Poetry Friday: Poet-in-Residence

I'm starting the year off with a teaching bang. Throughout January, I am in residence at Lisbon Elementary in Howard County, MD.

One perk of my job is seeing how differently children around the state experience school. At Lisbon ES, when the door opens for recess, the view is farms and open fields surrounding the black top. In their poems, my students have mentioned sheep pens at home and riding horses.


It's remarkable that my own children's very suburban schools (Subway in a strip mall across the street from our ES) are just 20 minutes away from these rural scenes.

Here is a sampling of poems from the 5th graders I'm working with. Thanks to teachers and parents for permission to share these wonderful pieces of writing.

I'll include a link to the related lesson if I have previously posted instructions.

Poet:        Jim Bob S.

Workshop on Animal Similes

When I feel tired

I am like a bison sleeping in a meadow,

not caring if a native is near with an arrow

and the soothing wind in my ear

or the soft pillowy grass underneath me

I will just sleep in peace

not afraid of my surroundings

because with all the weight I have on my back

it is nice to relax and lay low

away from school work.

What a peaceful feeling Jim Bob captures, despite the power of the animal he chose. In fact -- the animal is so powerful that the peacefulness comes across as a conscious choice. Nice!

Poet:                     Melissa K.

Title:                      Finger Foods

Workshop on Food Memories and Traditions

We go shopping.

Look, there’s the root beer,

Pizza bagels, Doritos, mini hot dogs too.

I go shopping with my mom.

We were supposed to leave an hour after noon.

We get home. We start preparing.

Pizza bagels, mini bread sticks, mini hot dogs

All go in the  oven.

Ding done.

Time to eat we say.

We eat and watch a movie.

11:45 now.

Change the channel please.

We watch the ball drop.

Me, Mom, Dad, three of my four brothers,

On New Year’s Eve.

Wait hold on it’s …

NEW YEAR’S DAY

Hooray! We say!

We still go back for more

Tan mini bread sticks.

It still smells like a restaurant.

It still looks like a mini Thanksgiving

Junk food Thanksgiving.

Getting sleepy now.

Happy New Year!

That's a tradition we may have to adopt at the Shovan household. I love Melissa's observation that all of these appetizers and finger foods are a "Junk Food Thanksgiving."

More fifth grade poems to come as our residency progresses...

I often show kids Laura Purdie Salas' book, STAMPEDE, when we're writing those "animals are like feelings" poems, so it's fitting that Laura is our host today.

Stop by Writing the World for Kids for the Poetry Friday roundup.