The lesson"modified"

Silence ruled heavenly in the staff room
as loudly the student walked in
with tears to the brim
His teachers stared at him

"The theme for today is silence
and homework will still be set
"Dont think just because theres a retest,
you can go home and rest"


Then red pen in hand
he crossed out all his answers.
"im going to place you in third band
you better go repent"


He flung his stamp at the paper
it struck with deadly aim
with the big words"parents signature"
he continued with his game



"please can i go now, sir?"
"no yet, i prefer"
the student felt trapped
and wished he could give his teacher a zap


The Head popped a head round the doorway
to see why a din was being made
nodded understandingly
then tossed in a grenade


The student surveyed the carnage
and waggled a finger severely
"now let that be a lesson he said"
or us students give you dread

Roger McGough--->modded by me

Shel Silverstein

The background by poets.org

Shel Silverstein was born on September 25, 1930 in Chicago, Illinois and began writing and drawing at a young age. He became a cartoonist, playwright, poet, performer, recording artist, and Grammy-winning, Oscar-nominated songwriter.

Silverstein is best known as the author of iconic books of prose and poetry for young readers. His works include such modern classics asLafcadio: The Lion Who Shot Back(1963), The Giving Tree (1964), A Giraffe and a Half (1964), The Missing Piece (1976), and The Missing Piece Meets the Big O (1981). His immensely popular poetry collections are Where the Sidewalk Ends, a 1974 Michigan Young Readers Award winner; A Light in the Attic, recipient of the School Library Journal Best Books Award in 1982;Falling Up (1996); and Don’t Bump the Glump! And Other Fantasies, which was originally published in 1963 and reissued in 2008.Runny Babbit, a posthumous poetry collection of spoonerisms, was conceived and completed before his death.

Silverstein’s books, which he also illustrated, are characterized by a deft mixing of the sly and the serious, the macabre, and the just plain silly. His unique imagination and bold brand of humor is beloved by countless adults and children throughout the world. He died in May 1999.

Now for my own review:

I like this poet very much and also many others because i have a special admiration to those who can sketch/draw children cartoon books.an example is this This image can also be found at the website provided at the bottom I find his language quite cute , example like his famous story a girraffe and a half

"if you have a giraffe and it was stretched another half,

you get a giraffe and a half,

if he put on a hat, and inside lived a rat,

you would have a giraffe and a half and a rat in his hat

if you dressed him in a suite and he looked very cute,

you would have a giraffe and a half with a rat in his hat looking cute in a suit."

To me , this poet aims to taget children 13 or below,which still applies for me .

three poems by him.

Where the Sidewalk Ends
by Shel Silverstein
There is a place where the sidewalk ends And before the street begins, And there the grass grows soft and white, And there the sun burns crimson bright, And there the moon-bird rests from his flight To cool in the peppermint wind. Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black And the dark street winds and bends. Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow, And watch where the chalk-white arrows go To the place where the sidewalk ends. Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow, And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go, For the children, they mark, and the children, they know The place where the sidewalk ends. Mr. Grumpledump's Song by Shel Silverstein If the World Was Crazy by Shel Silverstein If the world was crazy, you know what I'd eat? A big slice of soup and a whole quart of meat, A lemonade sandwich, and then I might try Some roasted ice cream or a bicycle pie, A nice notebook salad, an underwear roast, An omelet of hats and some crisp cardboard toast, A thick malted milk made from pencils and daisies, And that's what I'd eat if the world was crazy. If the world was crazy, you know what I'd wear? A chocolate suit and a tie of eclair, Some marshmallow earmuffs, some licorice shoes, And I'd read a paper of peppermint news. I'd call the boys "Suzy" and I'd call the girls "Harry," I'd talk through my ears, and I always would carry A paper umbrella for when it grew hazy To keep in the rain, if the world was crazy. If the world was crazy, you know what I'd do? I'd walk on the ocean and swim in my shoe, I'd fly through the ground and I'd skip through the air, I'd run down the bathtub and bathe on the stair. When I met somebody I'd say "G'bye, Joe," And when I was leaving--then I'd say "Hello." And the greatest of men would be silly and lazy So I would be king...if the world was crazy. http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/16737 Mr. Grumpledump's Song by Shel Silverstein Everything's wrong, Days are too long, Sunshine's too hot, Wind is too strong. Clouds are too fluffy, Grass is too green, Ground is too dusty, Sheets are too clean. Stars are too twinkly, Moon is too high, Water's too drippy, Sand is too dry. Rocks are too heavy, Feathers too light, Kids are too noisy, Shoes are too tight. Folks are too happy, Singin' their songs. Why can't they see it? Everything's wrong! http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/20542

