This session, our 3rd, 4th & 5th graders at Grattan Elementary have been writing about long lost twins and buried treasure, examining what it means to consider something treasure--must the thing be sparkling with gems, and dipped in gold, or could it be a small scrap of paper found in the backseat of a cab? Can a person be treasure? To answer these questions, they have been writing stories and poems and letters and even drawing maps, about vivid characters going on fantastic adventures in dangerous and beautiful places. After drawing Treasure Maps, the students wrote stories about the map itself, about the adventure taken with the map, and about the treasure at the end.
Catherine Cohen’s Exploration
Objective: Get the treasure from the island. Day 1: I started my 3 day journey to the island on the ship. We have lots of food and my bed is pretty comfortable. The only bad thing is that it creaks. I thought it would be boring on the ship, but it is huge and I look forward to exploring all of the rooms on it. I am very tired so I will go off to bed now. Goodnight. Yours, Catherine
- Lucie
The Adventures of Bobby Joe
I was running, not sure of my location or direction, just running. I heard the sound of dogs and policemen behind me. Just running. I couldn’t see everything, just running. Okay, here’s where things start getting out of hand.
- Ben
The Quest
To Lilyin, I have a new quest for you. You will need to go to the Emerald Forest with the jet. And there you will need to head to the Ominous Ocean. Cross the Ocean with a boat. Now it’s time to get real. On the way to the other side of the island you will pass a sea monster.
- Charlotte
X
To get to the treasure you will have to reach the Serpent Sea by dawn. The sail to the edge of the island of danger and reach it by 7. Then you’ll have to walk an hour to reach the entrance of the Forbidden Forest. In the Forbidden Forest you will encounter lots of weird things. For example, owls with 3 eyes, puffy round animals with wings, and many more.
- Althea
The students wrote about what a cab driver might find left behind by in his or her cab, what they might do with those things, how they might get it back to their rightful owner.
In the trunk he found…
“What the?” Said the cab driver as he opened the trunk. What he saw inside was a bunny rabbit. It jumped out and gobbled him up. Several people saw this catastrophe and quickly scrambled away! The bunny lunged at them.
- Axel
The Lego
A Lego lonely in a pocket. The Lego fell out of the pocket and is in the pool, and the Lego is 4 years old today.
-Hannah
(I brought in an array of my own “treasured objects”--from a piece of ribbon, to jewelry, and figurines--and then asked the kids to choose an object and write a story about it.)
My Treasure
My treasure is a heart shaped ring. My treasure can make me invisible, it can make me fly, and many other things. It can turn into a friend who can walk, run, speak, and dance, and many other things. My ring came from a volcano. It got trapped in the volcano by a fox named Dedech. I know it got out when the volcano erupted, but I don’t really know how. I do know that it was before the dinosaurs.
- Karina
Zipper the Kitty
This is the story about THE END of the planet Paper. This is a sad story about the invasion of the Kitties. Once upon a time, Paper City was having a party, and things got out of hand.
- Uma
Untitled
Once there was a guy named Bob. He lived in an oaken log. He found some seaglass in some green grass and threw it in the sea. 20 years later, he found it in a gator and threw it on the wall. Then it shattered and got all battered, but then it started to glow. It shot a laser and turned into a blazer, and Bob went up in smoke. End.
- Wai-Kirn
The students wrote Poems beginning with "My Name Is..."
My Name Is
My name is a Tsunami. My name is made from humongous waves. I found my name in the Galapagos. My name can destroy. It reminds me of distraction.
- Tate