The students of Noble House enjoyed a blissfully sunny morning in March, writing haiku and picnicking in Central Park. The excursion was a part of our year-long study of poetry.
The students of Noble House began our Biography Project in January by first choosing a biography to read. They took notes while reading their books and later used their notes to write a poem about their person. Some wrote in the first person while others thought a great deal about the form of their poems and used couplets, tercets and sonnets. After editing and revising their poems, they used them in order to plan which parts of the text and which pictures would go on each panel of their comic. Then they downloaded pictures of their person from Wikimedia and created drawings of their own that they later scanned. Using the application called “Comic Life” students were then free to create their comics. Finally, they revised and edited them, saving them to their file storage folders in First Class each time. Thank you to Ellen Nichols who met with Ms. Noble and helped her plan this unit, and for leading Noble House through the technology part of this project. You are invited to view all of the Noble House Biography Comics in the “photo” section of our blog.
.
My trip on the Railroad to Freedom
.
I was born a slave but now I’m free.
I remember very clearly that night when I escaped.
.
I was about 28 years old when I heard that I was gonna get sold.
John Tubman, my husband, said he would tell my master if I left.
I was shocked that my husband would even think of betraying me
but that didn’t stop me.
I just wouldn’t tell him about it.
Three of my brothers agreed to come with me.
We left late that night and
my brothers urged me to turn back out fear that we would get caught.
.
They left me alone in the woods so
I went back to my sister’s cabin and sang
a song that I usually sang at church.
It spoke about the Promised Land.
In the Bible it is a place of happiness.
When my sister Mary Ann heard the song she realized it had a double meaning.
.
“I’m sorry I’m going to leave you,
Farewell, oh farewell,
But I’ll meet you in the morning,
Farewell, oh farewell
I’ll meet you in the morning
I’m bound for the promised land,
On the other side of Jordan
Bound for the promised land.”
.
After John was asleep I slipped out of the cabin and headed for the home of a white woman who was known to help runaways.
I cautiously knocked on the door,
the woman did not look surprised to see me.
She beckoned me into the house and gave me the names of two people who would also help me.
She said to follow the Choptank River north to its source,
where the river trickled to its end.
She said I should travel north and east,
crossing into Delaware, also a slave state.
Camden, Delaware was to be my destination.
There I would find a white farmhouse with green shutters.
That was the next station on the Underground Railroad.
.
Finally, I reached the white farmhouse with the green shutters and
the mistress greeted me with a smile.
She gave me a broom and told me to sweep the yard as a form of disguise.
That night the woman’s husband told me to hide in his wagon.
On the far side of Camden he stopped and told me to continue north, through the woods, and to only travel at night.
I followed the North Star and used it as a compass.
Finally, thanks to the people who helped me, I crossed into the free state of Pennsylvania.
.
What I felt back then was indescribable. When I found out I had crossed that line I looked at my hands to see
if I was the same person.
There was such a glory over everything; the sun
came through the trees
and over the fields like gold and I felt like I was in heaven.
But little did I know
I would return
19 more times and bring over 300 slaves to
freedom
–Donia
.
The Civil Rights Leader
.
On the 15th, day of January, 1929,
A special person was born in a large, pretty, wooden house
On 501 Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia.
His name was Martin Luther King Jr.
.
After Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat on December 5th, 1955,
Martin helped start the Montgomery bus boycotts,
Which was a big help for the U.S.
.
Because of that, there were no more sections separated.
Like “Black” & “White”!
.
On August 8th, 1963, young King delivered his legendary
“I Have a Dream,” speech in Washington D.C.
These 200,000 people were about to witness a historical,
And wonderful event that will change their lives!n
.
On December 10th, 1964, Martin received the Nobel Peace Prize,
Because of all his hard work and was the second
African American to receive it.
He was also the youngest man to receive it!
.
On April 4th, 1968, sadly,
Martin was shot and killed at the Loraine Motel
Memphis, Tennessee by a man named James Earl Ray.
.
He had a Dream, “Black & White” together,
He had a dream.
His dream still lives on!
–Aidan
.
Matt
.
I am Matthew Henson.
I lived in a black world
and a white world.
.
Peary and I first saw each other
and I joined his team of explorers.
We went to make a canal
in Nicaragua to connect the
Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
.
August 8th 1891 was my 25th birthday.
Peary and I went to join an Eskimo group so
they could help us hunt
Polar Bear
Seals
Walruses
Reindeer
Caribou
and Fox.
.
Then we sailed to the North Pole, to be the first ones to explore it.
Through freezing cold weather and slippery wet ice,
attempting to get to the North Pole several times.
On July 6th 1908 we left. It felt like our last chance
and it was the time to SUCCEED!
.
In 1909 I connected the Black and White
WORLDS
Peary was the first white explorer and I was
the first BLACK explorer to set foot on the
NORTH POLE!
–Garrett
.
Barack Obama, our President
.
One day on August 4th 1961, a
baby was born, his name was Barack Obama.
.
He was born in Honolulu, his father had
a very velvety voice and was filled with much
.
pride. Born from a man with the same name, Barack Junior
was a good person. But in those days some people
.
hated African Americans. Tragically,
in 1964 his mother wanted a
.
divorce, and married a man named Lolo. Barack
Obama moved to Indonesia in 1967 when
.
he was 6 years old. There he went to school and kids
respected him. He had many friends and some were
.
white people too! Then he went to Occidental,
after, went to Columbia University
.
in New York City. Barack was elected in
2008 to be President of us, the
.
United States. He lives with his wife and his two
daughters, Malia-Ann and Sasha, he lives at
the Capital, Washington D.C., The White House.
