Most students sort themselves into two categories, those who are English kids and those who are Math kids. However, math teacher Andrea Sadler has blurred these boundaries through her creation of the Math Poetry Sweatshop Journal.

“I started out because I thought having my students write math poems would be a fun way to communicate their knowledge of math,” Sadler said. “Some of my students’ poems were so amazing that I decided to put them together as a small book for them to remember the class by.”

Now on its third volume, Sadler hopes to include more haikus, equations and concepts in the journal than ever before. Students can pick up a handout on submission guidelines outside room 433 in building 10. Previous Math Poetry issues are available to be used for inspiration, so new applicants can see what standards entries must meet.

Sadler not only wants students to remember what they have learned, but also be rewarded for their hard work. The student with the best entry will receive a $25 Visa gift card, and the two second best entries will receive $10 Visa gift cards.

“All students are eligible to submit poems and win the prizes,” Sadler said. “This is the first year I’ve decided to make the journal open to all students. I’ve put together some inspiration to help people get started.”

Entries should be submitted on a printed copy to Sadler’s room with a name and address on the poem. Students should also specify whether they would like their poem back after the election process.

“The poem has to be a good poem from a literary point of view, and all the math referred to in the poem has to be accurate,” Sadler said.

In previous years, the journal was put together by the students and Sadler by hand. However, Sadler hopes for an easier production process.

“My students had an assembly line of folding, punching the holes with a special tool, and then sewing the binding,” Sadler said. “This year, since we want to make this a bigger project, the school will help us get the journal printed and bound. We still might make a limited ‘special edition’ with the hand-stitching, too.”