# The school poetry assignment and the 10-year-old boy **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 12, 2009, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513 "2009-02-12T10:38:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/1 "2009-02-12T10:38:35Z")
The background: As part of his homework, my son (grade 6, not quite 11 yrs old) had to write a poem tonight. He enjoyed the process so much that he speculated that he might want to be a poet when he’s grown up - not as a main career, but on the side. He said he would share his poems with others over the internet. Being Mom, I said “well, you don’t have to wait until you’re a grown-up to do that. Tell you what, if you want I’ll put your poem on the Straight Dope.” That kind of made him nervous, but also fascinated him. So below, I print his poem. Maybe other kids would like to see their poetry on the internet - any parents out there have some of their children’s poems to share? It seems like a nice way to encourage poetry writing and reading, a sadly neglected activity in these times. ON HUMANITY by CairoSon Can one achieve independence? Think before making a reply. Think, without the air how would we live? Without land how could we stand? Without each other how would we speak? Without the sun how would we see? Without plants how would we eat? Without water could we drink? Think now of man’s weakness. ---
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/2 "2009-02-12T10:43:27Z")
Honestly, how much did you help him? Because that’s really, really good. Tell him that I thought so, and that I have an MA in English Lit from Oxford University - should be encouraging for him. ---
**Author:** ![shantih](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@shantih](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shantih)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/3 "2009-02-12T10:51:26Z")
I just have a BA in English Lit from William & Mary, but I agree that his poem is amazing for his age. Okay, for any age. Nicely done! Wow, 10 years old and a published poet! How will he top this at 11? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 11:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/4 "2009-02-12T11:05:29Z")
Thanks for the nice words! He’ll be happy. The only help I provided was to correct the spelling of “independance.” I soooooo badly wanted to add a comma or dash in the line “without water, could we drink?” but resisted the urge to change his work. He said he was excited about reading other kids’ work in this thread, so I do hope some proud parents stop by and respond. ---
**Author:** ![Booker57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Booker57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Booker57)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/5 "2009-02-12T11:11:36Z")
Writing this thru tears. He’s 10! So good. ---
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 11:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/6 "2009-02-12T11:12:51Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > The only help I provided was to correct the spelling of “independance.” I soooooo badly wanted to add a comma or dash in the line “without water, could we drink?” but resisted the urge to change his work. Well resisted, it’s not necessary. The only change I might make is with the last line (maybe losing it entirely), as I think it overplays the point. But overall a great piece. Keep him going at it, although he’s a poet already. > [@](#): > > He said he was excited about reading other kids’ work in this thread, so I do hope some proud parents stop by and respond. My daughter’s only two. So whilst she’s exceptionally gifted for her years blah de blah etc etc, we might have to wait a bit on that one. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/7 "2009-02-12T13:08:01Z")
My 7-year-old daughter (younger of two girls, middle of 3 children) composed this poem as part of an illustrated booklet she put together as a Christmas present for her grandfather. I strongly suspect it is directed at my wife (her mother) and refers to events of this past summer. The capitalization, spacing and indentation I give here mirror what she hand-wrote on paper. ```auto THE BEACH The Beach is hot, Like a boiling Pot, Until you go in the w a t e r. Then the beach is cold, And you never told Your poor, shivering Daughter. ``` I don’t know where she got the idea to capitalize the way she does. I wonder if she’s been reading 17th Century literature without my knowing? ETA: I’m trying to format how she wrote “water” but it’s not coming through. They’re interleaved with different indentation, I suppose to look like water flowing or dripping. ETA2: It seems “code” formatting was the way to go. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/8 "2009-02-12T13:17:19Z")
BTW **CairoCarol** , that is excellent work, and I especially appreciate that you resisted over-editing his work. Let him find his own voice. It may be rough at first but there is a gem there for sure. ---
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/9 "2009-02-12T13:38:28Z")
