The Mississippi Poetry Project 2026
Writing About Friends
Dear teachers:
As Mississippi’s Poet Laureate, I am delighted to continue the Mississippi Poetry Project created by my friend and predecessor Catherine Pierce. Now in its fifth year, the Mississippi Poetry Project is an annual statewide poetry-writing initiative for students in grades K-12. All Mississippi educators are invited to bring the Poetry Project into their classrooms this fall!
Catherine’s description of the project is so informative that I hope you will forgive my quoting from it:
“The goal of the Mississippi Poetry Project is to help students experience the joy and accomplishment that can come from writing poetry, and from sharing their own voices, words, and experiences
“Along with this letter, you’ll find the poem prompt and tips for you to share with your students. We know that days are tightly scheduled, and our hope is that this project can be done in whatever way best fits your class: in as little as 30 minutes on one day or, if time allows, spread out over multiple days; as a standalone activity or as part of an existing lesson plan. Most importantly, we hope that this project will provide a joyful and creative outlet for students and teachers alike.
“Poetry is for everyone. There’s no wrong way to write a poem, and words can be a tremendous source of delight, play, and comfort. Thank you so much for your help in making this initiative a success, and for all you do in helping to bring the joy of writing to your students.”
Best wishes,
ANN FISHER-WIRTH
Poet Laureate of Mississippi, 2025-2029
mspoetry@olemiss.edu
Welcome once again to the Mississippi Poetry Project, one of my projects as Mississippi Poet Laureate 2025-2029. The guidelines and deadlines for this year’s contest are at the end of this message.
This year’s theme is FRIENDS. Friends are important but friendship can be complicated, and it can be disappointing as well as rewarding. Your poem should focus not just on friends in general, but on one experience with a friend. It can be a new friend or an old friend, someone who unexpectedly became a friend, or someone who is no longer a friend. And remember: not just people your own age can be friends. Grandparents, parents, teachers, neighbors, people in shops, babies, people you babysit for, all can be friends. And friends don’t have to be people. Trees, animals, flowers, stars, your own self—who or what is, has been, or might be your friend?
Remember, too, that a good poem has specific details. They involve your senses: sight, hearing, taste, touch, smell. They are what make it communicate to readers. For instance, if you and your friend ate something, what did you eat? If you and your friend were at a special place, where was it? If one or the other of you said something important, what was it? What did you wear? What was the weather like? What happened next? You will not want all these details; they are just examples of things you can include to involve your own and your readers’ imaginations.
Don’t forget to give your poem a title. This might be the name of the person or experience you are writing about, or it might be a word or phrase that occurs to you as you think about your poem. Have fun! I can’t wait to see what you write. ~ Ann
OVERVIEW:
The Mississippi Poetry Project is a statewide poetry initiative for students in grades K-12. All students across Mississippi are invited to participate. Each participating school will select three winning poems per grade, which will be sent on to the statewide competition. All school-wide winners will have their winning poems published in a contest anthology and be invited to share their work at a reading and celebration. **This year, because of budgetary considerations, the print anthology will include only first-, second-, and third-place winners and Honorable Mentions. This will include approximately sixty poems. An online anthology will include all the poems received.
SHARING STUDENT WORKS:
Poetry Display
A poetry display is a great way to help students feel pride in the work they’ve done. Choose a section of the classroom or the hallway and hang your class’s poems up for all to read and enjoy.
Poetry Readings
Listening to poetry really helps it come alive. Invite students to share their work out loud (and encourage the rest of the class to clap when each poet is done reading).
In-class Poetry Parties
There’s something wonderful about writing in a community with others. Turn this project into a community-building exercise by making writing a festive experience–depending on students’ ages, anything from snacks to colorful markers to the opportunity to sit in groups or outside can help students experience writing as something exciting
School-Wide Sharing
Invite students to share their poems during morning announcements–a way to start the day by celebrating student creativity!
Social Media
If your school or class has a social media profile, share the work you and your students are doing with the hashtag #mspoetryproject.
Have other ideas for ways to celebrate your students’ poems? Let us know at mspoetryproject@olemiss.edu!
TIMELINE:
1. During the fall, students will write poems using the attached “Friends” prompt. There is no minimum length; poems should be no more than 30 lines.
2. No earlier than December 1, schools will send me three winning poems per each grade. There is no official contest rubric, but judges (selected by each school) should consider the poem’s use of specific detail and overall creativity/originality. Each of these school-wide winners will have their poem published in the online contest anthology. Thank you for not sending me poems earlier than December 1. That helps me not lose emails. ~ Ann
3. Winning poems should be emailed to mspoetry@olemiss.edu between December 1 and December 8. All the poems that I receive will be entered into the statewide contest, which is additionally judged. The print anthology will include the poems that additional judges (after December 8) choose for prizes or honorable mention. This is for budgetary reasons. Last year, the anthology included over 300 poems; this year, my budget is smaller and printing costs are rising! ~ Ann
REQUIREMENTS FOR SUBMISSION:
- Each poem should include a title and the author’s name below the title.
- Each poem should be submitted as an individual Word doc (feel free to send multiple files in one email).
- Each poem should be saved as [Grade Number]_[School]_[Student’s Last Name]. For example: 5_South Elem_Johnson.
The winning poems from each school will be entered into the statewide poetry contest. Statewide winners will be announced by February 5, 2027, and will be invited to give a reading of their winning work at a celebration to be announced.
Questions? Email mspoetry@olemiss.edu
Click here for the full list of 2025-2026 Mississippi Poetry Project statewide winners.
Click here for the full list of 2024-2025 Mississippi Poetry Project school-wide winners.
Click here for the full list of 2024-2025 Mississippi Poetry Project statewide winners.
