Imagery and Odes

For our second week at Nettelhorst 7th grade, we explored imagery and odes, using Elizabeth Acevedo’s poem “Rat Ode” as our reference poem for the day!  Acevedo shares her story of growing up in the Bronx and importance of writing herself into the stories she wants to be reading. Students were then tasked with writing their own odes, incorporating imagery from our brainstorm exercise using word maps or word bubbles to get us thinking of descriptive words around the subject of our odes! Check out this week’s selected poems.

Mrs. Hempe 7th Grade Group 1

Ode to Crunchy Leaves Smalls V.

When I walk in fall
Only orange, red and yellow
on the trees and ground
Then I see a leaf

Standing out from them all
a leaf, a blend of strong
and brittle.

It looks crunchy
Just a step out
of the way
Why not!

Crunch.

The structure breaking down
like a potato chip
The feel of leaf
becoming ever less.

The momentary feeling is gone.

Oh look, another one!

Ode to My Record Player Zoe G.

As you spin on the turntable
I bask in the glory of
complete peace.

You remind me of someone
So far away
who may be hearing
the same notes springing off
the vinyl

Somehow bumpy,  yet smooth
You taught me to be delicate
Yet do what I need

I know she’d be proud
That I know what’s
good and what’s not
I now see another piece of her
that I hadn’t before
because of you

I realize there is more than the present
so much I don’t know
But I’ll try

Purity J. an ode to "darkness"

you aren’t “light”; you could never be
“light” is good, “dark” is bad, as that is
the societal norm.

but no one knows what you truly
are, as your full colors are hidden from
the crowd.

you are so much more than what
people make you as;
as you hold beauty completely ethereal.
you are books, art, yin and yang,
the perfect balance needed so the world can
stay humane.

you are plants, animals, humans too
as your “darkness” brings color on the
pale and huges.

you are clothes, money, hair, and work;
as you illustrate the beauty, creativity
of the human mind.
you are the world, the highlight of the motherland

without you, we cease to exist,
as individuals, our thoughts close out
when we have no “darkness” to guide us throughout

the hard times, our struggling, our differences and hate,
because we have no darkness to guide our way

you are everything, as you are nothing
as your”darkness” consumes us, body and mind,
leaving us empty and fully, “darkness”…
TURNS TO LIGHT
so is “darkness” really bad?
because without darkness, we would have
no light.

Mrs. Hempe 7th Grade Group 2

Ode to My Dad Emma B.

ode to my dad
who makes pasta, pizza,
and empanadas on the weekends.

ode to hearing “GOALLLLL”
every time our team scores a
point in a soccer game.

ode to taking our whole family
to Italy and Argentina, and working
9-5 so we can be happy and
healthy.

ode to the silly jokes you
make that I say are stupid
but actually make my day.

ode to how nice you are
and to taking me shopping
so we could spend quality
time together.

ode to saying “yes!” when
mama says no.

ode to always being there
for me, Milo, and mama
whenever we need you.

ode to you: my dad,
my role model, The
Best Dad I could ever
wish for. I love you.
Te Quiero.

Joey S. Ode to a Jellyfish

Not man’s best friend,
and certainly not a favorite
But you don’t care and
you don’t mind
Unprovoked, just moving with
the current and the ebb and
flow of waves

You hurt people, but not on purpose
You just wanted to get closer, just to
make a friend
You accidentally sting, but it’s just
a mistake
It’s okay, you’re okay, everything’s fine, it was just a
mistake.

A quiet and silent being, just floating in
the endless, moving sea
You don’t do much, you just take up
space
But that space is valuable because it’s your space

Ode to Summer Sofia HN.

I must wait
as months go by:
January
February
March
April
May
June
Finally.

My patience did not last as
long
as I believed it would.
That’s okay.
I bide my time with
lists and
plans.

I remember.
I remember the scent of
flowers and
wet rain.
Of peaches and
strawberries.
I remember.
Remember the ocean
and the light breeze.