Swear to Howdy Poems

In Reading Workshop I recently finished the read aloud of Wendelin Van Draanen's book, Swear to Howdy. Students had to write a poem based on something from the book. Here are a few examples.

   

From Karlie
              It really happened
Me and Joey
We really killed her
We killed Amanda Jane
We didn’t mean to
We just wanted to make “the lost ghost”

              At First we were all ok
Sissy cried all the time
Longing for her best friend
And I longed for mine too
No One was the same any more
Especially Joey
We just weren’t the same anymore
Our friendship was breaking apart

then one night I heard the secret knock …

From Blayton
        Tank
Tank the fat, dark green, frog
Sat on the huge, muddy, muggy bank
Spewed and gushed out
Bright green, slimy, soaked tomaters

From Tayla
       A Promise
Joey and Rusty go together
like PB & Jelly
they are such good friends
making promises
having the best times
like playing in the river
on hot summer days
never forgetting
the day that Joey got bit
but no one will know because
they made a promise

From Jersey
        A True Friend

A true friend will have your back until the end
A true friend will not listen and do what you say
But will go out of their way to do the best for you
You may hate what they do but still love them
And when you lose them you always regret it.

You know you’re a true friend when you accept them
You know you’re a true friend when you are not to judge them 
or talk behind their backs meanly
Not to judge them for what their family acts like
Or what your friend doesn’t have that you have

You know you’re a true friend when that does not matter.
You can’t be a true friend if you hold grudges more than memories
you can’t be a true friend if you look back instead of forward
And you can not stay mad at them for more than a minute
It is in the name friend end is the last part
so they will be with you until the end and will never leave you

Super Teacher, EEEERRRR Maybe Not

It was the first day of school, and like every teacher, this Super Teacher wanted to get things started off right.  You know, start the year with a BANG!  I needed to get kids involved and motivated.  Reading Workshop was going to be THE CLASS!

With a little time on Youtube, I found a great video that featured Nick Vujicic.  I knew this would grab students' attention.  And then there was the read aloud of Swear to Howdy.  Even the most reluctant student would be engaged after the first chapter of this book.  I would rap it up with a motivational speech about putting forth a lot of effort, don't worry about mistakes, just keep trying.

 The power went out for about an hour, right as we started class.  So much for my great plan. Even when it came back on, there was no Internet service for the rest of the day.  So much for the awesome video.

The read aloud went as planned until the discussion.  Seth raised his hand and said, "Mr. McGuire, is your shirt on inside out?"  So unbelievable, but so true.  And so much for my day as Super Teacher.  This poor guy can't even get dressed right.

The best part was the response.  All of the students, teachers, and Mrs. Scott, the Principal got a good laugh.  And to top it off, the next morning 3/4 of my class showed up with their shirts on inside out.  Obviously, another great start to a great year for Super Teacher.  :)

Image Inside Out Shirt courtesy of donnyb.