Thankful Poems

ALLITERATION!  That was the theme of our poetry lesson when we wrote about Thanksgiving.  Alliteration is when two or more words close together start with the same sound.  Alliteration makes poetry sound super!  Rhyming was optional, but the students had to think of words and phrases that were meaningful about Thanksgiving, and also include some examples of alliteration.  Enjoy these fabulous poems!

T is for turkey and taking walks,
   And Thanksgiving treats and thankful talks.

H is for happiness and heart,
    And hosting parties, now let's start!

A is for autumn and love all around,
   Eating apple pie, and leaves on the ground.

N is for nuts and new things,
    And nice turkey that people bring.

K is for kitchens and leaves that go crunch,
   And cranberries and cookies that I love to munch.

S is for my special school,
   And spectacular cider that's sweet and cool.

~Sienna, 2nd grade


T is for trying your best and for terrific times.

H is for helpfulness and happiness.

A is for aunts and uncles and apple pie.

N is for nice things and for yummy nuts.

K is for kindness and Kendal and Cassie kisses and caring for others.

S is for sisters and brothers and for super times.

~ Sophia, 3rd grade


T is for terrific turkey and treats
   to eat when the family meets.

H is for holiday happiness by the hearth
    And giving thanks for the earth.

A is for absolutely amazing apple pie that I adore.

N is for November nights
    when people are taking many bites.

K is for caring and curious cousins that are very creative.

S is for cider, stuffing, and soup for a spectacular supper.

~ Adeline, 3rd grade


HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!  I am thankful for my wonderful students!

"My Life as a Leaf"

The changing of the seasons is fabulous for inspiring Authors and Artists!  As we watched the leaves around us change, we brainstormed and story mapped what it would be like to be a bud on a tree in spring, then a healthy, green leaf in the summer, and finally a crinkly, colorful leaf in autumn.  What would it feel like to be a tiny bud waking up in the spring?  Would it be scary to fall from the tree?  What would we see and do as the seasons change?  Where would we find ourselves after tumbling from the tree?  The students were to write three chapters: Spring, Summer, and Autumn.  Here are some top favorites of mine.  Enjoy!

Joseph (2nd grade) imagines how he'd feel season to season!  I really like how he describes Autumn.

     I was born in the Spring….
    I started as a tiny bud.  I saw the ground, and it was black.  I felt bad because I was small.  With my friends, I heard dogs barking.

     Summertime Fun!
     In summer, I became a leaf.  I felt good because I had grown.  I saw kids eating ice cream.  I drank rain water with my mouth.  I was looking at the kids.  I heard a lot of birds.  My friend and I were growing toward the sun!

     Autumn…. The End!
     In the fall, I started to turn yellow and red!  I saw other leaves falling on the ground.  I felt scared to see them fall, but at the same time, I kind of felt happy because I was big.  I saw swinging on the branch when all of a sudden, CRACK!  The branch fell, and I fell off.  This was the end of my life.

Alana (3rd grade) did a great job telling all that she could hear, see, and do as a leaf!

     I was born in Spring….
     I am a bud, so I am a baby.  I see a baby bird up in the sky learning how to fly.  I also see other buds talking.  I live in a backyard.  I hear kids talking.  I feel butterflies land on me and I hear birds chirping.  Since wind is blowing, it feels like I am dancing to the wind.  I feel excited because I am alive!

     Summertime Fun!
     I see squirrels eating nuts and flowers getting sprinkled with water.  I feel caterpillars crawling on me.  I am dancing to the wind and I am happy and joyful because I've grown.  I am happy to be alive!

     Autumn…. The End!
     I see leaves turning orange and red.  I hear kids having a really fun birthday.  I feel squirrels with their tails on me.  I am half orange, half green.  I've grown!  I suddenly fall to the ground.  A child picks me up and thinks I am pretty!


Morgan (3rd grade) did a fabulous job personifying herself as a leaf.  I love how she brings human things (like relaxing in the summer and swinging on a hammock) into her leaf life!  Enjoy!

     I was born in the Spring....
     I am a beautiful, eager bud.  In the spring, I see farm animals.  Sometimes, I hear the farm animals making noises.  When I'm itchy, and lucky, an insect crawls over my back.  It tickles me!  When I'm bored, I swing on my mother's branch.  Soon it becomes a game, and all my brothers and sisters join me.  When we are all resting, I feel relaxed with all of my brothers and sisters.

     Summertime Fun!
     In the summer, I see fruit on the trees and the farm animals growing.  When I hear the children playing, I wonder if I could ever play like them.  When it's almost sunset, I feel the summer heat.  Since it's the summer, I relax and do whatever I want.  I swing on my mother's branch a lot because it feels like I'm on a hammock.  At sunset, I feel relaxed from all the summer heat.

