Washington Elementary 2009;a Collection of Student Poetry

It is with great pleasure and pride in our students that we present this compilation of student work. We hope that the families of our students and other audiences enjoy the efforts and creativity that our students have displayed in creating this book.

My sincere thanks to our teachers who do a wonderful job for our students, and who were enthusiastic about this opportunity to showcase their students' work in this manner. We also give great thanks to Rodney and Anya Charles at 1st World Library for being so supportive in making this opportunity available to our students.

Student writing is an integral part of the language arts curriculum. Reading and writing are complementary processes, and both are imperative in order for our students to become truly literate adults. Our teachers seek opportunities for our students to engage in authentic writing tasks that motivate their very best efforts. This writing activity exemplifies this concept of student writing for an authentic purpose.

Incorporating poetry in reading and writing instruction has always been a mainstay in the language arts. As we have gained knowledge through professional development, our faculty has become even more aware of the benefits of poetry to their instruction. The lower grades benefit from the phonemic, phonic, and rhyming elements of poetry which are paramount in the learning to read process. In the upper grades, poetry enhances the students' use of words, their vocabulary development, and their enjoyment of literature. At all levels, poetry can be effectively used to improve reading fluency.

We hope that you enjoy these poems from our students. As you read the poems, you will certainly be optimistic about the great promise that the future holds for these wonderful kids!