In this article, we argue that preservice teachers have limited experience reading and writing poetry, and that if they are to teach poetry in meaningful ways to their future students, they need to have compelling experiences with poetry in teacher education--ones that take into account their former experiences and incoming dispositions and that…

Explores the intersection of poet William Stafford, the poet in each child, and poetry. Discusses influences of Stafford on the author during her academic training and subsequent academic career. Notes Stafford left behind a vision of the world, a way of thinking about the process of writing, and a respect for the writer that is each child as…