of poets have been hailed as nothing short of mystical. Poets are seers and oracles. They treat with gods, muses, ghosts. Their carefully crafted lines conjure images that, to readers and listeners, incarnate ephemeral ideas into forms solid enough to see and touch—at least by the mind. […]
By Gabriela Denise Frank “Writing for me had become this thing where I didn’t have to fit into anybody’s box, except for the one I created,” poet and educator Lauri Conner said. We were discussing the ways in which creative writing and WITS open up possibilities for both students and teachers. This month, Conner—recently named […]
Because so much of the work of our Writers in the Schools program happens behind the curtain—in public school rooms and hospital rooms, in notebooks and on sheets of scrap paper, in classroom anthologies and letterpress broadsides—it’s always a remarkable moment when students take the stage at our Year End Readings. Across two nights of […]
We’re giving a warm welcome to Kesha Howard, who joined the team earlier in January as a Writers in the Schools intern through Seattle Central’s work study program. She brings years of experience working with students from kindergarten through high school, and she truly shares SAL’s mission of bringing opportunities for creativity and expression of voice […]
By Letitia Cain, WITS Writer-in-Residence & SAL Event Manager It’s a Scottish tradition to open the front door of your house at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve to welcome in the new year, then rush to open the back door to let go of the past year. It’s a way of ushering […]
By Matt Gano, WITS Writer-in-Residence I hate the word “lecture.” I’ve always considered teaching poetry as a “conversation.” I hope to learn along with my students by talking about creative ideas, to open space in the classroom to unpack concepts such as “writing from the body,” “poetry as an economy of language,” “write what you […]
By Karen Finneyfrock, WITS Writer-in-Residence I’ve have success and fun in the classroom connecting students with poetry that feature the seasons or the weather. Each November, I bring my fifth grade classes the poem “This is a Letter” by Rebecca Dunham. Young students are especially drawn to images like “the broken confetti of late fall leaves.” […]
When we receive submissions for the Elaine Wetterauer Writing Contest, each year we are reminded of the wisdom, heart, and love of language that Elaine continues to inspire in youth today. The Language Arts Department Chair at Nathan Hale High School, Elaine Wetterauer was a warm and passionate educator who impacted the lives of thousands of students, […]
Tomorrow, Thursday, November 30th, poet and nonfiction author Kevin Young will be presenting on his latest work, Bunk: The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News, and in conversation with Seattle writer Melanie McFarland at Benaroya Hall. Tickets are just $10 as part of our 2017/18 Hinge Series, and they’re still available here or […]
By Danny Sherrard, WITS Writer-in-Residence The subject of the exercise is identity, and I’ve heard scary stories. The idea: to bring up themes like race and gender using you (the teaching artist) as the lab rat on the first day of class. What happens is you ask, Who am I? or, What do you know about […]