Sun Crumbs

bringing artists and youth together | supporters| board and staff

Bringing Artists and Youth Together

Through The Sun Crumbs Poetry Series and The Pittsburgh Poetry Slam, we have fostered literacy, diversity, community, innovation and excellence. We have brought nationally recognized poets into various communities to inject energy and enthusiasm into on-going literacy programs. Sun Crumbs is excited about our work in the community because it was artist initiated. The programming Sun Crumbs created for youth began as a response to the concern of artists about developing mechanisms to assist them in remaining responsible, positive, and active members of our community. As a result, each national poet appearing in The Sun Crumbs Poetry Series offers a minimum of one workshop in the community while they are in Pittsburgh.

Sun Crumbs has always done outreach to youth in conjunction with The Sun
Crumbs Poetry Series. During the 1998-99 school year, Sun Crumbs offered The Living Poet Series. This four part workshop/lecture series brought national poets and Peabody High School students together during the 1998-99 school year. The project's goal was to present poetry and performance as a viable career option, to analyze what it takes to be successful as a poet, and to present poets who have mastered their craft through study, discipline and dedication as role models for the students.

In 2000, we brought national and local performance poets into Allegheny County Housing Projects to teach performance poetry. Our workshop, Performance Poetry As A Catalyst For Social Change, uses poetry as a tool to teach life and career skills such as: 1] communication - the ability to tell a good story, 2] interest in the events of the world around them, 3] command of the language - effective, appropriate and eloquent usage, 4] poise and confidence. This workshop was tested this summer in Hawkins Village and Sheldon Park Resident Council with excellent results.

The Pittsburgh Poetry Slam has generated excitement for literature in local schools such as: Peabody High School, Winchester-Thurston, and The Creative And Performing Arts High School of Pittsburgh. (CAPA) In fact, The Winchester-Thurston School saw such positive results from a Poetry Slam presentation, that they have incorporated an annual Poetry Slam Curriculum Block in both their middle and high school.

This year, Sun Crumbs will field its first team to The National Poetry Slam. This team will be comprised of poets from The Winchester-Thurston School and CAPA who have undergone special training with visiting poets and Sun Crumbs staff.

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bringing artists and youth together | supporters| board and staff