Finding Monsters

We read Charles Simic's "The Fork", which imagines the very ordinary utensil as a very extraordinary creature. Then students looked around their classrooms to see what sorts of monsters they could find in ordinary objects.


3rd Grade

Esperanza S.
The Scary Chair

The scary chair it has
a big mouth and skinny
legs. It wants to eat you.
Don't sit cause it will
get you and grow seat
belts and tie you. It will
tie your legs too and
hands too. And you
will disappear.

Antonio R.
The Computer

It has a screen and 5
tongues made out of buttons
It has 1 eye if you dare
walk by it… it will snap
right at you with sharp
knifes with poison in
them, with fire and
spiders.

Berenice M.
Ceiling

It has twelve big white eyes with
no pupils. Scary eyes
sees you where ever you go
there everywhere and watches you.
It takes you away. It has two extra ears
to hear you. If you have a plan it
knows, it you hang stuff on it it gets
angry and rips it after that it eats
you up in one bite.

5th grade

Shannon A.
The bean bag

The bean bag is a boneless
blindless monster. He eats people by
rolling on the floor and attacks
He's a big head that looks like a
jellyfish with a big mouth.

It looks like it crept from
the basement to come alive
and eat people. When it's big and blobby
then when it does not eat it dies.
But still comes back to live and
starts eating people again.


Frank C.
The Desk

It has four long bony
legs that are freezing cold
and no eyes and a big mouth
with bugs inside it and the
head rectangle head with its veins
showing and it's pale and cold
and it gets books and papers
with no hands.

Michael D.
Laptop

It has one eye that lights up.
It sucks you up when it gets mad.
It has no feet.
It is really large
and really flat.
The wires are its veins.
The keyboard is its body it has people inside of it in each letter.
The more it sucks you up the more bigger it gets.

This is Just To Say

We read William Carlos Williams's "This is just to say" - a wonderful poem that apologizes and at the same time seems to have almost no regrets. Students wrote their own anti-apology apology poems




Third Grade

Brian G.
Stealing your space people

I am sorry for
stealing the star
warship and
master obi
wan kenobe

I bet you were
going to battle
with them

I wanted to be
a clone
trooper or a
bounty hunter

Andy H.
The dead monster

I ate the
monster I found
it in the
jungle which you
had fun with.
He was your
friend. Forgive me
he was delicious
so good and so
warm.

Marissa K.
I stole you dogs?

I found a
dog that was
very cute and
I don't want
to give it
back

I did it because
I love dogs and
they are so cute

It was so cute
soft, brown and
little.

5th Grade


Martha M.

I opened the
presents under
the Christmas tree
the day before

I shouldn't have
opened them until
all of us
opened them together

I did that
because I was
curious to
open them.


Matt P.

I'm so sorry
I stole your
pop
on your washer

I shouldn't of
took your pop
because it was
Yours truly,
I took it
anyway because
It was so good.

Alex J.
Sorry

I have looked
at gifts
for Christmas

to be surprised
but I'm curious
but I want to know

I saw a nothing
only one
for my sister.

8th Grade Metaphors Poems

Eighth graders read Sylvia Plath's poem "Metaphors" and wrote their own appearance metaphor poems.

Metaphors

Krystal V.

The small things on the side of my head twinkle like a star
My hair is a bare tree with twigs everywhere
My hands are bright pink like always
My lips are as thin as a line on paper
Yet they're always shining with lip gloss

Alexia B.

My hair is an assortment of caramels and chocolates
My hair is the brown puffy stuffing of a teddy bear
My eyes are a fake green plastic plant
My eyes are a round lemon
My lips are two slices of peaches

Marrisa F.

My hair is roller coaster swirl.
My hair is a chocolate brown.
My eyes are sparkly glaze.
Two big round wondering eyes
My lips are gentle to the touch.
Talking things that never shut up.

5th Grade I am poems

Romario J.
Monster

I am the cold in the winter
I am a lion that looks for his prey
I am a tornado destroying a town
I am the shadow that hovers the earth
I am a snow storm trapping people inside
I am the fire that burns you up.

