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McCormick Freedom Project: TEACHER BULLETIN | March 2010 / Volume 32 |
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Today! Winners of the 2010 Seen & Heard National Student Expression Contest Announced (Winning and Notable Entries will be posted on our Web site in April) Saturday, March 6 Public Program The Noughties: Looking Back on a Decade of Change, 2000-2009 Wednesday, March 24 Public Program Author Series: Mitt Romney Saturday, April 17 - Friday, May 28 2010 Seen & Heard Winning & Notable Entries on Exhibit at Newberry Library Save the Date: Monday, July 12 - Friday, July 16 First Amendment Summer Institute |
| Educator Resources & Programs | ||
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SPEAKERS IN SCHOOLS SPOTLIGHT Discussing the Power of Spoken Word in the Classroom The Freedom Project's Speakers in Schools program offers high school students the opportunity to learn about freedom and the First Amendment from - and with - community speakers who facilitate dynamic and engaging conversations at no charge to schools. One of the speakers available through this program is Robbie Q. Telfer, who will engage your students in a discussion about the ways in which spoken word poetry provides youth with an excellent tool to come together to celebrate life and the complexities of the human condition. High school teachers can click here to learn more about scheduling Telfer’s presentation, “Youth Poets Exploding the Borders of Segregated Chicago,” as well as several other programs available through Speakers in Schools. A touring performance poet, Telfer curates the Encyclopedia Show and is the Director of Performing Arts for Young Chicago Authors (YCA), a not-for-profit that gives creative writing opportunities and mentorships to Chicago teens. He also serves as the Festival Director for YCA’s signature annual event, the Louder Than a Bomb youth performance poetry festival. Now going into its tenth year, Louder Than a Bomb is the nation’s largest team poetry slam for teens, with more than 60 teams and 600 participants in 2010. This year’s festival culminates with finals on March 6, the winners of which will go on to national competition. |
 Robbie Q. Telfer Director of Performing Arts for Young Chicago Authors and a presenter with the Speakers in Schools program  |
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In
a Speakers in Schools engagement with your students, Telfer
will share his experiences with Louder Than a Bomb to illustrate
ways students can utilize their freedom of expression as spoken word
artists and poets. Students will walk away with practical tools to
empower themselves through spoken word and poetry, as well as an
understanding that poetry is for everyone. The Freedom Project’s First Amendment Reporter, Jamie Loo, interviewed Telfer, as well as Louder Than a Bomb festival founder, Kevin Coval, as they were getting this year’s three-week long festival kicked off in February. Check out this coverage and videos of student performances in the feature article below. Click here to learn more about requesting Robbie Q. Telfer, or any of our other Speakers in Schools. back to top | ||
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WINNERS ANNOUNCED! Seen & Heard: National Student Expression Contest Earlier today, the Freedom Project announced the winners of the 2010 Seen & Heard National Student Expression Contest. Click here to see who earned top honors! On May 1, the Freedom Project will host this year's winners at the Newberry Library. Challenging the old maxim that “children should be seen and not heard,” Seen and Heard celebrates youth expression and invites high school students to submit entries that express their unique views on social, political, or economic issues that affect our lives. Now in its fourth year, entries were accepted in four categories: photojournalism, editorial cartoons, film, and Web design. This year the Freedom Project received nearly 500 entries from states across the nation, including California, Texas, New York, Florida, and Illinois. First, second and third place winners in each category receive a cash prize as well as a trip to Chicago for themselves, a parent, and their teacher. The winning entries, along with some honorable mentions, will be included in an exhibit at the Newberry Library in downtown Chicago from April 17-May 28, 2010. While we're calling it a wrap for Seen & Heard 2010, there are still plenty of opportunities for your students to make their voices heard! Check out the One Chicago, One Nation Online Film Contest that's open to individuals of all ages throughout the country. The contest encourages filmmakers to "share their personal stories, based in or around Chicago, that demonstrate the importance of people of different backgrounds working together for the common good." Click here to learn more! back to top |
 Click here to see who won top honors this year! |
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POST-EXCHANGE FEATURE STORY The Post-Exchange is the premier news platform for the McCormick Freedom Project’s journalism initiative. It features original and objective reporting, commentary and news aggregation on First Amendment and freedom issues, often with a local focus. Poetry That Is Louder Than a Bomb Spoken word competition gives youth a platform to express themselves. By Jamie Loo, First Amendment reporter February 25, 2010 CHICAGO—Power is in the pen and microphone for these teens. About 60 students took the stage at Columbia College on Tuesday to participate in the second day of preliminary bouts in the Louder than a Bomb spoken word competition. Spoken word is performance style poetry which has elements of hip hop and freestyle poetry. The competition allows youth in Chicago to gather and express themselves through poetry, which organizers hope blossoms into a lifelong passion for education and self-empowerment. As each student takes the mic the syllables trip and roll off their tongues, cascading into three-minute symphonies about their lives and the world around them. They talk about violence they see in their neighborhoods, pain of losing a grandmother, life without a father or a mother, suicide, politics, finding love and facing heart-break. No topic is off- limits, but competition rules say that you cannot use racist, homophobic, or gender discriminatory language in your poems. Team Englewood member Keith Warfield, 16, said he likes to keep his poetry light with topics that make people smile and laugh, such as relationships and funny things that happen in the lunchroom. Warfield said he was rapping before he got into spoken word at school. He said he enjoys being able to express himself on stage and to grow from hearing other young poets perform. “It’s great you get to hear other people’s stories and you actually learn that most of the people here actually go through the same things you go through so you have that in common,” Warfield said. Click here for the full story back to top |
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| Upcoming Public Programs | ||
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THE NOUGHTIES Looking Back at a Decade of Change, 2000-2009 Saturday, March 6 1:30 pm FREE with Museum Admission Location: Chicago History Museum, 1601 North Clark, Chicago Registration required September 11th, blogging, the rise of China, reality television—how will the first decade of the twenty-first century be remembered? Join a conversation with historians, journalists, and cultural observers as we examine the major events, trends, and individuals that made the “noughties” an era of rapid change and increased global connectedness. Presented in partnership with the Chicago History Museum. back to top |
 Relive the noughties with this photographic timeline of the decade |
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AUTHOR SERIES Mitt Romney Wednesday, March 24 6 pm $25 general admission/$5 for Freedom Project members Location: Chase Auditorium, 10 South Dearborn, Chicago Ticket price includes price of book Registration required Take part in an engaging conversation with Governor Mitt Romney, one of the nation’s most influential conservative leaders and author of the new book No Apology: The Case of American Greatness. Join the McCormick Freedom Project, in partnership with Chicago Young Republicans, the Illinois Policy Institute and WLS 890 AM Radio, for an insightful discussion about our First Amendment freedoms, a re-emerging conservative movement, and Governor Romney’s solutions for rebuilding industries, producing jobs, improving education, and restoring the military. back to top |
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