Take me to Dreamland

This week, the students at Bell looked at In Your Wild Dream by Richard Hugo. We talked about dreams in general, their strangeness and how confusing they can be, and how that was reflected in the structure of the poem. We also talked about what using second person is supposed to accomplish. The student poets wrote their own Dream Poems, and they are strange and wonderful. Enjoy!

Ms. Furgason’s Class

Robots
by Lillian L.

You are sleeping
peacefully in your bed.
You suddenly wake up.
There is a weird
looking robot next
to your bed.
You scream
and leap out
of bed.
You rush towards
your mom or dad’s
bed. They have
disappeared.
You run around
your house like
crazy. You are in
your bathroom.
You climb through
a window leading
towards the roof.
You are on the
precipitous roof.
You spread out
your arms and
fly, fleeing
the robots.
Next you are in
bed once again
dreaming of
blooming roses.

Dream On…
by Max D.

You wake up to the radio, it says it will be snowy. You burst out the door all bundled up on your sled but there’s no snow, just sky. You can see civilization below you miles down and you cling to your sled, but it’s not a sled, it’s a scooter. You yell at the author, “how’s a scooter going to help?!” so the author turns it into a helicopter. Suddenly, you’re jumping out of a building to another one. You’re in the Bourne Ultimatum on film. Then you’re back in the snow sledding, but you’re not. Your house isn’t there, it’s the Arctic. You yell, but no one hears. All of a sudden, you’re back in bed. “What a dream” you say.

Wacky Dream!
by Deidre C.

You are a pig, walking on hind legs
about to cross a bridge in a vast
jungle. All of a sudden, you hear squealing
and squishing. A giant ho is stepping on
every pig he meets. You are now in your
house with your sisters you never met,
hiding from the disastrous hog. You trick
the hog into falling down the stairs so you
can run away. You now are standing
on a purple ground. It is snowing, hailing,
and raining at the same time. Cats
and kittens are running mad around you.
You run with them. You stay on that
planet for the rest of time that you
remember. You turn into a cat in the end.


Ms. Chadhuri’s Class

The Dangerous Dream
by Emilio A.

You are on a ship in a storm. The Captain
says that you must exterminate all giant
insects. Then you are gone. You appear in a
brick hallway with your best friend standing
next to you. You know it’s a trap, but your friend
doesn’t. Your friends starts to cross the bricks and
you tell after them to stop but it’s too late, your
friend steps on a brick and a spider as big as
you and a centipede as big as your head come
out. The spider eats your friend. You are in an
enormous freezer and the centipede is still there.
It tackles you and blood flies everywhere. You see
it’s blue veins and it rears up ready for the kill…

In Downtown Chicago You Dream
by Casimir A.

You are in a building in
downtown Chicago. You are
a Mudkip. Next to you is a Torchic.
Suddenly, Darth Vader appears and
slashes at you with his saber.
You and the Torchic run. In a
room you find a saber.
You bravely ignite it.
You throw it at Vader.
It hits him hard.
He falls to the ground.
Suddenly, you are awake,
free of being a Mudkip,
free of Vader.

Trapped in Royal
by Solana B.

You are trapped in an ancient pyramid. But the air is fresh and clean. The pyramid disappears into an oasis in the jungle, where birds chirp with joy. A tornado sets in. You are blown to Neverland where Peter Pan is old. You are captured by mermaids. The setting changes. You are face to face with a square cow. It pulls you on its back and locks you in the temple of Zeus. The temple disappears into a stream of clouds. You ride it into a pyramid, and the door shuts.


Ms. Darnell’s Class

Dream
by Brennan Q.

You are in outer space, on a huge spaceship.
You are in command of the ship.
The ship explodes, BOOM
you’re falling and falling
but nobody dies.
Then you land on earth
but nobody gets hurt.
You land in the ocean
then you swim to an island.
Nobody lives there except the animals and you.
Then it turns into your house.
“My house?” you say
but nothing is by it
except trees.
Then, your mom comes out.

My Nightmare
by Bernie J.

