Click here for authlete instructions.
Voter Instructions:
- The countdown at the bottom of each pairing indicates how much time is left to vote.
- When voting closes, timer will disappear.
- Read both poems as many times as you like.
- Mark the poem you like best by clicking the circle next to its name.
- Press the “Vote” button to record your vote.
- Votes are counted in real time and cannot be changed once entered.
- You can only vote once from a given IP address.
- Classrooms should submit one vote as a class.
- Students can then vote again individually from home.
Things to Consider in Making a Choice:
- How well the poem incorporates the authlete’s assigned word.
- Technical elements: meter, rhyme, form, shape, and other poetic standards.
- Creativity: wordplay, imagery, unusual approach, etc.
- Subtle elements that make the whole greater than the sum of its parts.
- Your overall response: emotional reaction such as admiration, tears, laughter, terror, or some indefinable feeling.
Here are the poems:
1-rent
Sharing a Room with Big Sis
By Joe Mohr
Laughing, sharing, tickling, singing,
Playing checkers, jumping, kinging
Reading books, you choose then me
Sharing rooms, fun as can be.
Stealing, breaking, yelling, spying
Line down the middle inspiring crying
Tackling kicking bloody nose bent
Regretting demanding sis pay rent.
vs.
16-parallax
The Parallax
By William Peery
The parasitic Parallax
is known to bathe in weasel wax;
its two mouths feed on sugar beets
and unsuspecting parakeets.
The creature’s pushy, impolite—
a telemarketer by night.
1-rent vs. 16-parallax
- 1-rent (Joe Mohr) (38%, 48 Votes)
- 16-parallax (William Peery) (62%, 79 Votes)
Total Voters: 127

“This is awesome, where can I find more?”:
Browse other matchups using the slider below and click to go straight to that matchup!