I
began following What’s Good? in the Library several years ago, when I
was helping to run a book club with youth charged and incarcerated as
adults at DC Jail and searching desperately for new titles for our
monthly “book ballot.” I found What’s Good? to be a resource in a way
that standard curricula and book lists were not- the librarians posting
reviews understood the unique circumstances of working in a detention
setting, and embraced the challenge!
April
is National Poetry Month, but it can be difficult to tie poetry into
programming in a way that is real and relevant. When I heard about the Words Unlocked initiative from the Center for Educational Excellence in Alternative Settings,
I felt the same feeling of thankful recognition as when I discovered
“What’s Good?” Designed specifically for educators working with youth in
detention, the Words Unlocked
wiki is loaded with free resources- downloadable lesson plans,
worksheets, poem links and more. It also offers a great opportunity to
engage nationwide- for educators through the online teacher community,
and for youth by entering a national Poetry Contest, to be judged by
esteemed authors Jimmy Santiago Baca and R. Dwayne Betts.
Last
night, in a writing workshop at a youth detention center, one longtime
participant remarked that poetry had changed his life. “Sometimes you
have to write things into existence,” he told me. “If I hadn’t written
those poems, I wouldn’t have decided to make new choices.” To get
involved, visit Words Unlocked today!
Check out: http://wordsunlocked.wikispaces.com/ --Juliana Ratner
Juliana Martin Ratner has been writing with incarcerated youth since 2008. She currently facilitates a poetry workshop at New Beginnings Youth Development Center in Washington, DC through a collaboration between Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop and The Beat Within. She also assists the Center for Educational Excellence in Alternative Settings with outreach and special projects.
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