Rap and rhyme lures students away from smartphones and back to writing in notebooks
Meet the woman who is making poetry cool again in Queensland schools through the use of hip-hop, music and rhyme.
Brisbane poet Betsy Turcot offers poetry workshops to secondary students to help hone their craft through the use of hip-hop, folk music and blues.
Ms Turcot told 612 ABC Brisbane's Kelly Higgins-Devine that teaching secondary students poetry helps them find a voice and gets them away from their smartphones.
"Poetry is not always encouraged and it becomes secondary to everything else and many teenagers now express what they are doing through smartphones and Facebook," she said.
"When I put on poetry shows or slams they are always sold out as people are hanging out for that moment, that quiet time and you see that interest in poetry from young people growing.
"People are getting back to that quiet."
Ms Turcot says using music with the students helps her connect with them before delving into the world of poetry.
"I think you have to be a poet to write rap. I think all hip hop artists are poets first and musicians second," she said.
"You have to have the words to go with the beat so I think they are intertwined.
"Many kids are influenced by Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings, very fantasy-based, but then I have had groups of teenage girls feeling angst and pressure from peers.
"Many are dealing with their emotions [by] writing poetry and it is almost like they are writing letters to themselves."
Learning to be a poet
Ms Turcot says she is surprised about what students have already learned about poetry through their schooling.
"Students have bits and pieces of poetry sprinkled through their studies so they know different types of poetry and different techniques, like metaphor and alteration," she said.
"Many are dying to share their poetry in a space with like-minded students."
She said many of the students are lining up to perform their work for an audience.
"Children often write on their own but many of them are curious to know what it is like to perform," Ms Turcot said.
"When you perform you connect with people and that is why we read books and we want to find that connection.
"It is important to share your work with others."
Betsy Turcot teaches workshops throughout Australia and has performed as part of the Bells of Hell alongside Eleanor Jackson around Australia and in New York City.