12/5/13 - Stephanie started off by reading her poem. What is
the truth that you tried to reveal in your poem. Trying to show
the different views that people have about crying. Different
views on crying. Navaeh agreed with the concept of the poem.
What influenced you to write it was asked by Noha. Most of
Stephanie's pieces have to deal with sadness or stress. The
poems are based on inspirations that have happened to her.
Because Stephanie is currently seeking help to deal with certain
issues, she uses her poems as a vessel to release her emotions.
Why not choose poems with a happier tone of voice. She feels
more inspired when writing about her feelings. Why did you
choose that piece to publish? Had to pick a piece with a sign.
How did you feel while writing the poem? Had a very low self
esteem.
12/5/13 - Martha started off by reading her poem. I love your
title was stated by Joseph. Your eyes give a lot away. When you
are sad, your eyes will show it and the emotions. Unlike
Stephanie, the poem was not written for the moment; it was a
poem based on experience. This is not Martha's first time
writing a poem. It is a topic that Martha really likes to talk
about. This is Martha's favorite poem thus far. Martha chose to
make the sign eyes because the topic really intrigues her. You
can tell so much about how a person feels based on their eyes.
She thought about herself while writing it and about how her
eyes would have looked at the moment. She has had personal
difficulties in her life, especially with her self-esteem. She heard
the expression before and was intrigued about how the eyes
reveal their emotions. Joseph believed that Martha's poem was
deep. She wanted to give an image of the eye by describing
the colors of the eyes.
12/5/13 - Kimberly
Kimberly started off by reading her poem. How did you feel
while writing this poem? What were you going through?
Kimberly decided to start remembering things about her dog.
What inspired you to write about your dog. My dog is like
therapy. How did it feel to have something missing in your life?
Getting a dog filled a hole in her life. If no one understood your
poem, how would you explain it to them? Tell them about my
past and what my dog has to offer. Did the troubles in your
past disappear once you had your dog? Yes. Kimberly has had
her dog for about 4 years. Were there times when your dog
really annoyed you? Sometimes he destroyed things but she
forgave him because he was young and didn't know better.
How did he get the name? He had similar chinese eyes.
12/9/13 - Noha
Noha started off with Stephanie's question about how does it
feel to be a triplet? She hates being compared especially when
it comes to who is the smartest. Do you have more of a hate
relationship or a love relationship? She says that it depends on
the brother. Have your parents ever paid more attention to
your brothers than you? The brothers tend to get what they
want while she tends to get lectured. How would you change if
you weren't a triplet. She would have all of the attention. The
house would be quieter. If you were an older child, do you
think you would have regretted it? It would be boring. There
wouldn't be much to do. Why do you like going to Egypt? If
you could choose to live there would you? The only family here
is her uncle. The conditions in Egypt are not that good, but she
would still live there. Even though you have brothers do you
still feel alone. Since she does not have any sisters, she
sometimes feel alone. It would be nice to have a sister. How
would you modify your poem? Could not think of an answer.
12/9/13 - Roger
Roger started by reading his poem. You changed some of the
information while you were reading your poem…why?
Technical difficulties. Did you put any personal experiences in
this poem? My great grandfather was dying and while Roger
was at the funeral, it was a very sad day. The sky was just as
dark as they could be and it was a terrible day. The rose played
the part in which there was a bush that they would take care of
and it would be the best plant and the center of everything. A
rose was cut and placed on top of the dirt of his great
grandfather's coffin. The bush at home is still growing. The
poem went from tones very quickly, is that how you felt that
day? The poem is based on your great grandfather's death?
No, everything that I have witnessed and experienced and what
I know about life. The sign in the poem is life. One minute
everything is good and then the next minute, there is no more.
Why did you choose to write about this topic? The death of his
cat also inspired his poem. He has known the cat since he was
two years old. Would you write about a different topic if you
had a chance to? Roger would write about the sign meaning
life, however, it would be a lot happier. Do you like this poem?
Roger said that he hated writing that poem because the cat
was no longer alive. The poem kept reminding Roger of his
cat's death. Roger is in a good place right now. Roger says that
he has about 25 moods. He writes based on how he is feeling
at the moment. Roger has been writing poems and stories for a
while. Wrote the poem also for personal entertainment.
