After-School Student Writing: Chabot Elementary

Interested in seeing what our students at Chabot have been up to this Fall?

Take a look at some of these excerpts!

Anna-

Writing about an Imaginary Walk in the Forest

When I was walking in an imaginary forest I saw a giant tree. I have 40 people in my class and everybody couldn’t even fit around it! Wow! Then I went on a path – it was spooky and dark. I was frightened. After I was walking for a while I saw a shiny gold  jeweled key. I picked it up and put it in my pocket...

Anna & Molly

Connor

Free-write: “A Day in the Life of a Window Washer”

To-do list

1. Eat breakfast of corn and syrup

2. Go to Chrysler Building

3. Clean bird poop of Miss Salmon’s window

4. At least get to the 5^th floor without acting scared of heights

5. Be sure to check safety band at every step.

6. Make that every half-step...

Sara-

Write about a dream or a nightmare of an ordinary object: TV remote

I gasped as I was shoved into the corner of the couch. I was pushed down into it for a very long time. It didn’t matter because my boyfriend, Seri, was shoved next to me. We had a quick kiss before I was yanked up. I groaned as my owner, Jhon, jabbed hi grubby fingers onto my buttons.

Sara

Justice

Write about a dream or a nightmare of an ordinary object: fork

To-do list

1. Go and get a cookie and milk

2. Go to the gym so I can fit into Uncle Spoon’s house to eat all of the good food on Thanksgiving

3. Go home and take a  nap

4. Call Uncle Spoon up to make Thanksgiving dinner at his house is still on. No? he said it wasn’t? No! My workout going to waste!

5. Wake up and tell myself it was only a dream

Justice

Molly

Writing about an Imaginary Walk in the Forest

The fence is at the same time shiny and new. It’s just short enough for me to jump over. Over the fence there was field full of fresh baked eclairs. I picked one up and ate it.

Sophia

Tony

Sara & Tony

After-School Student Writing: Commodore Sloat

We spark our memories with "I Remember Poems".

Take a look at what Jon-Pierre and Hannah from Commodore Sloat Elementary came up with:

I remember that one night I woke up with a doughnut in front of me.

I remember my cat laying on my lap and purring.

I remember the first time I started making hobbies.

I remember the first time I ate a churro at Six Flags.

-Jon-Pierre, 5^th grade

I remember when my Grandma died.

I remember when I went to mini golf.

I remember the first day of kindergarten.

I remember I was a flower girl.

I remember when no one wanted to play with me.

I remember that once I wanted to move to Mars.

I remember the first movie I watched.

-Hannah, 3^rd grade

After-School Student Writing: Havens Elementary

At Havens we had all sorts of writing adventures. Here are some of them:

Alyssa

Compose a Metaphor

The moon is a big white rat sleeping in a ball.

Angela

Compose a Poem about your family using metaphors.

My mom is the changing sky from gray to blue

My dad is the funky balloon that floats next to me

My brother is the sour lemon that turns into sweet lemonade

One of my sisters is the American Flag that we need to respect but it floats around freely

The other sister is pictures on photo booth that have weird faces

My grandma is the warm blanket that you can hug

My grandpa is the wooden chair that is stable and holds you up

My house is the blanket that wraps around the sun

My family is the bundles of flowers that sometimes dry up or loose petals,

but always bloom in the sun.

Finn

Compose a Metaphor.

My mom and dad are helpful like a huge library giving me knowledge.

Jack

We learned about the ancient poetic form of praise: the Ode. 

Ode to Sleep

sleep

always

plays its game,

it follows you

to bed, it strikes at night

to its game it seems to

work every night. But at

morning if you try to

catch it, it has already

snuck away.

Jenna

"I Am From" Poem. Describe where you are "from" using memories, colors, textures, smells, etc.

I am from a rainbow up high

I am from beautiful spring flowers

I am from sweet soft fruit

I am from a soft warm blanket

I am from sweet candy

I am from good food

I am from a soft comfy bed

But most of all I am from a cozy, funny, loving family.

