More about Skeleton Creek

Check out this link about the book and author from Scholastic.

More about the author, Patrick Carman.

Poetry

Poetry Pairings - Poems paired with other genres!  VERY COOL - from NY Times.

Writing poetry:

I am poem - online format!

Let's find some mentor texts - great poems to read and ponder!

Space Poetry

Love Poems

Advice Blog!

Need some advice?

Want to know what 8th graders have learned during their time at JHMS?

Check out their blog!

You'll find poetry and advice about friends. Trust me, it's worth the visit!!

Teton Science School

"I'm scared to go alone," I said.
"Don't worry! You'll have fun," she replied, "and you'll meet new friends."

"OK," I said,"I'll try".
My trip to Teton Science School was about to begin.


At the beginning of the canoe trip, I felt really excited to race, play games and many other activities. We were going to String Lake. We got out of the van. Then, we had to wait for the van with the canoes. "How much longer do we have to wait?" I asked Cat, who was one of my instructors.
The canoes finally came, we had to carry them down to the water.

"Wow! These are really heavy," Emily said, a friend who I had just met.
"They're green," I announced to Lexy when I saw the canoes coming. I knew that Lexy liked green and would be excited about the canoes being green.
"I know," Lexy said excited. Green canoes could only mean one thing, we were going to have fun.
After we put the canoe in the rippling water, we had our first lesson. We put our life jackets on and got into the canoe. I felt excited and strange. I was in the back of the canoe, so I had a hard time paddling. I had to switch seats with Hunter. I sat in the middle, and Hunter sat in the back. We finally caught up with our teammates, and we started playing a game. It was canoe basketball. We were divided into two teams. There were three canoes on each team. The hoops were behind each of instructors. We had to pass the ball after we had it for five seconds. We got really wet, especially when we got the ball because it usually landed in the water and was soaking wet. Being wet was refreshing on a hot day. My team scored, but we didn't win.

After the basketball game, we got to race to the bridge. The first canoe to reach it won. Some of us got stuck on the rocks, but we got loose. We used our paddles to move the canoe off the rocks.

Finally, we got a break. We were supposed to chase a coyote or the bear. Do you wonder what this means? Well, this is how the teachers at T.S.S. say, "Go to the bathroom." Chase a coyote means to go pee. And, chase the bear means...well, you know!

I asked Cat, "Can we can get into the water and swim?"

I thought she was going to say no, but she answered, "Yes, but only up to you knees."

After swimming, we got back into the canoes; I knew it was going to be tricky. We had a race up to the boulder in the center of the lake. The boulder was like a soldier standing at attention. It seemed solid out there with waves crashing into it. "GO!" yelled Cat.

Once we got there, we joined up with three canoes. Together, we had to come back to the shore. We connected by holding onto the side of the canoe. The people in the middle canoe had to hold on, while the people in the outside canoes paddled. It was hard, but I knew we could do it. We went far; I was proud. We learned a lot about teamwork that day.

our next trip was to Yellowstone. I felt excited to see the geysers. When we got to Old Faithful, we ate lunch. My stomach's growl was an earthquake rumbling. Old Faithful only blew steam, just like a hot cup of tea. Luke said, "Old Faithful won't explode for an hour." I didn't want to wait; I wanted it to explode now.

"Then let's go see the other geysers while we wait," Cat said. While we walked around, we saw other geysers. The geysers were full of water, drops of water scattered and rained down everywhere. I saw little rainbows everywhere. Now I knew what to expect once Old Faithful exploded. We saw Cat and the others sitting on benches waiting for Old Faithful to explode. They were all sitting in a single file like a shelf with stuff animals.We sat with them and finally Old Faithful exploded.
Old Faithful looked like a big drinking fountain. It looked like it was going to hit an airplane. It feel like we were 2 feet away, and the hot steam blew in your face ) I wished my mom could see it. The hours past as quickly as at school. I was really happy to see the geyser, and I wished this could last.

The next day we went to hike the mountain. The mountain looked like a giant looking down at me. I thought the hike would be easy, but it wasn't. I was the first in the lead, just like the leader of a wolf pack.

"Wait for the others, Janet," Luke said.

"OK," I answered. While I waited, I . All of my friends caught up, and we were half way up. The trees were starting to leave the move we walk. Every thing looked like in was dead.that's what I thought. Once we were half way, I was in the middle of the pack, not in the lead any more. My body was begging to go back down. I was really tired, yet I tried to keep up with them, and every step I took it got harder. I wanted my feet to stop moving at once. Finally, we were at the top.
Once I was at the top the air blew through my soggy hair. My back was crying for help. I could feel my lungs every time I took a deep breath. Then I was going back down. While I was going down, I found a rock and stared to carve a wolf out of it. I also lost my water bottle. Once we were down, my friend Lexy and I were going to the bathroom. She asked a weird question, "What is that weird looking rock over there?"

