Drumroll, please ... Instructor announces the winners of the Sixth Annual Poetry Contest.

Ring the bells, raise the flags, shout from the rooftops--it's time to announce the winners of Instructor's Sixth Annual Poetry Contest! This is the third year that I've had the privilege of sitting on the judging panel--and it is still a huge thrill. The 2005 contest brought a blizzard of more than 10,000 entries in English and Spanish. There were so many poems, in fact, that we required a team of word-loving editors and a conference room large enough to accommodate us and our overflowing mail tubs! We also enlisted the help of bilingual poet Alexis Romay, who selected and translated the Spanish finalists. Together, we all spent days carefully reading to winnow the winners' circle to four grand-prize recipients (poems featured on the enclosed poster) and 20 stunning runners-up (poems featured at www.scholastic.com/instructor).

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The Art of Teaching Poetry

In this age of high-stakes testing, it's gratifying that so many educators make time to spread the joy of poetry. These behind-the-scenes mentors inspired and guided the authors of each masterpiece that we so relished. Mentors like Tamara Alexander of Esperanza Elementary School in Farmington, New Mexico. She coached our youngest finalist, first-grader Robby Maes, and provided him with the tools to craft his tiny gem on the topic of Mount Fuji. How did she do it? By inviting Robby to draw a picture of his idea, then use it as a visual springboard to ignite his writing. In addition, she makes certain that all her students are exposed to a steady stream of popular poetry, classic verse, and good old nursery rhymes. "In first grade, it's so important to play with sound and build phonemic awareness. We do poetry every day," she says.

"Lots of poetry is key," concurs Lois Huber. A teacher at Village Elementary School in Princeton Junction, New Jersey, Huber served as poetry coach to fifth-grade finalist, Michael Liu. Her dedication and practical approach helped bring about his moving memoir about Chinese tradition. "I love poetry!" she says enthusiastically. But she is also quick to point out that creative writing is a serious endeavor. Her students take their poems through every step in the writing process and sometimes create up to ten drafts to get them in tip-top form. "I tell kids, 'You've got to write something that has meaning. You've got to reach out and grab the reader by the lapels,'" she laughs.

Now, let's take a look at the grand-prize winning poems.

Grade K-3 Winner (English): "Don't Worry"

Like an intricate painting on the head of a pin, this haiku by first-grader Robby Maes is a small wonder! In it, Japan's Mount Fuji volcano erupts and a ladybug comforts a bear by telling him "we're safe." That little ladybug is surprisingly mighty--as is this 16-word poem, which paints a vivid picture in the reader's minds eye. Although Robby chose to forgo the traditional 5-7-5 syllabification of a standard haiku, "Don't Worry" still qualifies because it contains two important attributes of the form: The story unfolds in a mere three lines and focuses on an instantaneous event in nature.

Try this: To boost writing skills, challenge students to write a "sequel haiku" that makes use of Robby's two terrific characters.

Grade 4-8 Winner (English): "Honor of My Ancestors"

In this compelling memoir poem, fifth-grader Michael Liu describes the Chinese tradition of burning money to honor departed family members. But just because the poem was pulled from a personal memory bank doesn't mean it was easy to write. "Honor of My Ancestors" succeeds due to careful craftsmanship, clear storytelling, and spot-on word choice such as the fire that "shines deep red/dark orange." It also succeeds due to artful line breaks--the powerful words waft across the page like the burning paper money described in the poem.

Try this: To help students understand line breaks, write each word of the poem on a separate index card. Then, invite students to "play" with the cards and re-break the poem.

Grade K-3 Winner (Spanish): "Vaciones de Invierno" ("Winter Vacations")

This spirited poem by third-grader Rose Jimenez is a stunner in English and Spanish! If you don't speak Spanish, invite any native speakers to help you read the Spanish version aloud. You'll hear that lines A and C end in rhyme (invierno/eterno) as do lines B and D (diferentes/gentes), which will no doubt be music to your students' ears. Then take a look at the English translation to discuss the poem's "story." During winter vacation, the speaker is housebound due to rain, rain, and more rain. Still she manages to keep her sense of humor, describing her parents' greeting of "Good morning!" as an "alarm clock." Tell students that metaphor is a staple of many memorable poems.

