ROYALSTON – Last week was Poetry Week at The Village School in Royalston. Naturally, students at the school, which serves grades kindergarten through six, were given the opportunity to compose their own poems, all of which were inspired by music.
Before putting pen to paper, youngsters listened to works ranging from Aaron Copland’s “Appalachian Spring” to compositions by the Beatles, jazz great Miles Davis, and American composer Eric Whiteacre, and from North African works to Indian Ragas. During the week, some students had the opportunity to listen to an African talking drum, guitars, a recorder, and a violin.
Younger students were paired with older reading buddies, who assisted the young schoolmates with writing their poems. Some of the older students helped as many as two or three young reading buddies.
On Friday morning, students gathered in the main hallway for an All School Poetry Reading. Each student read their poems aloud to the entire school, including classmates, teachers, and administrators. Some parents were also on hand for the event.
All of the poems have been compiled and preserved in an All School Poetry book which will be displayed in the hallway for several weeks. Children were also inspired to write and illustrate their own poetry books.
Here is a poem, entitled “Music,” written by sixth-grader Anthony Kleber:
Music flows on the wind
like pollen in spring.
It can bring happiness
sadness and joy
to people everywhere.
Music floods silence
as its graceful notes
fly through the air.
If you could see music,
it would be a dazzling explosion of colors
reverberating off the walls
and into people’s ears
and hearts.