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Archive for the ‘Creativity’ Category

Poetry Friday: Artist Date

Posted in Creativity, Photography, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged , on September 11, 2026| 12 Comments »

Poetry Friday roundup is with Linda at Teacher Dance

This week I am #beingmamére in New Orleans. My grandson, Thomas, is in first grade, and I have the duty of getting him to school on time and picking him up. What should I do with the time in between?

Yesterday I had tea with my cousin who teaches architecture at Tulane. He suggested that I visit the Ogden Museum to see a new show of contemporary Louisiana artists. Amazingly, traffic was minimal, so I was able to get there and park without too much anxiety. I also lucked out that the museum is free to Louisiana residents on Thursdays. Meant to be.

I happened upon a photograph by Jennifer Graycheck. Hey, I know her! She lives in New Iberia and teaches art at the school where my girls went. She also has an amazing sunflower farm with her husband who is a landscape architect. She took my author photos! And here she was in a juried show at the Ogden. What an amazing accomplishment!

Selfie with Jennifer’s photo.

As a poet, I was attracted to the artists’ statements. For today’s Poetry Friday, I am sharing an art piece called “Flamingos” alongside a found poem from the artist statement. And her name is Margaret!

Flamingos by Margaret Davis, Ogden Museum, New Orleans, LA.

Like flamingos,
girls embody grace
in uncertainty—
Flood water
a landscape of disaster,
gold emergency
sealed in physical
figures.

Margaret Simon, found poem

Junk journal page

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Spiritual Thursday: I Cannot Keep from Singing

Posted in Creativity, Poetry, Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged , , , on September 3, 2026| 6 Comments »

Ramona has the roundup this month at Pleasures from the Page.

For September’s Spiritual Journey posts, Ramona asked us to consider her One Little Word, rhythm.

When I think of rhythm, I hear whatever anthem our choir sang on Sunday. This week the earworm is How Can I Keep from Singing, which wasn’t a hymn or anthem, but Zi, our director, played it as an instrumental on the piano. It has stayed with me.

I love these videos made during Covid when whole music was made in isolation.

I love to listen to sacred music when I am playing with collage. I have a discarded hymnal that I tear pages from. Sometimes the lines show through. Playing with collage has given me a feeling of freedom in creativity. I don’t worry about perfection at all. I select elements that please me.

I’ve made junk journal pages and postcards for poetry exchanges. I made the postcards by recycling canned drink boxes. I don’t feel precious about them. They will go into the mail and may get eaten or bent by the journey, and it doesn’t matter to me. I think there is a lesson in this kind of creating. Something sacred I am drawn to, a rhythm of peaceful dreaming.

Postcard collage

Peace is an impractical word
playing well with others
like love
lingering in nature’s golden hours—
sunsets, rainbows…

Peace doesn’t always tell the truth.
Hang on to its tail
dangling like moss on Crepe Myrtle trees
in summer.

Wishing can make it so.

Margaret Simon, draft

How do you feel sacred rhythm? Peace? Creativity?

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SOLC26: Day 12: Dancing with a Paintbrush

Posted in Creativity, Poetry, Slice of Life, Teaching, Writing, tagged , , on March 12, 2026| 12 Comments »

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for creating an amazing community of writers and a safe, welcoming space to write and share.

One of the workshops I developed for the teaching artist program is “Dancing with a Paintbrush.” One school in town, Pesson Elementary, booked me for four Tuesdays. This week the counselor told me that I would be working with the toughest class in the school. Since I’ve done the workshop multiple times now, I have a pretty good handle on the process. I decided to trust the flow even with these “tough” students.

Maybe it was the threats of “no dance for you” or maybe it was the nature of poetry, art, and music, but these kids were amazing!

I added a new song to the selection, “Vivaldi-Spring” by Black Violin. This is a rocked-out version of the classical piece. I enjoyed watching the kids’ reactions. They literally started dancing in their chairs. But they stayed quiet, honoring the “sacred space” for painting.

One of my favorite things in the whole world is the sound of a classroom of students writing.

5th graders writing poems about their paintings

The teachers themselves were amazed at the engagement of their students. I wanted to shout, “See what the arts can do for your students!”

One of the teachers understood. She painted with them and wrote her own poem. She shyly shared her own writing. She told me, “I used to write poetry all the time.” I hope she will be inspired to keep writing, and keep writing with her students.

