District Administrator's Corner

by Loren Glasbrenner River Valley School District Administrator The month of April is National Poetry Month.  This provides us with 30 days and many opportunities to open our minds to rich language and expression.  So many of us think of nursery rhymes or quick memorized verse--Mary Had a Little Lamb or The Itsy, Bitsy Spider--and, traditionally, poetry was first experienced with spoken words to children and shared through generations of family.  Even the songs that are sung to cranky infants can be considered poetic.  Beyond those examples, we may have forgotten the joy of the shared word.  But, if we open our minds, there is a vast land of poetic experiences for people of all ages to enjoy. There are four agreed upon categories that envelope the many genres of poetry:  narrative, lyric, dramatic, and specialized.  And within each of these categories, there are several kinds of poems with deep history.  For example, a haiku is a short complex poem (considered a specialized form) originally formed in Japan, with specific syllables of 5/7/5 in three unrhymed lines.  Another type of poetry would be a Shakespearean sonnet (which is the lyrical form of poetry) and full of pattern in sound and meter.  No matter the category or the type, poetry is written art.   Yet, one of the best elements of poetry is the flexibility.  Below are great poems that matter to our community.  Please take a moment to research and read one of the following poems: • The Jersey Cow by Jane Neibaur Cobabe (http://grandmacobabe.blogspot.com/2012/01/jersey-cow.html) • The Life of Trees by Dorianne Laux (https://poets.org/poem/life-trees) • Song: Spring by William Shakespeare (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/51781/spring-56d22fc0d9dca) • I’m In Love With Mud by Gareth Lancaster (https://fizzyfunnyfuzzy.com/poem/im_in_love_with_mud) • Freedom’s Plow by Langston Hughes (https://harpers.org/2009/01/langston-hughes-freedoms-plow/) • April Snow by Elizabeth Akers Allen (https://www.poetrynook.com/poem/april-snow) • Casey at the Bat by Ernest Lawrence Thayer (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45398/casey-at-the-bat) • Easter Song by George Herbert (https://spillwords.com/easter-song/) • The Pasture by Robert Frost (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44270/the-pasture) • Turkey Hunter by Leslie Ely (https://www.huntingnet.com/forum/turkey-hunting/112397-turkey-hunters-poem.html) • Spring by Elefriede Jelinek (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/49891/spring-56d22c73a7306) • The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman (https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/20/amanda-gormans-inaugural-poem-the-hill-we-climb-full-text.html) • The Farmer by Amelia Barr (https://www.farms.com/ag-industry-news/5-farming-related-poems/3) During spring break week, the students of River Valley may be playing in puddles, climbing in trees, and spending time with family and friends.  Enjoy the time.  My hope is that a poem can be added to the mix somehow.  Sharing poetry with your family is a great way to highlight language and reminisce about the traditions started and shared years ago.