From T.S. Eliot to Chicago

We read T.S. Eliot's first section of the "Preludes" to get a sense of setting in poetry. Eliot gives concrete and vivid details of a particular place at a particular time. We discussed the way he described a winter evening in the city at 6'clock. The students found it to be an interesting assignment to write about their own neighborhoods at an exact time in a specific season. Look at their work:



Ms. Cole 6th grade
Week 6



4 O’Clock
Starcy F.

In the summer time after school
kids get out of school be
loud then when they go home
it is quiet out there when
I go to the store I smell
lots of pizza, steak
Chinese food, shrimp,
burgers, fries when I walk
the streets going to the store
I see the CTA bus going by cars
going by lights change people
going to the gas station to buy
gas I watch them as they
go to church going to
the Laundy-mat.



Setting
Markeesh M.

The summer evening heats up
when kids come home to play
3:00 in the evening
the boring old day ends.
And here comes all the fun.
The playful little children.
People come to get wet.
And water coming down on you.
The water splash.
They get hungry and
smell of chicken and of fries,
everybody rushes to
the restaurants. And the
summer of fun.



Poetry
Rahkeen O.

3 o’clock on a summer day.
Kids out of school run and play.
Racing home to take off bookbags,
but a little tired from the work they had.
Going to union jumping in the pool,
but wait, the next day they still have
school. Racing home before too late.
Get home do homework while they shiver
and shake. Eat dinner and get in bed.
Now they can rest their heads.



Ms. Harris 6th grade
Week 6


Summer
Jasmine P.

The summer evening settles down
I smell BBQ fill the air.
5 o’clock hits and all the kids
come out to play. While roses bloom
all around, the cars on
the corner honking horns, cars
going by all four ways. As
the streetlights come on they
all go away. Hope wakes
up the next day.



6 O’clock
Alexis G.

The summer evening. 6 o’clock.
I hear birds chirping and dogs barking
and cats meow. I smell BBQ chicken,
ribs and lots more stuff. I see
out the window girls jumping Double
Dutch. I see people outside moving
their stuff in a moving truck.
I go outside and look up and the
sun is going down. Then in the
morning the sun shines again.




3 o’clock
Porsha T.

during the summertime
sun rise hot day
kids out playing
running school out
summer school’s
still in kids having
fun swimming staying
up late sleeping late
doing what they
want to do because
school’s out



Ms. Kessinger 6th grade
Week 6


6:00 p.m.
Rae L.

Winter is here and it is
so beautiful. 6 o’clock
on the dot. The tall while
snow formed into a hill.
there is so much snow
you can hardly feel
your fingers and toes.
People get robbed walking
down the street. As you
walk you see your feet
prints. You go in the house
and get a cup of hot cocoa
with 6 marshmallows. Get
under a blanket nice and
cozy. All at 6 o’clock on the
dot.




The Best Night
Jasmine W.

10 o’clock at night on
a winter night I hear people
walking and taking in the
snow, laughing and having
a good time with one
another. I see darkness
sparkle snow on the ground
mixed with hail, street
lights and on cars driving
horns beeping. Next thing
you know it it it . . .quiet.
No sound, just blank. I smell
hotdogs, cheeseburgers, waffles
hot wings, popeyes, perfume,
flowers, mac and cheese, I smell
everything in the book.




The Fun Day
Marissa M.

It is summer time. 1:30.
Kids are running around, kids
play jump rope. People are cooking.
The food smelling good, boys
playing basketball, boys and girls
are running around in the
park. Kids going to the
store. The ice cream truck
driving around. The kids are
fighting. Some kids are going
to the beach. Some kids are
going to the water park. Some
kids are going swimming.



12:00 At Night
Terry C.

12 o’clock at night colder than ice
lightning flashing with the moon
glancing from the night snow
falling from the sky like
the white moon at night
clouds bright as no light
weirder than fright

Miss Rosie

We read "Miss Rosie" by Lucille Clifton. This lesson focused on mood and concrete details that give us cues about mood. The students were very close readers noticing how Lucille Clifton changes the mood midway through the poem from sad to victorious. The students wrote really interesting poems.




Ms. Cole 6th grade
Week 5



The Man That Lives on the End of the Gas Station
Terrence S.

When I watch you fight people for no reason
surrounded by all these people.

Or,
no one is around because of you.

When I watch you in your box house on the end
of the gas station
waiting for someone to say something to you.

