On Friday, January 16th, Cinnaminson High School held its 16th annual Poetry Out Loud competition featuring recitations from 20 students across various grade levels and English classes. Students’ performances were scored based on the accuracy of their recitation and overall performance focusing on factors such as physical presence, voice and articulation, interpretation, and evidence of understanding of their selected poems. 

Students and staff anticipate this annual competition, hosted by the English Department and emceed by senior Zachary Bohn. Held in the auditorium, there was an astounding lack of shining phone screens, side conversations, and zoned-out observers. The room was silent and engaged as each of the performers recited their two selected poems. 

While each contestant displayed passion and finesse in their performances, it was junior Abigail Grugan who was declared the overall winner. Having won the school competition, she moved on to compete in the regional competition at Rutgers University in Camden earlier this month where she placed first among competitors from various surrounding school districts. Next month she will compete at the state level.

Participants of the competition are selected from a pool of winners from mandatory poetry recitations within honors and AP English classrooms. For many students, Poetry Out Loud is a source of nerves, excitement, and uncertainty all in one. The required participation in the honors and AP classes pushes students to face the challenges of picking, memorizing, and appropriately reciting a poem to a classroom audience.

 According to students and teachers alike, repeated participation throughout the years leads to noticeable growth in confidence, performance, and appreciation for the program.

Sophomore Aidan Stewart admitted his initial reaction to the program was stress. 

“How you’re presenting yourself, cause you don’t want to look awkward, and like you’re nervous up there, which is the hardest part, especially because you’re in front of the kids, you know,” Stewart said when asked about the greatest challenge of participating in the competition.

Upperclassmen, however, described a change in mindset over time. Senior Samantha Bobrin, who has participated in Poetry Out Loud four times, said her stress was mostly at bay.

“Just don’t be nervous, because everyone else is in, like, the same boat, and you don’t need to be worried about what other people are thinking,” Bobrin said.

Teachers have noticed this shift as well. English teacher Mrs. Katherine Laskowski, who oversees Poetry Out Loud, said she notices growth in performances as students approach their third or fourth year of reciting.

“There’s an increase in confidence and comfort level where, you know, by the time they are freshmen, they look like they want to vomit when they do this. And then by the time they’re seniors, they’re comfortable in their own skin, and they don’t really care what anyone else thinks, and they can be vulnerable in front of everybody,” Laskowski said.

A certain sense of fulfillment comes over time from adapting to challenges and finding the tools necessary for success. The achievement of proficiently reciting a poem makes certain upperclassmen begin to look forward to competing.

However, anticipation for the competition isn’t only among the competitors but the audience as well. This year’s ceremony was stated to have unparalleled levels of audience attendance.

“A lot of kids were really putting a lot of pressure on teachers to come down because they wanted to watch their friends – I think, um, the longer we keep doing this, the more the audience is going to participate and get bigger and bigger,” Laskowski said.

Although the initial nerves of performing seem inevitable, this year’s display of entertaining performances pleased audiences, and newly confident participants demonstrate how rewarding the challenge of Poetry Out Loud can be.

 Poetry Out Loud not only transformed how students view poetry in an academic setting but also how they gauge their own limits and stretch their comfort zones, one performance at a time.

Grugan will next compete at the state level of the Poetry Out Loud competition on March 5 at Count Basie Center for the Arts.