Philip Wilcox - Writing

Philip Wilcox

AIM High Writing

Summary

Age range All ages
Books For Year 7+
DBS Checked Yes

Booking
Contact
+44 (0)1535 656015
aimhigh@caboodlebooks.co.uk

Philip Wilcox is an awarded and published full-time poet, touring nationally and internationally.

About Philip

Based in London, he is an Australian Poetry Slam champion and two-time New South Wales Poetry Slam champion. Recently, he was the poetry facilitator for TEDx Sydney and has been published in multiple journals. He is a regular on the writers’ festival circuit and recently was awarded a residency at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity where he completed his first manuscript, a collection of poems called Beetle Prayer.

Philip believes poetry is used by everyone: from advertising execs – tricking us into buying stuff we don’t need, to football fans – humiliating the opposing team. His mission is to empower people through poetry to realise how the world might be enchanted.

He has made it his mission to share his poetry in the hope of sparking a passion for words and language and in the last few years, Philip has worked with upwards of 100,000 students in over 300 schools in 12 countries.

Philip’s AIM High Writing Days

Philip’s AIM High Writing Days help students enhance and fine tune their literary and presentation skills to create a slam poem that they can confidently perform. The sessions are full of fun but seek to push the students to create honest and engaging work.

Every AIM High Day is different but can be broken down into these three sections: inspiration, creation and communication.

 Inspiration

The day starts off with an interactive performance by Philip. From here, he helps the students become comfortable with one another, allowing them to feel safe to create poems later in the day. In the performance, Philip demonstrates some of the skills the students will utilise in their own pieces. For instance, Philip performs an absurd homophonic translation of Neruda’s ‘Ode to the Tomato’ to demonstrate rhyme; he shows through audience participation and immersive storytelling of a poem about a wedding gone wrong how poems can act as narrative; through video visuals created through iPad drawings projected on the screen by volunteers he illustrates show the importance of imagery. There is an emphasis on the power and playfulness of poetry but in all of this Philip highlights the need for the students to tell their own stories and illuminate their own truths. Poetry is shown to be something not just to be read but to be performed, to be embodied and ultimately – enjoyed.

 Creation

After the morning’s performance, the students are given various starting off ideas and prompts to think about creating their own work. Different students respond to different stimuli, so Philip starts this section of the day with various writing games based on diverse prompts: soundbites, visuals, objects and music. The students are then encouraged to see emerging patterns in their choice of subject and an emphasis is then placed on choosing a topic that the students feel genuinely passionate about. Before commencing their writing, Philip gives them the chance to ‘pitch’ their poem to the class and then provides each student with a ‘publishing deal’ he and they sign off on. Students then work on writing a slam poem either by themselves or as a group piece.

Communication

The afternoon is dedicated to learning performance skills through various fun games and activities. The students then mark their poems as an actor might mark a script with coded symbols helping them prompt themselves to perform the piece in an engaging manner. The day concludes with a slam poetry showcase where every student performs their poem to the class. Philip likes to create a festival atmosphere, celebrating the magnificent work of the students.

Bookings
To book Philip Wilcox please contact
aimhigh@caboodlebooks.co.uk

Philip also visits schools and other settings, click here for more info.