**robardin** , that’s another really good one. My congrats to your daughter - it made me laugh and I love what she did with the layout. I think that children are much more into words and wordplay than we generally realise, and this should be encouraged from as early as possible. Poetry, which most of us adults see as stuffy and boring, can be great fun for kids. What are nursery rhymes after all? Your kids might enjoy the [Michael Rosen](http://www.michaelrosen.co.uk/) website. He’s a really great children’s poet from the UK (don’t let his ‘goofy’ looks put you off). In fact I should email him the poems - I’ve heard he’s pretty good at getting back to people. ---
**Author:** ![jali](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecae2f/32.png) [@jali](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jali)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/10 "2009-02-12T13:49:17Z")
I love both of these poems. Amazing for both children. My children are big now, and I don’t have samples of their work, but I remember my first poem. Here’s my first poem ever at about 7 or 8: (not deep kid at all - smile) Spring is happiness to keep Little birds go peep-peep-peep No more winter ho-ho-ho We are tired of the snow Happiness is in the air We are glad that Spring is here. ---
**Author:** ![jali](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecae2f/32.png) [@jali](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jali)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/11 "2009-02-12T13:52:16Z")
> [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](#): > > **robardin** , that’s another really good one. My congrats to your daughter - it made me laugh and I love what she did with the layout. > > I think that children are much more into words and wordplay than we generally realise, and this should be encouraged from as early as possible. Poetry, which most of us adults see as stuffy and boring, can be great fun for kids. What are nursery rhymes after all? > > Your kids might enjoy the [Michael Rosen](http://www.michaelrosen.co.uk/) website. He’s a really great children’s poet from the UK (don’t let his ‘goofy’ looks put you off). In fact I should email him the poems - I’ve heard he’s pretty good at getting back to people. Hi Michael. I like your site! ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/12 "2009-02-12T13:53:56Z")
> [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](#): > > I think that children are much more into words and wordplay than we generally realise, and this should be encouraged from as early as possible. Heh. My youngest child has a mischievous streak with words all right. Not in a poetical way but in a “take it literally just to be funny” way. When he was 2, my wife told him to watch out for a puddle of spilled soda at the playground – “just walk around it”. He gave her a crafty look, then proceeded to do a full circle walk (like playing duck-duck-goose) around the puddle before continuing on. Similarly, when his 2-year-old cousin kissed him on the cheek one day, he was told he should “kiss her back”. Again with the crafty look, followed by him leaning over and kissing her. On her back. ---
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/13 "2009-02-12T14:01:06Z")
> [@jali](#): > > Hi Michael. I like your site! Ha! If you are suggesting that I am he, and he is me; then I have to plead not guilty! Though I did meet him once. And **robardin** , that’s exactly the kind of thing I mean. I have seen kids told off for that kind of behaviour! ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/14 "2009-02-12T14:17:51Z")
For anyone who has dreams of poetry obtain [Stephen Fry’s _The Ode Less Travelled_](http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ode-Less-Travelled-Unlocking-Within/dp/009179661X) the greatest book ever written about writing poetry. As an added bonus you can direct people to his guided tour at [The Poetry Archive.](http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/singleTour.do?tourId=6712) ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/15 "2009-02-12T14:34:24Z")
Holy Toledo - both those poems are great for people of ANY age!! Really proud of these small fries for their mastery of concept and wordplay!! ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/16 "2009-02-12T14:41:47Z")
oh **robardin** , that’s just captivating! CairoSon has gone to sleep but I can’t wait until he wakes up so I can show it to him. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/17 "2009-02-12T18:00:57Z")
Tell your son it’s great! (English major at Cornell.) 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/18 "2009-02-12T18:07:36Z")
Wow. I’m impressed. It’s better than what I was writing at that age, and I’m a _good_ writer. It’s worthy of a T-shirt at Cafe Press, which I would probably buy. 🙂 As an editor, though, I would make one change. I would change the third line slightly to: “Think. Without the air how would we live?” That separates the two sentences and gives “Without the air…” the same structure as the following five lines. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/19 "2009-02-12T18:26:53Z")
**CairoCarol** , there is more than a trivial chance that my sister is your son’s teacher. I am privvy to no specific knowledge, but the puzzle pieces all fit together. The chances that it is not the case are much, much greater, of course, but still… ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [February 12, 2009, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513/20 "2009-02-12T20:24:29Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > … > “Think. Without the air how would we live?” > … Nitpick: I’d use a colon. Still, nice poem! Now you have to get him started on limericks and haiku. I loves me some haiku… **CairoCarol** ’s son shows promise as a poet as we Dopers see. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-school-poetry-assignment-and-the-10-year-old-boy/485513.md?page=2)