Andrea, my wife, was involved in anti-bullying program development for several years, and unfortunately not enough has been done to really address the issues. One of her sources of inspiration was Barbara Coloroso, author of The Bully, the Bullied and the Bystander.
A few years back, Andrea wrote a series of poems on the theme of bullying and then developed discussion topics and suggested learning activities for each one.
I have helped Andrea get this web site up and share her poems.
Wow, Andrea, your poems are amazing. They are emotional and thought provoking
I can see a child reading or hearing one of your poems and feeling for the first time that someone “gets it”.
Great vessel for opening up the lines of communication between student/child and parent/child.
Well done…Andrea, and Harold for helping Andrea expose her talent on the web.
Barb
Thank you for the enthusiastic response.
Yes, these poems were designed to be used as spring-boards for discussion. I hope they will prove useful to someone.
Posting them on the web has encouraged me to start writing again. Look forward to one on cyber-bullying…it is in the works…
Peace,
Hope all is wel with you and yours. We would like permission to use your poem “My Walk to School” in the next issue of our bi-monthly newsletter for our website @ http://www.rootsfoundationtt.com
Peace,
Mtima Solwazi
Editor-in-Chief
ROOTS
I am very happy if you have a venue where you feel my poems might be helpful. Go ahead and use them however you feel would best assist your organization’s objectives. I only ask that you credit my name as the author.
I wish you well in pursuing your mission.
andrea
I think these poems are wonderful. They will be great to use with our PBS programs at school.
Teresa
I am pleased to hear that you feel my poetry could be of use. Use the site freely; just cite me as the author. Best of luck.
andrea
I agree with all that I’ve learned in this moodle
Hi, are you a published poet? Your poems are so inspirational
No, I have never been published and don’t really identify myself as a poet. This exercice was a reaction to what I had experienced as a child and what I witnessed as my children grew up.
I am heartened that you find them inspirational. That was my aim.
andrea
Andrea,
you said that you had never been published but I didn’t know if you were just referring to a book. Has any of your poems been published in any type of magazine, newspaper, or newsletter or anything else of the sort?
No, my poems and the attached classroom tools have never been published in any printed form. I submitted them once to a publishing house and was rejected. I then decided to post them on the web where many more people could access them for free. My aim was not to profit financially, but to assist as many kids as I could in my small way.
andrea
Hi Andrea,
My name is Mariana and I work for Rubicon Publishing. Could you please contact me at mariana.aldave@rubiconpublishing.com? We’re interested in publishing one of your poems in an anthology collected by David Booth. Thanks!
i really enjoyed your poem- my walk to school. i would like to say it in a speech of mine giving you credit of course. we have to give information about the author so can you be so kind and say why you decided to write this poem and were you ever bullied? any other information would be very helpful. thank you
Yes, I was bullied for 2 years in middle school and relentlessly sexually harassed in high-school. When my own children reached the age I was when this socially problematic issue reared its ugly face, I was relieved that they weren’t targeted but noticed the children who were suffering. This was what I felt I could contribute.
Hi Andrea,
Get in touch with me if you get a chance. Love to hear from you.
Hello Ms Wilson, is it possible to utilise your poems while changing certain words to make them more relatable to a Caribbean context? Thanks in advance.