And the Winner Is...

On Friday the students used the chart below to vote for a winner for the free Verse Contest. It was a tough choice because each and every entry had its own merits. When I showed the students the Free Verse Contest entries on http://www.poets.org/ I was expecting a rendition tha was "Sixth gradeish", but what I got instead were posters that could go toe to toe with adult entries. They really out did themselves!

Free Verse Project Contest

• Most visually appealing
  
• Most creative
• Clear connection between the words and the image
• Thought provoking
  

And the Winner Is:

These souls who will soon climb through clouds



"In The Memphis Airport"

by Timothy Steele








In the Memphis Airport

by Timothy Steele

Above the concourse, from a beam,
A little warbler pours forth song.
Beneath her, hurried humans stream:
Some draw wheeled suitcases along
Or from a beeping belt or purse
Apply a cell phone to an ear;
Some pause at banks of monitors
Where times and gates for flights appear.
Although by nature flight-endowed,
She seems too gentle to reproach
These souls who soon will climb through cloud
In first class, business class, and coach.
She may feel that it’s her mistake
She’s here, but someone ought to bring
A net to catch and help her make
Her own connections north to spring.
She cheeps and trills on, swift and sweet,
Though no one outside hears her strains.
There, telescopic tunnels greet
The cheeks of their arriving planes;
A ground crew welcomes and assists
Luggage that skycaps, treating bags
Like careful ornithologists,
Banded with destination tags.