Ms. Loutsch hosted the annual Poetry Slam and spread the spirit of lyrical charm to the DIS community. A dozen senior wordsmiths from the Creative Writing class rounded up in the Presentation Hall on Dec. 7 to add a touch of linguistic artistry to an otherwise mundane Thursday morning. 

These poets presented individual soliloquies and collaborative presentations on a wide range of topics such as friendship or diversity, and their unique and emotional deliveries triggered sentimental feelings amongst the audience.

A little competition spiced up the event. The highest-scoring individual received a cape and the best-performing team won a grand trophy. Matthew Lee earned his place for the individual award. “I was inspired by my unique personal background. I integrated my story as a divorcee’s son and a juvenile diabetic to showcase my personal growth through these adversities,” Lee said.

For the group awards, Team Sweet Potato (Raina Lee, Dominik Knecht, Bolt Yi, and Juan Cortez) took the trophy home. “Our team tried to use struggle and race as themes, but I took charge of finishing the main poem and tried to include a little of my story in the personal poem,” Yi said.

Mr. Coleman partook in the event as a judge and an audience member. “Wonderful. It was inspiring to see my students express themselves. I consider myself a big fan of poetry, and I admire the thoughtfulness that the seniors expressed in their poetry,” he said. 

Lee added, “Overall, the Poetry Slam empowered me to learn more about my classmates and most importantly, myself. By weaving my stories into a slam-style literature piece, I found the process very meaningful.” The creative writing class allowed all attendees to enjoy and appreciate a day of poetry. Seniors dug deeper into their experiences and unique perspectives on their backgrounds and current conflicts. Thank you to Ms. Loutsch and the creative writing class for a successive morning of poesy. 

Gallery • 25 Photos

Luna Kang

12th-grader Ava Cho concludes her poem while the two other members of “QuintIple +1” showcase their stylish group t-shirts—a poetic blend of artistic expression and unity.