Dorianne Laux describes “What’s Broken” in her poem of the same name. Before reading it, however, we talked briefly about metaphors and how they differ from similes. Discussing the poem, students noticed the metaphor at the end—“my heart // a blue cup fallen from someone’s hands”—for feeling sad, and as we looked at certain “broken” things Laux lists, I asked how, for example, “the slate black sky,” “water into drops,” or “days into nights” could be considered broken? As we concluded, we counted all the broken things in the poem, and I asked if anything else in the poem was broken? We decided that the poem’s eleven stanzas were broken, too, and that every line also has a break—the whole poem is broken!
You guessed it: this week’s student poems also focus on things that break or are broken.
Ms. Thiel, 2nd Grade
The Broken Window
Jane H.
The Broken Window
has holes, shaped like
hearts. It has one million
broken holes of hearts.
When it’s summer heat
comes through the holes.
When it’s fall the leaves
go through the holes. When it’s
winter, the snow goes
through the holes.
But they crack every time
that happens.
My Love
Ondra P.
Coming home not laughing
but crying
my love has
just been broken.
My heart shatters
like glass.
My heart falls into
pieces.
I feel like I’m at
the bottom of the
ocean.
I run home when
I run my shoes are
cracking and falling
apart.
That is a broken
heart.
The Broken Cell
Michael W.
I want to find the broken cell.
The bird jumps on the broken plate.
In half. The little boy’s arm
broke. I had not really a broken
life. My heart was starting to
fall down or I say fall out.
The Broken Computer
Sirun Z.
This computer is broken! What should we
do?
We can fix it. But we don’t have enough
money!
We only have $1 dollar! All our important
mails and stuff is on it!!!
I guess we’ll have to fix it ourself.
But we don’t know how!
Ring!!
Ring!!
Hey what’s up? I just heard your
computer is broken. And I’ll fix
it! It’s free!
Now our computer is working.
feeeeeoeew
Ms. Ward, 2nd Grade
Clouds
Kyndall C.
Clouds break sometimes
they’re my words in the sky
sometimes they break then
cover
up
the
sun
sometimes
it gets
dark
outside
only
sometimes.
But when
it does
I love it when
it does that
it seems cool
very cool.
What’s Broken
Elle C.
All I see is broken.
The blue sky broken by clouds.
The water in the ocean broken
into drops.
My necklace
broken. The beads scattering
west to east and east to south.
The tree in my
backyard broken by a leaf.
All I ever see is
broken.
Even the crayons I
use are broken. All I ever see
is broken.
Broken Stuff
Max M.
When I had an egg it broke
O no. I had a pencil the
lead broke. And so I checked
the paper oops it broke into pieces.
And a crayon broke too. This
is a broken city.
My Heart Is Broken
Sadie W.
When my heart is broken and
I have no friends
and my hope has gone
away forever and ever
and I
don’t think I’m going
to love again.
Ms. O’Connor, 2nd Grade
When Something Breaks
Kayla K.
One time I broke a promise.
Then somebody broke a pen-
cil. The pencil got so ma-
d he broke a crayon!
The crayon knew what h-
e had to do. Teach th-
em a lesson!
As he was at i-
t he broke the
rules. The rules
told the principal.
And that broke
the principal’s
heart!
Rocks That Break
Nika M.
Miners broke rocks to
find gold.
The rock said, “Don’t break
us!” One day a miner said,
“I found gold in a lake
over there” and they never broke
rocks again.
Jail
Xibao Q.
the bars are broken
now the robbers will escape
the police are mad
Broken Mouth
Ranya S.
I tried to open my
mouth but it just fell out.
My teeth are still
in so I could put on a
grin.
But I can’t cause
when I opened my mouth
my teeth fell out.
So all I had was a tongue
but all that tongue could
was break…
itself cause, my tongue has
a mind of its own! So now
I’m here with a……
Broken mouth
Ms. Rupp, 2nd Grade
A Ripped Paper
Courtney B.
One day there was a
ripped paper.
No don’t
rip me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was
blue. The
paper’s heart was
broken.
I am ripped!!!!!!!!!!!!
Why?!?!
As the Blades Hit the Ice
Quinn D.
As she puts on her ice skates
she steps on
the ice. The ice
starts to break and
the girl starts to shake.
She says to her mother
What do I do?
Her mother responds, just look at you!
She looks down
at her feet
as the ice breaks
some more.
She says to her mother
as she slips
and slides
I’m ice skating mother! The ice
breaks completely
and the girl falls
to the ground laughing
Broken
Atia L.
Broken, broken, broken
it’s all broken
I am a
broken pie
People break me
when they cut
me I don’t
know why
People like me but
sometimes I don’t like them
they eat me I know
I’m yummy but it hurts
when they eat me
Month Broken
Thomas Y.
I’m a month I
can break all I
do is pass away.
I come back
in a year
I’m the month November
then comes December.
November—bye 2015
November—hi 2016
Ms. Schwartz, 2nd Grade
Breaking Trees
Jeremy C.
Breaking trees are bad
because we need trees it
helps us makes paper
we need the paper
to write. Paper helps keep
organized. We also need
it because we need
fruit without fruit we won’t
grow.
Is That Broken?
Logan F.
Stuff broken
like a sphere broke
in half. Something
broke can be
broke by something
broke. Break a
video game
break a
TV you
won’t like
it. Break
the rules
break your
water bottle
break your
hand. Anything
can break
break can
be. Break
is life.
Is That Broken?
Rhiannon S.
Stuff broken like a cup in half.
Broken paper, pencils, paper folders.
Broken bottle caps. Grass, night sky to
day time. Hope can be broken and
sticky notes. Almost anything can break.
Fall in tears hearts can break bad.
Untitled
Ryan Z.
Lead can break by
using a little energy.
Pencils can break
by using a lot of energy.
