Georgia Heard

Georgia Heard is a poet, author, and educator known for her work in children’s poetry and the teaching of writing. She received an M.F.A. in poetry from Columbia University and is a founding member of the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project in New York City, where she helped provide professional development in writing to teachers. In 2023 she was honored with the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children, recognizing her body of work for young readers. Heard has taught writing and poetry in schools across the United States and internationally, and she frequently presents workshops and keynotes on poetry and literacy.

Heard is the author of numerous professional books for educators, including Awakening the Heart and Heart Maps: Helping Students Create and Craft Authentic Writing, as well as Reading Poetry in the Middle Grades: 20 Poems and Activities That Meet the Common Core Standards and Cultivate a Passion for Poetry (also published under similar titles focused on poetry and the Common Core) and A Place for Wonder: Reading and Writing Nonfiction in the Primary Grades. She has also written and edited many poetry collections for children, such as Creatures of Earth, Sea, and Sky: Animal Poems, and continues to publish picture-book poetry and anthologies that encourage young readers and writers to explore language and the natural world.[