more can be found at this highly animated website
Shel silverstein

Whatif by Shel Silverstein

Last night, while I lay thinking here,
some Whatifs crawled inside my ear
and pranced and partied all night long
and sang their same old Whatif song:
Whatif I'm dumb in school?
Whatif they've closed the swimming pool?
Whatif I get beat up?
Whatif there's poison in my cup?
Whatif I start to cry?
Whatif I get sick and die?
Whatif I flunk that test?
Whatif green hair grows on my chest?
Whatif nobody likes me?
Whatif a bolt of lightning strikes me?
Whatif I don't grow talle?
Whatif my head starts getting smaller?
Whatif the fish won't bite?
Whatif the wind tears up my kite?
Whatif they start a war?
Whatif my parents get divorced?
Whatif the bus is late?
Whatif my teeth don't grow in straight?
Whatif I tear my pants?
Whatif I never learn to dance?
Everything seems well, and then
the nighttime Whatifs strike again!

The type of figurative language used here is personification,the words are: Crawl, Party,Prance,or strike. The poet chose this language because "whatifs"they are not really nouns, maybe abstract nouns or not even nouns, so they cannot Crawl, party, prance or strike.



i like this poem because the title causes curiosity and the poem is structured in a very repetitive way.

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4th book review

I really liked Outernet because it tells of aliens(called FOE) that want to take a server from the earthlings Jack, Merle, and Loaf. A server is a high-tech computer that can transport you to another galaxy and you can send o-mail to other people or aliens anywhere. The FOES are the bad aliens who want to take the last server and rule the galaxy. The FRIENDS are the good guys who try to stop the foes. Jack, Merle, and Loaf as well as Janus the alien FRIEND, Bitz who is the talking alien dog, and Googie the talking alien cat try to stop the foes on their quest. They have to return the server to an alien called Weaver to stop the FOES from taking over. I also liked this book because it has a lot of action like when Jack, Merle, and Loaf get taken to the FOE'S prison planet. Janus sets off an alarm so all the prison doors open and then they can all escape. They nearly get caught bu they escape by the skin of their teeth. In the end the FRIENDS still have the server but in the next book you will find out more on what happens to the FRIENDS and what the FOE'S next move are.

Flaws:the font is too big
the concepts were not linked to real life but it was ok

book review 3

The Supernaturalist

This book is by the megaselling author of Artemis fowl, which i havent read, but after reading this book, i think i will read it.One phrase at the back of the book discourages me to do so.
It reads " Colfer's best book yet"-Mail On Sunday

The brief story. Apparently, one woman who hates Children ,Ms Frayne, set up an institute called "Clarissa Frayne Institute for the parentally challenged boys" Thats not all, the big secret behind it is: the boys are called no-sponsor boys.Thay are the worst category of boys in the home .The institute test their new products on them and even torture them like guinea pigs. The main character of the story, Cosmo Hill , is one of them.

"Statistics say he has about a year to live-Unless he escapes.But escape to what?
To a world of high-tech gang warfare,swat teams of paralegals and a plague of four fingered parasites who are invisible to everyone except three misfits who call themselves the SuperNaturlists.
Could Cosmo be one of them?Are they the family he's always wanted? And if he does become a supernaturalist ,will his life get any longer or a whole lot shorter?


This book is so addictive that i cant put it down.The super naturalist fight the parasites until the story takes a big twist .Im not going to tell you what it is.

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