5th Grade Annual Poetry Slam

Press Release from Clover Street School, Laura Soll, Media Consultant:

WINDSOR, CONN., May 2, 2011 – This spring, students at Clover Street School in Windsor, Conn. are learning about poetry and music as part of an innovative Artists-in-Residence program. This rich educational opportunity is made possible by a $1,740 grant from the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism and a $1,500 grant from the Windsor Education Foundation. The Artist-in-Residence program is designed to reinforce and extend the Windsor Public Schools’ curriculum standards, especially in the areas of literacy and multicultural education. 

“We are very fortunate to receive these grants that, combined with generous funding from the Clover Street School PTA, are making it possible for Master Teaching Artists to come into our school and work with our students,” explains Lisa Thomas, Clover Street School’s Challenge Resource Teacher. “Elizabeth Thomas, a poet, performer and teacher, is the artist-in-residence for all of our fifth grade classes. Our fourth graders are working with both Thomasina Levy, a musician, songwriter and Connecticut’s State Troubadour, 2005/2006, and with creative writing educator Leslie Johnson. Second and third graders are learning about African culture, storytelling and music, with special focus on western African countries, from Won-Ldy Paye, an internationally renowned storyteller and author from Liberia.

As part of this special teaching program, Clover Street School’s fourth grade students will visit the New Britain Museum of American Art where they will interpret works of art through their own poems and soundscapes. In addition, fifth graders and Elizabeth Thomas will present a Poetry SLAM event on Monday evening, May 16 at 6:30 p.m. for the enjoyment of the entire Windsor community. 

For more information about Clover Street School’s Artist-in-Residence program, contact Lisa Thomas at (860) 687-2050, ext. 137. For information about the Windsor Board of Education and any of the Windsor Public Schools, visit www.windsorct.org or call (860) 687-2000.