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class. "You can't not write poetry while you're in his class. You can't help it," Scott said.
<br /> Student Sofia Doerfer said the secret of Shabazz's connection with middle-schoolers is that he "doesn't treat us like we're
<br /> students."
<br /> Shabazz explained, "Kids are very dynamic. So, it's all about energy, being lively, and if possible, interesting in the
<br /> moment."
<br /> Doerfer said she began writing poetry because of Shabazz before she even met him.After Shabazz appeared in her older
<br /> sister's class, Doerfer saw her sister writing poems and began writing poems herself. Doerfer said she likes to write poetry
<br /> because "it makes you feel free."
<br /> "I work to meet students where they are, share ideas, try to be relevant, at the same time, keep the workshops open so
<br /> they can learn new things,"said Shabazz. "And, of course, keep it fun."
<br /> Scott said McDougle students' interest in poetry has been intensified by Shabazz's visits and that Shabazz gives the
<br /> message that"It's OK to write and read poetry and be on the football team."
<br /> "I'm definitely more interested and enjoy[poetry] more,"eighth-grader Emily Kaplan said.
<br /> Students are so interested in poetry that the school features creative writing classes and publishes a literary magazine that
<br /> features poems written by students. Shabazz gives credit to the teachers. "The learning environment at McDougle is
<br /> exceptional,with many experienced and very good teachers," he said.
<br /> The McDougle teachers hold an annual "Mic Night" in December at Barnes& Noble so that parents can witness the students
<br /> perform their poetry. Scott compared the atmosphere at Mic Night to "a football game,with parents cheering and
<br /> clapping."
<br /> Eighth-grader Bryanna Chazotte, described by Shabazz as "one of my favorite poets,"said Shabazz's teaching style was
<br /> "very modern, and he understands kids. His teaching makes it so much fun."
<br /> Chazotte was never interested in writing poetry before Shabazz spent a week teaching her fifth-grade class at McDougle
<br /> Elementary School. Now, she says she often writes outside of class and has written dozens of poems. over the door of her
<br /> room: "Tell me,what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?"Once the students entered the room, they
<br /> were not just students anymore. Shabazz referred to them as 'young poets."
<br /> On Friday, Oct. 16, after five days of learning how to read,write and appreciate poetry from Shabazz,the young McDougle
<br /> poets had 12 minutes to channel their energy and enthusiasm into one all-encompassing rhyme or free verse poem that
<br /> _. gnu h MRV �p
<br /> would serve as their final quiz and a
<br /> capstone for the week.
<br /> Shabazz reminded the students, "This
<br /> ' 1` should be the most important poem you've
<br /> written all week."
<br /> To the background strains of Nirvana,
<br /> Michael Jackson and Pink Floyd's "Another
<br /> Brick in the Wall,"the students intently
<br /> studied the word bank and poem titles
<br /> »i ! Shabazz gave them and combined them into
<br /> their work of art for the poetic exercise at
<br /> hand. Student Emilio Zuniga relished the
<br /> chance "to be as creative as possible."
<br /> As a timer on the overhanging television set
<br /> counted down the minutes and seconds, the
<br /> kids munched on circulating cookies,
<br /> brownies and doughnuts while they counted
<br /> lines,tapped pencils and double-checked similes and metaphors.
<br /> When the 12 minutes was up, a stream of young poets volunteered to read their work to the class. Despite the room being
<br /> packed with sugar-fueled middle-schoolers, the atmosphere was much more casual than that usually found in a poetry
<br /> slam.
<br /> Many of the students read aloud thoughtful rhymes on life as a teenager,with titles such as "Without You"and "Bumps in
<br /> the Road." Kaplan's poem, "Things That Make Me Smile," is her favorite of all the poems she has written.
<br /> Lady Johana Cuervo,who read a"duet" poem with another student in front of the class, said that as eighth-graders the
<br /> students can tackle more serious topics than they did in elementary school. "You talk a lot more about all the drama,"
<br /> Cuervo said.
<br /> "A lot of kids should have this experience of being able to write, getting to know each other in their classrooms on a
<br /> personal level," Battle said. "Over the course of the week, so many students come out and show their true colors."
<br /> What Scott calls Shabazz's"authentic engagement"can be seen in the variety of poems and styles that emerged from the
<br /> students'work in the classroom. "To us, it's so important that every child feels that what they say has meaning,"Scott said.
<br /> "[Shabazz] made people who weren't interested in poetry actually be interested,"Zuniga said.
<br /> In front of the class,two boys read a humorous duet poem they wrote about playing video games.Another student chose
<br /> to rap his poem. A few students got up in front of the classroom to dance.
<br /> Even when the lesson came to an end and the party to celebrate the week began, two girls passed up the festivities and sat
<br /> quietly at a table, taking turns writing lines of poetry in a notebook. At one point, they paused long enough to turn around
<br /> and call out, "We love Mr. Shabazz!"
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