Kalli Dakos

“I’d Mark with the Sunshine If I were a teacher,
I wouldn’t mark in red,
Because red reminds me
Of blood that
Oozes out of cuts,
And fire engines that
Rush to fight blazes
So hot you could
Die in them,
And STOP signs that
Warn you of danger. If I were a teacher
I’d mark in yellow—
For corn muffins,
Mustard on a fat hot dog,
Gardens of dandelions,
And sunbeams that
Dance on daffodils. If I were a teacher,
I’d throw out
My STOP pen,
And I’d mark with
The sunshine itself!
To give light to an A,
Warmth to a C,
And hope to an F.”
― Kalli Dakos, Don't Read This Book, Whatever You Do!: More Poems About School

“Not Anymore “Do you have any brothers and sisters?”
The teacher asked the child,
Who was new,
In our country,
And our school. He sighed so long we thought
He would never breathe again.
Then in a rush of words,
Like water going
Over the falls,
He said, I used to but not anymore because They Were killed in a war”
― Kalli Dakos, Don't Read This Book, Whatever You Do!: More Poems About School