Matt Sandbank

Using expressive, intricately-crafted shadow puppets, I create programs that teach elementary school audiences the key literary devices used to read and write poetry.  As a graduate of the creative writing program of the University of North Carolina at Asheville, I come by my enthusiasm for poetry honestly, and as a former middle school teacher and a teaching artist of fifteen years’ experience, I have developed several techniques for getting and holding students’ focus.
 
My primary goal as a teaching artist is to transfer my love of poetry to my young audiences.  In particular, I love the many wild and wonderful ways that poetry can bring an image to life.  Shadow puppetry pairs seamlessly with poetry because it, too, is a wild and wonderful way to bring imagery to life.  Using absurdity, whimsy, and comic surprise, all of which qualities may be embodied in shadow puppetry, I frame poetry as a fun and funny means of expression.
 
The novelty and humor of shadow puppetry go a long way in hooking student interest, but in order to steer student learning, I lean heavily on techniques developed during my time as a middle school teacher (2006-2008) and over the course of my career as a performing artist (2009-present).  I have structured my show as a collection of brief skits, so that each poetic idea is presented as a manageable chunk.  I use calland-response patterns not just to refocus student attention in between these skits, but also to transition from one topic to the next in the show.  (Example: everybody say “Rhythm keeps the beat!”).  Finally, I use repetition and layering to help students retain information learned in my show.  For instance, one of the first parts of poetry I cover is vivid imagery, and I will continue to point out instances of vivid imagery throughout the rest of the show.
 
Although I am only performing for my audiences for roughly an hour, I want them to continue their learning and engagement with poetry and puppetry after my show has concluded.  To this end, I make sure to share with my audiences information they need to carry their own learning forward, should they choose.  I teach a simple rhythm and rhyme for finding poems in the library (“section eight-eleven…you’ll be in poetry heaven”) and I also share with them the link to my YouTube channel, where I teach how to construct shadow puppets out of easy-to-find materials.  With these techniques and approaches, I find I am very successful at getting, holding, and extending student interest in my subject matter.