On this Thoughtful Thursday, as temperatures drop below freezing in the North East, our thoughts turn to poems about the chill of winter. And so it is time to revisit an old GCP favorite, "Those Winter Sundays" by Robert Hayden. While its title and some of its vibrant imagery evoke winter's chill, at the core of the poem is a [...]
Today's Thoughtful Thursday features two award-winning African American female poets whose work is new to us, although these poets have been heralded for some time by (better read) poetry fans worldwide. Crystal Williams, a Detroit native, has written four award-winning poetry collections. A graduate of NYU (undergrad) and Cornell University (M.F.A.), Williams has taught at several universities and managed [...]
It's December, and as winter storms sweep across the nation, it's time...to plan summertime activities! Believe it or not, it is not too early to start planning what your kids will be doing in the summer of 2020. Camps start filling their spaces in January, and camp consultants are already planning events to introduce parents to a variety of [...]
With Thanksgiving a few days away, everyone is gearing up for family gatherings and good eating. Whether there are just a few of you or you are having a family reunion around the table, it is important to enjoy the time together for this holiday meal. Here are some Do's and Don'ts to help make sure the holiday is [...]
We are only a week away from Thanksgiving, so today's Thoughtful Thursday offers up a hodgepodge of poems celebrating the food, festivities and fun of this holiday. We start with Elizabeth Alexander's "Butter", a delightful ode to the spread which makes everything taste better. Bet you can't read this without getting hungry! Next is the moving and soulful "Perhaps [...]
GCP has been writing about how to talk with our children about mass shootings for too many years. Sadly, we are running an edited version of this post again below. Our children are learning to live in a world where schools and other familiar places we all visit can be targets, and we have to help them cope [...]
Today's Thoughtful Thursday continues the celebration of Veteran's Day with two poems written by African American veteran Yusef Komunyakaa (b. 1947) about his Vietnam War service. Komunyakaa served in the United States Army from 1969 to 1970 as a correspondent; he was the managing editor of the Southern Cross during the Vietnam war, for which he was awarded a [...]
GCP has been off the grid for a few weeks but we just had to pop back in today to say Run, Don't Walk, to see the great new movie HARRIET which is opening in theaters nationwide tomorrow, November 1!!! We saw it when it premiered at the Toronto Film Festival, and it is an exciting and inspirational film [...]
Is your son or daughter an inspiring poet? A good writer? A talented artist? Time to enter a contest and show the world these talents! Today's Thoughtful Thursday showcases a few contests your creative children may want to enter. Click on the links for more details. National Poetry Month Poster Contest: Students in grades 9 through 12 can enter [...]
Did you know that National Hispanic Heritage Month began on September 15th and ends on October 15th? And why, you may ask, does this celebration of the histories, cultures and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America start in the middle of one month and end in the middle of the [...]