12/10/13 - Valentina
Navaeh wanted to know how many books Valentina has read.
Valentina had no idea. She is an ardent reader. If you had a
chance to write your poem all over again, why? This is the first
poem that Valentina has ever written that she has loved. What
was your motivation to start reading books. When she was little
she was always read to by her mother. Likes the Harry Potter
books. If your mother had not read to you, would you still have
a connection to books. If you could write about anything else,
what would it be about? Columbia. Martha didn't understand a
line from the poem. Are books the greatest significance to you?
No, it is my mom. If you had to do a poem about something
you didn't like, what would it be about? She hates cliffhangers
with a passion. It leaves a suspense. Don't the cliffhangers add
to the interest of wanting to read the novel more? There is a
love/hate relationship. How would life be different for you if
books didn't exist? She would find another interest. What was
your objective about writing about books. This is the first time
that Valentina has written for herself. When you read, do you
feel the characters' emotions? Yes, I do feel the pain. How do
they give you advice? Second-hand embarrassment - love that
comment!!!!! How do you feel about the books when the
movies do not match? I hate it! "Go with the plot!" Which book
is the most important one to you? I don't have a favorite book.
12/16/13 - Mariana
Mariana began with Melanie's question about her sign of fear.
Navaeh asked if whether she was scared of everything or not.
Mariana said that she is scared of everything and anything
especially on halloween. Could you describe a time when
something really scared you? Has it ever affected your daily
life? Sometimes when I get scared I don't want to talk or
anything. Can you explain the feeling of having fear? It is like
not feeling comfortable with your surroundings. When your'e
scared you don't know what to do. It is like having a closed up
feeling. She hates it when things pop up. Did you write this to
get something off of your chest? Everyone should be
comfortable with their surroundings. Has fear ever helped you
in any way. Have you ever written other poems. Yes. What
made this poem different from the rest. The only thing you
should be feared of is fear itself. This poem has more
significance. Fear makes you uncomfortable. Have you ever
tried confronting your fears? I tried when I was little, I hated
swimming. I jumped in and almost drowned. Do you think fear
helps people sometimes? I don't think so. When did you realize
that the only thing to fear was fear itself? The poem gave it
more meaning. Would you like your fear to go away? Yes. I
think my fear will hunt me down. I think it will haunt me when I
grow up. I will have to deal with my fears now in the future.
12/16/13 - Ryan
Roger started off by asking Ryan about his first verse which
stated life a beautiful thing - there is only one of its kind; you
are pretty much saying that you only live once. Why did you
choose such a strong topic? I always hear on the news about
how people kill themselves. He believes that he doesn't
understand how people could just end it all. Would you believe
it if I told you you had past lives but you didn't remember
them? When did you realize that life is a beautiful thing?
Sometimes when I'm having a hard time, I believe that life is
good. I have a family, money, home, food. Where did you learn
that you only live once and you never get another shot? Once
you die, you don't come back to life. How would you react if
you could live more than once? What's one word that pops in
your head when I say "life"? "leaves". I decided to write the
poem because it is something that we all know about because
we have one. Did it ever occur to you that even leaves have a
cycle of life. Yes he just noticed that.
12/17/13 - Navaeh
Navaeh started off by reading her poem. Thinking about all
that has happened in her life is what inspired her writing. She
enjoyed writing her poem, but she feels a little bit
uncomfortable when she reads it because she is not sure if this
is the best that she could do. Her uncle died when she was 6
and wanted to express that in her poem. It was almost as if she
was giving life back to him. She tends to avoid her true
feelings because if she paid attention to them she would be
sad. So you are more like a closed person? I try to blend in, but
at the same time I try to be myself. How is blending in working
out for you? My dad's best friend was very close to the family
and considered an uncle. I have a lot of close friends. Why do
you think hiding your feelings would make you an outcast? If I
did show my feelings, I would be considered sad all the time.
Don't you think those people are faking it too?
12/17/13 - Alejandra
What influenced you to write the poem? I always sit down with
my dog. Since he can't talk I feel as if he is the only one who
won't judge me. When did you get the dog? Two years ago. If
you could change your poem would you change it? I would
probably change it to writing about my family. My dog is a part
of my family and really important to me. How did you feel while
writing the poem? I wanted to cuddle my dog while writing the
poem. She was sitting with her dog while writing the poem.
