Odes

One consistently popular poetic form among students is the ode. They are drawn to its exalted style, used to celebrate everyday things otherwise taken for granted. We read Pablo Neruda's "Ode to a Large Tuna in the Market" and discussed how he describes the tuna, as well as how he feels about it. Students were then given the choice of writing either an ode to something they love, or an anti-ode to something they hate. There were so many excellent responses, it was difficult to choose, but here is a representative selection.

Ms. Jones, 3^rd grade

Ode to Chocolate

Allison C.

Among the table

sat a bar

of chocolate

melting in

the hot sun

my eyes glazed

down at the

chocolate as if

my eyes were

glued to the chocolate

bar

Ode to Books

Jennifer H.

Books are cool

and good to read.

They are good

to take out

when you're bored.

Some books are

big, some books

are small.

My head

is full of

books to read.

They make you

smart.

Anti-Ode to Tests

Aleena I.

Oh test how you

bother me with your

hard questions. You

make me cry when

my grades go low.

You knock me off

the honor roll!

Anti-Ode to Homework

Zohaib S.

Homework! Homework! Noooo...

Homework! I don't like

homework. The homework comes

from teacher mind!

My mind gots wild. 2+52, 3+1, 300.

Wwwooo. My mind hurts.

Ode to My Dog

Jerry T.

Among all the pets

I picked you.

For when I came

to your cage

you looked at me

with your beady

black eyes.

You tilted your

head, and

licked my hand.

As I looked

at the other

dogs, you

stood on your

hind legs, and

looked at me.

From that point

on I couldn't

resist you and

that's when I

knew, that I

needed you.

Ode to Candy

Eric W.

I like candy it

is sweet, it has

sugar, it smells good,

every kid likes candy,

it is great, it

gets you very hyper,

no one hates it,

no one can resist

it, it's the most

wonderful thing in

the world, it gives

you cavities, you have

to go to the dentist,

it tastes different

flavors.

Ms. Goode, 5^th grade

Ode to Guitar Hero

Georel A.

Those about to rock,

we salute you,

press those tiny frets,

green, yellow, red,

blue, orange,

keep strumming,

hold the fret,

whammy, use the whammy.

If you have all

games,

more than 100 songs

of rock, metal, and jazz.

Rock with your friend,

let him/her cooperate,

be filled with spirit,

you're going to fail,

activate it,

tilt your guitar up,

STAR POWER!

Ode to Ms. Goode

Dragos B.

Ms. Goode is a

great teacher

she is realistic.

When she means

it she means it.

She is nice but

when you get on

her nerves she

does not kid around.

Some people think

she is mean but many

think she is very, very

nice.

She has very many

nice, nice ideas!!

Ode to Summer

Sang H.

All summer

so much heat

green seas

all around

blue skies

high above

the summer cruise

is sailing

So relaxed

in a good

mood

the king of

seasons

the hot

sand at

the beach

the cool

water in

the lake

Summer is the

greatest

Ode to Nice Teachers

Keyla J.

Nice teachers

are funny. They

are fun too. Ms. Goode

is a nice teacher. Ms. Thomas

is funny and fun. I'll never

have a not funny teacher.

Ode to the Books in the World

Aimee P.

Pages rustling,

beckoning.

Casting a spell,

you are trapped.

Struggling to get out,

you lose the battle.

Dragons and knights fight,

a girl,

losing her parents to...

Death.

The pages whisper and...

you listen.

Horror, death, love.

All in the books.

Stop...

and listen.

The books are whispering,

beckoning.

Ode to My Small Necklace

Cristina T.

The beautiful necklace

I have never worn.

It just sits in

the last solitary box.

I don't

know why I have

never worn it.

The solitary box

has its key.

I just

want to find the

key, and stick it

in. then I'll see

the blue sapphire

and stare at it.

That sparkly

dazzling beautiful

necklace, that

I would wear.

But I really

don't care!

Mr. Sandlass, 4^th grade

Anti-Ode to Spinach

George L.

Spinach not cool

Spinach smells like my

dad's gym socks

My mom makes me

eat it

It's all leaf

It's very green

It's disgusting

Ode to My Family

Kaelin M.

My family I love

because they

will not

hurt me and I

can trust them with

my secrets. When

I am sad they

warm my heart,

they also make

me feel good.

Instead of making

me feel bad they

will encourage

me.

Ode to My Sammy Sosa Bobblehead

Sam S.

Sammy Sosa bobblehead,

just sitting by yourself,

bored,

having headaches,

always feeling blue,

and never getting attention.

But when I go

to bed,

you are probably

always very happy.

Sammy Sosa,

you are my

favorite baseball player.