Unique and underrated names

O’ School students had their 13th session of poetry on Monday. This week’s theme was about names. I asked students: Why are names important? If you could choose another name for yourself, what would it be and why? We discussed how names are very powerful; they help us introduce ourselves to others and they connect to our sense of identity. Sometimes the names that we’re born with might feel uncomfortable or doesn’t reflect how we see ourselves.

Together we read the poem “NaVadius Willburn,” by Marcus T. a former 6th grader from Shoesmith Elementary. In his poem, Marcus creates a new name for himself, by using alliteration and similes he describes how this new name expresses his vibrant personality.

After reading Marcus T’s poem, students were asked to write their own poems, giving themselves imaginative names to help discover new ideas about who they are as individuals.

Group A Middle School

Sapphire (my birthstone)

I’m as blue as a rare butterfly.
I’m smart, silly, and strong.
I’m as smart as an owl.
I’m silly as a seal.
I’m bright, bold, and dazzling.

Cool Caden

Confident, clumsy, cold
Confident as a lion.
Clumsy like a monkey.
Cool as a cat.

Casper

I’m misunderstood, microscopic, and manic.
I have torn thoughts, in troubled times.
I feel as if I was born to understand
but not to be understood.
My mismatched mind echoes for freedom.

Pepper

I’m proud and polite.
I’m fierce like a wolf.
Proud as a wolf.
I’m eager and extraordinary
As eager as a mammal.
Ambitious and annoying.
I’m perky but a little bit spicey.

Group B Middle School

George B. McDermott

I’m as unique as a normal person.
I’m unique cause I am identified
and educated.
I make helpful self-tools to make
school easier.
And I love coffee and chocolate
or mint ice cream.
I’m precise*
I make mistakes and I get
things done, fixing any
errors and with precision.
I will formulate ideas
the likes of which you have
never seen before.

The Spontaneous

I am cunning as a fox.
I’m so small I could fit in a box.
(I did and a suitcase and an instrument case)
My fingers are slender and can carefully pick locks.
My skill in sports is lots,
I can always beat the jocks.
I will ignore the clock,
I have the perfect tactic,
as I hear the appliances go
and say tick-tock,
I can stick with a pack,
but I’m still ok if there’s a lack.

Onyx

Onyx is like a midnight sky.

I am kind and kooky.

My smile shimmers like a pool
in the summertime.

I’m as cool as a cucumber.

I am shiny, sparkly, and magical.

Sargent Alex McSmith

The Muppet was magnificent and marvelous.
The uniform was above the rest.
The name was Sargent Alex McSmith
He wore a general’s jacket.
For he stole it.
Gun in hand, grip on his grenade,
he jumped off the boat,
ready for battle.