You were running to
school then a BIG humungous
donut was chasing you. It was a
chocolate sprinkled donut. Then
it was shooting colored sprinkles
at you. You were doing the
matrix to dodge them. You realize
you love donuts. Instead of the
donut chasing you, you start chasing
the donut. Then you gobble it
up, and you go back to school.

In Your Dream
by Leo P.

You are in your own house
feeling something’s bound to go wrong.
You hear that dark creaking noise.
You quickly run upstairs. You pull the covers off your bed
over head. The only thing you can see is
the dark design of the inside of the quilt.
The quilt gets pulled off you. You look for who took it.
They’re gone, the quilt’s gone. You try to scream,
no voice is heard. You run back downstairs
and jump in anger, your head hits the ceiling.
You can’t do that in real life, so realize it’s a dream.
You look at your shoes…you have an idea.
You run through the front door and break it down.
You fly around your block, looking for help.
You find an apartment, break through
a window, and witness all holidays happening at once:
Hannukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa…it goes blank.
You’re back in bed, and happy it was a dream.

The Field
by Chris V.

One day, you were
playing in a field.
You saw a scarecrow.
It was moving its feet.
You ran away and it
chased you. You ran and
he almost got you.
When he caught you, you turned
into the Simpson’s movie.
Homer was chasing you, then
Tom and Jerry were chasing you.
Then, in your bed, you turn
and see someone in your closet!


Ms. Manuel’s Class

Dreamotopia
by Peter B.

You are golfing, but giant wiener dogs start
chasing you. They take your club and start
hitting the golf ball at you.
You turn into a salami sandwich
and scare some kids away.
They won’t stop chasing you.
You step on a switch
ray and you start chasing
them as giant wiener dogs.
You trip them and they fall into
the pit of death. You jump
up and down because you
are free.

Your Dream in an Adventure
by Magdelene T.

You go on an adventure in a castle.
You run down the stairs again
and again from an ogre.
Then you escape into the
desert sky. You feel the wind
blowing you to your garden
where every flower
is blooming side by side.
Then a werewolf grabs you
by your leg and drags
you into his hole and
you’re afraid but all he
wanted was to share his
cookies with you. Then,
you and the werewolf
jump on a trampoline.
Later, a tiger asks, “May
I join you?” and you
all play together.

Traveling Dream
by Sonja G.

You are on a Ferris wheel in an amusement park. The Ferris wheel stops and you are at the very top. A bird grabs you and takes you away. As you fly through the clouds, the bird disappears. You are still flying. You fly into a tree and fall down. You are in a jungle. Animals are surrounding you. You try to run away when a lion growls at you. Then, flying around you is a swarm of bumblebees. You scream as loud as you can for help. Then a bee stings you and you faint. When you get up, you are in a butterfly garden. There are butterflies making beautiful patterns for you.

Loud Voices

This week we were back to poetry after a three week break. We looked at Michael Ondaatje's Sweet Like a Crow and talked about simile, description, and imagery. The student writers then wrote their own simile poems, trying to describe either the sound of their OWN voice, or the sound of someone else's voice that they hear all the time. Enjoy the amazing poems!

Ms. Manuel’s Class

Deep Like the Ocean
by Kyle G.

My voice sounds like a soaring throat in a hurricane,
like an old man furious about his car,
like the Liberty Bell cracking into pieces,
even a group of men screaming at each other,
a lion’s roar scaring a bee and a scorpion,
some toads croaking for their lives,
a scream on a horror movie
like a dog killing a rat.

Loud
by Jacob J.

My voice sounds like a man reading
the bible in Chinese
like someone in the opera
like a president giving a boring speech
the clicking of a mouse for the computer
a man falling off a skyscraper
like a cat swimming in water
and someone stepping on a needle

My Voice Sounds…
by Matthew D.

My voice sounds like a lion roaring at the wind
an alien talking a foreign language
a cloner who succeeded
a man on a roller coaster
a tiger in the air snapping its jaws
a snap-snap of a turtle
a livestock of sheep
a millionaire in glee
a snow flake falling softly


Ms. Furgason’s Class

Your Voice
by Brian S.

