OPINION - Angela Frank: Opportunities for education at local poetry festival

Poet Terry Locke released his fifth poetry collection in October last year with a launch at McLeods Booksellers. Photo / Angela Frank

Poetry Bomb is a local celebration of poetry that coincides with National Poetry Day and fills Rotorua with literary events and opportunities for poetry experiences with support from Rotorua Lakes Council.

Lifelong poet and recently retired professor of arts and language education Terry Locke will facilitate three public workshops.

The first of these will be a two-hour intensive for teachers, with strategies for bringing poetry into the classroom on Tuesday, August 18, 4pm to 6pm.

Later that week will be a free session for young poets, aged 8-16 years old, to workshop their poetry in a playful process with fun techniques at Te Aka Mauri, Thursday, August 20, 3.30pm to 5.30pm.

A final public workshop for adults, Making the Poetic Line Sing, focuses on creating and building poems using rhythm and sound. This workshop will take place on Saturday, August 22, 1.30pm to 3pm at The Arts Village.

Two of these workshops have fees. All have limited places, and bookings are essential. Book directly by email - thetravellingtuatara@gmail.com.

An opportunity is available for young people to have their poems published in a local collection whose working title is, I Am From …

This theme can be interpreted in any way that is meaningful to young people, and poems in te reo Māori, English, or bilingual are encouraged. Poems can be submitted directly to project co-ordinator Terry Locke - locketj98@gmail.com.

Poems can be submitted to "Poetry in Windows" by August 8 to be considered for public display around town by email - poetrybombrotorua@gmail.com.

For more information and a full list of events and performances see Poetry Bomb Rotorua on Facebook and Instagram.

- Angela Frank is a local community artist.