Given Poems – National Poetry Day 2022 – Under-16s

Here is our selection of the entries for Best Poem by Under-16s for the Given Words competition for National Poetry Day. They all had to include the following five words: help, different, warrior, thankful and dream.

You can read the winning poem Doubt by Saphra Peterson along with the judge's comments here and the poems from the adults' category here.

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Counting a sunshine of sheep

A sea of kelp
Dreaming herds
Different sheep
Sunray burn
Bend then leap
Onto the hill
I wade in deep
I swim my will
Against the heat
A warrior girl
Ice cream peace
Is what I yearn
Sat on the seat
Thankful words
Help achieved

Elissa Piao, aged 14
Christchurch

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Crazy dreams

I have dreams that keep me awake at night
I have dreams that fill my head with spears
Cloud warriors stealing blankets from beds,
thankful to fly high In the sky
but unable to travel
from cloud to cloud
so they make blanket sleds
I have dreams, very different dreams,
featuring tin sheds
with arms and legs, helping leaves
in garbage heaps.

Elsie Knowles, aged 10
Christchurch

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fragile courage

trampled amaranth flowers
fragment the forest floor
the snow bleaching them different shades
stark dreams of death

a russet rabbit labours
over the cracked, dry lips
of a fallen tree
a warrior in its own right

thankful for the kārearea’s cry,
the ‘kek kek’
that reshapes into ‘survive’
helping the hunted—
the rabbit lopes on

Priya Bartlett, aged 13
Christchurch

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Wandering warriors in China

Warriors wander
through the land.
Always there,
a helping hand.
Shimmering armour
like a dream.
A helmet
with a silver gleam.
Thankful villages left
far behind
for different warriors
to find.

Molly Bruce, aged 11
Christchurch

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From Russia to Aotearoa

I dream of a place, far away.
Where one can rest, relax and be safe.
Some wish of a place like me.
Those are people of need, hoping for help from the world:
Those suffering from the pain of war, poverty, and violence.
But people are different.
Some people wish to be a warrior, wreaking havoc upon the world.
New Zealand is that safe place for me.
Where I can rest on a New Zealand beach, hear the
waves roll over, feel the coarse sand rub against my leg.
Or I can walk past the monumental, lush, and green
trees while standing on top of a New Zealand Mountain.
I can smell the moist ground and can hear the birds sing.
Change always comes, but one thing that never changes.
Is my place, my home, New Zealand.
And I am very, very thankful to be here

Anthony Kutovoy, aged 14
Christchurch

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Warriors on bikes fighting up spectacular mountain roads
Picturesque views the TV screen doesn’t make look any less spectacular
The speed they reach on the fast descents makes viewers hearts stop
The raw power they achieve sprinting to be the first over the line
The horrific crashes that are always different from the next
The sound of the fans on the roadside, thankful for the opportunity to experience the race, drama like fireworks
The rays of sunlight on the Champs Elysees down the tree lined avenue
The collapse at the finish line, the help they need to walk afterwards
The best raising their hands in the air
The Tour de France
My dream

Will Crawford, aged 14
Christchurch

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Days at the Beach

my mother picks up
cans and empty bottles
from the shoreline
as carefully as a baby

the gulls help
with the housework
gobbling scraps
sandwiches / pizza / chips

they still dream
of a lowered cooling sea
so different from
what there is now

the sea / the shoreline
the waves / the birds
warriors in the sky

at sunset
we wash our
gritty surfboards

returning sand
to the thankful sea

Zoe Sullivan, aged 15
Christchurch

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Boy and Grasshopper

grasshopper
her clicking sound
no different from any other
leaping bounding
dreaming through
the cutty grass of Aotearoa
a warrior sliding
down the harakeke
down the silver ferns

a boy
a glass in one hand
paper in the other
a roaring grin
deadly eyes

under the glass

at first she panics
help!
scrambling
racing round
the rim of the glass
she grows tired
wilting in the moisture
sorrowful eyes

she dreams the day she will be free

the boy sees her panic
her grief her pain

he lifts the glass
she limps away
thankful for this day

Emma Geddes, aged 12
Christchurch

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Floating up into the frosty air my crane paints the Aotearoa sky.
My crane is a warrior fighting for survival.
My crane is the sea creating currents and waves.
My crane is a memory that will not go away.
My crane is the wind creating tornadoes and hurricanes.
My crane is different but still flies with tuis.
My crane is an artist painting pictures in my mind.
My crane is fire, keeping me warm. My crane is a dream floating in my head.
My paper crane slowly drifts off the bay out to sea.
I am thankful because my crane is my saviour.
My crane flies over Mount Aoraki and past the Waikato river.
My crane helps like a friend.
My crane is one of a kind.