.
– Damon
.
Phillis Wheatley
.
She had no name
when she arrived in Boston as a slave.
Her master, John
named her Phillis,
after the slave ship.
Her last name was Wheatley,
her master’s last name.
Her full name was
Phillis Wheatley
and she was eight years old.
.
She knew she was a slave,
but she was never treated like most.
Her master’s daughter,
Mary
taught her to read and write
and was almost like a sister to her.
.
Susanna,
her mistress
was very kind to her.
She treated Phillis like her own daughter
and later helped her
to publish most of her books of poetry.
.
Phillis was the first African American
to write a book of poetry,
the second woman to publish
a book in the colonies.
Her poetry did not sell
very well at first in America
but a few copies were shipped to England
and sold much better there.
She became a well known poet
in England
and eventually in America.
.
The last years of her life were depressing.
First,
one of her children died.
Then her husband went to jail.
John, Susanna, Nathaniel and Mary Wheatley all died
and she was not in
any of their wills.
.
Later,
she had an asthma attack,
got sick, and died
on the same day as her child.
.
– Hannah
.
Barack Obama: Our 44th President
.
The year was 1967 and
I was about to board a plane
To Jakarta, Indonesia.
.
The plane to Japan
Took 15 hours, then the
Plane to Indonesia took 4 more hours.
.
My mother and I went to Indonesia
Because Lolo, my step dad,
Was to serve in the Indonesian army.
.
In 1971 I was sent back to Hawaii
To attend the Punahou School.
In 1979, after 8 long years at Punahou,
.
I finally graduated High School.
One year later, I was attending
Occidental College. Two years after I
.
Started Occidental, I transferred to
Columbia University in NYC and graduated
With honors.
.
In 1989 I met Michelle Robinson and
I married her in 1992.
In 2005 I was sworn in to the senate and
.
In February 2007 I announced my
Candidacy for President of the United States.
“I will be a president who finally brings Democrats
.
And Republicans together to make health care
Affordable and available to all Americans.”
And in November 2008 I was elected as
.
President of the United States of America.
I wave and smile as chants
Ring out, “Yes we can, Yes we can!”
.
–Jack Patton
.
My Story
.
Hey Ray Jr. ready for my story?
Ready Mama!
.
A few years after the 25th of April, in 1917, my father left my family.
We didn’t have much money, we lived in a shelter. Then segregation started.
.
My mother was lonely, and she remarried,
I had a bad feeling ’bout him,
but my mother seemed to be happy.
.
A few years later, my mother died in a car accident,
and my stepfather started drinkin’
so I went to live with my Aunt Virginia.
.
I learned about amature night at the Apollo and
I loved to dance, darlin’,
but two other girls were great!
.
I didn’t know what to do, then it hit me,
I’ll sing!
I thought of my mother just then and her beautiful classical voice!
.
So I sang.
The crowd loved me.
I won that night and
I was proud!
.
Web Chick, a recordin’ artist, saw me that night and
he made me famous. My songs were #1 on the playlist!
Then I met Ray Brown, your dad. We got married, but I traveled a lot to go to performances,
.
We soon divorced.
I wasn’t feeling well during my performances,
then I fainted!
.
They took me to the hospital and
told me that I had a very serious case of diabetes!
I was stunned, but that was ok,
.
I knew I was going to live a long and happy life anyway!
.
So that’s my story Ray Jr.!
.
My mama, Ella Fitzgerald, died on June 15, 1996.
.
–Jesse
.
Slave Saver: Two Sonnets
.
I’m just workin’ like always when I catch
a couple of words the slaves are sayin’.
My brothers are gonna be sold without
anyone else. I have to do something
but my husband, John Tubman, thinks crossing
the line of freedom to the Promised Land
is dangerous. So I don’t tell him. I
escape with my brothers and onto the
Underground Railroad. That was my first trip.
My brothers turned back but I kept going.
I started the Underground Railroad but
I wasn’t happy in the North, so I
brought slaves, friends and strangers to freedom. Me.
Harriet Tubman. Saved slaves for justice.
.
I came back to the South to save slaves and
saved over three-hundred of ‘em. So now
I am Harriet “Moses” Tubman to
them negros, but to them whites I am a
reward. Forty-thousand dollars for me.
Dead or alive. They don’t care. Then the war.
The Civil War. Me. A nurse. A scout. A
spy. I nursed the soldiers that I could back
to health. As scout I went to South Carolina.
As spy I took a musket and went to
see what them whites were plannin’. Nurse. Scout. Spy.
After all that war and work I went home.
I took a couple of years off to rest.
Harriet “Moses” Tubman. That was me.
.
–Lila
.
BRAVEST MAN IN BASEBALL
.
One day on 1904…
The Ohio college baseball team went to South Bend,
Indiana to play a college baseball team.
.
When they went to the hotel everybody was allowed to stay
except for Charlie Thomas.
He had dark skin so the hotel clerk did not let him in.
.
The coach, Branch Rickey, argued that Charlie was part of the team.
.
Charlie said, ”It’s okay. I can sleep in the bus.” But Branch Rickey
finally said, ”He can sleep with me in my room.”
.
Now here’s where my story starts…
.
One day, on January 31, 1919, Jackie Robinson, the 5th Robinson, was born.
.
A few years later…
Jackie was the best at all different kind of sports, but his two favorites were baseball and track.
.
He played in a lot of baseball pick up games and was the best. He sometimes hit an inside–the-park home
run or an over–the-wall home run, he was so fast.
.
If you saw him you would think
he was the fastest kid you’d ever seen,
but the only problem was that he was black.
.
