The PAS 4th Annual Poetry Contest: February 26th, 2013
The month of January at Pacific American School is more than just a return from the Winter Break or the start of the second semester, it signals the beginning of a new season: the poetry season. Every January, students immerse themselves in the art of poetry in preparation for the annual PAS poetry contest.
Students read poetry, reread it, discuss what it means, consider the author’s use of literary techniques, and then they reverse-engineer it, hoping to understand how they, too, might write something that will not only capture the mind’s eye of the reader, but also deliver an important message. For the most successful students, poetry becomes a new form of expression for their thoughts, feelings, and maybe even frustrations. Some topics were touching (the loss of loved ones), while others were a bit more controversial (the new detention system), while others still were filled with insightful critiques (the overemphasis on physical beauty in society). Regardless of the topic or message, poetry served as an outlet for students to express one part of themselves through their writing.
All of this hard work eventuated into 23 finalists competing in seven different genres at the PAS 4th annual poetry contest on February 26th, 2013. In some cases, the finalists were so evenly matched that a clear winner was unable to be chosen, resulting in nine poetry champions, the most we have had in the history of the event.
Limericks: Ryder Wu
Ghazals: Arvin Wu
Odes: Connie Ko & Michelle Liu
Narrative Poetry: Franz Liu & Sean Hu
Imagery Poetry: Janet Lin
Free Verse: Emily Lai
Sonnets: Blanca Chen