Jihae

We learned about the ancient poetic form of praise: the Ode.

Ode to Jellybeans

I love the sweet taste

of jellybeans the nice

way they feel inside

your mouth

I really like the red ones.

The pink taste just fine,

the orange delicious and

blue spectacular

All the jellybeans more and more

Rootbeer, bubblegum, licorice, too.

All of them swirling, twirling in my eyes.

Judge

Compose a Metaphor.

The moon is like burnt marshmallow with cheese.

Sadness is like an ogre that is mutated and weighs as much as twenty elephants.

Kyle

"I Am From" Poem 

I am from the living room watching The Simpsons

I am from the freezer full of ice cream

I am from outside on my BMX

I am from the dirt courses doing tricks

I am from the rush of the water ride at Legoland on my birthday

I am from the snowboard riding on the white hill with my uncle

I am from a good life.

Madeline

Compose a Metaphor.

Hufflepuff (a stuffed animal) is a threadbare couch

Stuffed full with kindness, patience, loyalty

Secure and warm

With sunlight streaming in

A fresh cooked meal

Just waiting to be wanted.

Margaret

Writing prompt: I reached into my pocket and found…

I reached into my pocket and found an orange, and yellow rock. It reminded me of the sun, the bright powerful sun that shines over us.

Mirabel

Compose a poem about your family using metaphors.

My dad is the glowing beam that flies above my head

My mom is the Easter egg of my life

My two brothers are small stars always protecting me

and my little sister is the tail of my family.

Will

Start your story with the line, "One day I received a mysterious letter…"

Once upon a time I got a mysterious letter and when I opened it a big flash of light and a loud voice screamed,"TACO TIME!"

I jumped back. The voice said, “YOU’VE JUST WON A LIFETIME SUPPLY OF TACOS AND SOUR PATCH ICE CREAM!” 

My jaw dropped. Then I heard a loud crash and I saw a huge flash of light and a giant portal opened up, so I stuffed my tacos and sour patch ice cream in a briefcase and jumped into the portal.

Yanela

Writing Prompt: I reached into my pocket and found…

I reached into my pocket and found a cloth and the cloth was folded. I unfolded it and it took a long time to unfold. I found a dress. A magic dress.

After-School Student Writing: Joaquin Miller

One of the things we did this session was explore dreams. In one favorite writing activity the kids wrote about an imaginary walk through the forest. Along the way we prompted them to write about their encounter with several things, among them a path; a key; a cup; a body of water; a shelter, etc. 

Marley (Walking through an Imaginary Forest exercise) 

I was walking in a forest, and I saw a huge bear lumber over to a little blackberry bush. Slowly, like magic, the fog turned into a gentle, damp shade of yellow. And that's when a fox appeared. For a moment, he roused the bear, who let out a roar that seemed to make everything freeze. In a low growl, the bear said, "The dark path is the way to Willow Grave. The light path is your destiny. Go." He turned, and I followed the light path.

A little later, I found a silver key about six inches long. I put it in my pocket and continued to walk. I began to wonder if the path would ever end, and just then I discovered a golden cup with a small latch made of rubies. It had a hole just big enough for the key, and I put the key into it. I set the cup and key in a circle of rocks, and instantly the rocks shattered, revealing a small stream that cut through the path. I splashed water on my face, filled the cup, and gratefully drank. Beyond the stream was a much bigger river, flowing silent and swift. Rocks dotted the shore. I flopped down in a patch of long, wavy grass, and soon I was peacefully asleep.

In this activity we learned how to use personification to write about the dream ( or the nightmare) of an oridinary object.

Alex

A Lightbulb's Nightmare

My owners, Guy and Girl, moved in and screwed me into the ceiling. That's when it started. There was a switch on the wall, and his name was Flippy.

"Yo Lightbulb!" called Flippy, "Hey, can't you hear?"

I replied, "How do you know my name?"