I looked, confused about what she asked. I thought I was talking to a crazy person. I said, "That is not a rock; its a bear!" My eyes were shining with excitement and shock. It was small with brown hair trying to find some food. when it stood up i see the tummy of the bear all all full of hair I jumped to make sure it was true.

I was really excited and scared to see a bear. I ran towards Luke, almost tripping. I was yelling, "Bear! Bear!!"
He told us to startle or yell or talk to the bear to get it to leave, and I did want the bear to leave. When the bear left, he looked annoyed, and we got in the van and left for camp.


A couple of days past, and then it was the last night. I ran towards the fire excited and with a weird feeling in my gut. We told stories, ate s'mores, and sang songs. I was sad of not been able to tell scary stories luke thought we will have nightmares. The smores tasted like a really sugary piece of candy.We weren't allowed to eat more than two s'mores, and at the end we sang a song. Only three of my friends who knew the Sponge Bob song. Then we finished we went to sleep. My tent was dark as a cave. I was so sad and excited that it was the last night. I just wished TSS could last longer. Once we woke up we packed our luggage, got on the van, and left. I ran toward the van to be the first one in. Instead of taking two hours to get home, it took four. I didn't care because I was so happy that I had two extra hours to be with my friends.

Once we were back, we took everything out of the trailer and the van. I found lots of clothes, a water bottle, and a backpack under my seat. "Whose is this?" I asked.
Emily said, embarrassed, "That's mine."

We got all our belongs out and cleaned the van. We have to clean the windows,vacuum the inside, and wash the outside. All of the extra food was sent to kitchen and the cooler were washed. Our tents were cleaned. When we finished, we waited for our parents to come. All my friends' parents didn't come so we sat together. We went into a meeting room. Betsy introduced the camping groups. Then the slideshow started. One by one the pictures came out: every time I saw my picture I was embarrassed. We laughed at the ones that were funny. At the end of the slide show we went to find our parents. I saw my mom. I felt lots of happiness of seeing her again. I said, "Ma."

She answered, "Te gusto."

I replied, "Si mucho."

Emily, Kayla, Lexy, Regan and Emma came to say good-bye and I introduced them to my parents. Before we left, I went to say good-bye to Luke and Cat. "Are you coming back to T.S.S.?" Luke asked.

I answered, enthusiastically, "Yes, I am."

"Then I will see you next time," Cat said. I left with my bag of clothes and my hiking backpack. I was sad to be leaving.

by ~ Janet

I learned that I can go do the same activities many times and still learn more. I discovered that being so close to a grizzly is exciting and scary at the same time. I never realized leaving my parents for a week would make me miss them so much. I was proud when my successful journey ended.

Don't be Afraid!

Willow Street Preschool

I was ready, I felt excited. I had to go to sleep early. I had to go to sleep at 8:00 p.m. Before I went to sleep, I had to put my pencil, markers, and scissors in my backpack. Then, I ran around in circles as fast as I could. Suddenly, my dad grabbed me, threw me in the air, and flew me around like an airplane. After that, I went to my room and my dad tucked me in. I felt scared and happy to go to preschool. I turned my nightlight on and checked under my bed for monsters. I could imagine them looking at me. Their eyes yellow, staring at me. They would be big and fat. However, all I found was a dark floor covered with night.

The next day, I grabbed my backpack, but I almost forgot to change into my new school clothes. I quickly changed into my clothes, but then when I opened the door, my parents told me that I had forgotten my backpack! I started running to my backpack, but instead I ran to the car. I was CRAZY! My dad and mom thought I was funny

My dad and mom took me to school, and I was singing a song that I had learned from my grandma back in Mexico. When she sang it, she sounded like angels singing with bells ringing. She sang it like no one would ever sing it again in a million years. The ride went on forever. On the way to school, I told my parents about my dream. "My teacher was Winnie the Pooh!"
They laughed.
I said, "I hope she is."
Dad said, "You know, Carlos, she won't be Winnie the Pooh."
I said, "Will she be Barney?!"
They laughed again, and Dad said, "No."

When we got there, I entered the school with only my mom. At first, I thought it was the doctor's office. When I looked inside, a woman was with a bunch of kids. I started walking into the room. She said, "Hi!" Then, she showed us around. When my mom was leaving, I grabbed her hand and was going to leave with her, but she told me to stay. I grabbed her leg and started crying. It took five people to pull me off my mom's leg.

My teacher said, "Don't worry! Don't cry!" Then, right away she put on a Winnie the Pooh movie my mom had given her before she left. We watched the movie with popcorn. The popcorn was delicious; it had butter and salt. After that, we played Hide and Go Seek, and I was found second to last. My favorite part of the day was when I met a new friend named Sergio. He is still my friend today. That was the beginning of preschool.

