Poetry Out Loud (POL) is a national competition that promotes self expression of contestants through the poems they chose. On Jan. 23, Arroyo Grande High School (AGHS) hosted its competition where nine students (‘26-’29) competed.
Preparation for the competition began in the classroom; students memorized lines, practiced enunciation, and learned how to properly speak into microphones. After performing in class, some students chose to move on to the school-wide competition. Winners from that advanced to the regional POL competition, with a final goal of climbing the ranks to State and eventually reaching the National Finals in Washington, DC.
“What judges are looking for is that they can perform the poem in a way that allows the viewer to understand the poem better,” Judge and AGHS English teacher Ashley Kim said
Judges evaluate contestants based specific rubric guidelines, including contestants physical presence, voice and articulation, interpretation, and evidence of understanding.
“(POL) is a creative way for students to express their understanding of the text of a poem– not in [a] writing and traditional analysis sort of way,” former Judge and current AGHS AP Language teacher Amber Derbidge said.
During presentations, students use their tone of voice and body language to embody the emotion of a poem. The clearer they are able to do this, the higher score they will receive from the judges.
“This year, I am going to try to embody the voice of the speaker more and I chose more of a complex poem. It’s longer [and] I feel like it gives more [for readers] to think about,” contestant Emery Cannon (‘28) said.
As a second year contestant, Cannon won third place in the school-wide competition. First year contestant Orion Schmidt (‘26) took first place. Schmidt is now set to represent AGHS at the San Luis Obispo County competition on Jan. 31.