A few years later, he got a scholarship to Pasadena Junior College. After he graduated he got another scholarship too U.C.L.A.
.
He became a baseball
star and a track star.
One day he participated in the College World Series game for
baseball as well as a championship track game.
.
They were both on the same night so Jackie had to pick one but he had an idea.
He asked the official if they could do the running jump, his sport, first, and they did. Jackie won it.
.
Then he had to go quickly and he made it to the baseball
game but it was the middle of the 3rd inning. Jackie got three runs and won it for them and he went into U.C.L.A. history.
.
Finally, he joined into the army and he fought for the USA. Jackie went to the minors and played for an all-black team.
.
Now he went into the all-white major leagues but nobody liked him because he broke the color barrier. As the years passed, Jackie got more accepted.So he got older so he retired.
.
On October 24, 1972 Jackie died.
.
Now, because of Jackie Robinson, black people have the same rights as whites and blacks can play in the Major Leagues!
.
–Julian
.
Mary McLeod Bethune:
Giving African American Girls an Education
.
I was born on July 10th, 1875, in Mayesville Town in South Carolina.
.
As a small child I worked hard with no education, though I wanted to learn. The white people would not let me in their schools because I was an African American girl.
.
I tried to teach myself things, like the alphabet, but when I was a child of eleven my dream came true.
.
A lady from the city arrived and she changed my life overnight!
The kind woman opened a mission school, for African American girls like me.
.
I would finally get a real education.
.
I learned so much
and every night I’d come runnin’ home to tell Mama, Papa and my seventeen brothers and sisters
what I had learned that day, and teach them all the new things I learned!
.
Much, much later when I became a lady myself, I opened up my own school for African American girls because they needed to learn just like I had.
.
I fought for what I believed in:
Equal rights for whites and blacks, and education for the African Americans too.
.
Hopefully, schools for African Americans get better, and my work will make a difference.
.
-Ella
.
The Life of Harriet Tubman
.
On that day I heard mama yelling,
“Please don’t take her away!
Please! She’s only six!”.
.
Before I knew it I was working for Ms. Cook as
a SLAVE. I started to have dreams of FREEDOM
Someday I was going to be FREE, and so
.
would Mama and Papa and my brothers.
Then I heard of The Underground
Railroad. Soon after that I escaped.
.
Mr. Brodas caught me and I was sent to work
back in the fields for Miss Susan. Time went
by and soon I was 16, and working like a man.
.
One day I saw a slave being chased. It looked to me
like the slave was trying to ESCAPE. The slave
catcher was holding a whip and a brick.
.
BOOM! The brick hit me and I had
a huge bloody dent in my forehead.
It took me months to get steady.
.
Occasionally I would fall in to a deep
sleep. But it was nice to stay with Mama
and Papa again. It turned out the slave catcher
.
meant to throw a big brick at the slave escaping
but missed and hit me right in the forehead.
Months later… I was still slaving with Papa in the fields,
.
and still… thinking and dreaming of FREEDOM.
Finally, I meet a Quaker woman. Quakers
believed in African Americans having
.
FREEDOM like whites. Soon I left the plantation
and headed the way of FREEDOM. It was a long
way and I stayed at two different Quakers’ houses.
.
Finally, I reached Canada. I WAS FREE! But I
knew I wasn’t done with my long journey.
So after awhile I ventured back to Bucktown, Maryland.
.
I went back and forth, back and forth taking small
groups of slaves to freedom. I knew it was too risky to
take Mama and Papa yet.
.
Finally I took both of them in a
horse and buggy.
TO FREEDOM.
.
I took 300 slaves
to FREEDOM. Now African Americans
have the same rights that whites have.
.
–Lucy
.
Freedom
.
Harriet Tubman, a six-year-old girl working in the tobacco fields…
When I was six years old I heard my mama cry
“ Don’t take her! She’s only six!”
That meant
GOODBYE.
.
I was put in a wagon,
getting ready to cry.
“Be strong, child
Be Strong,”
cried mama.
I looked all around.
I saw nothing,
nothing at all.
.
One day I got there.
I got to the plantation.
After all this, years of trouble began.
Then I saw it,
the sign,
the sign of freedom.
“Thank You Lord,”
I whispered, kneeling on the floor.
I escaped to the North.
But it wasn’t over.
Two years later,
I thought to myself,
“I have to go back
I gotta free more people
So I went.
.
At the time
I found out my husband had
married another woman.
Still, I freed more and more people.
.
Then I found out
that I was
WANTED
DEAD or ALIVE
reward
$40,000 dollars
for the capture of Harriet Tubman
.
I was terrified
but I went
back
I freed more than 300 people.
.
–Alexandra
.
Imagine
.
Imagine being a black little girl.
Imagine having a mother say no to standing up to a white boy.
Imagine being held back in the 5th grade.
Imagine wanting to be a teacher like your mom.
Imagine dropping out of a great school because your dear grandma gets sick.
Imagine your grandma then dies.
Imagine your friend sets you up with a man named Raymond Parks.
Imagine you marry him and you help him stop segregation.
Imagine you get death threats through the phone and the mail.
Imagine your mom tries to engage the phone line so you won’t get scared.
Imagine you go to jail because you don’t give up your seat for a white man.
Imagine you get bailed out for fourteen dollars.
Imagine you meet Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Imagine you and he help work on the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Imagine your husband and brother die in 1977.
Imagine your mom dies in 1979.
Imagine you and Elaine Steel start The Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute that help black teens to become leaders.
Imagine you have two biographies published in 1992.
Imagine you are awarded the Freedom Medal by President Clinton in 2006.
Imagine another biography is published in 1999.
Imagine in January 1999 you are introduced to Congress.
