Want to see some of the star-studded writing coming from our young writers at Joaquin Miller Elementary? Check out some of our favorite poems below!
Exercise: Writing Odes – students created their own odes using descriptive language, rhyming, and repetition.
Shadow by Marley
You dance across the ground With exquisite delicacy. You walk across the ground Without a sound. Oh shadow, the harmless but dangerous hunter.
You sleep in a soft blanket of moonlight On the hard ground. You walk in the sun’s warmth On the cold, frosty ground. Oh shadow, the harmless but dangerous hunter.
You walk quickly, Without fear or pause. You can’t be hurt, Unless it’d dark out. Oh shadow, the harmless but dangerous hunter.
You leap across the floor With gracefulness. You skid along with someone else, Who is not alone.
Oh shadow, the harmless but dangerous hunter.
You’re very smart But you can’t learn. You love eating blackberries, But you can’t taste them. Oh shadow, the harmless but dangerous hunter.
When you die, You stay alive until you are buried. You’re loud and annoying, But you can’t bother anyone. Oh shadow, the harmless but dangerous hunter
A Bee by Luke
I saw you make the flowers droop. I saw you fly in a loopty-loop. You are super fast, I can’t see you pass. Oh bee, why do you buzz? Oh bee, why do you have fuzz?
You fly away, You sting your prey. In sight, You are a fright. Oh bee, why do you buzz? Oh bee, why do you have fuzz?
I sit and watch you in the air, And I wonder if you have hair. You fly by my eye, I see you say hi, You fly away – bye bye. Oh bee, why do you buzz? Oh bee, why do you have fuzz?
Owl by Julia
Owl oh Owl, where do you roam?
The owl danced across the night sky, Oh my, Oh my. Owl oh Owl, where do you roam?
The owl spoke Hello, Hello. Owl oh Owl, where do you roam?
The owl sprouted feet and a nose. Owl oh Owl, where do you roam?
And what do you know, What do you know, Some toes. Who knows, who knows. Owl oh Owl, where do you roam?
Turtle by Pearce
Oh turtle, why are you so slow?
The turtle walks through the room. It is soooo slowwww. Oh turtle, why are you so slow?
The turtle wears a slow reddish-green coat. Why is it so slow? Oh turtle, why are you so slow?
Turtle, you walk so slow you can’t stub your toe. With no name, you won’t get to the Hall of Fame. Oh turtle, why are you so slow?
Mr. Monkey by DJ
Why Mr. Monkey, you don’t have to do what you do. I watch you from the Grand Canyon to the polar ice caps. But why do you terrorize the world? From the Space Needle to the Statue of Liberty, You destroy with your TNT breath.
I saw you on vacation at the Eiffel Tower and the Rome Coliseum. Why won’t you go away? I don’t understand why you won’t just go. But why do you terrorize the world? From the Taj Mahal to Tokyo, You destroy with your TNT breath.
In the end, the world was chaos and fire and destruction. People survived by digging below the surface for iron as money. But on the summit of Mount Everest was you, Mr. Monkey, In a mansion – the wealthiest of them all. And still from Mount Everest to the end
You destroy with your TNT breath.
Exercise: Life Doesn’t Frighten Me At All – after reading Maya Angelou’s poem of the same name, students wrote poems about the things that frighten them while experimenting with using repetition lines.
Life doesn’t frighten me at all by Morgan
Life doesn’t frighten me at all
Unicorns mocking me, Clowns taunting me, Life doesn’t frighten me at all.
Mermaids flying in the air, Scissors snipping here and there, Life doesn’t frighten me at all.
Darkness everywhere, Robbers creeping down my stairs, Life doesn’t frighten me at all.
Frightened by Louka
I am not afraid of microscopic atoms that go in my brain. I am not afraid of chickens who cackle, Or clowns who pass by. They think they know what scares me, But they don’t know it’s just a story. I am not afraid of monkeys that cry. There is one thing I am afraid of. I’ll only name a clue. It’s a thing that’s dead and rotten. I am not afraid.
Exercise: On Turning Ten – after reading Billy Collins’ poem about turning ten years old, students created descriptive lists of the defining traits of turning a certain age, then wrote poems using those lists.
On Turning Four
by Marco Four is when you realize that things aren’t what they seem. Candy is less sweet, Steak is just plain meat, School turns out important, Field trips are educational. Four is the year you start forgetting things, Wait… what did I just say?
Exercise: List Poems – students read a selection of poems that use listing as a technique, then created their own list poem using the five senses and concrete details.
My Junk Drawer by Hunter
3D glasses make the movies amazing. Baseball cards are fun to collect. Sticky stars are great weapons. Football cards are not as fun. Mario Cards are the worst. Legos are so… so awesome. Rocks rock, And more stuff that I can’t name.