For their fourth writing assignment, we contemplated Wallace Stevens's poem Someone Puts a Pineapple Together, and talked about transformation of one thing into another thing, allowing our eyes to see the world in a whole new way. The students were presented with a purple cabbage, and asked to transform it into new things multiple times, using their best descriptive powers. They created some amazing poems!
3rd grade
The Purple Thing that Smells like Onion
by Santiago D.
A giant balloon from space
flying, a soccer ball playing
in a soccer field, a sphere cut in
half, the inside a lobster.
A Purple Thing Transforms
by Noemi R.
A giant rock chasing an alien.
A seed growing. A leaf falling down
a tree. A paper crushed out. A tree
with a lot of leaves. A lettuce broken
in half.
What it Reminds Me Of
by David G.
A coconut in a tree.
I see a rock in the sea.
I see a turtle shell in the water.
I see a leaf in the fall
falling from the tree.
It looks like an onion
about to be eaten.
Inside, it looks like
a plant in a fossil.
The Purple Thing from Timbuktu
by Mathew P.
A giant balloon floating into space.
A humongous ball falling out of the sky.
A large purple ball flying into the goal.
A dinosaur egg just hatched yesterday.
A purple ball cut in half.
A triple piece of fruit cut last year.
A sphere cut in half last month.
The inside looks like a lobster.
A ball cut and put in the refrigerator.
2nd Grade
The Purple Cabbage
by Nicole B.
The brain is dancing on a
girl’s head, named Erelie.
A purple hat on my head.
A dark but pretty day
with a little tree. It feels like
a curly head too.
It is What You See
by Nicolas Leon
I see a brain rolling in a race.
A ball that you put in a
rocket for a battery.
It is a builder’s helmet
and a cannon ball.
It is a tornado in the
city, a bug in the sand.
The Magical Cabbage
by Rosalyn P.
A tree to a castle with a wand and
a hat to a big home.
A leaf to a new room, a book to a dog.
4th grade
A Red Cabbage
by Josu S.
A small violet mask with
lines all over.
A small bomb ready to blow.
An old man’s face that is really wrinkled.
A black ball stuck on a tree.
A bald man’s wig that fell on the street.
A Jewish man’s hat on top of his head.
A black rock with a white crab on top.
A black sky behind a white tree.
A clam in the ocean.
The Mysterious Ball
by Nicole B.
It looks like a world of evil darkness with villains destroying.
Like a black ball in the game thrown high in the air.
Like a head in the nurse’s room turning all purple.
It is a wrinkled ruby that once belonged to a goddess.
It is also like a hat meant to be worn.
It is like a circle mountain climbed by special people.
Like a shell of a dead bug that was in the caves.
Like dead leaves in the Travern Woods.
Like a hermit crab hiding in its shell on the beach.
Like a tree growing out of a bowl.
Just like a cake with candles inside.
The Magic Cabbage Transforming
by Jennifer B.
A man’s head coming out of the barber shop.
An alien’s head landing on the moon.
A flower sprouting it’s leaves like a butterfly coming out of its cocoon.
A pumping thing that squirts out blood.
A person’s head popped out like an egg cracking.
A hot dog’s bun without the sausage.
A ball with boiling purple water and bubbles.
A tree with many leaves bunched up in a big oval.
A weird animal stretching its hands and legs.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
The Runaway Chihuahua: Crazy Letters
For our third class, the students looked at Vowels: After Rimbaud, a poem that gives clear, descriptive images for each of the vowels in the alphabet. The student poets at Trumbull were asked to choose and animal or their name in order to choose their letters, and then give vivid descriptions of what popped into their minds on thinking about those letters. The poems turned out really well. Look for that Chihuahua!
3rd Grade
The Sky
by Isaac A.
I is the same as me.
G looks like an umbrella.
U is a swing.
A is as shiny as the sun.
N is a noisy letter.
A looks like an O.
Things I Make Up
by Khalid W.
T is a batch of potatoes.
I is the smell of grapes.
G is a game of sound.
E is an elephant eating skittles candy.
R is a rainbow touching the sky.
The LION
by David F.
L is a lizard walking on a rock.
I is a green apple that is sweet.
O is an orange, juicy and nice.
N is a napkin, soft or hard.
The Good Poem
by Kiara T.
A is a puppy on it’s couch.
E is a buzzing fly and smells like a bug.
I is the ocean and it sounds like the sea.
O is an octopus and it sounds squishy.
4th Grade
Letters
by Allan F.
D smells like green tea.
D looks like an eraser erasing everything as fast as it can.
