It is like they say: When you have a song to sing to, the only thing you need is good friends to sing along with.
Vanessa C., Grade 8826CHI
The Great Ideas in this section are written by 5th–8th graders in the 826CHI program. Quotes were selected for the exhibition by participating students, who voted for their favorite ideas. 826CHI believes that having the means, space, and tools to share one’s ideas is paramount to our development as individuals and our engagement with community, social, and civic issues. With this in mind, they aim to bring students from different neighborhoods and backgrounds to the table to share in the creative process of writing as often as possible. Special thanks to Maria Villarreal, Sarah Kokernot, Kendra Curry-Khanna, and the students of 826CHI for making this exploration possible.
Young Chicago Authors
Young Chicago Authors offers high-quality programs that nurture artistic development, social-emotional learning, and academic success through poetry and performance. Its Rooted & Radical Youth Poetry Festival is the largest of its kind in the world, gathering over 200 youth poets from across Chicago, Chicago-land, and Northwest Indiana. The festival centers storytelling over competition and fosters listening, empathy, and creative risk. The ten poets featured here advanced through the 2025 festival and offered lines that were impossible to ignore.
Poetry Foundation
This program is made possible with support from the Poetry Foundation, which amplifies poetry and celebrates poets by fostering spaces for all to create, experience, and share poetry.
