POETRY WORKSHOPS
Caroline has quite a lot of experience leading poetry workshops in schools and at events across the country, and has hosted workshops with people of all ages, from 8 to 80.
Last year, Caroline travelled to Rajasthan, India with Second Sight charity who perform cataract operations, to write poetry with children in the area who have recently regained their sight. Caroline has also hosted two week-long poetry classes with school groups at the Arvon Foundation in the last few months.
Please get in touch if you would like to know more or to book Caroline for a poetry workshop.
Caroline Bird is not only a wonderful poet but a natural with children and teenagers. She ran an extraordinarily fun and productive session which inspired our students to unprecedented heights of creativity (and hilarity!). Never before in my career have I heard students begging to continue through morning break!
Edmund Weil, Walthamstow Academy, June 2008
I cannot tell you how much we are all feeling so inspired by your (too-) brief time with us yesterday. THANK YOU SO MUCH!! You have a real gift for bringing out children’s imaginative ideas and I felt quite emotional reading their class poems just now. Thank you for pouring so much energy into each session and for sharing your fabulous ideas with us. I hope you’ll come back to the Hall for similar workshops some time.
Clare Ashwin, Hall School, Dec 2007
I don’t think I’ve ever organised such a successful visit than Caroline’s last Friday. What a truly clever young woman and she had such a great way with my students. She had them reading and sharing poems with real confidence by the end of each session, which is no mean feat. They didn’t want her to leave; such was the impact she had.
Trudy Charles, Parkside School, January 2007
In Caroline’s words:
I want children to realize that everyone has something individual to write about.
I want children to realize that even the most mundane event can become material for exciting poetry.
I want children to realize that there are no rules in poetry: the rules are invented afresh by each writer.
I want children to realize that poetry is not about the lives of dusty scholars: it is about their lives and their feelings.
I want children to realize that their poetry can be as beautiful/disgusting/gentle/violent/neat/messy as they want it to be.
Obviously, this doesn’t just apply to children. I have to remind myself of these things everyday.
For my poetry workshops I invent my own writing exercises. I try to come up with a new exercise each time I do a workshop. The exercises are not prescriptive; I just want to provide the spark so each participant can write according to themselves, not according to my notes.
I’m continuously stunned by the imaginations of young people, and I’m continuously saddened because such a small percentage of this imagination survives into adulthood. Poetry workshops, and creative workshops of all kinds, are vital to help preserve and encourage the colourful minds of children and ensure none of that colour gets diluted as they grow up.