7,250 poems That’s the number of original poems written by DC SCORES students during the fall season. Starting in September, writing coaches at each school begin their journey with the students through our poetry curriculum. Three months and 24 creative lessons later, each school’s team of boys and girls takes the stage at the Poetry Slam!. We provide students with a pen, notebook, and a voice to express their innermost feelings. By December, students are more confident writers and speakers in any classroom they enter.
Kastenny’s Story “I am a diamond, I can shine against the sun/No one can shine like me/I am strong, beautiful, and unique/No one on Earth is quite like me.” Those are just four lines from the poem, “I am a Diamond,” written and performed by Kastenny Contreras, a DC SCORES participant at Marie Reed Elementary School. The poem won Kastenny the Shine Award at the Poetry Slam! for the standout individual performance. As she walked to the stage to receive her trophy, she shed tears of joy. Kastenny had never thought such a thing possible until a writing session during the fall when her coach encouraged her to simply write what she was thinking. “So I wrote about what my friends thought of me,” Kastenny said. After writing the poem, Kastenny practiced it — over and over again — and learned how to punctuate its words with hand gestures and movements. Her preparation paid off at the Poetry Slam!. “I’m proud of myself,” she said afterward of winning the trophy. “I left it on top of my refrigerator for everyone to see.” Click HERE to read Kastenny’s full story (and her poem).
“My child was never introduced to poetry until now. She makes the most out of DC SCORES, and loves to tell me all the wonderful things she learned and would like to do at her school.” — Kimberly Brandon, parent of student at Garrison Elementary 8