Imagine in June 6th you win the medal of honor.
Imagine you have a library and a museum named after you.
Imagine you died October 24, 2006.
Imagine you are Rosa Parks
Fight For Freedom.
-Gaby
.
Arthur Ashe
.
I am Arthur Ashe.
I just received a scholarship to UCLA, the University of California at Los Angeles,
and a scholarship to USC, University of Southern California.
I am the first African American to get a scholarship to UCLA.
So I decided to go there.
I was going to major in architecture
but my coach, J.D. Morgan, told me to take something less demanding.
So I decided to major in business and administration.
.
Flash forward to winter break, sophomore year…
.
I’ve run out of money on Christmas.
Coach Morgan invited me to his house for Christmas and
I am to proud to to go.
I don’t even have enough money to go to the movies and
I end up having just enough money to buy a sandwich out of the vending machine in my dorm.
I am about the only student happy that the break is over and the cafeteria is open again.
.
Flash forward to summer the of 1963…
.
I am going to Wimbledon.
I can’t believe it.
I ended up going to the third round where I lose to Chuck McKinley, the United States top seeded player.
Later that summer I was invited to the Davis Cup team by Captain Bob Kelleher.
I think of the Davis Cup as a major star in my night.
The summer of 1963 is very good to me.
.
Flash forward to 1965…
By 1965 I am ranked the number-one college tennis player in the country.
.
Flash forward to February 10, 1993…
.
Arthur Ashe’s funeral service.
Over 11,000 people attend his funeral.
.
–Josh
.
Michelle
.
On the long bus
ride to go to the magnet school space,I was nervous to
go to class. Would I know where to go?
.
My experience at Princeton was that
people were racist towards me and I was shocked.
How few black people were there then, there were even a few dances and parties I couldn’t attend because they were for whites.
In spite of that, I graduated in 1985 with honors.
.
I dreamed of becoming a lawyer and
I got accepted to Harvard Law School.
.
I got a full-time job at a law firm called Sidley Austin in Chicago, Illinois in 1988.
.
I was a mentor to another law student
whose name was Barack Obama.
He was raised by his grandparents out on a beautiful Hawaiian island.
.
Barack and I got married on
October, 1992 at Trinity United
Church of Christ by
the Reverend Jeremiah Wright.
.
Our honeymoon was in a wonderful romantic and the most beautiful
sunny spot, California.
.
Malia Ann Obama was born
in 1999, and later Natasha Malia Obama was born, the most wonderful days of my life.
.
In November of 2004 Barack was elected a U.S. Senator
representing his state of Illinois in Washington, DC.
His presidential campaign began in 2007 and
the newspapers read “Obama Could Be our First African American President.”
.
We were away campaigning three or four days each week.
.
I am now the First Lady of the United States of America.
.
–Sara
.
Martin Luther King Jr.
.
Martin Luther King Jr.
was born in Atlanta, Georgia
on January 15, 1929.
.
When he was little he played
with two boys across the
street. One day he went to
play with them and
the two boys’ mother
wouldn’t let him play.
.
Martin didn’t understand
why so his mother told
him it was because he
was black and the two
boys were white.
.
There was a law that blacks
had to sit in the back
of the bus and if somebody
white wanted to sit they
had to give away their
seat.
.
So Martin started getting
people to walk and carpool
and soon the buses were
empty. On November 13,
1956 the Jim Crow bus
laws were overturned.
.
Martin and other ministers
of the South formed a
group called the Southern
Christian Leadership
Conference or SCLC
who fought segregation
and he was elected
president.
.
The March on Washington
took place on August 28,
1963. 250,000 people
marched into Washington,
D.C. and Martin gave his
“I have a Dream” speech
that America will never
forget.
.
In Memory of John F.
Kennedy, President
Johnson signed the
Civil Rights Act.
.
In October of 1964 the
Norwegian government
sent out an announcement:
Martin Luther King, Jr.
won the Nobel Peace Prize.
.
Sadly, on April 3, 1968
Martin Luther King Jr.
died in Memphis. Even
though he died his dream
still lives on.
.
–Brendan
.
The Greatest
.
Muhammad Ali was born in Louisville, Kentucky.
He was the first African-American boxer to get
2 golden glove titles.
.
His motto was…
“Float like a butterfly
Sting like a bee.”
He also won a gold metal for boxing at the Olympics.
.
Muhammad Ali defended his crown
seven times. His record is 56 wins, 37 of them by knockout,
and 5 losses.
.
After Muhammad retired he got Parkinson’s Disease.
Now he can’t stop shaking.
.
Now Muhammad Ali lives with his wife, seven daughters,including Hana and Laila, and two sons
in Michigan.
.
–Max
The students of Noble House recently explored writing nonsense poetry. In order to prepare for this challenging task, they read three poems and discussed the ways in which the poets made them nonsensical. “Jabberwocky,” by Lewis Carroll, uses made up words but we all agreed that we could still understand the story. In “Pome” David McCord manages to write in the way that we speak, shortening and combining words. e. e. cummings uses familiar words such as “anyone” and “no one” to mean actual characters in his poem entitled, “ANYONE LIVED IN A PRETTY HOW TOWN.” Several students wrote parodies of “Jabberwocky” while others patterned their work after “Pome.” One student based hers on e. e. cummings. Another wrote a parody of a song while one other wrote a poem that was so lovely that she decided to just leave it alone.
Enjoy!
.
Icecreamwocky
.