"Dunno," said Flippy, "Just kind of figured your name was Lightbulb."

Flippy started acting strangely that night.

"I know why you came here," he said. "You came because your family all broke and you want to get away from the past."

"Whoa," I said, "How did you know that?"

Flippy looked at me and said: "I know everything." Then he turned. "And I'm here for you, Lightbulb."

"Noooo!" I screamed.

The kids were invited to write about an imaginary world where the impossible becomes possible.

Lawrence (Dreams)

The Mustache People

The Mustache People live in New York, and all they want to do is stalk you. They'll hide in the back seat of your car, then they'll push you out when you're not looking. They like to eat people, but first they'll follow you through the streets, sometimes for 10 years at a time. If one of the Mustache People follows you, you might wake up to find him standing over your bed, watching you while you sleep. 

Katherine  (Dreams)

My picture is of a relaxing paradise. I am not finished yet, though the calm, quiet waves splash on my feet. I am on an island, and the sky is clear except for one cloud. The ground is smooth, silk sand. There are palm trees with hard coconuts that hold milk and sugar – the water inside tastes exotic. Colorful birds rule the sky, and frogs jump up and down all around me. Nearby is a river with fresh water and small fish, and around it are bushes with berries and nuts. I live in a tree house up in the sky with a beautiful view. I cook fish garnished with home-grown herbs, I roast meat in my kitchen, and I designed the tree house I live in with all natural resources. It's fun to hunt, gather, and plant, but best of all I can have many adventures.

After-School Student Writing: El Carmelo

Want to see what we're up to in our after-school class at El Carmelo? Here are some excerpts from Lia, Chris, Allen and Clara!  

Lia

(exaggeration poem) 

Harry the horse was so fast

that he went around the world in one day.

He galloped, whinnied, and jumped over a fence

so fast he had no time for hay.

When he passed by he was only a blur,

and his mane flew behind him like a flag.

People loved to watch him run,

and his owner did nothing but brag

Chris & Allen

(collaborative exaggeration poem)

I planted a redwood

and it started to grow.

It was extremely tall

so that people in planes

could see it trunk and all.

I tried to stop it growing,

but it was really, really sharp

and cut my hand off whole.

Only then did it finally start to slow.

Clara

(Walking through a Forest exercise)

I was walking through a dark, murky forest. There were green slugs, and the trees were covered with brown, rotting leaves. The air felt damp and hot, and I could hear my heart beating. Suddenly, the path I was following split. I stopped dead. One path was labeled "flower" and was covered in flowers. The other path was labeled "skull" and looked old. I chose the flower path. But I didn't know it was the bad one.

I kept walking and noticed a key floating above my feet. I picked it up and felt a tingling feeling through my arm. As it spread throughout my body, I noticed everything around me was spinning. I kept walking and soon found a plain, silver cup. This time I didn't dare pick it up – I still felt dizzy from the spinning.

As I continued walking, I found a patch of quicksand blocking my way. I tried to go around, but there wasn't any ending on either side. So I jumped, hoping I could swim through it. But it kept pulling me down, the sand getting thinner and thinner until I was going down in water. Then, suddenly, I was back up again. I was shivering all over. And I was in a whole different forest, with birds fluttering all around. A happy feeling washed over me, and I decided to take a nap. 

I woke up and continued walking, then fell into a ditch. When I recovered, I noticed that a clear roof had covered the ditch. There was a small hole that turned into a big hole, then into a tunnel. I decided to follow it since there was no other way out.

There was a light at the end of the tunnel, and I started running towards it. Outside, I saw a small, blue fence and a cute doll gate. I went through and stood in a field covered with all colors of poppies. 

After-School Student Writing: Thornhill Elementary 2nd & 3rd Grade

Alesia

Exercise: Story Starter: Who and Who? Did what? When?

Funky Chunky Monkey played volleyball with me in my backyard at noon. He came to visit and it turned into a play date. After volleyball we went to the park. We went on the slide and the swings. Then I put him in my pocket to go home and bake cookies.