O is a zero in its spot.
O smells like pumpkin.
G looks like a car in the wheel.
G smells like a piece of cinnamon.
Wonder Word
by Tanayra B.
T is a small tree waiting to grow, an arrow pointing at a wall.
A is a red apple, is a pretzel.
N is a pink shoe, is a ruler.
A is a slide, waiting to have run, is a friend.
Y is a root smelling like grass, but is a flower.
R is a rose, a purple U upside down.
A is two pencils put together, is a triangle.
The Dogs
by Oyuki A.
D is a doughnut in the vat,
is a rotten kiwi that
smells like a dead rat.
O is a cat’s soft fur,
is a good tasting
taco.
G is a man hearing a
mouse squeaking,
is a woman watching
a mouse dance at
midnight.
S is a wolf wooing
at dawn,
is a mouse watching TV.
Zachary
by Zachary T.
Z is a zebra black and white.
Z is a zipper zipping up a jacket.
A is a red juicy apple.
A is an alligator chomping dragonflies.
C is a cat smelling cheese.
C is a cat watching a mouse.
H is a hat, blue, red, and black.
H is a happy boy tasting an ice cream.
A is April raining so hard.
A is a cheesy hot pizza.
R is a rat smelling up the place.
R is a boy that ran track.
Y is New York with tall buildings.
Y is a yo-yo going up and down.
2nd Grade
The Good Letters
by Cedric E.
C is a fat man sleeping on a cot.
E is a fox running to his mama.
D is a dragon blowing fire.
R is a puppy eating ice cream.
I is a fire keeping a man warm.
C is a cow squirting milk.
The Mixed Up Letters
by Ammy O.
A is an apple in a tree staring at the sun.
M is a moon shining in the night sky.
M is a monkey swinging from vine to vine.
Y is a yo-yo rolling up and down.
Letters
by Maritza S.
M is a girl eating an apple.
A is an apple, juicy, smelling like bananas.
R is a raccoon that is in the woods.
I is green and smells like summer grass.
T is like a tiger in the jungle.
Z is for a zebra in the zoo.
A is red and smells like firewood.
The Runaway Chihuahua
by Felix A.
F is an astronaut playing a video game
in a spaceship and the moon is blue.
E is a bear eating sweet yellow honey.
L is a soccer game with
hundreds of people wearing red shirts.
I is the red collar of a dog with fleas.
X is a girl getting scared
on Halloween night and getting
lots and lots of candy.
3rd Grade
The Sky
by Isaac A.
I is the same as me.
G looks like an umbrella.
U is a swing.
A is as shiny as the sun.
N is a noisy letter.
A looks like an O.
Things I Make Up
by Khalid W.
T is a batch of potatoes.
I is the smell of grapes.
G is a game of sound.
E is an elephant eating skittles candy.
R is a rainbow touching the sky.
The LION
by David F.
L is a lizard walking on a rock.
I is a green apple that is sweet.
O is an orange, juicy and nice.
N is a napkin, soft or hard.
The Good Poem
by Kiara T.
A is a puppy on it’s couch.
E is a buzzing fly and smells like a bug.
I is the ocean and it sounds like the sea.
O is an octopus and it sounds squishy.
4th Grade
Letters
by Allan F.
D smells like green tea.
D looks like an eraser erasing everything as fast as it can.
O is a zero in its spot.
O smells like pumpkin.
G looks like a car in the wheel.
G smells like a piece of cinnamon.
Wonder Word
by Tanayra B.
T is a small tree waiting to grow, an arrow pointing at a wall.
A is a red apple, is a pretzel.
N is a pink shoe, is a ruler.
A is a slide, waiting to have run, is a friend.
Y is a root smelling like grass, but is a flower.
R is a rose, a purple U upside down.
A is two pencils put together, is a triangle.
The Dogs
by Oyuki A.
D is a doughnut in the vat,
is a rotten kiwi that
smells like a dead rat.
O is a cat’s soft fur,
is a good tasting
taco.
G is a man hearing a
mouse squeaking,
is a woman watching
a mouse dance at
midnight.
S is a wolf wooing
at dawn,
is a mouse watching TV.
Zachary
by Zachary T.
Z is a zebra black and white.
Z is a zipper zipping up a jacket.
A is a red juicy apple.
A is an alligator chomping dragonflies.
C is a cat smelling cheese.
C is a cat watching a mouse.
H is a hat, blue, red, and black.
H is a happy boy tasting an ice cream.
A is April raining so hard.
A is a cheesy hot pizza.