‘Twas tasty in the ice cream land
did bob and bobby in the cold
all frigid were the candy pops
and the gum grats chewing
.
beware the icecreamwock my son!
the head that slops the cone that leaks!
beware the coco bars and shun
and the rainbow lolly pops
.
he took his plastic spoon in hand
long time the delicious foe he sought
so rested he by the candy cane tree
and stood awhile in thought
.
and as in tasty thought he stood
the icecreamwock with eyes of m&m’s
came whiffling through the colorful wood
an burbled as it came
.
one two one two! and through and through!
the plastic spoon went snicker-snack!
he left it dead and ate its head
he went galumphing back
.
and hast thou eaten the icecreamwock?
come to my arms my hungry boy!
O frabjous day callooh callay
he chortled in his joy
.
‘Twas tasty in the ice cream land
did bob and bobby in the cold
all frigid were the candy pops
and the gum grats chewing
.
–Brendan
.
Pinkberrywocky
.
‘Twas berries and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All chocolatey were the shavings,
And the pomegranate raths outgrabe.
.
“Beware the Pinkberrywock, my son!
The yogurt that bites, strawberries that catch!
Beware the jubjub chocolate, and eat
The frumious Pinkberrysnatch!”
.
He took his captain crunch sword in hand:
Long time the granola foe he sought-
So rested he by the raspberry tree,
And stood a while and thought.
.
And, as in uffish thought the honey stood,
The Pinkberrywock, with eyes of strawberry,
Came slithering through the neighborhood,
And coconut Yogurted as it came!
.
One, two! One, two! and more and more
The captain crunch sword in hand!
He left it dead, and with it’s mochi head
He went pinkberrying back.
.
“And hast thou slain the Pinkberrywock?
Come to my arms, my Pinkberry boy!
O fruity day! Callooh! Callay!”
He coconuted in his joy.
.
‘Twas berries and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:
All chocolatey were the shavings,
And the pomegranate raths outgrabe.
.
–Sara
.
Cookiewocky
(a parody of Jabberwocky)
.
‘Twas yummy and the chocolate chips
Did eat it and love it in the kitchen;
All delicious was the chocolate paste,
And the candy factory stole the taste.
.
“Beware the cookiewock my son!
The jaws that bite and also crunch!
Beware the cookcook bird and shun
The frumious hungry mouth!”
.
He took his crusty cookie in hand:
Long time the manxome foe he sought-
So rested he by the yumyum tree,
And sat a while in thought.
.
As in an uffish bite he stood,
The cookiewock with eyes of flame,
Came whiffling through the tulgey woods,
Eating cookies as it came!
.
One, two! One, two! And through and through
His trusty cookie went bite, bite, bite!
He left it dead and with its head
He went galumphing back.
.
“And hast thou slain the cookiewock?
Come to my arms my beamish boy!
Oh frabjous day callooh callay!”
He chortled in his joy.
.
‘Twas yummy and the chocolate chips
Did eat it and love it in the kitchen
All delicious was the chocolate paste,
And the candy factory stole the taste.
.
–Jack
.
“It” (an alphabet poem based on “anyone lived in a pretty how town”)
.
And it came pumping down the stores
Boy everyone
Called as they
Dared their pals to bite the it as it moved no one could
Explain who it belonged to
For they would
Get too tempted
How everyone wanted
Info about the it
Just to know if its
Kind or mean
Like the wise
Man would say before he went under the ground
No one needs to know more then they need to
Open up to others’ feelings
Punch the it out said the foolish children
Quiet the smart children replied which made the it
Rustle along
So someone got a spanking smart said the elderly
To run along they would have to explain to the younger yes my
Uncles and aunts
Very later that day the it came to the village
When it came the it stopped by the hospital maybe it needed an
X-ray but neither
You nor me are sure but I’m sure doctor
Zans will say I never saw a piece of pie before and the it started to cry from heaven
.
-Gaby
.
Chocolatewocky
.
‘Twas chocolate day at the school on Riverside Drive
did the chocolate gyre
and bubble in the pot who knows?
.
BEWARE THE CHOCOLATEWOCKY MY BOY,
THE SMELLS THAT KILL.
THE TASTE THAT CROWS.
.
BEWARE THE COCOA TREE TO REST ON.
and shun and FRUMIOUSE CHOCCYSNATCH!
.
Chocky took the spoon down beneath
long time he died on his restless feet.
.
SO RESTED HE WENT
DOWN SIMMERING
TO THE BOTTOM OF THE POT.
.
and as his uffish self he stood.
THE CHOCKY
became wiffling through the tulgey pot
and burbled as it came.
.
ONE SCOOP! TWO SCOOPS! And gulp! And gulp!
Chocky vorpled snicker-snack!
HE WENT GULUMPHING THROUGH AND THROUGH
THE CHILDRENS’ MOUTHS.
.
‘Twas chocolate day at the school on Riverside Drive
did the chocolate gyre
and bubble in the pot who KNOWS?
.
-Lucy
.
Cookie-Monster
(A Parody of Jabberwocky)
.
‘Twas sugary in the cookie jar
Did gyre and gimble in the kitchen
All crazy were Fred and Pete,
When they could see no cookies.
.
”Beware the Cookie-Monster my bro.
The jaws that bite the claws that snatch,
Beware the Chocolate Bird and shun
The ferocious Doughercatch!”
.
He took his vorpal cookie-cutter in hand
Long time the delicious foe he sought
So scouted he by the cookie store
And stood awhile in thought.
.
And as in tasty thought Pete stood,
The Cookie-Monster with feet of nuts
Came stealthily through the crowded park
And crunched as it came!
.
Stars and circles! And cut and cut
The vorpal cookie-cutter went ”Cut Slice Shape!”
He cut its body and with both halves
He went happily back.
.
”And hast thou slain the Cookie-Monster?
