Singapore MOE Primary English

Poetry·Alice Baumgartner, age 12 — Sensory memories of a Mardi Gras dinner trigger vivid recollections of sounds, tastes, and a game of Truth or Dare on an unseasonably warm February evening.

Poetry·Mark Roberts, age 10 — A boy at boarding school writes to his father about missing their everyday rituals and recognizing the sacrifices his father makes driving long hours to work.

Story·Julia Echternach, age 12 — Two sisters defy their mother's rules about a tire swing, then spend an afternoon picking berries at a neighbor's farm, savoring summer's simple freedoms.

Story·Zhang He, age 11 — A girl selling oranges at a Chinese market warns customers her fruit is sour, then runs after them to return their change, teaching a lesson about honesty.

Poetry·Natalie Lam, age 12 — Rain transforms from mist to downpour, its gray fingers reaching through fog and pine trees, as the speaker celebrates the wet beauty of their Pacific Northwest home.

Story·Katey Storey, age 13 — A girl recalls summers at her family's Maine house, exploring tide pools and climbing Cannon Rock, where she collected sea glass and dreamed of becoming a marine biologist.

Story·Rebekah Carbajal, age 11 — Three cousins rowing to a Maine lighthouse are caught in a sudden storm, their boat capsizes, and they barely make it to shore alive.

Story·Stephanie Gomory, age 12 — A drama-loving girl accidentally breaks a precious jade elephant in an antique shop and offers to perform for the elderly owner's sick husband as recompense.

Story·Neva Pederson, age 13 — A girl picks a fight with her sister over blanket distribution, ignores her conscience, loses the argument she started, and learns to listen to that small inner voice.

Story·Simon Hatfield, age 12 — Ed plays basketball with his friend Dave before a school bingo night where he comes within one number of winning an air-hockey table, losing to an elderly woman.