Would you be the same if you never got your dog? He is my
best friend. What if your dog were to judge you? He probably
wouldn't say anything mean. When he starts to bark for no
reason or whine, it gets to be a little annoying. What would
your dog say if he could speak? When I'm depressed I hug my
dog. I would sacrifice myself for my dog. It would be easier for
a human to deal with that kind of pain than a dog. The dog is
her best friend, but since he can't talk or share secrets with her,
a human would make a best friend. How would you describe
your dog? Adorable.
12/17/13 - Dahianna
Dahianna started off by reading her poem. What inspired you
to write this poem? It was halloween. Would you say that
halloween has the most significance to you? No, not really. It
was just the time. What is your favorite holiday? I don't have a
favorite holiday. What do you like most about halloween. I like
getting candy and wearing the costumes. Would you have
written about another holiday if it were closer? Yes. What are
your goals? I want to grow up and I haven't really thought
about it. Any short term goals? Which costume do you like the
most? I like being a cat because it is fun to put on the makeup.
Do you like going out a lot? I like going out. If there were no
halloween, that would be depressing. I went trick or treating.
How would you describe your personality? I can be quiet
during classes. If I don't know you that well, I will be quiet. I
would describe myself as shy. What are some of your interests?
I like going camping, my favorite is winter because I like the
snow. I am the opposite of my family, they are funny and I act
normal. What would be your normal? I'm used to it. Are there
any benefits to being shy. Like I don't get in trouble that much.
I like tigers and I like orange and white. Tigers became my
favorite animal yesterday. How does it feel to be an only child?
My parents spoil me, so I like being the only child. What don't
you like about halloween? I don't like that it is on a school
night. Sometimes I have to be absent the next day. During
parties my parents get really loud. Christmas has presents, but
halloween has scares. I wrote poems in 4th grade. Would you
change your poem? No, because this poem is a little childish. I
am not really good at writing poems. If you could write about
something else, what would it be - probably a bracelet. What
would you add in to improve your poem? I don't like the
spotlight. I can't write deeply. I don't have experience to write
deeply. The bracelet was given to her two years ago by her
godparents at communion.
12/18/13 - Daniel
So you know what the moon lifts, what does that mean? It is
time to do things at night. I was out of ideas and then Ms.
Jones said, "time is almost up". I have these ideas where I think
so much in the future. this poem is from my future self. i like to
watch wrestling and draw and I like going to the zoo. If I were
to describe my personality in one word in would be creative.
When I go home, I watch tv. Did writing other poems help you
with this experience? I am not used to writing poems. I know
how to rhyme and stay on topic.
12/18/13 - Melanie
You wrote about your mom. Can you describe the relationship
with your mom? We have a love-sometimes not like
relationship. It is hard to describe. Why didn't you write about
another family member. I have never met my father. I didn't
write about my sister and I couldn't write about one without
writing about the other. My mom is like the second most
special person in my life. I have a love-sometimes not like
relationship with my mom because she is from Uruguay, she
has a temper. I would describe my mom as a great cook, very
independent, loyal, keeps her promises, and tends to think she
is always right. How would you tell yourself to improve the
poem? I would tell myself to just go with it. If you think too
hard about it, you may not like it. How would you describe
yourself. Short, very sneaky, not very honest, feel like I'm half a
person. I am a twin and there is a part of me that connects to
someone else. I am very…i don't know, I have never looked at
myself like that. Shy. Has an event changed you? When I was
little, like three years ago, I was not very responsible, but with
the birth of my nephew, I was forced to have to take care of
something. It makes me who I am because now I am more
responsible. I wrote my poem in spanish because I am half
american and half hispanic. My mom is very outgoing. You are
like the opposite to your mom? She wants to become a lawyer.
plan "b" is to live with my sister. What are your short term
goals? Not sure. I would help my mom with her health. Is your
mom like a guardian angel for you and if so, how? She took
me into her wing. What would you compare your mother to
and why? I'm not sure. Your mom is like the one and only and
nothing is really like her? Yes. I have written poems before.