IT lesson 3: Analyzing & Composing poem

The Son is in Secondary School by Affran Sa’at

My badge has a Latin motto
Hope for the future
The future is hope
Or something

At times black crows try to interrupt
When we sing the National Anthem
It is difficult to maintain
The whiteness of my shoes
Especially on Wednesdays

I must admit there is something quite special
About the bare thighs of hardworking scouts

The Malay chauffeurs
Who wait for my schoolmates
Sit on the car park kerb
Telling jokes to one another

Seven to the power of five is unreasonable

On Chinese New Year
Mrs Lee dressed up
In a sarong kebaya
And sang Bengawan Solo

The capital of Singapore is Singapore

My best friend did a heroic thing once
Shaded all A’s
For his Chinese Language
Multiple-choice paper

In our annual yearbook
There is a photograph of me
Pushing a wheelchair and smiling

They caught me
At the exact moment
When my eyes were actually closed


1. The poet was thinking of his secondary school days. It was typical to have school motto in Latin and students were allowed to wear only white shoes. It looks like he was not sure of the school motto and did not like Math (no calculators back then).

He thought about his daily routine like singing the national anthem and special moments like his teacher dressed up in traditional Malay dress for Chinese New Year. He could not forget being photographed with his eyes closed. I think he felt amused looking back.

My poem:

Back in the old days…...

Back in the old days,
we see each other’s face.

We chat together,
and argue all over.

We copy each other’s answers when we could,
like naughty children would.

Back then, teachers were caring,
and always sharing.

Now, things are serious,
and teachers are fierce.