All posts in Smyser

A poem for those we admire

This week at Smyser Elementary, we learned about performance poetry and watched a poem by Sarah Kay titled “Mrs. Ribeiro.” Students learned about similes and practiced writing our own while thinking about a person […]

Our Favorite Objects

At Smyser Elementary in our 4th grade classrooms, we looked at the poem “Perhaps the World Ends Here” by Joy Harjo. Students learned about personification and used word bubbles or word maps to help […]

Memories and Images

Starting off our 2nd week and Smyser Elementary, we explored imagery, the five senses, and writing from our memories! We looked at the poem “When I was Six” by Aimee Nezhukumatahil. Check out some […]

Paint me…

Starting off our poetry class at Smyser Elementary, we looked at a poem by Delia Garcia titled “Paint Me Like I Am” (workshop adapted by another PIR, Joy Young). These young poets learned about […]

Love Letters

For our final poem of the residency, the 4th graders at Smyser tackled love poems, but not your ordinary love poem. We read “Love Letter” by Nathalie Handal and analyzed the form she used […]

Visual Poems are Worth 1,000 Words

This week the 4th graders at Smyer wowed me with their visual poems. See for yourself! Ms. Erzumly’s Class: Audrey, Raven, Santiago, Maya, Anonymous   Ms. Edward’s Class: Samuel, Daniel, Erica, Tara, Grace

[…]

Butterflies Cannot Lie

This week, Smyser’s 4th graders and I wondered how it might feel to step into someone or something else’s shoes for a day. We read Advice from a Raindrop by Kim Stafford and then […]

Ode to all the little things!

Our first week back after the break, the Smyser 4th graders and I took some time to be grateful for the little things, and practice more descriptive language with our odes! We read Ode […]

4th Graders and their 5 Senses

This week at Smyser Elementary the talented 4th graders take you on a journey of the senses! Enjoy their fantastical and realistic places of peace, and all the sights, smells, tastes, and sounds that […]

Words are the Clouds

Last week at Symyser, the 4th graders and I read Words are Birds by Francisco X Alarcón. In addition to finding the connections Alarcòn makes between words and birds, we identified how the poem […]

Donate

Support our student poets today!

CONNECT WITH US!

Twitter Facebook-f Instagram

STUDENT POETRY

Click on a school name below to browse student poems from current school partners.

POETRY ARCHIVE

Click on a school name below to browse student poems from our archive.

RECENT FACEBOOK POSTS

TESTIMONIALS

“Writing poetry makes me feel like I can see myself, like I can see my reflection, but not in a mirror, in the world. I write and I know I can be reflected.”
-Oscar S.

“Writing poetry makes me feel free.”
-Buenda D.

“Writing poetry is like your best friend.”
-Jessica M.

Search

CONTACT US

General Inquiries
info@poetrycenter.org

Programs (School & Organizational)
programs@poetrycenter.org

Reading Series and Events:
curator@poetrycenter.org

The Chicago Poetry Center is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
FEIN: 23-7400515

SEND US A POSTCARD

Chicago Poetry Center
1448 E. 52nd St, #256
Chicago, IL 60615

I’M FROM THE CITY LIGHTS / STREAMING OUT IN THE NIGHT / AND HUGE SKYSCRAPERS / TOWERING OVER THE LAKE – MELISSA E., 7TH GRADE POET