Triangles

As pointed
as the lines
as truthful
as the sky
as creative
as squares
as promising
as circles
more than truths less
than lies
they’re everywhere
but in your mind, tell
a truth not
a lie like
the circles
in the sky.
(student poem)

Tuff Primary Colors
As the colors went up
More came down
As the color made a
Primary color they formed a tower
Of power
More dots, more movement
More of everything
Like an alliance
To form a masterpiece
(student poem)

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Slice of Life: Dancing with a Paintbrush

Posted in Creativity, Slice of Life, Teaching, Writing, tagged , , on February 24, 2026| 9 Comments »

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for creating an amazing community of writers and a safe, welcoming space to write and share.

This morning I taught three third grade classes for the Teaching Artist Program with the Acadiana Center for the Arts. In my retirement, I found a way to teach and have fun. This is it!

The students were filled with joy and freedom while painting with watercolors. I played music to inspire their color choices. Some created abstract designs while others painted subjects they knew and loved.

After two music and painting sessions, they wrote a poem about their favorite painting.

Just look at their faces! I told them that I am happiest with a room full of kids writing.

Third grade students at Pesson Elementary

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Out of Ashes

Posted in Creativity, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged , , , on February 11, 2026| 9 Comments »

Out of Ashes by Beth S.

This art piece was lying on my sister’s kitchen counter. I picked it up and asked her about it. She said she found some charred wood outside from her outdoor fireplace and experimented with it. She then came inside and added more definition to the flowers with ink. She titled the piece “Out of Ashes.”

I often wonder where our creativity comes from. How sometimes the simplest things can become profound. (My One Little Word this year is Simplicity.)

I played with a haiku form today. Another seemingly simple short form. Out of simplicity, grace.

Out of Ashes

From burnt wood shavings
Flowers grow from buried seeds
Finding breath enough

Margaret Simon, draft

Please write a small poem today and leave it in the comments. Respond to other writers with encouragement and kindness.

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Slice of Life: NPM24: Mystery of Art

Posted in Creativity, Gifted Education, Slice of Life, Writing, tagged , , , , on April 9, 2024| 8 Comments »

Fifth grader Kailyn blows India ink into a mysterious shape.

Thanks to a grant from Alpha Delta Kappa educational sorority, I funded a field trip for the elementary gifted students in Iberia Parish. The purpose of the field trip was to expose our students to the mystery and magic of art.

The students were able to tour an exhibit at The Hilliard Museum in Lafayette, LA. They saw the art of George Rodrigue, who was born in New Iberia and became world famous with the creation of his Blue Dog series. The students were fascinated to learn of Rodrigue’s origins and how he created amazing paintings throughout his life until his death in 2013. They recognized the iconic Blue Dog from a sculpture that we have in a downtown park dedicated to his memory.

They also viewed the art of Beili Liu who used the element of water to create an abstract hanging of paper above their heads. She also made blue cyanotype prints of objects from the ocean to draw attention to the problems of pollution.

Denise Gallagher, a local author, illustrator, and graphic artist led the students in an abstract activity using small straws and India ink on paper. Enjoy the gallery of art. Some students wrote poems to accompany their creations.

I believe that children should be exposed to art and learn that they are creators. Denise and Callie, the educational docent at The Hilliard, helped our students feel comfortable and inspired by art. The students were pleasantly surprised and proud of their creations.

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for creating an amazing community of writers and a safe, welcoming space to write and share.

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Poetry Friday: Haiku with Inklings

Posted in Creativity, Poetry Friday, Progressive poem, Writing, tagged , , , on April 5, 2024| 15 Comments »

Poetry Friday is with Irene at Live Your Poem

This first Friday of National Poetry Month, we have an Inklings challenge brought to us by Mary Lee Hahn. Mary Lee asked us to write a haiku sequence about poetry without using the word poetry.

I’ve been on an Emily Dickinson kick watching the surreal series “Dickinson” on Apple TV and reading through a dog-eared collection of her poems. When I read Mary Lee’s challenge, I decided to write individual haiku on slips of paper from the pile on the kitchen counter. That way I could arrange them in a logical/ illogical/ artistic/creative way.

random collection of haiku

I played with the order and this is what I have, for now. One of the best parts of writing poetry is revising, so I am open to rearranging and rewording or throwing it all into the flame.

  1. Envelope opens
    words release into hands
    timeless treasure

2. Flame rises too high
under the white carnation
searing joy to ash

3. Whispers of wishes
within earshot of your eyes
written by my hand

4. Slips of paper
feathers folded in hope
message delivered

5. Metaphoric
company of lacewings
urging me to fly

Margaret Simon, draft

To see how other Inklings met this challenge:
Catherine @Reading to the Core
Heidi @my juicy little universe
Linda @A Word Edgewise
Molly @Nix the Comfort Zone
Mary Lee @A(nother) Year of Reading

Today’s line is being added by Irene at Live Your Poem.

