Record turnout for the Poetry Out Loud contest
On February 14th, a record number of high school students -- 28!-- gathered in YOH Auditorium to participate in this year’s Poetry Out Loud Recitation Contest. Even the student body that gathered to support them appeared record in number, so one might presume it was a good day to “heart” a poem -- either as a deliverer or a receiver.
Students self-selected their poems from The Poetry Out Loud anthology and, with much classroom (and beyond!) practice, offered their interpretations of poems ranging in content from madness to love (unsung and found), to Nature (her seasonal and animal impact and messages for humanity), perseverance, opportunity, and even a few poems or “Pomes” featuring wicked “W” wordplay and pun. The poetry recitations were assessed in several categories -- the speaker’s physical presence, voice and articulation, dramatic appropriateness, evidence of understanding, overall performance and accuracy.
Aside from the stellar Excel program Mr. Andy Smith put together to sum the judges’ scores for each student, Woodstock’s Poetry Out Loud Contest was a tech-free, “Old-school,'' pure mind-body-soul event where students from the 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th grades truly distinguished themselves in offering a poem that mattered to them this past Valentine’s Day.
By 3:00 pm, the scoring team of Mrs. Vonada and Mr. Andy Smith reported the results from Judges Brennan, Richardson, Allen, Robbins, Smail and Hayslett to reveal freshman Agnes Kardashian’s third place finish with 146 points for “Invictus” by William Earnest Henley; junior William Obbard’s second place finish with 167 points for “Tomorrow” by Dennis O’Driscoll; and senior Anne Hauze’s first place with 185 points for “The Properly Scholarly Attitude” by Adelaide Crapsey.
As Woodstock’s 2023 Poetry Out Loud School Champion, Anne Hauze will represent Woodstock at The Poetry Out Loud Regional Competition in Barre, Vermont on March 9th, where she will compete with two poems and vie for a spot in the state finals to be held on March 16th at The Flynn Center in Burlington -- stay tuned! For students wishing to see the complete scoring results for all contestants, please stop by the Library Circulation Desk. Thank you to all the students who gave poetry recitation or reading a try this winter -- this was just about everyone!