Thanks to over 1,400 poets, essayists, artists; and 64 teachers from 36 schools for sharing in the 22nd Annual Haiku Festival workshops, readings, and events. Haiku Fest celebrates children through poetry and the arts, while promoting literacy.
Haiku Festival awards certificates to all participating student poets. Winning entries are listed below.
We proudly announce the following commendations for participants in grades 5 and 6:
First Prize:
morning mist rises
sunlight warms the quiet stream
leaves whisper softly
Judi Chihabi, Age 10, Grade 5
Eliza Chappell Elementary, Chicago
2nd Prize:
the water pounces
on the rocks, like a tiger
leaping on its prey
Youning Wu, Age 11, Grade 5
University of Chicago Lab School, Chicago
3rd Prize:
bark callous and brown
leaves vibrate welcoming spring
reaching for the sky
Isaac Rivera, Age 12, Grade 6
Michael M. Byrne Elementary, Chicago
Gwendolyn Brooks CPS Award:
a shark in the sea
small silver bodies scatter
you tremble alone
Aruuke Arpachieva, Age 11, Grade 5
Eliza Chappell Elementary, Chicago
Poem of the School Award:
words hit like cold rain
I stand small, still breathing strong
scars learn how to heal
Stevan Gatewood Jr., Age 12, Grade 6
Alex Haley Academy, Chicago
Poem of the School Award:
behind the mountain
cherry blossoms fall from trees
coding paths ahead
Saaya Reddy, Age 10, Grade 5
Avery Coonley School, Downers Grove, IL
Poem of the School Award:
mooncakes in the night
ancestors watch the children
red envelopes pass
Adelyn Liang, Age 11, Grade 6
James Ward Elementary, Chicago
Poem of the School Award:
sirens feel like home
in this city with bright lights
concrete’s all I know
Sabina Negrut, Age 12, Grade 6
Skinner North Classical School, Chicago
Honorable Mention:
illegal alien
repulsive, sickening words
we are all human
Sofía Condé, Age 11, Grade 5
Eliza Chappell Elementary, Chicago
Honorable Mention:
tiger in the grass
moving through the deep bamboo
creeping and crawling
Parker Jackson, Age 10, Grade 5
Eliza Chappell Elementary, Chicago
Honorable Mention:
winter vanishes
spring appears in blues and pinks
hues charm birds and bees
Luca Sciammarella, Age 12, Grade 6
St. Therese, Chicago
Teacher of the Year Award:
Ms. Diana Zurawski
Galileo Scholastic Academy, Chicago
School of the Year Award:
Dannacks International Academy, Accra, Ghana
Justice Joseph Prah