     Autumn..... The End!
     Autumn is finally here!  Around my mother's tree, I see golden, brown, orange, and red fruit trees.  When it's morning, I hear the children scurrying to school, trying to be on time.  I feel the wind tickling more than usual.  It's time for us to let go!

     A lot of my brothers and sisters drift away, but I cling on to my branch like a sloth.  I feel sad and lonely without my brothers and sisters.  I look like a golden, crispy leaf ready to be crunched up.

     I finally let go when a truck accidentally backed into my mother's trunk.  I drift away, ready to start a new life, giving nutrients to the soil.

You won't believe me when I tell you that a 4th grader wrote the following story.  But it's true!  Mira (4th grade) has been with me for two years now, and I am so proud of her progress.  Enjoy this beautiful story and how Mira uses sentence fragments and voice so effectively.

          Stars. The stars and the moon were the first things I saw in my life. Wisps of clouds floated over the midnight sky. The big, round moon and the small, twinkling stars were very reassuring. Below me I saw the shadows of the garden, that had just been filled with new plants and flowers. I also saw the sleeping forms of animals in the stable. The fruit and leaves of other trees looked delicious. (I was in an apple tree). All around me I saw the other buds, my brothers and sisters, stretching and yawning I felt excited. My life was finally beginning.

                        I woke up to the sound of birds chirping the next morning. Rain was drizzling, and it felt refreshing on my leafy, green skin. The farm animals were beginning to wake up, too. I could hear pigs snorting, dogs barking, and cats meowing. I saw butterflies floating and bees buzzing. My brothers and sisters were talking quietly among themselves. One of my sisters said, “The orchard is so beautiful!” My brother replied, “Yeah. But the farmer is always plucking apples from our tree.” The rain had begun to clear up and faint sunshine filtered through the gray clouds. A slight breeze was blowing, and a beautiful rainbow appeared. I danced with the wind. A ladybug skittered on me. I impatiently brushed it away. I felt social and anxious to grow!

                        During my three months of spring I grew, ate, and slept. I talked with my brothers and sisters and danced with them. I felt confident as my spring went by.

△

                        Sunlight. I felt its glorious golden warmth as it beat on me. Robins and puffy, white clouds soared over me. The crops, flowers, and grass stood taller in the sunlight. The animals ambled over to the fresh grass and took a big chunk of meadow grass. The roses and violets had butterflies hovering over them. Caterpillars were starting to transform into other beautiful butterflies. Other trees

 had flowers and my distant bud cousins, and my brothers and sisters were laughing heartily together.

                        That night as I was getting ready for bed, I heard crickets and the other buds quietly snoring. Owls were flying above me, and mice and foxes crept quietly in the tall grass. I felt the creepy legs of a spider and the brisk, warm wind of a cool summer night. The soft wings of a moth brushed past me. I shivered, then drifted off into a long, deep sleep.

                        The next few days I grew, danced boldly in the wind, and provided shade for the farmer’s little kids. I slept and ate. I felt courageous, and also a little disappointed. Why was I not continuing to grow? But I was modest, because I knew that I was the biggest and strongest leaf, but I never bragged. My summer was the best ever!

△

                        Wind. I danced with it and swung under my branch. I could see the golden sun and clouds. The beautiful leaves and branches hung around me on other trees. I must admit, autumn is my favorite season. I saw the animals walking around taking big pieces of sweet-smelling pasture grass. The crops had already been harvested, and some of the flowers were losing their petals. All around me I saw my big brother and sister leaves, but instead of sounding excited, they sound scared! “I don’t want to die!” my sister squealed. I turned away also. I was a little bit sad, too. I couldn’t believe I would die only after eight months! I felt like crying, but as a butterfly fluttered past me , I cheered up. I saw squirrels and chipmunks that chitter-chattered and brushed past me with their furry tails. An inchworm wiggled past me as it was going home, and I felt the legs of a beetle. As I was getting ready for bed, I looked down at myself, and gasped, stupefied. I was a beautiful goldish-reddish color. I was an autumn leaf.

                        The last few days before my death were the best. I slept hourts, at a feast, and felt excited and anxious. The day of my death came. I said farewell to all my brothers and sisers. I was smooth, beautiful, straightened-out, and still the beautiful goldish-reddish color. I said good-bye for the last time, then a breeze picked me up and carried me away. I fell slowly and calmly. And I saw the thing that I had first seen in my life. Stars.

Happy Halloween! Monster Draw Game

ADJECTIVES, ADJECTIVES, ADJECTIVES!  They have been a big theme for my classes this year.  Without adjectives, the reader is left with an incomplete picture.  With adjectives, we see exactly what the author wants us to see and comprehend!  Size, shape, color, and number adjectives tell it all!

