A Skyscraper Sandwich

Molly Wagener is a seventeen-year-old student at Lake Forest High School, Lake Forest, Illinois. Her teacher is Dr. Mara Dukats. Her poem,"Chicago Newcomer," is one of 134 poems and photographs submitted by students, teachers, and others for inclusion in our upcoming anthology, Reflections: A Collection of Poetry, Photos, and More. As shown below, a relevant quotation accompanies each entry. 
        It's easy to see how teachers can use Molly's poem and the accompanying photo by Wikimedia to inspire discussion and writing at many levels. Perhaps students will recall their own responses to urban scenes, either in poetry or prose.  Or they may choose to write about any of the unlimited ideas this poem-photo combination generates. Indeed, there is no end to the varied subjects it can inspire.     
  

"A skyscraper is a boast in glass and steel."  Mason Cooley

Chicago Newcomer
 

In a skyscraper sandwich 

on Michigan, 

I ogled at the framed in sky

pristine clear 

with scattered white weightlessness
vanishing 

above the glossy windows,

steel rooftops,

and cabs zipping

up and down the asphalt street.

             After many months of hard work, we've created a final draft of Reflections, which includes an Introduction by Joe Milner, Ph.D., Director of English Education at Wake Forest University. Now we're waiting for responses from publishers. If you've ever written for publication, you know that this can be a lengthy process. We'll keep you posted.

Write What You See and Prufrock Press

Published by Cottonwood Press in 2009, Write What You See: 99 Photos To Inspire Writing by Hank Kellner is now marketed by Prufrock Press, http://www.prufrock.com.  This thought-provoking collection contains photographs and a wide variety of inventive writing prompts to motivate students.

     Written by a veteran of the Korean War and retired educator who has served as an English Department supervisor and adjunct associate professor of English at the community college level, Write What you See includes a CD-Rom and a special section telling how teachers nationwide use photos to inspire writing. 118 pages, 8 1/2 X 11, Softbound, ISBN 978-1-877673-83-2, Grades 7-12, $24.95