GRACE EPISCOPAL DAY SCHOOL CELEBRATES NATIONAL POETRY MONTH

 Students and Faculty Make Daily Contributions to a “Poetry Tree”

KENSINGTON, MD – April 21, 2009 —Grace Episcopal Day School is in the middle of celebrating National Poetry Month in a very special way this year. Each day, a different member of the community reads a favorite poem over the public announcement system, and then hangs the poem on the “Poetry Tree”, located on a large bulletin board near the entrance of the school.  Poets featured this year include Langston Hughes, Jack Prelutsky, Bobbi Katz, Robert Louis Stevenson, Kalli Davis, Carol Diggory Shields, Robert Frost, Dr. Seuss and two Grace teachers: Allison Archer and Joelle Melon.  Erin Kaufman, Reading Resource Specialist at Grace, organized the poetry tree and says "National Poetry Month is an opportunity to plant the seed of poetry in our students and a chance to excite our school community about the wonderful world of poetry. Our hope is that our children enjoy and love poetry today, tomorrow, next month, next year and their whole lives through." According to Ms. Kaufman, the response by the students to the daily poetry readings has been so enthusiastic that the school has decided to extend the daily readings well into the month of May.  

Founded in 1960 and steeped in the Episcopal school tradition of excellence, Grace Episcopal Day School is one of the region’s top independent schools and offers programs for students in nursery through eighth grade at two bustling campuses.

For more information please contact the Grace Episcopal Day School Office of Advancement at 301-949-9133, or visit our website at http://www.geds.org.