I say
that man is slow and needs help.








Crazy Dave
Kenya W.

When I watch you come down the street
surrounded by my classmates
or
when I watch you in your black jacket and colorful clothes
waiting for you to come to the gate
I say stand up for what you believe in






Crazy Man
Jameena S.

When I watch you walking down the street talking
to yourself and taking people’s
things out of their backyards
surrounded by little kids just watching
and talking about you and the things you do

or
wearing two different kinds of shoes
with bleached clothes

when I watch you in your baseball helmet
washing people’s care without them knowing
you are doing it

waiting for people to come out of their house
and pay you for washing their car

I say look at him doing things
he has no business doing
that is what I say




Ms. Harris 6th grade
Week 5



Crazy Dave
Dequan B.

When I watch you picking
through garbage
surrounded by garbage
and alleys
or
when I watch you in your 2
different shoes with different
color clothes and nuts and fake
jewelry
waiting for your mind like next
Christmas
I say
you used to be the quietest boy
on earth
I stand up
through your craziest
I stand up



Ricard and His Big Coat
Cleorra G.

When I watch you carry big bags
of garbage around on your bike
with a hole in your shirt
and small tight pants
surrounded by dead grass, leaves
and insects and wet garbage
sitting by dumpsters and cans
or
when I watch you in your big coat
and gym shoes with no strings
and holes in your coast
waiting for the sun
to come out
I say I would buy you food
and tell you to get
a job



Quarter Man
Omarr B.

When I watch you go around and put
your hand in a circle
and ask for a quarter
surrounded by dumpsters and rats
and possums
or
when I watch you in your mind you are lost
thinking about quarters
waiting for someone to walk by and
put a quarter in your can
I say wake up and realize
that you are somebody get up
and get a job and you maybe will have
quarters, even dollars





Ms. Kessinger 6th grade
Week 5



My Story
Shaquita B.

A man named Crazy Davide
they call him that because
he is crazy he is tall and skinny
a black man walking up and down
the block he always dances
and talks to himself
he goes in the garbage and gets
coats and shoes, red, green, blue
black and all other colors. If
I was to stand up for him
I would take him to get some clothes
and shoes. I will give him food
to eat and then he will be cute
and people will like him when
he is fixed up. I forgot
he smells like old greens.




The Crazy Young Lady
Lyneisha F.

When I watch you
come outside after school
with your schools dirty
surrounded by a whole group
of people saying get her
get her with dirty punks
waiting for someone to fight
or
when I watch you in your little
position in the middle of the street
waiting for someone to come so you can push
them around
I say
stop!
no more!
I had enough of your bullying
stop!!!




Ice Cold
Malcolm M.

When I watch you saying hello to people
that are not there
surrounded by old clothes
and eating old food out of the garbage can
the ALDI people throw away
or
when I watch you in your shoes
telling me to go to school
and get and education
waiting for a job
and some new shoes and clothes
and I say I am going to stand up
and be proud
I will stand up and help

Little Room

We read Max Jacob's poem "Little Room." The students and I discusssed concrete details and how they create setting. We had a really great discussion about the way the speaker remembered and imagined his childhood room. Then, the students were asked to remember a place they knew and to focus on setting while they wrote. There were many favorite places revisited.


Ms. Cole 6th grade
Week 3
10/25/07



Garden Square
-Octavia B.

I remember a place I used to
love at my grandma’s house it was
in her backyard. I called it the
garden square. I used to think that
the garden was a jungle.

Sometimes when I go into
the garden square I think about
the ants. Spiders are turning
big. I smell nature. I hear
wild animals and
I hear voices and see a lot
of trees.



Poem
-Daveon J.

I remember my friend’s garage. The color
of the black Lexus, the fresh-car smell,
the darkness of the garage, on which I
would just sit there and chill with my
friends. There were many thing in this
garage, care tires, windows, old clocks, and
many rocks. I would sit in the car and
maybe write, wit the room so dark, the
quietest garage in the world.
And that’s my most favorite place I know.



Poem
-Shirlette S.

I remember the quiet
place in the house. The walls were like
a lot of little squares. I see a lot
of creatures in it, but they are fake frogs.
The frogs have all different kinds of patterns
on them like Zs Zacks. Every time I
need a place to go somebody is always
in there. I close the door and write songs
and do my homework. This place
is not that big but I sit on
the edge of the bathtub and
write whatever I feel. Sometimes
it takes me a long time to get in
there because people go in and out
the bathroom, yes, I said the bathroom
where I can study and nobody
can tell me what to do
and how to do it.



