Student Poetry

A selection of poems written by ELATT students or translated from other languages.

Literacy Writing: I know why the caged bird sings

Literacy Writing: I know why the caged bird sings

Students from IT for ESOL 3506 class at ELATT got their creative powers flowing by writing some poetry.
Their poetry was inspired by the works of Maya Angelou. The world –renowned author, poet and civil rights activist.
Segs Fayase, their teacher, said: “It was so inspiring to see the students really get inspired by Maya Angelou’s poem, “Caged Bird”. They certainly understood the significance of it and then created their own interpretation. They combined creativity, literacy and ICT to produce amazing work”
We hope you enjoy the work that they produced.

Zalmay Rahimi
Our live much better like a free bird.
Because everything like freedom.
And any circumstance without freedom live will be miserable.
Freedom very sweet word every one like freedom.
For example the small bird doesn’t like to be inside the cage.
Even the cages golden.
So we like freedom and the bird like freedom.

Anne Khan
Dove of Peace.
If I were a white dove , I would love to fly to a warmer climate like Italy. I would join all the other doves, stay in a warm barn. Where we would get food and then have a flying completion
We would go and set all the different birds free from mallard to a kestrel or eagle.
We would then set all the other different types of animals free. Elephants, rhinoceros, kangaroos, hippopotamus, lions and tigers, zebras, monkeys, orangutan, silverback gorilla, koala bears etc.
There would be plenty of warm barns to sleep in plenty of food to eat we would all be a team .
We would all look after each other.
The world would be such a lovely place - still beautiful.

Michael Hill
A poem by William Blake
Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand, dare sieze the fire?

And what shoulder, & what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?

What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

When the stars threw down their spears,
And water’d heaven with their tears,
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye

Bolanle Ayekoti

These bird are in a tree singing songs.
They have a nest and food to eat.

 

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Poem: When Someone Smiles

Poem: When Someone Smiles

રમેશકુમાર જાંબુચા – કોઇ હસીને તો કોઇ રડીને દર્દ છુપાવે છે

કોઇ હસીને તો કોઇ રડીને દર્દ છુપાવે છે,
કેટલાયે મારી જેમ મજબૂરીથી ચલાવે છે.

કોઇ એને જઇને જરૂરથી આટલું કહેજો,
કે મારી ધડકન એની યાદો ચલાવે છે.

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Poem: Drinking alone with the Moon

Poem: Drinking alone with the Moon

Li bai

Translated by Lingqin

There is a jug of wine in the flower garden,

Drinking alone without any friends.

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Poem: Good Sense

Poem: Good Sense

Caqligii wanaagsan - Good sense

Gorayadu ilmaheed

Aroori bay dhigtaayoo

Aboodigu ku layaa,

Shinbirtuna aroosay

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Poem: Wanderer

Poem: Wanderer

by Octavian Goga
Translated by Anne-Marie

Cries a blackbird in the forest

At the Dealu-Mare crossroads...

Slowly approaches the hill

A young man riding a horse...

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Poem: Do You Remember?

Poem: Do You Remember?

Do You Remember?

by Ying Liu

Do you remember?

When we were children,

We made an agreement:

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Poem: The Emigrants' Train

Poem: The Emigrants' Train

Il treno degli emigranti
Gianni Rodari
Written by Marua

Non è grossa, non è pesante

la valigia dell'emigrante...

C'è un po' di terra del mio villaggio,

per non restar solo in viaggio...

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Poetry Introduction

Poetry Introduction

PROJECT "POETRY" - MISSION POSSIBLE

..."you have to understand

that no one puts their children in a boat

unless the water is safer than the land"... (Poem - Extract from Home)

said the sorrowful British-Somalian author Warsan Shire, speaking about the tragedy of migration. Unfortunately, this phenomenon travels through time, space and people, with the same power and cruelty. And our souls tremble the same way. And we try to express our sadness somehow. But beside the downhearted beauty of the poems, there are some meanings that we want to find out.

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