Your voice sounds like a horse being hit by a 20,000 lb octagon, like nails being scratched against a chalk board, like an elephant being shoved into a small box, like an alien’s scream, like a cow drowning, like a bull being launched into the air, like a human imploding, like a magic man’s trick gone bad, like an angry mob, or like a 5 year old having coffee.

Loud and Quiet
by Deidre C.

My voice sounds like a plane engine trying
to start, a crow screaming at an enemy,
like a cat’s meow, like the spice of dragon
fruit, like a crocking frog about to splash into
the water, like falling onto the Sears Tower,
like ice cracking in the silence of the Arctic
like a tree falling when no one is around,
like snow drifting off a tree branch,
a baby just going to sleep, a dream
sneaking into a child.

My Voice Sounds…
by Julius S.A.

My voice sounds like a loud elephant eating a rose bush. Like 20 billion coconuts falling in the sea. Like a tiger growling at a hunter. Like rocks blowing in the wind. Like grass when you pull it out of the ground. Like a bowling ball hitting a hard marble floor. Like a boy yelling Cannon Ball! to the pool. Like a person slipping on ice. Like a monkey screaming. Like the sound of waves crashing.


Ms. Chadhuri’s Class

Sweet Like a Melon
by Hopey N.G.

Your voice sounds like nails scraping across a chalkboard. Like a melon being smashed against a wall. Like soup being poured into a ceramic china bowl. Like the tide coming in. Like the wheels of a car when turning the corner. Like a book suddenly being slammed closed. Like the juice seeping out of a newly opened fruit. Like tea being poured into a tea cup. Like a plate falling from a 4 foot diving board onto the sidewalk. Like the wind picking up sticks and throwing them at a moaning and whimpering dog.

Shush
by Michael M.

Your voice sounds like a snake
hissing in the jungle.
A raindrop on a stove.
Like molasses in fast forward,
like explosions,
like someone stuck in tar,
like a guitar with broken strings.

As Sweet as a Swan
by Rachel H.

Your voice sounds like a gentle wave hitting the shore, the soft song of the birds in springtime, like the wind whistling through the silent ocean, a bee buzzing in your ear, like a cat purring on your lap. As sweet as the syrup from the tree, and as sweet as the fine sand falling through the space between your fingertips or a swan swimming through the pond.


Ms. Darnell’s Class

Sweet Like a Lizard
by Katherine D.

My voice sounds like a rainbow lizard
like a dolphin being pulled from her dad
like a wave, sad and afraid
like a star coming to earth but no one likes her
like a rat stealing but then finding out that is wrong
like a kit kat saying Don’t eat me!
like the world taking one step at a time
like the color blue sometimes bright sometimes dark
like Sunday always bright
like a chipmunk, mean and nice

My Personality Voice
by Destiny F.

My voice sounds like
a person getting farther
and farther away, like
a someone screaming from
another universe, like someone
with no oxygen, as loud as
a lion as small as a turtle.
My voice is as deep as a poetry writer
as cool as a scientist, lame like a geek,
it sounds like the old running creek
like a shallow ground of thunder
like Friday and a big bad blunder.
It’s loud and proud like
a basketball layer, like a
dolphin squealing when I’m
sick, like a beating but then
stopping. This is what it sounds like.

Sweet Like a Puppy
by Maddy P.

My voice sounds like a mouse saying
she loves her kids.
It is as sweet as a puppy
with a kitten.
It’s like a person saying
goodnight and I’ll miss you.
Just like a book in the back
of the shelf, shy and silent.
It’s like art, colorful, but also
very bright.
It can be as loud as a drum.
Friendly as the sun.
It’s like the wind, very soft and smooth.
Like a celebrity, VERY HAPPY.
Just like Friday and the color green.

Sweet as Fire
by Bronte F.

My voice sounds like cracking fire
like a bird being carried off into the clouds
like a heart pumping blood.
A toad croaking in a swamp.
A jet soaring up,
like a lion hunting its prey,
like a mouse, squeaky and small.
Like a Monday, annoying,
a goat being gathered by a Shepard
a cat pouncing through branches.