R is a rat smelling up the place.
R is a boy that ran track.
Y is New York with tall buildings.
Y is a yo-yo going up and down.
2nd Grade
The Good Letters
by Cedric E.
C is a fat man sleeping on a cot.
E is a fox running to his mama.
D is a dragon blowing fire.
R is a puppy eating ice cream.
I is a fire keeping a man warm.
C is a cow squirting milk.
The Mixed Up Letters
by Ammy O.
A is an apple in a tree staring at the sun.
M is a moon shining in the night sky.
M is a monkey swinging from vine to vine.
Y is a yo-yo rolling up and down.
Letters
by Maritza S.
M is a girl eating an apple.
A is an apple, juicy, smelling like bananas.
R is a raccoon that is in the woods.
I is green and smells like summer grass.
T is like a tiger in the jungle.
Z is for a zebra in the zoo.
A is red and smells like firewood.
The Runaway Chihuahua
by Felix A.
F is an astronaut playing a video game
in a spaceship and the moon is blue.
E is a bear eating sweet yellow honey.
L is a soccer game with
hundreds of people wearing red shirts.
I is the red collar of a dog with fleas.
X is a girl getting scared
on Halloween night and getting
lots and lots of candy.
Creatures from The Deep
For our second class, the students studied photos from Claire Nouvain's book The Deep, and wrote poems describing the amazing creatures they saw. I also had some photos of more conventional sea creatures, like seahorses, sea urchins, whales, octopi, and sharks. Click on the link above, and then "Image Gallery" to see images, and be amazed!
4th Grade
The Green Thing
by Martitha A.
It looks like a green planet at
the bottom of the sea.
It’s a green ball.
It looks like a new planet
with little aliens’ lips and teeth.
It is like a volleyball
that we play with.
It looks like a green thing
that is going to destroy
the world.
The Great Plant Dragon
by Ataib S.
There is a large seadragon
that has plant DNA and
that seadragon is called
The Great Plant Dragon.
It has been living
for thousands of years, it
can even eat one thousand
sharks in one day! It is a great
mystery. It looks like a
horse with plant hair.
The Thing that Lives in the Deep
by Brandon R.
The thing looks like a banana
but with fire, shiny as the
wide sun being shined each
and every day. The top looks like
the top of a candle.
The end is blazing more
than a match set on fire
in the forest.
Ping-Pong Tree Sponge
by Henry L.
A plant that lives in the dark
depths of Despair. Like bubbles
stuck on a tree. An unusual spider
crawling on the ground.
It captures fish inside of
the bubbles. A scientist is
working on a project.
The project burst. Like a
bird, if flew into the ocean,
never seen again.
Glowing in the dark water.
Finding its way back to the ocean top.
It could not find its way. So scared.
Make a root and stick it in the
soil. No one ever sees it again.
2nd Grade
The Seahorse
by Erica N.
It is like a skeleton, this sea horse
living under water. It is blue or yellow or red
or grey or black. It has a little fin.
It floats really small. It has
a small mouth and it swims.
The Seahorse
by Eric C.
It looks like a house without legs
and it is bright orange.
It blends with the plants.
If something tries to eat it,
it swims away very fast.
Like a Ship
by Nelvin P.
It is orange and small, like a ship.
It is like a dish.
It lives in the ocean.
It eats little rocks that are the color brown
and it has no bones.
3rd Grade
A Monster
by Eric P.
It is red like fire in a
building. It looks like
a plant floating in the
water. It has no eyes.
The Crazy Thing
by Prue M.
A human eye bulging out so
bad. A small balloon exploded. An orange
foot. I also see four feet. A number 8.
A pink polka dot. A nose sticking
out like Pinocchio’s. A fish tail
stuck on its body.
The Red Thing
by Coleen Q.
It is a red star. It has
little red juicy raspberries.
A decoration for a Christmas
tree. It is a fire star in the
ocean that doesn’t last. A red,
beautiful star. A red pom-pom
starfish. It moves softly
through the coral reef.
From the Deep Ocean
by Ulisess M.
It’s a hammer, a
boomerang tail, a gilled
beast, a mad
fish, a fin pointed
cold blooded marine
animal. It’s blue.
It’s going to
eat you, it is
in it’s territory
warning others
to stay out.
It’s a hammer
head shark!
4th Grade
The Green Thing
by Martitha A.
It looks like a green planet at
the bottom of the sea.
It’s a green ball.
It looks like a new planet
with little aliens’ lips and teeth.
It is like a volleyball
that we play with.
It looks like a green thing
that is going to destroy
the world.
