Students studied “Manhunt or Ode to First Kisses” by Elizabeth Acevedo. Asking themselves, how can poetry capture that wishing, yearning, hungering we know from being a little kid? As a class, we focused on sharpening our imagery and constructing a retrospective glance! Poems looked back through the perspective of the younger self, or leapt ahead distinguishing between older and younger kids.
Ms. Hernandez, Grade 7, 1st Period
We by Natalia G.
We, younger kids, tasted like freshly cut mango, sweet sticky candy and Cheerios.
We feel like soft, soft feathers falling from the sky.
We sound like chickens running, heads cut off,
pterodactyls searching for the right prey.
Football by Zerell S.
Young see
looks rough, colors green uniforms and grass.
Young hear
crack of the tackle, numbers yelled out.
Older kids taste salty sweat.
smell musty, and breath.
The Older Kids by Riley W.
The older kids look well dressed
The older kids smell like strong cologne
The older kids sound like music and beats.
The older kids taste like fast food.
The older kids sense games and playing.
Ms. Hernandez, Grade 7, 2nd period
We, Younger Kids by Giovanni A.
The older kids felt the wind on their face like a bird flying in the air.
We, younger kids, heard the fire alarm, like hundreds of bees buzzing in their ears.
The older kids smelled the fresh rain, like a waterfall in the forest.
We, younger kids, tasted the cotton candy and felt like a fluffy cloud.
The older kids broke their skin, it stung like a bee sting.
Barbarians by Adam E.
We, younger kids, tasted like candy.
We, younger kids, played tag and hide and seek.
We, older kids, smelled like sweat.
We, older kids, ran like barbarians.
We, older kids, spoke in slang.
We, younger kids, had fun with toys.
Cheese Pizza and Hot Chips by Brandon R.
Younger kids taste like cheese pizza and hot chips.
Younger kids smell like candy and dirt.
Older kids sound like loud music.
The Older Kids, The Younger Kids by Joel M.
The older kids sound of crickets, like camping in the night.
We, younger kids, looked at baseball getting hit like a whistle.
The older kids sound of music, car driving home with friends.
We, younger kids, felt like toys.
We, younger kids, smell like wind, kids running in the playground.
Roller Coaster by Monica S.
We as younger kids
tasted pizza while sitting in the sun.
We younger kids
felt the coaster go down.
We older kids
look for that day again.
We younger kids
sounded like happy yelling while rushing down.
We older kids
felt like we weren’t allowed on the rides anymore.
We younger kids
looked around to see the sky.