I now realized that preschool is fun. I want people to know that school is something their children will be avid about. I want all little kids to not be scared or sad because it turns out the Willow Street Preschool is fun.


by ~ Carlos

Student Poetry

Sometimes

I am my best friend,
I am the only one who
understands me:
My problems,
The things I do
and the reasons why I do them.
I am the only one who understands
the reasons I am
like I am.

Sometimes

I am my worst enemy
I don’t even understand myself
why I say and do the things I
say and do
Why do I cause problems?
Why am I so negative?

I don’t know why
and that makes me
want to be alone
I don't want people to talk to me
my whole self begs for isolation
so I can escape into nothing

and

my heart aches to be hugged.

Sometimes

~Alejandra


Paradise

I hold my breath
as I dive in
Entering the deep dark hole

a deep dark forest

my paradise

The sweetness starts to
melt slowly
It forms a river

It trickles
into my tummy.
A river of melted deliciousness
rolls into my throat.
It's getting smaller and smaller.
I'm in heaven.
It cascades down

I swallow.

Chocolate

by ~ Yesenia

Dinosaurs

I live with a dinosaur.

It was a terrific day

when it start crawling.

That day was perfect, terrific, and
I felt nothing could ruined it.

I thought I was sleeping,
dreaming,
as I watched the dinosaur crawling
toward me,

but I was awake.

Then,
it bit my hand,
the pain made me think
my hand was asleep,
tingling,
burning.

Anger made me want to
hit the beast.

Instead, I open its mouth.

I counted its teeth.

Surprised I found

eight teeth.

I couldn't believe it.

There were eight
sharp

dinosaur
teeth...

and they were in
my sister's
mouth!

by ~ Francisco

My neice - Lindsay

MY NEW NEICE

Once I was in Jesus', my brother's, house and he told me, "You are going to have a new niece!" Happiness flowed throughout my body. In my mind, I saw all pink because I wanted the baby to be a little girl. I couldn't wait to tell my friends at school. My family was so excited because we were going to have a new member in our family. I thought, "GREAT!" I wanted to jump; I felt so good.

When my sister-in-law, Maria Guadalupe, went to the doctor, they did an ultra sound on her stomach. When my brother Jesus showed me the picture from the ultra sound, I felt like I was the happiest person the universe. I saw the picture of my niece; it was black and white. The baby looked like a bowl of love. I could see her head, legs, arms, and her body. Once a week - at least - I asked my brother,” How many more months? I want my niece now!" I wondered what she would look like. Mexicans always say, "With whom does she looks like?" That means, "Does the baby look like her mom or dad?" I was secretly hoping that she would look a little like me.

When I heard my brother saying, "I am going to have a baby-shower," I got even more excited because I knew would be born soon, not too many months away. My nephew's godmother had prepared the baby shower. It looked good because it was all decorated with baby pictures, pink colors, and there was a chair where Maria Guadalupe sat. Next to her there was a table; on the table, there were baby bottles with pink balloons. I really enjoyed the games, especially when two women had to dress two other women in baby clothes. They made the clothes out of paper. When they made the diaper, it was the funniest moment of the entire shower. I was so happy that day. Another game was a thinking game. We had to grab clothes pins off a line. Every time we grabbed a clothes pin, we had to name something the baby would need. If we dropped a clothes pin, our turn was over. We all started to laugh when Maria, my brother's coworker, said, "A baby needs her mama!" Another game included a baby bottle pin. Everyone wore a pin that was clipped on our clothes, and if someone saw me crossing my feet, they could take away my baby bottle pin! When my cousin got my pin, I smiled and gave it to her. The baby shower made me so happy because, all the babies that I see make me feel so happy. When I think about my nieces and my nephews, my smile stretches across my face.


Lindsay was born September 22, 2009. I remember because it was picture day at JHMS.

When I first carried her, I felt so happy. She was so, so small, as small as a kitty. She looked so cute, and she was also so hairy. I felt scared to hold because she was so small. I thought that I was going to drop her. After a while, I got comfortable and didn't want to give her to anyone else. She has long eye lashes like her brother Kevin, and when Kevin was born, my family said that he looked like my sister, my sister's mane is Dulce. Whenever I carried her and kissed her my nephew, her brother got mad at me. He was hitting me, even now he doesn't want me to carry here, especially because, I tell him that I'm going to take her. That day my nephew went to sleep to my house because; his parents were in the Hospital.

I NEVER thought that, 7 pounds 4 oz would bring me so much love, in my life. I want my family to know how much I love her, especially when she was born. I am still the happiest aunt in Jackson Hole. I also thought that my heart was going to explode; it was also bumping hard. I have no words to explain the love that I feel for her. My love for her is as big as the universe. The universe might seem spooky, dark, and dangerous, but really the universe is smooth, warm, soft, and so, so light. Not heavy, small. Lindsay taught me this.

By ~ Adalid