The Great Plant Dragon
by Ataib S.
There is a large seadragon
that has plant DNA and
that seadragon is called
The Great Plant Dragon.
It has been living
for thousands of years, it
can even eat one thousand
sharks in one day! It is a great
mystery. It looks like a
horse with plant hair.
The Thing that Lives in the Deep
by Brandon R.
The thing looks like a banana
but with fire, shiny as the
wide sun being shined each
and every day. The top looks like
the top of a candle.
The end is blazing more
than a match set on fire
in the forest.
Ping-Pong Tree Sponge
by Henry L.
A plant that lives in the dark
depths of Despair. Like bubbles
stuck on a tree. An unusual spider
crawling on the ground.
It captures fish inside of
the bubbles. A scientist is
working on a project.
The project burst. Like a
bird, if flew into the ocean,
never seen again.
Glowing in the dark water.
Finding its way back to the ocean top.
It could not find its way. So scared.
Make a root and stick it in the
soil. No one ever sees it again.
2nd Grade
The Seahorse
by Erica N.
It is like a skeleton, this sea horse
living under water. It is blue or yellow or red
or grey or black. It has a little fin.
It floats really small. It has
a small mouth and it swims.
The Seahorse
by Eric C.
It looks like a house without legs
and it is bright orange.
It blends with the plants.
If something tries to eat it,
it swims away very fast.
Like a Ship
by Nelvin P.
It is orange and small, like a ship.
It is like a dish.
It lives in the ocean.
It eats little rocks that are the color brown
and it has no bones.
3rd Grade
A Monster
by Eric P.
It is red like fire in a
building. It looks like
a plant floating in the
water. It has no eyes.
The Crazy Thing
by Prue M.
A human eye bulging out so
bad. A small balloon exploded. An orange
foot. I also see four feet. A number 8.
A pink polka dot. A nose sticking
out like Pinocchio’s. A fish tail
stuck on its body.
The Red Thing
by Coleen Q.
It is a red star. It has
little red juicy raspberries.
A decoration for a Christmas
tree. It is a fire star in the
ocean that doesn’t last. A red,
beautiful star. A red pom-pom
starfish. It moves softly
through the coral reef.
From the Deep Ocean
by Ulisess M.
It’s a hammer, a
boomerang tail, a gilled
beast, a mad
fish, a fin pointed
cold blooded marine
animal. It’s blue.
It’s going to
eat you, it is
in it’s territory
warning others
to stay out.
It’s a hammer
head shark!
First Class: Magic Boats and Lists of Days
During my first visit to Trumbull, the Second Grade class wrote poems after reading Sonnet by Dante Aligheri, which talks about what he would do if he had a magic boat. The students wrote poems describing where they would go, and what adventures they would have. The Third and Fourth grade students read Magic by Dahlia Ravakovitch, and wrote poems detailing what they were yesterday, what they are today, and what they will be tomorrow. They created these descriptions using their feelings, and thinking about how they could describe those feelings using something out in the world. Enjoy!
2nd Grade
Beautiful in California
by Jalyssa M.
I wish that me, my brothers and sisters, and Mom and Dad could go to California. When we get there, it is beautiful. I ask my mom to go swimming. After we go swimming, we go to a hotel and check out a room. We watch TV, and then we go to bed.
To the Bat Cave
by Nathan P.
I am going to the Bat Cave.
I will bring my family.
It looks like a very dark cave
with bats and monsters.
All of the animals are ghosts.
We play with the animals
and the animals don’t hurt us.
Las Vegas
by Faith H.
I went to Las Vegas and it was very beautiful there. I went with my friends and I saw shorts. I stayed in a hotel. I went to a restaurant and I bought a lot of stuff. It looked like you were surrounded by shorts and it was so hot.
4th Grade
What am I Today?
by Aven D.
Today I’m a bird,
tomorrow a cat
looking for a
cat to play
with.
Last night I dreamt
rainbows, butterflies,
orange fishes.
In the evening, I
listened to the water
floating by and birds
singing.
Yesterday I was
water floating by the
sea.
Yesterday I was a
chair that was just lying
there. Today I’m a
tree that grows
and tomorrow I’ll
be a person just
running along.
I am a Net Battler
by Henry L.
Today, I am Megaman
blasting viruses on the internet.
Deleting them, using chips for
special attacks.
Tomorrow, I will be Protoman,
slicing bad guys.
Deleting them, dodging what
the bad guys throw at me.
Yesterday, I was dreaming
about unusual viruses.