Ms. Harris 6th grade
Week 3
10/25/07

Poem
Carisma F.

I remember in my room
staring at the
wall imagining
it as the pretty
dark blue sky
looking at all
the thousands
of stars,
hoping I will
see a shooting
star, looking
at that bold
moon, asking
myself what
if I could be that
first black American
child to reach
the moon touching
it, what if I could
be the first black
child on all the planets
starting with Mercury and ending
with Pluto. What if? How
come, did I, would I, DO
I have the guts to go
to the solar system.



My Poem
-Arrion L.

I remember a gold
house was a good
place for me gold
knobs on the doors down
on the floor I used
to see things down there
good things I see it.
Just for me knowing
that the gold house is
all for me to see
when I am fast a
sleep.



I Remember
-Jermel H.

I remember in the
fall time as a young child
with my mother and grand
mother at the train station one night. It
was windy and the wind blew me up
over my mom. I was floating
in the sky. I couldn’t get down
from the air. It kept me up in the
sky, people driving on the expressway
looked at me. Soon my mother and grand
mother were screaming for help while
I was floating above the train tracks.
Soon I blacked out and I woke up
in the hospital. I asked what
happened. They said the wind
blew me up in the sky. I remembered
that day for the rest of my life.




Ms. Kessinger 6th grade
Week 3
10/25/07

Best Place Ever
-Tysheanna F.

I remember my playroom as a small
child. The room was empty. It had
only a table, a lamp and a microwave.
I sat there and wrote or played with
my toys. Sometimes I even went to sleep
on the bed. The room was very quiet and
fun. Sometimes it made me want to
sing. On the wall there were small
animals. I transformed them into sea animals
in water. I became a fountain that
blows so pretty.



I remember a soccer field
--Virginia E.

In this soccer field I see
men become kids, a chair become
a boat, a ball become a river or a
beach, women become girls, boys
become kings, and girls become
princesses. I hear the waves,
princesses give rules, kings cheer
for their new wives. It looks like
a mansion with water all over,
people around it. I always can
touch the river, the people
and myself.



Poem
-Chaddrick M.

I remember when I went
to six flags when I walked in I
saw a whole bunch of people walking
around an
when I
looked up
I saw kids yelling
and screaming I want
to
get off
also
When I was
in line
for
a
ride
I saw kids
cutting
the line
saying I had been
right here
and I hear rollercoasters going
straight
up
into the
air
like
a
gorilla
pounding
on
his
chest
roaring.

Double, Double Toil and Trouble

To get in the spirit of Halloween, we read a segment of Act 4 from Macbeth. We had a discussion about mood, and how moods can actually be set by the inclusion of specific concrete details. The students were then asked to create a mood by designing their own brew. As expected, the brews got pretty scary.



Ms. Cole 6th grade
Week 4
11/01/07



Die a Little Later Brew
-Arquesha A.

In my brew I will include
a cat’s eye and baby drool.

Eye of leopard. Toe of D.
Hair of A. Teaspoon
of Shaq’s tongue.

For a charm of powerful trouble
I will add a tail of raccoon.

Here is what my brew can do
make you a celebrity.





Room of Fear
-Sendalio W.

In my brew I will include
lizard eye and dog legs.

Tail of cheetah. Hair of
a person. Tongue of a raccoon.
Toe of a cat.

For a charm of powerful trouble
I will add a sting of a bee.




Brew of Trouble
-Amanda C.

Double, double toil and
trouble, fire burn, and
cauldron bubble. Eye of a
cat and tail of a snake.
In this cauldron this
will bake. A pinch of brain
you’ll go insane. A teaspoon
of blood and hint of
mud. For a charm of such
trouble my brew can
tell your future.




Ms. Harris 6th grade
Week 4
11/01/07

The Hungry Brew
-Derrick H.

In my brew I will include
a woman’s foot. Eye of
a crow, toe of a moe, half of
a rat, tongue of a boy like that.

Here is what my brew can do.

My brew can make chicken soup.
My brew can make you tie your shoe.
It can make it go from loop through
loop, and my brew would make your opponent
cease the hoop. That’s what my brew could do.




Double Trouble
-Malik T.

In my brew I will include
human shoes.

