What have "Take My Word For It!" kids been up to? Check out Walt Disney Elementary 4th & 5th grade:

Students in our after-school and community classes are exploring all the different ways writers generate ideas, and put captivating words on the page.

Here are more writing excerpts and photos of our young authors working with instructor, Marissa Bell Toffili at Walt Disney Elementary in San Ramon:

4th & 5th Grade:

By Alex

It was a dark, heavy wind. I was about to play baseball in the heavy wind. When I got outside, I could smell the heavy earth. So I went inside. I saw the dark clouds coming in. It started to rain. I could see yellow strikes of lightning. When the rain hit the ground, I could hear splats. The sky felt like it was getting mad at something. I could see the huge wind breaking the branches off of huge trees. I was very happy I was inside and not out.

By Andrew 

When I wake up during midnight,

I feel tired. I feel cranky,

I feel annoyed. I feel hungry.

Being woken up during midnight

is like being tortured.

Being awake during midnight

is like being in the middle of nowhere.

Being awake during midnight

is like being shocked.

By Christopher

I am from Black Ops

I am from Halo Reach

I am from baseball

I am from reading books

I am from the Gold Rush

I am from desserts

I am from the smell of Diritos

I am from the sound of splashing water

I am from the world of money

I am from Modern Warfare 2

I am from Call of Duty 4

I am from Xbox 360

I am from a sense of math

I am from the scents of sports

I am from video games

I am from the world of computers

I am from the wild

By Isaiah

The noise in the cafeteria was so loud it sounded like a basketball game when you hit the winning shot. WOOOOOOO! HAAA! Beeeee Quiet! is all that I heard. I just knew Steff was going to blow the whistle. I saw food gliding across the air. I could smell different food every second. I felt little pieces of food hit me. Beep. Beep, Beep, Beep. It was my annoying alarm clock! “Wait!” I woke up and glanced at my alarm clock. “I’m late!” I rushed to my parent’s. It’s 12:00. Now get up. No, it’s 12:00 at night. Then why did my alarm clock go off? I looked at my brother and he had a mysterious look on his face. “You’re so dead!” I chased him until he was cornered. My parents said, “Stop. Now. You both go back to bed.” The day after my alarm clock went off at 12:00, so I just slept in and it was 12:00 in the morning.

By Megan

I See the World

I see the lemon yellow sun

cracking from the door

I see the cherry blossoms

growing in the leaves

I see people playing

on the playground

I see groaning people

in the rain

I know the kids in class

are looking at me

I crave the strawberries

growing in the ground

I smell warm cookies

cooking in the night

I love blueberries

growing in the bushes

I know that my cat

is licking at night

By Nate

The rain came down hard like bombs were dropping. Outside looked like you were in a scary, creepy ghost tow. The rain felt like you were pushed and blown by the gods with their powerful muscular fists. Tastes like fresh water from god, coming fast like a bullet. It smells like nothing was there but water—H2O. It is not nice. Wide drops came down, making it look like small tears coming out of my green eyes. I don’t know how it’s sad by May. Is it the flowing rain or just me? When a kid, life is cheerful, happy, sunny, smiles, and joy, but when you’re older life falls off the sun and follows into the darkness of olderness, like you slip and something grabs you and you have no choice but to go down. Now the rain falls when sad things happen, even if it happened a year or more you still have that same thing in your lifetime, and death, no matter how small or big, that’s it.

By Shirin

The noise in the cafeteria blasted at my unprepared eardrums. I brushed the tables. Ow! The table vibrated so hard my hand vibrated too. I attempted to pick up my milk but a voice blasted at my ear, and Splash! My milk splashed on the bully. Ha! Serves her right after all these years. Finally the bell rings and it’s recess.

By Zoe

In the TV Screen

I look ahead and see my reflection

covered in black. It’s the darkest section.

I see a mirroring image of the room

with scratchy carpet swept with a broom.

My heart pumps, so concentrated.

We feel sort of trapped, like we’re gated.

In the shiny, dark image

I see myself, soft and timid.

Colored posters on the wall,

each are different from them all.

The lights are round on the screen

but rectangular above me.

It’s like a clone of our world

showing every boy and girl.

I see the room, I see me.

I am looking in the TV screen.

When it’s off it’s like a mirror,

but not as simple, not as clear.