That was the theme of the "Halloween Monster Draw Game."  The game went as follows:

Step 1: Draw an imaginative monster.
Step 2: Describe your creature in clear detail.  Each sentence should describe a feature with size, shape, color, and number adjectives.
Step 3: Trade descriptions with a partner.
Step 4: Draw a picture of that creature based on the description.  If the description is extremely vivid, clear, thorough, and complete, the monsters will end up to be twins!
Winners got some Trick-or-Treat candy as well as a spot on the blog.  Congratulations to our winners!

Kendal's Creature (3rd grade):

     This strange animal has no fur.  It is just pink skin.  He has four heads and three eyes, and on each head is an angry, scary face with teeth.  The last to the right head has a happy face and sunglasses on.  He usually has green overalls and a peach colored undershirt and a pair of orange yellow polka-dotted shoes and a candy cane cane.  He hunts for bunnies at  midnight when the stars come out.  He has no fingers, just oval shaped palms.

 Kendal ended up having a teacher as a partner!  The students voted this one as an easy top-pick winner.  Way to go, Kendal and Mrs. Aronen!  http://seabearskindergarten.blogspot.com/

Adeline's Monster (3rd grade):

     My monster is a small, pink circle with lots of small light and dark pink fur.  She has two big green eyes withs mallet, but still big, pupils.  She has no nose, although she has a little red smile.  Also, she has a big red bow on the top of her head and tilting to her left.  The bow is outlined with a light blue.

     Her arms are purple with three fingers: one on each side, and they're horizontal.  The legs are purple too, but have five toes and are in a flower form.  She only has two legs.

     

     You know how I said she had a pink body?  That was the OUTLINE.  The inside is purple.

     And that is my monster.

Wow!  Charlotte (3rd grade) read Adeline's vivid description perfectly, because look what she drew!

Ritik's Monster (5th grade)

     Put the paper vertically.  The body is ten mid-sized circles that stack on top of each other vertically. Start the first circle at the bottom of the paper.  the feet are penguin feet, and there are two of them.  The arms are VERY long.  They start from the top circle.  They curve down and they end at the bottom of the paper.  The bottom three circles are green.  The three on top of that are red.  The three on top of that are orange.  The very top circle has two black eyes and one red mouth, like a human's.  The top circle is colorless.  There is a mid-sized triangle on top of the top circle.  The feet are pink and arms are blue.  

     The background is pink and purple.  There is a black fence that goes up to the circle on the very bottom.  On the top right, there is a yellow sun.  There is one arrow on the left of the monster that is pointing to the left.  There is another arrow to the right of the monster, pointing to the right.

What a thorough description!  It was so great, that Catie (5th grade) was able to produce this:

Mira's Monster (4th grade)

     My monster is very short and plump.  He has two green eyes, that are medium-sized.  His face is arranged like a human's.  He has a little, round, gray nose.  He also has a huge smiling pink mouth.  He has no teeth.

     My monster wears a bow tie.  It is purple and red.  There are seventeen purple polka-dots on his bow tie.  His head also has two neon orange ears on each side of his head.  He has one blue diamond in each ear.  He is called the KING OF DIAMONDS.

     The King of Diamonds has a big circle for his head.  He has a medium-sized body, which is also round.  His head and body are neon orange.  He has five magenta wiggly arms like noodles on each side of his body.  He has ten stick legs.  His legs are brown and he has ten black shoes.

     The King of Diamonds sits on a huge yellow throne.  "King of Diamonds" is written on top of the throne.  A blue diamond is on top of the throne.  Ten blue diamonds are on the throne.  He has a purple crown with blue diamonds on top of the crown.  

 Wow!  Mira's description was so thorough that Samantha (2nd grade) could practically draw her twin monster!

Abby's Monster (3rd grade)

     My monster's body is a spiky circle with a big spike at the top.  She has no fur.  My monster is orange.  Her eyes are large with blue middles.  She has glasses that are circular and they are much bigger than her eyes.  She has two eyes.  The nose is triangular and it is yellow.  The mouth is smiling and it is dark red.  She has a medium sized bow that is pink at the top of the big spike.  Her two arms are blue and my monster is throwing them up above her head.  The hands are like human hands, but there are only three fingers.  The legs are shaped like stairs, and they are purple.  She has two legs.  My monster has medium brown freckles.  

     The background is a school to the right of the monster.  The school is square, and it has doors that are square with a line through the middle, and four windows, two on the bottom, two on the top.  There are two circular doorknobs in the middle.  There are words above the doors that say in capital letters, "Welcome to Monster Elementary."  Above the words, there are two circular windows with pink on the bottom and red on the top, with yellow and orange next to pink.  The roof is triangular with a red cross on the top and a bunch of v's all over the brown roof.

For the 2nd and 3rd graders, this was their first time playing this descriptive game.  I was so impressed with how Abby wrote clearly enough to have Kristina (3rd grade) draw this!

GREAT WORK, and congratulations to our winners!