Today I think of being
Darkman. He is evil. Maybe
I won’t be him. I will be
Wingman. Tomorrow Protoman
will delete all the viruses
in the Net. No more viruses
in the Net, no more.
Everything I Am
by Jessica S.
Today I’m a flower,
tomorrow a rock.
Always thinking
of seeds clicking together.
Last night I dreamt
of flowers of all colors,
pink, brown, green, and so
much more.
Today I’m a nice calm tiger,
tomorrow an oak tree.
Yesterday a butterfly
today a book. Tomorrow
I’ll be a beautiful horse.
3rd Grade
How I Feel
by Brandon R.
Today I’m a drum, tomorrow I’m a
mouse. I dreamed of a valley.
I listened to the ocean. It was
a nice day. It was great.
A babbling brook was music to my
ears. I dreamed of oceans.
Today I am a rock, tomorrow
I am a sun.
Yesterday a mountain,
today I am Earth.
Tomorrow I am space.
What I Am
by Amanda P.
Today I’m a lion,
tomorrow a turtle.
I dreamt of blue butterflies.
I listened to parakeets chatter,
dog banging on the cage.
Today I am a book,
tomorrow a snake.
Yesterday a sticker,
today I’m a fox.
The Stuff I Do Today and Tomorrow
by Almir N.
Yesterday I felt a little loud,
today I feel hot like
a sun. Tomorrow I feel like
snow. I listen to a wrestling song
in the sky. I dream about
being a wrestler. Today I feel like
John Cena. Tomorrow I feel like
Triple H.
2nd Grade
Beautiful in California
by Jalyssa M.
I wish that me, my brothers and sisters, and Mom and Dad could go to California. When we get there, it is beautiful. I ask my mom to go swimming. After we go swimming, we go to a hotel and check out a room. We watch TV, and then we go to bed.
To the Bat Cave
by Nathan P.
I am going to the Bat Cave.
I will bring my family.
It looks like a very dark cave
with bats and monsters.
All of the animals are ghosts.
We play with the animals
and the animals don’t hurt us.
Las Vegas
by Faith H.
I went to Las Vegas and it was very beautiful there. I went with my friends and I saw shorts. I stayed in a hotel. I went to a restaurant and I bought a lot of stuff. It looked like you were surrounded by shorts and it was so hot.
4th Grade
What am I Today?
by Aven D.
Today I’m a bird,
tomorrow a cat
looking for a
cat to play
with.
Last night I dreamt
rainbows, butterflies,
orange fishes.
In the evening, I
listened to the water
floating by and birds
singing.
Yesterday I was
water floating by the
sea.
Yesterday I was a
chair that was just lying
there. Today I’m a
tree that grows
and tomorrow I’ll
be a person just
running along.
I am a Net Battler
by Henry L.
Today, I am Megaman
blasting viruses on the internet.
Deleting them, using chips for
special attacks.
Tomorrow, I will be Protoman,
slicing bad guys.
Deleting them, dodging what
the bad guys throw at me.
Yesterday, I was dreaming
about unusual viruses.
Today I think of being
Darkman. He is evil. Maybe
I won’t be him. I will be
Wingman. Tomorrow Protoman
will delete all the viruses
in the Net. No more viruses
in the Net, no more.
Everything I Am
by Jessica S.
Today I’m a flower,
tomorrow a rock.
Always thinking
of seeds clicking together.
Last night I dreamt
of flowers of all colors,
pink, brown, green, and so
much more.
Today I’m a nice calm tiger,
tomorrow an oak tree.
Yesterday a butterfly
today a book. Tomorrow
I’ll be a beautiful horse.
3rd Grade
How I Feel
by Brandon R.
Today I’m a drum, tomorrow I’m a
mouse. I dreamed of a valley.
I listened to the ocean. It was
a nice day. It was great.
A babbling brook was music to my
ears. I dreamed of oceans.
Today I am a rock, tomorrow
I am a sun.
Yesterday a mountain,
today I am Earth.
Tomorrow I am space.
What I Am
by Amanda P.
Today I’m a lion,
tomorrow a turtle.
I dreamt of blue butterflies.
I listened to parakeets chatter,
dog banging on the cage.
Today I am a book,
tomorrow a snake.
Yesterday a sticker,
today I’m a fox.
The Stuff I Do Today and Tomorrow
by Almir N.
Yesterday I felt a little loud,
today I feel hot like
a sun. Tomorrow I feel like
snow. I listen to a wrestling song
in the sky. I dream about
being a wrestler. Today I feel like
John Cena. Tomorrow I feel like
Triple H.
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