Try this: Build oral fluency by asking teams of students to prepare a choral reading of "Winter Vacations" in both languages. For the reading, partner Spanish speakers with non-Spanish speakers, if possible.

Grade 4-8 Winner (Spanish): "Los Lagartos" ("The Lizards")

"Los Lagartos" by fourth-grader Carlos Rivas-Lopez is proof positive that poems can be poignant and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time. Enlist native speakers to help you read the Spanish version aloud. Kids will savor the lovely-sounding words such as colina, agarro, and lagarto. Then share the translation. "Los Lagartos" is an example of the Hispanic tradition of "magical realism," which combines both realistic and magical elements in the story. It's doubtful that the speaker really wore the lizards as earrings, but the poem is so well crafted that the reader is ready, willing, and able to delight in this amazing turn of events.

Try this: Encourage children to use this poem as a model to write their own magical-realism poems in which they "wear" an animal of their choice.

RELATED ARTICLE: THIS YEAR'S WINNERS AND RUNNERS-UP

Top Winners

Don't Worry by Robby Maes, Gr. 1, Esperanza Elementary School, Farmington, NM

Honor of My Ancestors by Michael Liu, Gr. 5, Village Elementary School, Princeton Junction, NJ

Vaciones de Invierno (Winter Vacations) by Rose Jimenez, Gr. 3, Greenwood Elementary School, Montebello, CA

Los Lagartos (The Lizards) by Carlos Rivas-Lopez, Gr. 4, McGlone Elementary School, Denver, CO

Runners-Up

CATEGORY: ENGLISH K-3

Ode to the Moon by Joann Tran, Gr. 3, Gratten Elementary School, San Francisco, CA

April by Rachel Briner, Gr. 2, Columbia Independent School, Columbia, MO

Don't Feel So Good by Destiny Stone, Gr. 2, Holly Springs Primary School, Holly Springs, MS

Tulip by Stacey Yoon, Gr. 1, Crestview Elementary School, San Antonio, TX

Fencing by, Hanna Elder, Gr. 2, Clarendon Elementary School, Portland, OR

CATEGORY: ENGLISH 4-8

The Tree Dome by Emma Weinstein, Gr. 6, Gardner School, Gardner, CO

Lunch Time by Maddie Woods, Gr. 5, Francis Parker School, San Diego, CA

Cold Warmth by Hannah Glover, Gr. 8, Oyster River Middle School, Durham, NH

Leaves by Emily Claytor, Gr. 4, Forsyth School, St. Louis, MO

Alice in Wonderland Haiku by Katherine Snyder, Gr. 8, Buddy Taylor Middle School, Palm Coast, FL

CATEGORY: SPANISH K-3

El Otono (The Fall) by Keishla Ortiz, Gr. 2, Welch Annex Dual Language School, New Haven, CT

Oklahoma by Samuel Taylor, Gr. 1, Eisenhower International School, Tulsa, OK

La Luna (The Moon) by Mackinlee Allen, Gr. 1, Eisenhower International School, Tulsa, OK

El Otono (The Fall) by Kathiana Torres-Quinones, Gr. 1, Welch Annex Dual Language School, New Haven, CT

Tortugas (Turtles) by Michael Pannell, Gr. 3, Mesita Elementary School, El Paso, TX

CATEGORY: SPANISH 4-8

Al Son de Las Hojas (The Beat of the Leaves) by Miguel Salas, Gr. 4, McGlone Elementary School, Denver, CO

Cerca de la Paz (Near Peace) by Gary Castellanos, Gr. 5 Hillside Elementary School, Roswell, GA

Canario (Canary) by Osvaldo Orozco, Gr. 6, Carr Astro Intermediate School, Santa Ana, CA

El Tiempo (Time) by Israel Garcia, Gr. 7, Hortman Middle School, Houston, TX

Mi Alma (My Soul) by Martin Contreras, Gr. 4, Sherman Oaks Charter School, San Jose, CA

Read the full text of all the winning poems online at www.scholastic.com/instructor!

Liza Charlesworth is a poet and the author of several books, including 25 Reproducible Mini-Books That Give Kids a Great Start in Reading (Scholastic, 2005).