Come to the jar my fine brother!
Oh joyful day! Callooh! Callay!”
He laughed in his joy.
.
‘Twas sugary in the cookie jar
Did gyre and gimble in the kitchen
All crazy were Fred and Pete,
When they could see no cookies.
.
–Damon
.
SANDWICHWOCKY
.
‘Twas twelve o’clock, exactly noon
At Lenny’s with some food;
All hungry was the Watts Kayyem family,
And the mome cooks inside.
.
“Beware the Sandwichwock my son!
The cheese that bites, the mustard that catches!
Beware the unpredictable friend of his,
The frumious Soda Bottle!”
.
She took her vorpal fork in hand:
Short time the handsome foe she sought-
So rested she by the potato chips,
And stood awhile in thought
.
And, as in uffish thought she stood,
The Sandwichwock with eyes of lettuce,
came whiffling through the tulgey Snapple bottles,
And drooled as it came!
.
Two three! Two three! And again and again
The vorpal fork went snappy-snack!
She left it dead and with it’s tail
She went skipping back.
.
“And did you slay the Sandwichwock?”
“Go away you stupid boy!
Of course I’ve slain the Sandwichwock!”
She whimpered in her shame!
.
‘Twas twelve o’clock, exactly noon
At Lenny’s with some food:
All hungry was the Watts Kayyem family,
And the mome cooks inside.
.
-Lila
.
Dodywocky
.
The people feared the Dodywock
Did gyre and gimble in the forest,
Most crazy were the small monkeys,
Who throw nuts at big trees.
.
“Beware the Dodywock, my son!
The poison teeth, the pain you fear!
Beware Kirby along the way,
Who will smack you at an endless rate.”
.
He took some poison and a sword:
Long time he got more weapons and thought.
He rested under the monkey’s tree,
And stayed both day and night.
.
As in meaningful thought he stood
The Dodywock with eyes of flame,
Came stampeding through the forest,
And slithered as it came!
.
He feared so much he even prayed.
One, two! One, two! And through, and through
The Ninja sword went crackidy-crack!
He left it dead, and with it’s weapons,
He came cheerfully back.
.
“Have you slain the Dodywock?
Come here, come here, my heroish boy!
O harra, oh yea. Harro, harray.
He laughed so much with joy.
.
The people feared the Dodywock
Did gyre and gimble in the forest,
Most crazy were the small monkeys,
Who throw nuts at big trees.
.
-Aidan
.
TouchdownWocky
.
‘Twas 1st down on the football field
did gyre and gimble root and chant;
All mimsy threw to borogroves,
ran fast then said “I can’t”.
.
Beware the touchdownWock, my team!
The legs that run,the body that pounds!
Beware the hubhub team and then run away.
They put their vorpal helmets on then went on to play.
.
And as an uffish play they made the touchdownWock with smelly breath
came whiffling through the other players and grumbled as it came.
Hut hut, hut hut! and two, and two!
The vorpal guys went crack crack.
.
With it knocked out they all gave a shout and went running back.
Has thou slain the touchdownWock? Come to the lockers my cool team
.
‘Twas 1st down on the football field
did gyre and gimble root and chant;
All mimsy threw to borogoves,
ran fast then said “I can’t”.
.
–Max
.
Unhealthy Colored Candy
.
‘Twas my mom just figured out that candy is bad but
Julian has two not eat candy because it has red 40 die in it he does not like the idea because he loves jolly rancher candy but
he has
to go
with the flow.
.
‘Twas Julian who is only aloud to have colored candy when his parents visit him at camp and when it is Halloween.
.
But even on visiting day he is only aloud to have a little bit
and that embarrasses Julian a little bit but Julian gets his mom. His mom just wants him to be healthy and Julian wants to be healthy but he also wants some candy.
Another reason he wants candy is because he is usually not aloud to have Gatorade and boy Julian loves Gatorade. But he still gets how his mom wants him to be healthy.
.
The Julian is not aloud to have sugar-free gum and almost every gum is sugar-free. Julian does not like that but again he nose that his mom wants him two be healthy and that is the end of my story.
.
-Julian
.
Kittenwocky
.
‘Twas cuddly and the toy mouse
did, gyre and burrow through the house
All silent was the mouse
the tiny kitten did pounce
.
Beware the kittenwocky my girl
the jaws that bite the claws that catch
Beware the jubjub bird and shun
the deadly sharp teeth
.
He raised his gigantic paw in the air
long time he hadn’t used it
so rested he by the tall apple tree
and sat down in thought
.
And as in uffish thought he sat,
the kittenwock with eyes of flame
came running through the scary wood
and meowed as it came
.
One meow! two meows! and through and through
the gigantic paw tried to grab
He left it dead and with its head
he went galumphing back.
.
‘Twas cuddly and the toy mouse
did gyre and burrow through the house
all silent was the mouse
the kitten did pounce.
.
-Jesse
.
Ferris Wheely
.
‘Twas spinning ‘round the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble go around
all spinny was the ferris wheel
and the gondalas outgrabe.
.
“Beware the Ferris wheel my son!
The seats that rock, the ferbell chuck-chuck
Beware the tum-tum noga to,
the dizzy wafflemoshin!’
.
He took the handlebar in hand
long time the boy had chucked up heave
So upchucked he on an old lady,
and wiggled a while thought.
.
And as an wuffish thought he stood,
The old lady, with eyes of sag,
came mumbling through their rucoushood,
yodeling as they came!
.
One, two! One, two!
More spin and rue!
The ferris wheel went all around!
They left the ride, and had no pride,
and went amuggling home.
.
“And hast thou been enough for two?
