April is national poetry month! Whether you write, read, or listen to poetry, there are many ways to express your love of poetry. These nine ideas may spark your inspiration and help you celebrate poetry month.
1. Read a poem a day
This world is filled with all types of poetry; it’s not hard to find different poems to read each day (or each week, if you feel you don’t have time for a poem a day). Here are some poems to get you started:
W.B. Yeats: “Where My Books Go”
Ella Wheeler Wilcox: “Protest”
T.S. Eliot: “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”
Mia You: “Contract Between Forward and Reply”
e.e. cummings: “Since Feeling is First”
2. Create a blackout poem
Grab a page from an old book and create a new poem by circling key words that stand out to you. Black out the other words on the page, or create a design to show off your poem.
3. Attend a poetry reading
You can find poetry readings near you here.
If there aren't any poetry readings in your area, Poetry Slam Inc has a lot of videos on their YouTube site.
4. Read new forms of poetry
If you tend to read the same types of poetry, explore the wide range of styles and try reading something new. If you like to read sonnets, for example, try reading more free verse poetry. If you like to read classic, older poems like those of Shakespeare, try reading more contemporary ones like those of Maya Angelou or Annie Finch.
5. Create a six word story
Put your writing skills to the test and create a six word story like Ernest Heminway's: "For sale: baby shoes, never worn."
Another short poem idea would be a "Twitter poem," where your poem must be 140 characters or less, like that of Billy Collins.
6. Watch a poetry movie
If you're not into writing poetry much, you can get in the spirit of national poetry month by watching a poetry movie.
"The Basketball Diaries" with Leonardo DiCaprio is based on the autobiography of poet Jim Carroll.
"Sylvia" with Daniel Craig and Gwyneth Paltrow portrays the relationship between poets Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes.
"Poetic Justice" starring Janet Jackson contains a couple of Maya Angelou's poems, and Angelou, herself, makes an appearance in this film.
"Before Night Falls" is based on the memoir of poet Reinaldo Arenas.
"Tom and Viv" tells the story of T.S. Eliot and Vivienne Haigh-Wood.
"Dead Poets Society" with Robin Williams contains many references to poets and poems.
7. Poem in your Pocket day
Poem in your Pocket day is April 27. All you have to do is carry around a poem in your pocket and share it with others.
8. Memorize a poem
National poetry month is a good reason to memorize a poem. Imagine how impressive it would be to recite a poem.
9. Put poetry in an unexpected place
Share your favorite poetry with the rest of the world by putting it in an unexpected place; write a poem with sidewalk chalk and let people discover it.