Arianna

What is one of your future goals or dreams?

I want to go to Venezuela because my aunt and uncle live there.  I want to speak Spanish there.

 

Ben

Exercise: Write a dream or a nightmare from the perspective of an animal

Grizzly Bear

One day I was looking for food when I slipped on a clear rat…or was it a mouse? Turtle? Cupcake? Wait…It was clear so it was probably a cupcake. No, it’s a water thingamajig! Or…what do they call it? Water funky thing or water glupaja or…water botty! Nah, it’s probably just a water bottle. That’s it! A water bottle! 

Gulzar

(Spelling intact)

Chloe the buttefly fairy went to her castle after a long fly in the forest with her moth boyfriend Tom. That night she dreamed about an evil fox coming to eat her and Tom saving her. When she woke up shd usual breakfast nector ceral with flowers on the side. When she went out side to see Tom on his mornig fly. She also saw a fly beside him. She went over and asked who is this and Tom said this is Isabell my training partnet. I just started training for the national flying compation. If I win I will be on TV and they asked to pick aperson to be on t.v. with me and if I win I will pick you and he did.

Jaimie

Free Write Prompt: If I had a magic eraser, I would…

Once upon a time there was a bumble bee who found a magic eraser. She found out that she could erase anything so anyone who picked a flower got erased. Anyone that cut down a tree would also get erased. The bumble bee erased any machine that cut down nature. The bumble bee thought that the eraser is really useful so she erased cigarettes and fires and cars.

Maxwell

Exercise: Write a dream or a nightmare from the perspective of an animal 

Bottlenose Dolphin

When I was a calf I got separated from my pod. There’s more, do you want to hear? Sure you do. Okay, back to the pod thing. I got stuck in a net and got washed up on shore. I was taken to the Clearwater Marine Center. My tail was too infected so they had to cut it off. So sad, so sad, but now I have a replacement tail. 

Maya

Simile

The moon was as sad as a grave yard.

 

Michela

Writing Prompt: I wonder how many people are crying right now?

One day my boss said I wonder how many people are crying right now? Will you go find out for me? How? I responded.Well, you will need a backpack with shorts, jeans, tank tops, long sleeves, binoculars, running shoes, fancy shoes, summer shoes, two notebooks, five erasers, ten pencils, twelve pens, swimming suits, phones, cameras, food, drinks, cups, plates, silverware, napkins, gifts, and much more. The special thing is a time stopper. You will go to every country in the world. Once you have counted everyone in the country you will sprinkle one drop of the liquid onto the country, which will stop everything. But it will go away after four hours. You put tallies on the paper, he said, for each person crying. I set off and had a long and exciting journey. I came back and he said I had done a great job and he gave me two thousand dollars and I left.

Robert

Writing Prompt: Why would faeries do this to me?

Why would one fairy put a curse on me? The one fairy turned me into an ugly beast and they erased my memory and they called me the Ugly Beast. The Ugly Beast lived alone and wished for a wife and eight kids. But he could not look for a wife because he was locked in a tower. And his pretend mother but hi mother said the people tried to kill the beasts.

 

Sidney

Exercise: Write a dream or a nightmare from the perspective of an object

Violin

So you want to hear the whole story (well sort of a dream). This will take a while. “That is fine,” said the Bass. Ok, I was dreaming that Mr. Trumpet, Mr. Clarinet, Mr. Saxophone, Ms. Flute, you and me went on a stroll down to Music Café. “Every Tuesday morning we will perform,” I said.

Sophie

Exercise: Write a dream or a nightmare from the perspective of an object

Violin

I had a crazy dream. Wait, I have to start from the beginning. Ok, this was the dream. I was going to my friend Bow’s house. I was worried because she was mad at me because I couldn’t have a play date with her. I went to her house and said sorry. She popped out one of my strings. It really hurt. That was the most scary nightmare ever.