Come to the ferris wheel, my mindless boy!
O akward day! Calloh! Callay!”
They fmumbled in their tears!
.
‘Twas spinning ‘round the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble go around
all spinny was the ferris wheel
and the gondalas outgrabe.
.
-Ella
.
Footballwocky
.
‘Twas first down on the football field
the Eagles just punted to the 37 yard line
all the Giants went on the field
but they only scored a field goal.
.
Beware the footballwock, Amhad Bradshaw
the ball that hurts the hands that catch
Beware the safety, and shun
The awful interception.
.
He took the football in hand
Long time since he fumbled the ball
So he rested at the locker room
and sat thinking how to score.
.
At last it was the the Giants won 28 to 20
Come to my arms Amhad Bradshaw
Hip hip Hooray! Hip hip Hooray!
He did a flip in joy.
.
‘Twas first down on the football field
the Eagles just punted to the 37 yard line
all the Giants went on the field
but they only scored a field goal.
.
- Ryan
.
rain (The formatting has been altered by the blog.)
.
rain is falling from the sky coming down in big showers
puddles are forming on the ground oh no! too wet to go outside
click clack tap tap tap bang rain falling from the sky banging on the window
the windows are covered in little droplets of water like tiny little beads covering the window
it is raining so hard that you hear a tap tap tap click clack bang tisk task tack
the rain is coming down almost like the earth needs a bath
dark gray clouds are covering the sky like a soft blanket
.
when will it stop raining? when will the noise stop? when?
when the rain stops will there be big puddles and water outside?
click clack tap tisk task tack plunk it’s raining hard very hard do not get wet
the street is wet and there is lots of water maybe even too much oh no! my shoes are all wet
oh no! do not go outside without an umbrella you will very wet maybe soaked
the rain it is dribbling down the window making a slipping noise
rain is falling from the sky coming down in big showers!
.
rain is falling from the sky
rain is falling
from the sky
rain is falling
from the sky
.
- Hannah
.
Santa Claus will mess up Christmas
.
You better watch out
You better not lie
You better not shout
I’m telling you
why
Santa Claus will mess up Christmas
He’s making his clothes
All raggy and old
He wants to know who told…….
Santa Clause will mess up Christmas
He’ll find out when you’re naughty
He’ll find out when you’re nice
He knows if you’ve been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake!
O!
You better watch out
You better not lie
You better not shout
I’m telling you why
Santa Claus will mess up Christmas
Santa Clause will mess up Christmas
.
- Alexandra
.
Basketballwocky Championship
.
‘Twas tip off and the game started
Did Shaq and Bynum jump in the air;
All crazy were the loud fans,
And the ball was possessed by the Basketballwocky.
.
“Beware of the Basketballwocky (LeBron James), my players!
The hands that shoot, the feet that run.
Beware of the towering tumtum man (Yao Ming), and shun
The frumious defense man (Shane Battier)!”
.
He took the vorpal ball in hands
Long time he played the manxome players
And wore everyone out (including himself) so then he went
And sat on the Gyre and Gimble bench and rested a while and thought.
.
And he got back in right before halftime and hit a buzzer beater
Then walked into the locker room uffishly
The Basketballwocky came whiffling straight toward me
And burped as he came…
.
Burp! Burp! And through and through!
The metal rim went KABOOM! and fell to the ground
He left it on the floor and with the net around his neck
He went sprinting back.
.
“And hast thou beaten the Basketballwocky?
Come to my arms new Basketballwocky!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”
He chortled in his joy.
.
‘Twas tip off and the game started
Did Shaq and Bynum jump in the air;
All crazy were the loud fans,
And the ball was possessed by the Basketballwocky.
.
-Josh
.
Pennsylvania (based on “Pome”)
.
Hlo
.
Howaryu dointuday
I hav most beautiful house on the block and I know that it is because it is th biggest one on my block By th mapleanoak tre we sit an tak
Run bakanforth acros th grownd
On mi bowt we pla and jum in
Fishin an cot one and now
Let us bild sancasles buy
th Lak mi
boat is
not as cool as cool as
YU!
.
-Garrett
.
Purpl Pome (Based on “Pome”)
.
smoth purpl, soft purpl, dark purpl, brit purpl, lyt purpl, dep purpl
somaney diffrunt kins ov purpl
grapsr purpl, yeggplansr purpl ann sor plums
the insid ova blooberrie ifu jus tak alitle byte,
the culer ovchina ann grenlend onthe map,
the litle hintov purpl inthe skie durin sunset ann sunris,
the walpapur sitin otsid the dor,
the litle origame crayn ryt abov myhead
the sine onmy desk witmi naym onit
thos r justsom ov the thins inthe rom thatr
PURPL!!!
.
-Donia
My sincere apologies to Josh and Sara for omitting their poems! Here they are.
.
Poetry To Me (An Acrostic)
Poems spark up the dark
Of the night
Evening is the most pleasant time of the day
Trees shaking, the best time to think up a new poem
Rigorous raccoons and cloudy stormy skies
Year-long skies come around changing different colors,
Trying sometimes to have the sun push out but mostly just the moon
Obeying whatever they want, the daylight or night,to be like
My poetry book coming alive whatever I write
Even when I don’t want to write you can’t get away from who I am
-Sara
.
Poetry is?
poetry is
funny
or pleasing
or amazing
or beautiful
or clever
or great
or kind
or the worst thing possible
or terrible
or atrocious
or hideous
or dumb
or evil
all of these things
or it is just plain stupid
-Josh
.
Poetry
Poetry is a storm of letters and words
over the headline is a pasture
everything when you look back blurs
things very strange occur
red flowers flock the paper
yes everything is TRUE in this pasture
–Damon
.
