Mike Kivi – Poet, Storyteller and Performer

Latest News... Mike has just finished working with the BBC for CBeebies Schools Projects in North Wales.

Mike Kivi works full time as a poet, teacher and educational journalist providing stimulus and framework for the development of projects in schools, the community, colleges and a variety of meeting places from pub to church hall.

Mike does big performances for a whole school or group of schools, INSET, after dinner, theatre performances. He also works with class groups and smaller groups of children with special needs

He lives in Wales and is happy to work anywhere in the UK. He is also available to work internationally (Mike has worked in Italy and France)

Publications include:

One Flew Over the Internet
Sampson Low
December 1998

Potent Poems for Pole-axed Pedagogues  
Trentham Books
30 June, 1992

Every Dog Has His Day
Educational Printing Services Ltd
July 2001

Call the Teacher Lazy  
Educational Printing Services Ltd
May 2000

The Early Word
~Mike Kivi
(Early Years Learning Methods)
Questions Publishing
December 2002

Currently working on the ultimate poetry book for teenagers. 

Poetry Anthologies created in Workshops

Poems from the Park - poetry by parents and children of  The Park Primary School, Runcorn
Poems from the hedge Poetry by disaffected youth, Halton Borough Council
Wonderful Things - Poetry by 1200 children from LEAP – The Ellesmere Port Action Zone

Monthly poems and articles in The Teacher, Educational Journal and Literacy and Learning

A wide range of children's poetry in anthologies published by Macmillan, OUP and Scholastic Books

Responses to Mike’s visits to schools:

'Mike Kivi, poet and poetry facilitator is an amazing person; he was recommended to me by a local head teacher some years ago when I was youth officer for the authority and he has accepted several commissions from me since that time. In 1999 Mike Kivi took on a challenging task- to engage a group of young people who were failing within their schools or had been excluded from them and to enable them to produce a poetry anthology about their lives, hopes and aspirations; these young people organised the timings and venues for the workshops and  they painstakingly produced an anthology called Beyond the Hedge.
This was funded by Halton LEA behavioural Support Unit and over 100 thousand copies were distributed. Beyond The Hedge is still held up as an exemplar of best practice within schools across Cheshire.'

'I have found Mike Kivi to be consistently reliable, honest and trustworthy, his commitment to delivering a high standard of delivery is exemplary and I believe that he has demonstrated the ability to engage young people of all abilities and backgrounds in poetry.
He also has the rare ability to work in a range of different settings from youth centres to canal boats and his combination of humour and empathy with young people ensures that their level of  participation and voluntary attendance at poetry workshops is of a high standard'
Chairperson, Canal Boat Adventure Project