c o n g r a t u l a t i o n s !
So many fabulous poems came in for this i want to post a small collection of some of my favourites. It was hard to choose as I had so many.
What I love is the way a poem can surprise you. You know you want to go back and read it again. You know eyes and ears have been hard at work.
Congratulations young poets. You have done a fine job. I do hope you try some of my Monday challenges in term time.
A challenge for you all: If I get 30 comments on this post, I will pick one child to send a copy of A Treasury of NZ Poetry for Children. Tell me which poem you love and why. Extra points if you pick one that is not from your school! Tell me your age, year and name of school and teacher’s email. I have an copy of Dear Heart: 150 NZ Love Poems for an adult who comments on a poem.
Panther
I am a cunning panther
Black as pitch black night
I leap quite majestically
I silently stalk my prey
I spring up to scale large trees
I growl like a deadly beast
As I am a cunning black panther
Black as pitch black night
Quin aged 10, Year 6, Hauraki School
Bright Green
Prickly, wet grass
yummy, juicy grapes
wobbly, slimy seaweed
bumpy, hard broccoli
Lincoln, Y2, Age 6, Barton Rural School
Demon
Big scary creature of the night
eagle like wings and fur not light
big scary creature of the night
claws like razors teeth like knives.
Big scary creature of the night
howling out my name
big scary creature of the night
please tell me you are tame.
Lucas, Y5, Age 9, Good Shepherd School
Sun
The shimmering sun.
The quailing wind smashes me.
The sand is so soft.
Logan, Y5, Age 8, Good Shepherd School
Night is a Fright
All the shadows on the wall make me fall, fall, fall
All the spooky sounds make me scramble
slip and fall
I try to think about my love of ponies
Bur it doesn’t help
I listen to my Mum and dad drink Sprite
oh how fizzy “oooo” what’s that sound? “ahhh”
I think only think night gives me a fright!
Jemima, Y2, Age 6, Good Shepherd School
The Night Sky
the stars glisten like Lake Tekapo
with the sun on it
the stars are shiny like black ice
white, like paper from the Bible
stars shoot through the sky
like rockets
Alex, Y6, age 10, Russley School
My Grandad
My grandad is as tall as a giraffe
My grandad is as friendly as a monkey
He wears blue glasses
like me
He used to sew up shirts in the air force
Now he carefully sews up my teddy bears
Josh, Y4, age 8, Russley School
Nana
She is as happy as a beautiful bright fish
She looks interested when she is watching
Chinese news
She helps me when I am scared
of the dark
She is a Chinese teacher
and artist
She draws flowers
fish
mermaids
turtles
and fire-breathing dragons
Sophia Y4, age 8, Russley School
Black Beard Dad
One time my dad caught a leaf
instead of a fish
He runs
a bit like Usain Bolt
He is a geologist
he blows up rocks
He wears a soft checked shirt
and has fillings between his teeth
like silver stars
Fergus Y3, age 7, Russley School
Rain
Plink, plonk, plink there is the rain
Plink, plonk, plink there it is again
Rain splashes on the roof of my house
like little girls doing tap
pitter, patter, pitter, patter
like a possum scampering
across our roof.
Meg Y3, Age 7, Carncot School
The Raging Bull
The ocean is an angry bull
Charging to the water’s edge
Pounding the seabed with its powerful horns
As the day goes on, he roars and roars
Carrying away sticks and stones
Licking his greasy hooves
The storm passes through
He sits with his head hung low
Calm and still
Waiting for the wind to blow and for the sky to turn grey
Sophie, Y6, Age 11, Carncot School
Monsters
There is a giant monster in my house
Searching and perching on my couch
Munching and crunching on my favourite snacks
He hears the floor crack and is tempted to look back
I run upstairs, knock my head
Only to find another monster in my bed
Antoinette, Y6, age 11, Carncot School
Winter Is Here
Icing sugar is falling from a crying cloud.
White messages are falling from the sky.
White owls in the sky are dropping their feathers.
Angels are losing teeth and are dropping them.
Little girls have frozen wands,
they are making it snow.
Sabina Y3, Age 7 Arrowtown School
Mapua Estuary
Where the shy hermit crabs scutter away from prying hands,
Where the nimble swallows flutter while chirping their careless songs.
Where the old boats gently bob like nodding heads,
Where the flapping flags cast a jittering shadow.
Where moorings fight an endless struggle against the tide,
Where live music drifts around crimson pohutukawa.
Where an army of pines sway in chorus with the rolling breeze,
Where seagulls clutter the skies scaring away the gently peace.
Where mud flats offer a feast to the restless oyster catchers,
Where driftwood quietly slips away, away to another faraway land.
Hamish, Y8, age 12, Arrowtown School
Winter River
Pebbles line the riverbed,
The bare willows lie above,
Riverweed starts to freeze,
Dead leaves rustle in the wind.
The bare willows lie above,
Sparrows fly overhead,
Dead leaves rustle in the wind,
With the crisp smell of the air.
Sparrows fly overhead,
Riverweed starts to freeze,
With the crisp smell of the air,
Pebbles line the riverbed.
Sarah Y8, age 12, Arrowtown school
Chocolate, a musical sensation
I tear open the purple wrapper
with a satisfying rip!
The taste is soothing and mellow
like smooth jazz,
an orchestra of flavours on my tongue.
It fills me with addictive adrenaline,
once I start I cannot stop,
a drum solo in my mouth.
My taste buds explode
all the flavours in harmony,
I give in and admit defeat.
Chocolate is …
the ultimate beat.
Paddy-Kees Y8, age 12, Arrowtown School
Rain Guardian
If I could control the rain
I would be called the Rain Guardian
I would go to places like Egypt, Africa and Iran
And water the crops making them come to life
I would donate water for dying children and people
I can help the Earth become a better place
I can heal the hearts and souls of people in the world
BECAUSE I AM THE RAIN GUARDIAN
Anna Y6 Age 10, Fairburn School, South Auckland
Lonely Fox
Rain falling
leaves tumbling
fox squeaks
bush rumbling
water leaks
bees buzzing
fox drinks
spots a lynx
(unlikely),
best friends
will never end.
Clara age 8, Ilam School
Waiting
There is a boy waiting on a fence.
Waiting, just waiting
for his father to come home.
There is a woman looking out a window down a gravel road
waiting.
Waiting for her lover to come home,
home from the horrible battlefield
There is a mother with wrinkles of age painted on her face
sitting on a porch rocking back and forth, waiting.
Waiting for a child to come home.
She waits for the horror to end.
Waiting just waiting.
For a son,
a husband,
a father,
a man.
Waiting, just waiting
for a loved one to come home.
Jackson, Y8, age 12, Chisnallwood Intermediate, Christchurch
Poetry Box 