(An Acrostic)
What is poetry to me well poetry
Has rhyme some poets use
Alliteration and metaphors
They have long and short lines some full of punctuation some not
It’s like a song with a
Story and sometimes music
Poetry can be in different forms
Oh maybe a haiku or sonnet
Every poem is different no
Two are alike they could have a beat or
Rhythm
You can write about anything in a poem
-Donia
.
(An Acrostic)
Ms. Noble
Ms. Noble is the best
She can’t be beaten,
No teacher can live up to her,
Only single teacher I have had!
But very intelligent,
Life is amazing with such a teacher,
Every single thing is perfect,
–Damon
What are Poems?
Poems are like magic
Poems are lots of words
Even though I can be in a brawl in the mall
I’m here writing a poem not having a ball
Words are a wonderful powerful thing
A poem is a lot of super cool jumble of words
Thats what poems are
- Garrett
.
poetry is okay
poetry is okay
it’s sometimes awful
sometimes funny
or gross
it can be fun
or boring
or dumb
or amazing
or the worst thing that ever happened to you
or just ugly
or stupid
or lame
or about a lame guy
or ridiculous
or smart
or disgusting
or the best thing in the world
you want to marry it
or kill it
or it’s evil
or awesome
or just one line
some are great
or hilarious
poetry is okay
- Ryan
.
The Man with A Cat On His Head
I saw a man with a cat on his head.
And he was feeding it some French bread.
My dad took a picture with his phone.
So this man would always be known.
Then we had to keep walking,
But about this man we will always be talking.
-Lila
.
(An Acrostic)
Hurricanes are storms that creep
Up on land and
Reach out to destroy property, southern storms often
Romp over land for a long time
It moves faster up north than down south
Called by names from
A to Z in alphabetical order if they don’t get to a
Name they start at A again as the
Eye settles over land, as the day ends, the
Sun sets in the west
–Jack
.
What Do I Think of Poetry?
When I think of poetry,
I think of action and people
and places and miracles and experiences
stuck on one lined piece of paper.
Sometimes I go crazy trying to think of new ideas,
and interesting, or different words
to put on that
one piece of lined paper.
But then I tell myself poetry can be anything,
anything that I can think of. Poetry can be anything I want. Nothing is right
or wrong
IT’S POETRY!
-Lucy
.
HOW POEMS FIND ME!
I am sitting on a bench
and I hear some thing calling my name
it is saying, “Julian Julian”
I follow the voice but I don’t see it
I am scared
I run back but it is too fast
I run and I run but it catches me
I am trapped when it catches me
it will put a baseball cap on me
I am tired, thirsty and hungry
it takes me back to its house and gives me food and a drink then it shows me who it is it is a
POEM!
– Julian
.
POETRY (An Acrostic)
Poetry is words coming together to make sentences.
Only you can write what you think.
Every poem is different.
Try to write a poem.
Rhyme, alliteration, similes and much more
You can write a poem too.
It could be a lot of fun.
Some poems are easier to write than others.
- Hannah
.
Keep On Going
a poem is born like a baby
poems have birthdays just like humans but poems don’t die
poems sail back and forth like a boat
somebody writes a poem like a boat but
poems don’t sink
poems are smart like children in school
poems can think but poems don’t take a break during the summer
poems don’t stop never never
they keep on going forever
-Gaby
.
Poetry is its Own World
Poetry is it’s own world
that’s magical
that’s amazing
that’s eldritch
that’s bonzer
that’s fantastic
that’s extraordinary
that’s grand
that’s radiant
that’s brobdingnagian
that’s diminutive
that’s chilling
that’s different because you’re not in it
it’s in you
–Brendan
Halloween Fears
There’s only one night in a year, when all the spirits are here,
When the witch takes flight on her broom, and you are frightened by a goblins BOO!
When the skeletons shake, you turn ghostly opaque,
glowing jack ‘o lanterns, and bloody phantoms,
They all make you shriek, they give a strong reek,
but however much fright, you survive through the night,
and tomorrow the spookiness will die.
–Ella Olivia
.
I saw a cloud that looked like a meatball!
I saw a cloud that looked like a meatball!
The meatball had arms and a mustache.
It was fat like a hippo
with a mouth and a nose and two eyes too.
Split in the middle
I didn’t know why
It looked strange
and then I knew, there wasn’t one meatball, but two!
-Jesse
.
(An Acrostic)
Many things are cool about her,
She has the best schedule ever.
Nothing is bad about the class,
Oh yes, all of this is true.
Big Dalton suits her a lot,
Long days are awesome because,
Everything is amazing because of
Ms. Noble!
-Aidan
.
How Poetry Gets Me (inspired by “How Poetry Comes to Me” by Gary Snyder)
It comes creeping toward me, not making a sound
Hunting me down like some kind of hound
Comes like a ghost and taps my shoulder
I turn around and chuck a small boulder
He introduces himself and says, ”hi”
I let out a really big sigh
He says he is something you will not believe
He says he is POETRY!
-Max
.
A pumpkin is shining in the light
Low stay low when the ghost comes out
Lay on the floor when the ghost comes out
We go to each house and say trick or treat
Echos fill the night
Each of us is in fright
Now shhhhhhhhhhhhh on Halloween night
–Alexandra
.
Poetry is Emotion
poetry loves me
it sings
and dances
and prances
in my head
it twirls and whirls together
when it comes i say yay!
when it leaves is say aww !
i love when it says great poem! great poem!
we think together
we laugh together
we all do everything together
–Alexandra
Note: The blog has altered the format of some of the poems.
