Sixth grade students at Nassakeag Elementary School were recently visited by Ward Melville High School student Ella O’Connor for a discussion about poetry. Last year, O’Connor was named Suffolk County’s first teen poet laureate after winning a Walt Whitman Student Poetry Contest in collaboration with the Suffolk County Legislature.

O’Connor led the group in a presentation about poetry and the power of words. She empowered the group through writing, while focusing on the following themes: youth can change the world, poetry can change minds and what you say matters.

During the presentation, O’Connor tasked the sixth graders with writing their own poems. They followed the theme, “What is something I can do to change the world,” and were guided step-by-step through the writing process. Students first brainstormed and mapped out their ideas. They decided on rhythmic structures and chose writing devices such as similes, metaphors and alliteration to include. O’Connor encouraged students to enter these poems, as well as other original pieces of writing, in local and regional competitions.

Click here to view the photo slideshow. 

Date Added: 11/28/2022