Proposals from Ms. Gray’s Fourth Grade Class at Holmes Elementary

NEW MONUMENTS

MeMorials ThaT MaTTer

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The views expressed in this book are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of 826michigan. We believe in the power of youth voice and are thrilled that you picked up this book. No part of this book may be reproduced without express written permission from the publisher, except for small excerpts for the purposes of review or scholarly study.

Many thanks to Holmes Elementary and our volunteers for their participation in this field trip.

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This book contains writing from 826michigan’s New Monuments field trip program. During this program, students explore what a monument is and can be, dreaming up new possibilities for local ways to honor heroes and specialties, from the playful (coney dogs and magical creatures) to the serious (activists and abolitionists). In collaboration with 826michigan volunteers, students envision and draw these new possibilities, and then write about why they think their new monuments should be built. This project is based on the work by student writers at our sister chapter 826 New Orleans and their publication Courageous, Eccentric, Diverse: New Monuments for New Orleans.

A Monument to Teachers

We would like to have a statue of our teachers because they are the best!

Mrs. Gray is nice and helpful, Mrs. Lutz is kind and fun, and our P.E. teacher has great tag games. They help the students, are hardworking, and stay in the school for a long time.

We think the statue should be located right outside the school and made of iron with hair of gold.

All of the teachers are great and we love them! .

New Monuments | 1

A Monument to Balloons and Flags

We would like to memorialize balloons and flags. An interesting example of balloons and flags is to celebrate football and cheerleading. Birthdays can be celebrated with balloons but America’s birthday (4th of July) is represented by flags. Balloons and flags both act as a celebration for something bigger.

We give something special to somebody to celebrate something. Flags represent a community and important monuments in history (like the 4th of July).

Balloons can be in the sky and flags can be on poles and waving in the air.

Balloons represent celebration and flags represent something that is meaningful to people. They both are important to cheerleading and football.

Ms. Gray’s Class

2 |

A Monument to Anime

We would like to have a monument for Anime.

Anime can inspire viewers to be anything they want, such as a swordsman or a strong fighter. Some examples are:

• Demon Slayer is a good example of inspiring others to fight for what is important to them.

• Naruto and Dragon Ball Z shows viewers how to be brave

• Demon Slayer also inspires viewers to protect their friends and family

The proposed monument is important because:

•

It can inspire people to be brave

• It can show people how to cook

• It could be fun to look at

The anime monument would be located in the center of Ypsilanti.

It would inspire and not only show viewers how to be brave and fight for what they believe in, but also inspire them to protect their friends and family.

New Monuments | 3

A Monument to the Library

We would like to have a monument for the library.

Libraries are places to find books and bring them home and they are important for learning. Libraries have books and they are free. They also have computers, tablets, toys for people to play with and use. It’s a good place to learn a lot of things, like:

• We learn how to speak to our family

• We learn different languages for any reason: English, Spanish, or even Sign Language

The monument would be outside the library. It would look like a statue of a person next to a table, picking out a book to read. The monument would be made of metal, but there would be real books on the table.

We should make a monument to libraries because they are good places to learn languages and we can find books to read there.

Ms. Gray’s Class

4 |

A Monument to God

We would like to make a monument for God because he made us and we are his kids. God is beautiful. If there was a statue of God, we could hug it.

We want a statue of God because he was watching us and is there for you. He is good at lots of things like building, writing, speaking and singing. This monument is important because we love God and God loves kids.

This statue can go at the front of the church so people will learn and discuss God. The statue should be made out of gold.

We want this monument because God made us and we want to show God and all his kids.

New Monuments | 5

A Monument to Earth and Electricity

We would like to have a monument for the Earth and electricity. Did you know that sunlight was the first thing to hit the Earth?

Without the Earth there would be no life. Electricity is one of the most important things here. Without electricity, there would be no light in homes and stores.

We wouldn’t be here without the Earth or electricity. Without the Earth, there would be no mountains or animals.

We would like the monument to be in the middle of Ypsilanti. It would look like Earth below a galaxy with a lighting bolt beside it. It would be made of gold and iron.

Without the Earth, there is no life.

Ms. Gray’s Class

6 |

Design Your Own Monument

WHO or WHAT would you like to memorialize?

Opening sentence to hook the reader’s attention:

What are some facts to support your proposal?

Share your feelings about why the proposed monument is important.

Describe your vision of the monument. Where would it be located? What does it look like? What is it made of?

Conclusion to support your proposal:

New Monuments | 7

Draw or Insert a picture of your group or self-designed monument.

Ms. Gray’s Class

8 |

Draw or Insert a picture of your group or self-designed monument.

New

Monuments | 9

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