On Dec. 13th, Steinbrenner students were able to unleash their inner creativity by attending the Poetry Jam. The event was held in Steinbrenner’s Media Center all day where participating students were able to do workshops with guest poet, Sam Obeid, and even write their own poetry for a slam poetry competition.  

Sam Obeid, a spoken word poet and the founder of Poetry Is Activism, took the students through workshops that allowed them to explore their full potential when it comes to their writing. Obeid spoke passionately to the participants about slam poetry and ways they can better themselves and their work. 

She taught us to write our own personality down, which is something that I think found its way in my writing,” junior Seven Gumucio said.  

The students were given time to write their own pieces of poetry on any topic of their choosing. Once completed, they performed their pieces in front of the other participants as well as faculty judges. The contestants were respectful when listening, saving their applause for the very end and letting each student perform with full emotion. Performing a vulnerable piece doesn’t come easy and leaves quite a few participants feeling nervous, but an important aspect of performing poetry is being able to overcome it.  

“I was super nervous…I overcame it by feeling inspired by all the others…and how beautiful their work was”, junior Katie Sumner said. The students wrote about personal experiences, using figurative language and prose to put a poetic spin on it.  

The judges cast their scores for each poem once the student was done reading and at the very end, the placing was announced. The top three winners were Max Langlois, Alexis Barr, and Seven Gumucio who all presented poetry that impressed the judges. “I didn’t expect to win first place at all,” Gumucio said.  

This in-school field trip was a great way for students to express themselves and exercise their writing talent. The passion for writing can come from many different experiences throughout life and participating in events like the poetry jam can help inspire others to continue writing.  

“…there’s something about the applause you get at the end that encourages you,” Gumucio said. Before the end of the poetry jam, a poetry camp co-hosted by Obeid was advertised. The camp “Words to Lead By” follows similar activities as the poetry jam and fosters leadership, teamwork, conflict resolution, and communication skills. Participants can choose between a powerful weekend retreat from February 8-9th or an inspiring weeklong camp from June 9-13th. Writing is a powerful way to express one’s emotions, and these opportunities allow students to get creative and explore new experiences.