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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:
6-accessory
The Great Cookie Caper
by Angie Kidd
I developed the most perfect plan; it really was infallible.
I set my sister up to sneak us cookies—Oh how saleable!
When she got in trouble, I hid out on the double
eating cookies all the while as she awaited parental trial.
But the part that makes me pout is when my sister ratted me out.
I refused to plead guilty—not a single cookie crumb on me.
But then my mom accused me of being an accessory.
She sent us to bed without amnesty. Why ME?
vs.
11-volition
The Sad Musician
by Ryan Stockton
The sad musician’s disposition
Sprang from a lost competition
So he tore his composition.
But each tear brought sweet renditions
Of the paper’s own volition!
What to call this torn condition
Making musical emissions?
Music through decomposition
