Poetry Out Loud Competition

Not all competition occurs on the playing fields or in the gym. Today, 9 English students at BFA participated in the school level Poetry Out Loud competition. Each student had to select and memorize 2 poems from a selection of over 500 provided by the national Poetry Out Loud organization. The students then had to recite the poem to a group of observers and judges. The range of poems read went from the 18th century to the 20th century; the content of the poems was similarly broad. After each performance the judges rated the student on such criteria as difficulty of poem, accuracy, physical presentation, and understanding of poem.

After the students recited their first poem, their scores were evaluated and five youth continued to the finals.

Those youth were Adam Benay, Marie Aja, Megan Kane, Sheilagh Smith and Catherine McGuinness. They recited their second poem.

The winner, Sheilagh Smith will compete in Montpelier in April at the state level competition. Catherine McGuiness, who came in second is the alternate. Megan Kane came in third. The three winners received gift certificates from Foothills Bakery. Other participants include: Liz Underwood, Clara Bourdeau, Claire Pedley, and Amit Saini. Mr. Griffin sponsored the event at BFA
Poetry Out Loud is a nationwide competition that encourages the reading and recitation of poetry. Morgan Irons is in charge of the competition in Vermont and the competition is sponsored by the Vermont Arts Council.