Today we delved into persona poems, taking on the persona of another person, or animal or writing about ourselves. We followed a certain format starting each line with, "I am" and "I wonder" and "I hear" and "I see", etc.
Here is some of what came out:
Ross
Achilles
I am almost invincible and a strong warrior.
I wonder how Paris found out.
I hear Polyxena's beautiful voice
I see the darkness of Hades
I want to fight for eternity
I am almost invincible and a strong warrior.
Sushma
I am happy all day long and I chew on bones.
I wonder when my owners are going to give me a treat.
I hear other dogs walking.
I see other dogs playing fetch.
I want a new chew toy.
I am happy alll day long and I chew on bones.
Madelena ( writing about herself)
I am funny and smart
I wonder if I could fly
I hear silly music
I see fairies flying
I want a bunk bed
I am funny and smart.
We also wrote "I am From Poems" which explored the textures, sounds,
memories, foods and people. Here are a few excerpts:
Claire
I Am From
I am from my dogs whining to be fed and cats meowing when they want attention.
I am from the sweet smell of sap in the morning and the sounds of
birds chirping...
I am from another world under the sea with all sorts of wonderful and
colorful fish
i am from flying ove the city and tiny stars floating above me.
Sydney
I am from my dog licking me in the morning, I am from my family
snoring at night time.
I am from the night sky glimmering down at me and the sun shining bright.
I am from the girl wearing a Giants hat even if they lose the world
series...I am the girl who gets in
trouble by my brother and has to live with it.
Izzy
I am from the warm licks of Molly's tongue in the morning, the mouth
watering smell of bacon
and crepes. I am from my mama sneaking treats into my backpack and my
dad's warm, comforting hands.
Allistair
I am from the scar surgery,
I am from the memories of the flight that was cancelled, the trip to
Tahoe. I am from my grandpa's home on Texas.
The Kaiser Permanente. To the lake in New York.
I am from the smells of Skyline Boulevard, baked muffins and fizzy apple juice.
Continuing with the theme of inside and outside selves we composed letters to our future selves, 10 years from now. There were some wonderful results:
Sydney
Dear Sydney, the 19 year old,
You believe in fair. You love to sing and dance. You love to write and
draw....You love the Giants... Do not get a tatoo or smoke.
Allistair
Dear 21 year old Allistair,
I'm writing from my 11 year old self. I'm just going into middle
school. Do you remember middle school? Can you write me back, maybe
send it through a time portal, if they have those invented.
We started the afternoon with a neighborhood walk that included a 59 step path and Ross and Alistair lead the way. Back at Musically Minded we looked at books on Masks from different cultures and sketched our ideas. We worked on our masks, and finished our suitcases and portraits.