Russley Writers featured in Christchurch Mail article

The Christchurch Mail has an article in today's issue featuring our wonderful Russley Writers. The article is about the Russley Writers' recent success in the 3rd Fabulous Poetry Competition. Congratulations to all our prize-winning poets.

Find poems here

Winning Writing from Years 5 to 8

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Russley School entered 'The Third Fabulous Poetry Competition' which was for a school entry of 25 poems. The competition was judged by Poetry Box's Paula Green, and the director of the NZ Book Council, Catriona Ferguson. Russley School was the winner of the South Island division!

As the winning school, we will receive a two day visit from Paula Green, who will run poetry workshops with Russley children in term 3.

Congratulations and huge thanks to all our poets. Scroll down to read some of the winning writing from our talented Russley authors!

Enjoy the poems from our senior students...

Winter has come again - by Ben M, Year 7

dark, murky skies

raining like a waterfall

deep puddles like mirrors

reflecting

soggy trees

crouching over

RAINDROPS - by Olivia C, year 7

splitter splatter

soggy gumboots

jump over cold puddles

I grip my clear umbrella

I hear splitter

                splatter

                    splitter

                       splatter

                           splash! 

Cutting Cold - by Ben T, year 7

The rain pelting down

like a boulder avalanche

people rushing indoors

shivering with cold

ice shards

even rain jackets do nothing

men and women driving

causing traffic jams

and accidents

in the rain

people indoors

covered in blankets

nearby a fire crackles

clothes turn soggy

soon smelly

everyone curled up

with hot chocolates

trying to forget

the freezing winter

SNOWFALL - by Riley H, year 7

My soggy clothes

were making my blanket wet.

I was rushing through the deep snow,

I even tried jumping through.

Everything I had was wet.

I finally got home

sat next to the fire

and had my hot chocolate.

The night frost - by Mitchell F, year 7

chilling cold

rain sounds like bullets

on my roof

drinking my hot chocolate

by the blazing fire

me and my family

snuggled in a blanket

WINTER - by Kaitlin C, year 7

soggy shoes

umbrella dripping

hurrying through

puddles

Splash!

the white sky

goes away

turning grey

JESSICA’S WINTER - by Jessica Y, age 7

soggy socks on the heater

drinking hot chocolate near the fire

snuggling into warm blankets

freezing winter air blows

                                  and blows

I grab my gumboots and jump

into the nearest puddle

                                  Splash!

hoping winter comes back again

The Painting - by Monica, year 7

a blank piece of paper

a polar bear in a snowstorm

a paintbrush paints...

a mountain looms over

the polar bear in a snowstorm

a paintbrush paints...

lush green grass

a mountain looms over

the polar bear in a snowstorm

a paintbrush paints...

a tree in the

lush green grass

a mountain looms over

the polar bear in a snowstorm

a paintbrush paints...

The winning entries from our Year 5 and 6 students:

I AM UNSTOPPABLE - by Quinton O, year 6

I am fantastic

I like cookies and cream milkshakes

I don’t like art

I’m afraid of spiders

I wish I could fly

I dream of going to Candyland

I pretend I’m listening to the teacher

I can eat twenty-one hotdogs at once

I am unstoppable

WET FEET

by Azryn C, year 6

my wet cold feet

flakes fall

as the sun comes up

drips drop down

the ferocious wind

will ease to a breeze

my wet cold feet

Winter Freeze

by Brayden D, year 5

My hands were freezing

like dripping ice.

I got wet and cold

like Jack Frost.

My family were playing

snowball fighting games.

I got Dad...

it hit him in the chest!

Ow!

WINTRY NIGHT - by Holly S, year 6

On a stormy, thundery,

wintry night

water trickles

onto the wet ground

the windy breeze blows

right through me.

Kaitlin - the next Katniss Everdeen?

I have five minuets to pack. I can only choose three items to take with me. I know not where I am going, nor what dangers await me. I run to the pile of equipment and grab a key, roller skate, skipping rope and some binoculars.

I am blindfolded during the helicopter journey. I have no idea where I am. I hear the pilot sending a message back on his radio. The helicopter hovers a metre or so above the ground and I am pushed out of the door. I tumble to the ground and I tear off my blindfold. I see thick trees, I think I’m in some sort of jungle.

I come to a raging river. There is no way around I must somehow get across the treacherous water. I reach into my pack and grab my skipping rope and chuck it on to a big branch and swung across.

I turn to see a pack of killer sheep advancing to me. I reach into my pack and tear out my skipping rope and use it as a long whip.

The menacing battle cry of a lone warrior pierces the silence. A heavily armoured giant charges out from behind some rocks. I reach into my pack and grab my magic kicking roller skates. I sneak up behind him and strangle him.

I arrive at a vertical cliff. It seems impossible to ascend it. The cliff face is like glass, I cannot see any footholds. There is no way around, I must find a way to climb it. I reach into my pack and grab my magical kicking roller skates and shove them on and start to climb up. As I do that the cliff rocks are scratching them smooth when I am almost at the top it starts… The ground is shaking and shattering but I made it. I take off my magical kicking roller skates.

I am dive-bombed by a thousand giant mosquitoes… some look large enough to pick up a small child. The drone of wings is deafening as the venomous stingers charge towards me. I reach into my pack and grab my binoculars and shove them on. As the giant mosquitos came closer a laser comes out of my binoculars and the sound is like fizz as one by one they get blasted or incinerated. They are falling in parts all around me, making me jump from the pressure.

I come to a swamp and begin to make my way cautiously through it. Suddenly I lose my footing and find myself sinking… and realise I have stepped into QUICKSAND! I reach into my pack and grab… my key and start to cut myself out of this mucky mess screaming. But halfway there I start to sink again. As I do, my key starts to get heavier and heavier. There is a lot of quicksand all over it. I have to scrape it off, then I make it to the other side finally.

Autumn Poet's Walk

The Russley Writers' Club went on a ginko. A ginko is a walk with haiku writers, usually held at the start of a season or at a special time in a season. The poets usually walk in silence, taking in their surroundings, making notes of the words they collect along the way.

Here are some of the poems our writers created when we returned from our poet's walk. Olivia's acrostic poem was one of my favourites. As well as being a poet, Olivia is a talented netballer, and I loved the fact that she fitted netball perfectly into her Autumn poem! 

Autumn leaves flying down gracefully

Unpredictable leaves are falling

Turning different ways

Umbrellas have Autumn colours

More leaves to fall

Netballers have Autumn spirits

            flying around the court like fluttering leaves

by Olivia

The leafy smell of Autumn is here

The leaves crackling through the wind

They’re twirling, gliding, down to the ground

Smooth as a baby’s cheek

As I roll through the frosty leaves

By Riley H

Autumn is colourful and bright

Unique leaves

Trees are swaying

Uncontrolled leaves falling

Minty leaves spiralling to the ground

Nothing left on the trees

by Kaitlin

Autumn is bone chilling and damp

the leaves tear off the unfit branches

but out of all the chances

the rain pounds down

and drowns all the town

roads are abandoned

as people are stranded

raging rivers all around

are full of muck and cover the ground

the clouds are grey

and they box in the city

it’s soaked outside

which is such a pity

By Ben H

Autumn is mostly bleak

Unless it’s not cold wear a jacket

The wind howls like a thousand wolves

Unlimited leaves are dying

More leaves die

No leaves survive

By Ben T.

The frozen leaves falling
from fire breathing trees
crackling under my bare feet
flowing through the air like a lonely angel.
That’s autumn to me.

by Ben M