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Slice of Life: Welcome to the Wonder House

Posted in Creativity, Slice of Life, Writing, tagged , , , , on March 2, 2024| 16 Comments »

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for creating an amazing community of writers and a safe, welcoming space to write and share.

This week was Wonder Week in my classroom as we explored Welcome to the Wonder House by Rebecca Kai Dotlich and Georgia Heard. Each day I let a student choose which “room” we would visit. In this book, there are rooms you would not expect to find: The Room of Ordinary Things, The Room of Imagination, The Room of Wishes. Each page contains poems by Rebecca and Georgia. Each poem invites the reader to think, feel, wonder.

After I read aloud the poems, we notice things like structure, metaphor, imagery. Then they write in their notebooks.

Georgia talks about creating a space for poetry every day. It doesn’t have to take long. I believe in the power of poetry to teach, but also to inspire and somehow settle into you and become part of you.

I write alongside my students every day. We’ve been using markers, colored pencils, washi tape to make our pages pop and please us. Here is a page of my own notebook.

Our notebooking is not perfection which is something I model. Some pages are messy. Some pages do not come out like we want them to, but the practice of playing with poetry, following a line, stealing a metaphor, making an acrostic from a single word, satisfies the imagination and fills the soul.

If you are interested in participating in the Kidlit Progressive Poem in the month of April, the sign up is here.

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Poetry Friday: Let’s Talk about Prompts

Posted in Creativity, Gifted Education, Poetry Friday, Teaching, Writing, tagged , , , , , , on February 9, 2024| 16 Comments »

Carol Varsalona is gathering poets today at Beyond Literacy Link.

Where do your prompts come from? Are you inspired to write without them or do you need a little push? Inspiration? Motivation?

I’ve been participating in The Stafford Challenge as well as Laura Shovan’s 12th Annual February Challenge, so I should not complain about needing or wanting a prompt for writing. My complaint, I suppose, is that there are too many prompts, too many things to write about. How do I choose the one? Not to mention, how do I keep up with it all?

I am lucky to be teaching ELA to different groups of children. We begin each class time with notebook writing. My students are loving this quiet, sacred writing time. I recently bought a collection of washi tapes and throw them out on the table for their use. My students are making color-coded pages, drawing, and writing, and embracing their creativity. They inspire me every day.

My student Sadie inspired this notebook poem. She came in singing. My heart drawing became a love poem I didn’t know was inside of me. The surprise of writing is addictive.

Dreams in my heart fly over the waves crashing onto the shore of your love. I am yours. You hold me like sea glass, soft and crystal, a gem, a gift from a broken world.

Margaret Simon, draft

Here is a page from Marifaye’s notebook. I marvel at her patience to write in two colors. She loves writing acrostics. Her notebook pages are beautifully created. She inspires me. She inspires her classmates. Maybe she will inspire you.

Notebook page by Marifaye

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Slice of Life Challenge Day 19: A Pile of Good Things

Posted in being mamére, Creativity, Gratitude, Poetry, Slice of Life, Writing, tagged , , , , on March 19, 2023| 6 Comments »

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for creating an amazing community of writers and a safe, welcoming space to write and share.
Art by Leo, left, and Stella, right from “Let’s Make Art” activity at the Hilliard Museum.

On the campus of ULL (University of Louisiana at Lafayette) there is a beautiful museum, The Hilliard. Saturday they held a drop in art activity for kids 4 and up. I showed up with Leo, 4, and Stella, 2, and they were the only children there. They had the full attention of the artist instructor.

I was amazed by the focus of both kids on this activity. From the flyers on the table, I realized it was meant to be a quilting activity. There were shapes cut out of various papers. However, Leo immediately grabbed the scissors and started cutting the shapes to his liking and building a 3 dimensional motorcycle. I glued it down for him on the white “quilt piece,” and he continued to add to it a winner’s banner and a man riding (notice the skinny yellow strip sitting on the motorcycle.)

Stella was happy enough to glue and glue and glue. The artist taught her how to put the glue on the back and turn the paper over and press it down. We were also able to freely roam the current art exhibits. It was a great way to spend a rainy cold Saturday morning.

Today, at Ethical ELA Open Write, Stefanie Boutelier is teaching us how to use technology in poetry with a wonderful prompt and model poem “A Pile of Good Things”. You should follow the link and see what it’s all about. Here is my pile:

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