Winners of the 2018 Art, Poetry and Essay Contest

First Place – 5th Grade Essay

By Tyler Harris
Teacher: Alessia Cook – John Muir School Award:

As an African American male, in a harsh place, in a harsh time, you take so much hate and all the little things they say to you are building up in your mind and body. And people still expect you to be this smart person who can take everything they give, but they don’t see the inside, they don’t see your true colors, they don’t see the bright yellow of joy or the white of your teeth when you smile. All they see is the dark brown of your skin walking around thinking you’re up to no good. But all you’re doing is walking as a black male in a white person’s world.

You feel outnumbered, but you don’t see all the people who are with you the people who care. But when you realize all the good things in life you see your own and others’ true colors. You see the joy in them. You see the bright yellow instead of the brown or white skin of their body. And when you influence others to be happy and think of the happy things they will be able to see your true colors. So when you go out in the world, be the reason someone sees true colors.

First Place – Fifth Grade Art

Lila Kehret

Teacher: Ms. Fry – Malcolm X Elementary Award:

First Place – Fifth Grade Poetry

“Colors of the World”

By Jacob Goldman
Teacher: Rick Kleine – Jefferson School Award:

Grass for miles,
Trees poking up every once in a while
A blue bird chirps a song
In harmony with the wind.
Flowers blooming in the sun
Without humanity to stomp them down.
A squirrel happily eating a nut
With only the natural lifecycle to fear.
Every single thing in nature, animal and plant Together.
Making the most beautiful song
Even if its sound is silent
With the world itself conducting,
Taking you into an amazing daydream.
But it isn’t just a song, with noise and silence But a movie showing millions of beautiful colors, All the colors of the world.

First Place – Tie – Fourth Grade Art

Vedant Todi

Teacher: Ms Khare – Berkeley Arts Magnet Award:

First Place – Tie- Fourth Grade Art

Eva Levenson

Teacher: Ms Tilson – Berkeley Arts Magnet Award:

Award: First Place – Fourth Grade Poetry

“The Olympic Piano”

By Martin Bernasconi

Teacher: Madhuvanti Khare – Berkeley Arts Magnet

Fast piano is played

Piano keys are mountains and snow

Fingers race across mountain and snow

Each finger is a little snowboarder trying to get Olympic

gold

Like a sticker in an exercise book

Press the black key and make the mountain sing

Press the white key and make the snow sing

Bang! Bang! Bang !

Three year old Miles comes storming in banging on the

black and white keys

Avalanches storm down the mountain burying me

As you press a white key, a person makes a hole in the snow

for escape

Soon the sun will get as white as the snow

When your fingers stretch and play,

Hammers inside will hit the brown strings

As stickers go on books, gold, silver, and bronze medals go

on necks.

Up and away I jump off the ramp with my skis

Looking down at the flags, people, Olympic rings all

brightly colored

A final stretch of keys is played, black and white shoes run

in the snow

A snowboarder races down the hill looking down at snow

and black boulders racing by

The piano is a blur of black and white keys

But also can be as slow as a curling stone

Whatever speed you play you will always get music

From the black and white piano

First Place – 4th Grade Essay

“The Beauty and Hate of the Rose”

By Grant Deutschbauer
Teacher: Sean Keller – Jefferson School Award:

When I see a rose what do I see? I see the beauty of the world. Then I look down and I see sharp thorns and I see hate, the people who think that everyone is not equal and nobody is better than them. I also see segregation. Then

I look up again and I see the rose, the beauty, the people who think that everybody is equal, the people who think that everyone is great and amazing and everyone is equal.

I say that the people who let everybody feel great and accept everyone. These colors are the colors of pride, joy, and accepting everyone. I think we should live in a world with all those colors.

We can change this world so everyone has these colors. We can change the people who segregate and discriminate. We can change those people’s hearts by being strong and being kind, and showing them what’s right so they have these colors too. We can change our lives by stepping up and showing the world what’s right. Everyone can share these colors of pride, joy, love. Everyone is special and equal.