One morning years ago, when I should have already been moving my attention toward our school day, a tweet from Sally Thomas flashed on my screen and I’ve been thinking about it ever since.
Question that struck me today: if you can have a Latin-centered curriculum, why couldn't you have a poetry-centered one? How wd it look?
— Sally Thomas (@SallyThomasNC) September 18, 2014
The internet can be rather magical like that. You’re happily drinking a second cup of coffee, and then an idea shows up that will captivate you for years.
Lindsay Crandall, a photographer whose light and composition sing, recently posted about her plans for a year long Literary Happiness Project, a way forward in her reading and writing life. I was immediately intrigued.
Then I saw a comment from my sweet friend, Tresta Payne. So I wasn’t the only one who was intrigued! Lindsay replied to Tresta about the similarities between the Literary Happiness Project and Tresta’s Homeschool MFA. Ah, another thread!
Homeschool MFA comes from Patricia Zaballos, one more homeschooling mama mentor whose life is saturated with writing. I’ve started using #homeschoolMFA to document my own learning, and Tresta is writing about her learning journey as well.
One the same day that Lindsay posted, Sally Thomas offered this excellent poetry submission advice:
Get 'em back, send 'em out again. Lather, rinse, repeat. (and if, when you get 'em back, you think, "YOUR LOSS, SUCKERS," well, that's part of the story, too).
Posted by Sally Thomas on Tuesday, January 8, 2019
And wouldn’t you know it, I got a rejection letter that same day. So, I followed her advice. I said the litany of humility and sent another selection of poems out. I’m especially inclined to take Sally’s advice just now. I’m taking her wonderful poetry class through Homeschool Connections. It’s a recorded class for high school students that is rich and thoughtful and a good next step in my own Homeschool MFA.
Rachael, the lead teacher of our home school…her chief aim is to find what our children are passionate about and to facilitate that learning wherever it might go. Could Rachael’s approach be a way to have a poetry-centered curriculum? Haven’t you been teaching me, Kortney, that good poetry invites us to grab a phrase, a word even, and follow it where it may lead?
Yes, certainly there is poetry in the dance of passion-led learning. Reminds me of this Gregory Orr piece:
http://www.yourdailypoem.com/listpoem.jsp?poem_id=401
Hi Kortney! Thanks so much for mentioning my project here. Our mutual friend Helen McLaughlin (I didn’t know you knew her too!) told me she saw my name over here, so I came over to read. I hope you do your own Homeschool MFA and share it. That sounds like a fun project! xo.
So happy to have you reading here, Lindsay! And happy to know that you found your way here through Helen. She is a treasure! Peace keep you.
I love the internet for all its connections and inspirations! And a poetry-centered curriculum…yes, please. My love affair with language and words grows daily.
Love having a front row seat to your growth, Tresta!