Teen Poetry Slam Prelims #1 | Youth Speaks

For over 25 years, the Youth Speaks Teen Poetry Slam has propelled spoken word around the globe. Youth from all over the Bay Area compete to advance in the competition, become a finalist, and rep the Bay Area at , a 4-day youth poetry festival and National Slam.

The Teen Poetry Slam and are traditions celebrating some of the most astounding young writers and performers around the world, and are open to anyone 19 and under.

HOW DO I COMPETE?

Think you got the heat to take the crown?

Youth poets and writers, bring your best poems to the 2026 Teen Poetry Slam to compete for a $50 prize and a chance to represent the Bay Area at the 2026 Festival!

First, register for Teen Poetry Slam 2026 at , then pull up to sign up to get on the mic the day of the slam at 5 pm PT. The Teen Poetry Slam is only open to Bay Area teens under the age of 19 years old who want to compete.

PERFORMANCE SLOTS

Teen Poetry Slam performance spots are first come first serve for the first 20 slots and raffle for the last 5.

HOW DO I GET TICKETS?

If you’re interested in cheering from the audience, register for tickets to the 2026 Teen Poetry Slam using this Eventbrite page.

WHAT IS A POETRY SLAM?

Poetry Slams are an Olympic-style competition where poets have 3 minutes to rock the stage, mic, and audience, with 5 judges scoring each round.

HOW DO THE ROUNDS WORK?

The Teen Poetry Slam or “TPS” consists of 4 rounds — Preliminaries, Semi-finals, Last Chance, and Finals. The top 10 scoring poets in each preliminary bout move on to the semifinals, with the highest scoring poet from each preliminary bout winning $50. We have a very special prize for our Top 3 scoring poets of the night, an exclusive paid interview at our Teen Poetry Slam Prelims #2 at KQED in San Francisco.

The top 6 highest-scoring individuals from Finals are invited to represent Team Bay Area at the 2026 Festival.

COVID Protocol

As we continue to explore new opportunities to gather & build community within an ever-changing world, we will continue to practice harm reduction & remain accountable to your safety.

In the interest of maintaining a safe and accountable environment for all participants, masks are recommended and available at the check-in table at all Youth Speaks Events. If you have tested positive for COVID or been in close contact with someone with confirmed COVID, please do not attend Youth Speaks activities until you are able to produce a negative COVID test 5 days after your most recent exposure.

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