Each year, students in Arizona participate in Poetry Out Loud: a national recitation competition where students choose a poem from the official POL anthology to memorize, embody, and perform. The 2025-2026 Poetry Out Loud program is focusing on poems that celebrate and remember American history and culture. Due to this season’s focus, the POL anthology has undergone many changes. We believe that change is often laced with opportunity.  

The poems featured in the anthology represent the past, while our students belong to the future. To bridge this gap, we have developed The Unsaid, a writing response project for the ‘25-’26 Poetry Out Loud season. Using guided prompts, we are inviting students to write to, alongside, or even against the poems in this season’s anthology.  

Students are welcome to submit a poem, letter, list, monologue, or hybrid form—as long as it clearly responds to the POL poem. We ask that submissions be limited to 10-25 lines, or approximately 100-250 words. Submissions will be accepted through February 16, 2026. 

Student work will be compiled and hosted in a digital anthology on the Poetry Center’s blog page. Only students participating in Arizona Poetry Out Loud are eligible to submit.

Full details, including writing prompts and submission instructions, can be found on this information sheet.  

Submissions must be accompanied by a media release form.  

If you have any questions or have trouble accessing any of the related materials, please reach out to the Poetry Center’s K-12 Education Team at pceducation@arizona.edu.  

We are excited to see what POL students in Arizona are feeling, thinking, and imagining!