Eye of a wolf. Toe of mice.

Hair of a bear. Tongue of a lion.

For a charm of powerful trouble
I will add a monkey’s ear.

Here is what my brew can do. It
can make a sound like kaboom.




The Halloween Brew
-Latisha M.

Double, double toil and trouble.
In my brew I will include a pig’s tail.
eye of a porcupine, a toe of raccoon.
Hair of a monkey. Tongue of a lizard.

For a charm of powerful trouble
I will add the eye of a snake.
Here is what my brew can do—make
a bowl of ice cream glue.




Ms. Kessinger 6th grade
Week 4
11/01/07

The Scary 303
Jacobi D.

Triple, triple blood and death
this is 303, no more Macbeth.
Eye of a tiger, oh so scary.
Hair of a bear, oh so hairy.
Halloween is coming, Halloween
is here. All you
kids better have no fear.
This is my curse
a curse of me. Say this
curse and you’ll be free.




Hot Room in a Bed Room
Amia R.

Double, double toil and trouble
as an ear of a person
a tongue of a snake
a bat wing as it was broken
off, a dog foot as it
was walking. A lizard fear
as it was cutting off.
That’s what I think
about the trouble.





How Do You Like Your Brew!
-Rae L.

Tick tock watch me drop
an eye of a rat.
The tongue on a grum
and the hair of an octopus
the toe of a goblin and venom from
a werewolf. For this charm of
of power and trouble I will add
the spit of a daredevil.
Here is what my brew can do,
make you my slaves and do
whatever I want. From sucking
blood to making a glass of tea.
Do what I want or be turned
into pig’s feet.

Go Inside

We read Charles Simic's "The Stone." The students and I had a good time imagining getting very tiny and having the ability to go inside of something. Using their senses and concrete images, here are some of their ideas.

Ms. Cole 6th grade

Go Inside a Fish
--Takayla J.

Go inside a fish
that will be great.

Let somebody else become a shark
or gnawing on a piece of seaweed.

I’m anxious to be a fish.

From the outside the fish is surrounded
with sea animals. Yet within it must be
weird and smooth. Even though a shark
swims over it the fish is afraid. Even
though people cut them open I want to see
them breathing.

I have seen bubbles come out of it
when it talks. So perhaps
it is not quiet inside after all. Perhaps
there it is clear.

Go Inside a Tree
--William D.

Go inside a tree.
That would be my home.
Let somebody else become
a seal lion or a dog
with no teeth. This is why
I’m a tree.

From the outside of the tree
it looks like a monster with wings.
Yet within the tree it’s a jungle
even though shoes climb around me,
even though children climb
on me.

I have seen birds
fly away. So birds
build nests in trees.

Go inside a Pisces
--Shadowmar H.

Go inside a Pisces
that has fins to wave back and forth
to swim.

From the outside you can see other things
that come from the bottom of the ocean.
You can wave your fins. You can see
buried treasure. Lots of treasure
about Pisces the fish, you can find
good luck charms and so on.

Yet within the water must be cool.
A Pisces likes water. It makes
it hydrated.

I have seen Pisces with quick attitudes.

So perhaps that’s my sign of the zodiac.
I want to be an astrologer. It’s fun.

Ms. Harris 6th grade

Poem
--Michael B.

Go inside a coca-cola pop
that would be my way.

Let somebody else be a superstar or a dancer.
I am happy to be a coca-cola pop.

From the outside the pop is a white
and black can that has
no design.

Yet within it must be cool and quiet
even though some people step on it
with their feet. A child crushes it
with his hands because he doesn’t
open the pop all the way.
Homeless people come get it.

I have seen many people drinking it
when they are on the road.

So perhaps it is not nasty after all.

Go Inside
--George G.

I’d go inside of a car’s engine.

From the outside it looks like an engine.
Yet within it has a lot of tools and machines.
It pumps gas. It looks like a world
make of tools.

I have seen smoke coming
form it and oil. Sometimes it caught
on fire.

So perhaps it looks different
like carnival rides.

Wonders with Lights
--Rayumos H.

Go inside a stone.
Let somebody else be alive with wonders.
From the outside I see a skull head.
Yet within the skull I see holes in the stone.
I have seen minerals and crystals. Rare stones.
So perhaps I should stay here and look at them for hours and hours.


Ms. Kessinger 6th grade


Go Inside
-Dawn H.

