BCPS Students Share Haiku About Heroes In Online Book

BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD — Haiku written by Baltimore County Public School students have been compiled into an online book celebrating heroes. A panel of 21 judges sorted through 1,446 haiku from 99 schools to pick the top three winners. They also selected another 162 favorites to be included in the book.

In past years, the favorites have been published in a softcover book, but this year, an online book will make the selected favorites available to everyone. Arbutus Middle School emerged as the school most represented in the book, with 20 student haiku included. Student artwork complements each section of the book.

Included in the book are the haiku created by the three winners named in May 2020: Ella Navari, fourth grade, Prettyboy Elementary School; Kiran Bhatia, seventh grade, Dumbarton Middle School; and Maggie Else, 10th grade, Dulaney High School.

“This year, when we challenged students to write haiku about the theme ‘hero,’ we were not aware that we were at the beginning of a global pandemic, and that our theme would take on new significance and meanings in light of COVID-19,” BCPS Superintendent Darryl L. Williams said. “Many of the haiku submitted shifted from poems about superheroes, family members, and educators to poems about medical professionals and other essential workers. We appreciate every entry and the support and encouragement our student writers received from their teachers and families. The contest is an annual affirmation that Team BCPS is committed to literary arts and self-expression.”

View the online book of the judges’ 165 favorite entries from the 2020 Team BCPS Haiku Contest.