Poetry program at Harrington School leads to seven published writers

LYNN-“You never know until you try.”Those words, spoken over and over by E.J. Harrington School Librarian Carole Shutzer have become an unofficial motto for the library as young students begin to learn the importance of reading and writing.No one exemplifies the truth of the motto more than the seven students published in the Young American Poetry Digest this past year, who tried their hand at the craft for the first time after a program taught by local poet and author Nila Webster.The poems, ranging from stories about friends and family to observations of flowers, were the first that a diverse group of students had ever attempted to write.Fourth graders Candice DeLeon, Camilla Gonzales, Junee’ Barber, Kseniya Synkevych, Melody St. Vil, Joana Pena and Adriana Rodriguez were just a few of the students who submitted the poems to Shutzer last year, who then sent the works along to the Poetry Digest for publication consideration.Shutzer said she did not make the poem a requirement, but encouraged each student to try it out, because “you never know until you try.”Low and behold, seven of the works made the cut for the annual publication, creating confidence and a budding love of writing in the students.”I was excited because I had never won anything like this before,” said Synkevych. “My mom didn’t think I would be able to do something like this.”Webster has been volunteering at Harrington since meeting up with Shutzer through, of all things, a mutual hairdresser. The poet and author visits for several lessons each year to share her own writings with the students, including her recent book “Remembering Beauty and Songs for a Blue Time.”Along with presenting her own work, Webster encourages students to imagine on their own, and asks them to look within their own creative soul for inspiration.Rather than just recite her words to the students, Webster spends her 45 minutes interacting with the children, telling background stories about spending time with her mother, who was also a poet, and explaining hidden elements of the book’s illustrations.Lessons on vocabulary like simile, metaphor and allegory are also part of the lesson, but the students are having too much fun to realize that they are also learning.Webster’s tale follows a wolf and a Buddha baby who are best friends living in the forest, but when the wolf takes a “great leap,” the Buddha baby is left to remember its friend through the poetry it left behind.The story, which she read to fourth graders Tuesday, was both somber and warming, as Webster left the “great leap” open to interpretation, some saying the wolf went to heaven, others to new, exiting parts of the forest to learn.”The most important thing that you can ever ask, in my opinion, is ?how do you feel when you read this story?'” Webster said, before asking students to take 30 seconds to reflect on the tale.The responses varied from “there were a lot of adjectives” to “it was sad because the baby could only sing the songs.”The important part is that students, even those who have a hard time concentrating or behaving in class, are drawn to the poetry and eager to try it themselves.”It was the first time I entered a contest,” said St. Vil, speaking about her published works. “I never thought I had a chance.”Fourth graders this year have composed letters to some of their favorite authors, and Shutzer is attempting to bring more programs like this to the library, which Webster praised as one of the best she has ever gone to visit.”This library is great. It is one of the most exciting, innovative libraries I have ever been to,” she said.