Did you know that January 15th, 2013, is Poetry at Work™ Day?
(Seriously, we say so, and that is all it takes. Okay, and we have asked McGraw Hill to put it on the calendar.)
Save the date. And tell us what you think should happen on that day. Or what you plan to make happen.
Photo by Fotologic. Creative Commons, via Flickr.
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Here are some possible ideas to get the thinking going:
If you’re a CEO or a manager:
— Give a reading of your favorite poems. . . anywhere, maybe in the public square where your employees gather or a lunchroom or a conference room.
— Pen a poem for your employees. Make it a surprise by calling the staff together and then reading it aloud.
— Sponsor “Dress as Your Favorite Poet”. Bring everyone together and have a parade through the offices. Offer prizes for those who correctly name the poet portrayed, perhaps ticket to a poetry reading in your city or town.
— Does your city or town have a Poet Laureate? Invite him or her to record a poem and then leave it as a call waiting for every employee.
— Have a “Break for Poetry”. So much better than a smoking break!
— Create a Poetry At Work in the Schools. Encourage employees to volunteer to read their poems about their work at their children’s schools. But get busy now. It takes time to coordinate this kind of program.
— Have a local artist create a broad-side, then auction the artwork and donate the proceeds to a small press.
I’ll be back when I think up a few more.
The word “ticket” should be tickets in the third item. Other prizes could be a collection of poetry, an item of choice from the T.S. Poetry store. . . .
Way to early to be setting a date. During my annual reviews, my managers always commented that “I worked to deadlines”. I think you can figure that out.
Plus, given the current economy, it may take a longer than the next 3 months to find and be working.
But, Dad, you’ll note the date is the 15th. That should mean something for your deadline, you know?
And, the poetry of unemployment is a very related matter.
Some other ideas:
— If your workplace has a library, ask for a book cart where employees can leave collections for a poetry swap.
— Create a special edition employee newsletter, containing interviews with employees about their favorite poems, original work-related poems by employees, fun facts about poets, etc. To be “green”, make the newsletter electronic and invite submissions in advance.
— Install a poem-dispensing machine. (This doesn’t need to be a physical machine. With the right IT help, it could be created online.)
— Sponsor a poetry-themed pot-luck luncheon between the hours of noon and 2:00 p.m. Include a drawing for a poetry-related prize.
Our school observes Pi day by encouraging students to memorize digits of Pi, participate in eating pie and of course having pies tossed in the faces of select individuals. Any ideas how a Classical Christian UMS K-12 school could observe this Poetry day? I’d like to bring this as a new tradition to the school! Thanks for the ideas!
Diana, that is terrific.
I think that a lot of Maureen’s ideas could be used or modified for the school setting. (Check out her Poetry at Work in the Schools suggestion above. How cool would it be to involve parents or school employees or local business owners that way?
I think so too! I am going to contact the department heads to suggest this, and I will be happy to plan it. We can always use more poetry in our lives, even (and especially) at a classical school! Still if anyone has additional ideas, post here. Thanks Maureen and LL for the thoughts!!