David R.
I am

I am the dolphin in the sky
I am the snow that melts in your hand
I am the wind that blows you away
I am the food that fills you
I am the air you breath
I am the shadow that follows you
I am the water that you use
I am the fire that warms you
I am the weather that makes you change
I am the planet that saves you.

Now you see, I am the gravity that holds you
I am the colors of the rainbow
I am the deer that you miss
I am the music in your ears.

Matt P.
The I Am Poem

I am the fire that burns the wood
I am the water of a sea
I am the star of the dark night
I am the snow of the morning day
I am the moon that shines in the night
I am the weather of the day
I am the rain that falls from the sky
I am the Komodo dragon in the orange desert
I am the seal that bounces the ball on my nose.

3rd Grade I am poems

Brian G.

I am the shine in a child's eye
I am the hot sun burning space rocks
I am the earth giving every person space and air
I am the light of a Christmas light
I am the life of the earth
I am the shark that eats fish
I am the astronaut in space
I am the snow that plops on the ground
I am the heaven's light shining on people.

Alberto O.

I am thunder roaring in the sky
I am rain and hail falling down hard
I am the wind blowing really strong I knocked down some trees
I am lightening striking bright in the sky
I am lightening striking 10 houses
I am lightening striking trees
I am lightening striking cable wires
I am lightening hitting streets
I am lightening hitting grasses
I am lightening hitting cars

Carina R.

I am the light that brightens up your day
I am the rain that waters you garden
I am the monkey who lives in the forest
I am a cat who is cat woman
I am a snowman who is freezing.

3rd and 5th grade Nobody Knows Poems

After reading Pablo Neruda from "The Book of Questions" students in Mrs. Silva's 3rd grade and Mrs. Nolan's fifth grade wrote poems in which they revealed secrets that animals, nature, and objects keep.

3rd Grade

Lino C.

Nobody hears the sun saying hi
Nobody knows the river says help
Nobody knows that the plants talk to each other
Nobody knows that the train is a person who runs fast

Andy H.

Nobody knows that planes walk in the rain.
Nobody knows trains can dance.
Nobody knows a plant can go in my house and watch T.V.
Nobody knows that rats like the moon and dogs and a river.

Iliana M.

Nobody knows people in my family can run as fast as a car.
Nobody knows a plane crashes in my yard every year!
Nobody knows rats are my friends.
Nobody knows I have the moon right in front of me.

5th Grade

Yenesis R.

Nobody knows if monkeys can write an essay.
Nobody knows is someone is very perfect.
Nobody knows that some people can be so annoying.
Nobody knows what is the weirdest thing in life.

Corinne G.

Nobody knows that Miss Lady Bug
that she only wears a poked dot dress.
Nobody knows that the toaster the
doesn't like to toast it's own bread.

Romario D.

Nobody knows that I own a big fire breathing dragon.
Nobody knows that aliens eat dogs.
Nobody knows if we could live on the sun.
Nobody knows if the apple could be blue.

8th grade I am... poems

8th graders at Washington wrote poems using anaphora, or repetition of the beginning of the line, after reading M. Scott Momaday's "The Delight Song of Tsoai-Talee"

Khalid Z.

I am the water that flows through in the ocean
I am the mountains that tower over people
I am the bird that can't fly
I am the was that never happens
I am a blue cow that can't make blue milk
I am the homework that eats the dog
I am a book with no story
I am a tail that never wags
I am a snowflake in a thunderstorm
I am a snowflake that falls in the summer
I am a leaf with no tree
I am paper that needs one more line
I am the name that is never spoken

Laura V.

I am the one who takes care of you even though you can't see me
I am the warmth that builds up in you when you're cold
I am the tree that covers you from the blazing sun
I am the covers that keep you nice and warm
I am the person that will guide or follow every step you take
I am the courage that will motivate you
I am the person that will be there at night to tell you everything is alright
I am the wind that will push you toward your future
I am the shelter that will protect you from harm
I am the person who bring happiness t your life, family and dreams

Jasmine H.

I am the scissors that
cut through the girls arm
I am the broken hearted man
that sits on the corner
I am the strength of everybody
that gets abused
I a m the nothingness to
everythingness
I am the shelter to every
homeless person
I am the peace to world
peace.