Go inside a computer to see how things work.
Let somebody else be a shining star
in the sky that shines for 12 hours straight.

From the outside of the computer I see
a black screen with a button on it.

Yet within it is silent and cool
and shows many wires of blue, green red and yellow.

I have seen little chips with wires planted into them.

So perhaps it wasn’t so silent and cool
after someone turned me on.

Poem
-Eric W.

In my brain there are so many words
that no one has a key to open it.
Many things I see. A river of blood.
It’s like I am looking at
a red light it’s
like my brain
has been
flushed down
an ocean.
If a lot
of people
are in their brain
and outside
of a brain
it is a good look.
Like me
many people fell
and are falling.
I will say
on my two feet
all of my
life I love this
man, Eric W.,
and I will not let some
make words and my brain.
I put a cover on my head
and no one will have the key to go
in a good brain like mine.

Go Inside
-Malik H.

I will go inside a McDonald’s
to study the way to be small.

Let somebody else be the apple
falling off the tree.

From the outside I am smaller than you.
I can use my ability to wonder.

Yet within my mind I can be
what I want to be in my imagination
and go where I want to go.

I have seen many things, but nothing like
the inside of this apple. It has lots
of beautiful emotions like me.

so perhaps I was dreaming
and was thinking of my life.

Magic

On our first day, we read the poem "Magic" by Dahlia Ravikovitch. I asked the students to think about some things they might want to be:

Ms. Cole, 6th grade


Poem
Miguel A.

Today I’m an eagle,
soaring through the sky.

Last night I dreamt
of dinosaurs white, blue
transparent—

Today I’m a cheetah,
tomorrow and Oak tree.

Yesterday the Grand Canyon,
today a Rose.

Tomorrow I’ll be a guitar.

What I am
Devonte L.

Today I am the voice
of a bird seeking its prey.

Tomorrow a boy having
a fun day dripping
while he skates.

Last night I dreamt
of an orange and green sky
wouldn’t no one
ask me why.

In the morning I listened
to the endless words
of mine.

Today I’m an exotic
cave on the end of a Pueblo.

Yesterday a Jeep
running out of gas.

Poem
Keegan O.

Today I am a shiny statue bold and great.
Still and bold, not ever moving on the platform.

Last night I dreamt of gorges silver and gold,
shiny and beautiful with diamonds.

In the morning a huge tarantula was spinning webs,
killing insects and dangerous bugs.

Today I am a pink seashell lost in the ocean,
trapped in the seas of the shark and fish.

Yesterday I was an exotic poet,
rhyming and making a lot of money.

Tomorrow I will be a successful person
with a good life.

Ms. Harris, 6th grade

Poem
Laquesha B.

Today I am going to be
a fast runner
that runs so fast.

Last night I dreamt that I was a fox
that stayed up all night.

In the morning I will be a robot
that walks all funny.

Today I will be a bird
that can fly anywhere.

Yesterday I was a pretty butterfly
that can go anywhere it wants.

How Everything Changes
KeJuan M.

Today I am a comoto dragon.
Last night I dreamt I was the sun
shining on everyone. Today I will be a spider-
monkey that has red skin and blue fur.
Yesterday I was an artist and tomorrow
Albert Einstein teaching science.


The Magic of Edward
Edward S.

Today I am a dog
as big as a house and can
jump in the sky.

Last night I dreamt
there was a masked killer
running for me.

In the morning
I was as big as a house
and people lived in me.

Today I’m an ant in the house
looking for food.

Yesterday I was a snowman
walking and talking.

Ms. Kessinger, 6th grade

Who I Am
Dominique B.

Today I’m a pretty dog
that can walk and talk.

Last night I dreamt I was a pop star
who can play volleyball.

In the morning, I’m a judge
who is a great singer and dancer.

Today, I’m a sandy beach with
a lot of kids.

Yesterday a nice teacher.

Today I’m a pony that kids can ride.

Tomorrow I will be a Queen.

Poetry
Johnny B.

Today I am yesterday,
tomorrow.

Last night I dreamt
that I was shooting star
the granted wishes.

Today I am the voice
of the young.


What I Am
Justina P.

Today I am a female
president who is African-American.

Last night I dreamt
of a powerful goddess.

In the morning
I am a caring doctor.

Today I am a veterinarian
who loves animals and mammals.

Yesterday I am a lawyer
who knows what is right and wrong.

Tomorrow I am regular me,
that is what I am.