Secrets

of the

Seventh Grade

 

Poems by students

of Bram Moreinis, 1998

Newburgh Middle School

The Assignments

The Poems

1. Ode to My Hamster by Meghan
2. Now by Adline
3. Pen by Adline
4. Five Similes by Jamie
5. The Woods They're Nice by Jessica
6. My Baby Sister by Jennifer
7. Ode to Kate Winslet by Joseph
8. Life is Like a Beeper by Josian
9. Around Us by Chris
10. Life by Chris
11. The Trees by Melissa
12. Outside Poem by Melissa
13. Ode to My TV by Andrew
14. The Bookstore by Andrew
15. The Mall by Robert
16. I Hate Hot Weather by Robert
17. The Tree by Robert
18. People by Laura
19. Comparisons by Laura
20. Ode to Puff Daddy by Laura
21. Ode to a Tree by John
22. Three Similes By Sarah
23. My McDonalds by Willa
24. Shots by Mike
25. A Cold Winter's Night by Mike
26. The Mall by Willa
27. Monday Night Raw by Jason
28. McDonalds by Jason
29. Dreams by Daniel
30. Ode to My Dog by Thomas
31. The School by Thomas
32. The Cool Trees by Kalisha
33. My Burger King by Kalisha
34. Ode to My Parents by Sonia
35. When I Was Three by Sonia
36. Scrabble by Kori
37. The Naked Crypt by Philip
38. The Beach by Kenny
39. Sublime by Terence
40. My Dad, The Medical Researcher by Jessica
41. Beach Music by Jessica
42. On the Street by Trevor
43. My Friends by Dominique
44. Missy by Dominique
45. Snow Drops by Dominique
46. The Beach by Lisseth
47. Ode to Leonardo DiCaprio by Lisseth
48. The Hall by Brian
49. The Woods by Brian
50. Good and Evil by Vernon
51. Respect by Vernon
52. Gratitude by Vernon
53. Bubble Gum Haiku by Stacy
54. My Poems Bite by Stacy
55. My Grandmother's Funeral by Stacy
56. Outside by Kia
57. The Mall by Shane
58. That Scrubby CD by Jason
59. Where Do All The Shadows Go? by Jason
60. Haiku by Jason
61. Ode to my Cold by Jason
62. Me, Just Me by Vincent
63. Dentist Office by Keith
64. Beach Wind by Keith
65. The Stuffy Beavers By Cullen
66. The Rain Comes by Paul
67. The Hallway by Paul
68. Scarred by Kim
69. Untitled #1 by Kim
70. Romeo and Juliet by Kim
71. Untitled #2 by Kim
72. Look Into My Eyes by Michael
73. Sense Poem by Melissa
74. Poem #1 by Brian
75. Poem #2 by Brian
76. Ode to My Father by Kristofer
77. Sounds of McDonalds by Mindy
78. When Will It End? by Mindy
79. To My Cousin by Mindy
80. Time to Make the Donuts by Logan
81. Goodbye, My Pop by Logan
82. Why the Brick House? by Logan
83. Ode to the Spice Girls by Chris
84. The Ocean by Colleen
85. Ode To Max by Colleen
86. Walking In the Door by Cherie
87. The Poem of My Dad by Dean
88. Football by Dean
89. Amazing Bug by Dean
90. Carnival By Melissa
91. Camping Out By Melissa
92. Tree by Charlie
93. No Refuge by John
94. Cave Paintings by John
95. Ode to Pizza by John
96. The Teacher's Lethal Pen by Michael
97. The World of Golf by Michael
98. The Guys By Christina
99. I Can! By Christina
100. Spring by Kristen
101. The Trip Outside by John
102. Furious Firefly by John
103. Night Fall by John
104. Thunder by Kristen
105. Ocean by Kristen

The Assignments

The majority of these poems began as responses to the following assignments & activities, refined through successive readings to the class with feedback from classmates and me.

1) Three Similes: Write three similes about a one subject and make them into a poem.

2) Sense Poem: Go to your favorite restaurant, note all the information that comes to your senses (sights, smells, sounds, etc.) and make a list. If you prefer, any place you know well will suffice, like the mall or the beach. From that list, make a poem. Sense Poem II: Go outside or to any favorite place and note all sense information.

3) Ode: Beginning with "Oh [X], my [X]", write a poem to someone/something living or dead and tell them why you love them.

4) Trip Outside: Walk with the class down the hill in front of the school with a poetry notebook, noting sense information and thoughts. Walk toward the big tree and take notes stopping as you go, until you touch the bark. Think about time.

5) Life: After the blackboard has been filled with nouns and adjectives, make word pairs that seem interesting and contradictory. Write a poem about that new idea, and how it is a metaphor for life.

6) The Bug: We wrote impression poems after viewing the opening credits to "Men In Black", which pictured a dragonfly's appointment with a windshield.

Many students find poetry written by adults to be inaccessible, largely because adult frames of reference are often beyond their understanding, and "Poems for Children" often patronizing. For this first half of our poetry study, the class read only a few adult poems, focusing instead on their own.

The students decided that the safest method would be if I were to read submitted poems out loud, not sharing the name of the poet. If he/she wished to identify him/herself, it could be done after the poem was received by the audience (by clapping or finger-snapping). Some of the best poets chose NOT to identify themselves, and let the work stand on its own merits. This was a most satisfying part of each day, as students saw each other unfolding as poets, and sharing personal experiences and views they might otherwise keep entirely hidden.

The poem is an astounding vehicle for revealing the self. Who knows why? I hope you found these poems as heart-warming, fascinating and inspiring as I have.