Watch Our Inspiring Poets in Action [Video]

“Time travel” was the theme of our middle schoolers’ recent poetry performance – our first live poetry reading after three years of virtual recitations. “Being together again in person made it very special,” says Mohan Bell, middle school English teacher. Families and friends eagerly gathered to watch students deliver creative, thoughtful pieces that examined what they believe the future may hold for themselves and the world at large.

Our sixth and eighth graders spent five weeks working closely with professional poets Daniella Toosie-Watson and Cindy Tran as part of Harlem Academy’s Visiting Poets Program – a longstanding partnership between Harlem Academy and the Poetry Society of America that brings professional poets of color into our middle school classrooms each year to explore the craft of poetry and guide students through the writing and revision process, culminating in a live reading of original poems.

“Students reflected on life from their unique vantage point and crafted poems that were stirring, haunting, and thought-provoking,” says Mr. Bell.

Click here to watch a sampling of our students’ performances.