Mia Tucker, aged 10
Christchurch

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I want him back

Bang.

He had jumped to the ground,
and was lying there,
with his arms over the back of his head.

It was just a thunder storm,
but my dad was a warrior in WW 2.
Even a car backfiring sent him
dropping to the floor.

No matter how thankful
everyone was for his service
he still regrets
that dream he had of going
to war to help save the world.

He is different now.
The war changed my dad.

I want that man who raised me back.

Georgia Lewis, aged 13
Christchurch

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Mt Hutt

Bush land scatters across the entrance to the mountain
Birds chirping, little warriors withstanding the cold, splashing of water in the nearby creak
The cool fresh breeze brushes past my face as I pull on my boots
Touching the snow, it's as fluffy as a marshmallow
Endless queues, chatter of people, humming of cars coming up the hill
At the top, everything is seen from the different angle
The Rakaia River to the left, the Pacific ocean out in the horizon, small doll like towns on the plains
It's a dream being up there
Help of the trails you'll gradually make your way down
Reaching the café
The strong aroma of hot chocolate, fish 'n' chips and pizza fill the air
I am so thankful for Mt Hutt being right in my backyard

Chloe Lowe, aged 13
Christchurch

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Dear Grandpa,

How are you Grandpa?
I always dream about you
You were always as cheerful as a rainbow
Everyone thinks of you
Everyone is thankful for your help
You where such a great man
You where an amazing warrior
Life is so different without you
I miss you
I love you

Emily Brook, aged 13
Christchurch

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She dances
Beside the Avon River
Songs of the Tui
Now silent

She dances
Helping the river
Whisper its secrets

Underneath the moonlight
She sings her love
For her father

Confident, loving
Brave, strong

So thankful for all he gave
She twirls under the stars

Memories of being swung
In his grasp
Now only a dream

Now a wounded warrior
No longer near

Life for her now
So different

Her rain-soaked hair
Clinging
As she spins

Every night she dances
Every night she sings to him
Waiting for an answer

Chloe Drinkwater, aged 12
Christchurch

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Garden of little roses

moonlight dusts the garden
different species ready for the night
daises tuck in
trees cast shadow blankets
grass sways softly
deep in slumber

just beyond the garden gate
encasing the life inside
dust runs on the road
midnight creatures rise

scared faces glance to the sky
searching for the guidance of lights
silent whimpers echo
calling for help

little roses awaken
the warriors of night
leaving behind a peaceful dream

raising their heads
to the current of the wind
petals fly
landing in a trail

guiding thankful hearts to the garden

the garden of little roses

Serena Mackle, aged 12
Christchurch

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Waikumete

Drifting in the fields
Long grass thankful for a gentle wind
As forget-me-nots dance below
A warrior lies in a moss bed
Created near the kowhai roots
Dreaming of new worlds
Not waking to watch the wind
Help the graceful tui fly away
Soft footsteps patter
Across the well-trodden dirt
As his family visits
his different type of home

Amelia Finlay-Smits, aged 11
Christchurch

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A Better Place

The ocean waves spread over the old ship docks,
making me thankful that I’m in my warm house.
I press my face close to the window so that I can see the night sky,
dreaming about how our world could be a better place
filled with more plants and more life.
Not everyone has to be a warrior and hide their fears.
I know it's time for me to sleep
but I feel like I could help the world so much more.
I quietly walk up our wooden stairs, trying not to wake my family.
In my bed I feel so different from the rest of the world.
Lucky. Safe.

Olivia Paton, aged 12
Christchurch

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The dog

After hours of running through New Zealand’s best forest
He sees a slow flowing river
This river is different to all the others
He jumps into the water like a warrior going into battle
The water sounds just like drums.
Filled with happiness he climbs out of the cold loud river
Rolling in the mud that doesn’t help make him clean
This is the dream this is the life he wants
He’s a thankful dog.

Luca Rose, aged 13
Christchurch

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