PMHS’s 2009 Poetry Out Loud Champion
Victoria
Duquette,
State Poetry Out Loud finalist from Pittsfield.
Eleventh grader
Victoria
Duquette,
Pittsfield
Middle
High School’s
2009 Poetry Out Loud champion, competed in the New Hampshire Eastern
Regional recital on Tuesday, March 3 at Southern New Hampshire University.
Along with champions from ten other schools, Victoria
recited from memory three poems that she selected from an approved list.
Ranging from Oliver
Wendell
Holmes’s “Old
Ironsides,” a romantic reminiscence about a tired old war ship, to Maya
Angelou’s angst-filled “Caged Bird” and Nikki
Giovanni’s
contemplative “Walking
Down
Park,” Victoria’s
selections showed her versatility as a performer and a student of quality
poetry.
In Poetry Out Loud, a national recitation contest, participants are judged
on their physical presence, articulation, appropriate dramatization, and
evidence of their understanding of the poem. Of the eleven contestants at
last Tuesday’s performance - representing over 2,500 students who
participated in Poetry Out Loud in the Eastern half of the state - Victoria
placed in the top five, qualifying her for the state finals. This is the
best that any PMHS student has ever done, and we are all proud of Victoria!
Victoria, along with the five finalists selected from each regional
semifinal (Western Regional was held Thursday, March 5), will recite her
three poems once more for a chance to be the New Hampshire state champion
and travel to the national finals in Washington, D.C. The state finals will
be held at Keene State College on Saturday, March 21st, beginning at 1:00 pm.
Please come to support one of our top students.
Local Teen Wins Classics for Chesley Library
What high school junior or senior
wouldn’t want to win a thousand dollars for college? The Signet Classic
Essay Contest is a great way to do it, and local author
Elizabeth
Faiella
did it last year! She was not the only winner - as part of
Liz’s prize, the
Chesley Library in Northwood received a set of Signet Classics for its
shelves, so that Liz’s
neighbors have these great books readily available to them.
The contest is
open to all 11th and 12th grade students, and it starts with reading one of
the classics. This year’s book is
Jane
Eyre,
and contest entrants are invited to write an essay of two to three typed
pages, addressing one of the four contest questions. Is
Jane a feminist
heroine? Is Jane’s
love story a fairy tale? Do elements of the paranormal or supernatural
detract from or enhance the story? How does
Jane
Eyre
highlight issues of social class?
If you enjoy
thinking about big questions, putting your thoughts in writing, seeing your
work published, and contributing to your community, consider entering this
very rewarding contest.
The deadline for essays is April 15th. Google “signet essay contest” for a
link to details, and there you can also read Elizabeth’s
2008 prize-winning essay on The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and
Mr.
Hyde.
Once you do, you’ll want to read the book – and you can find it at the
Chesley Library!