The Empty Classroom

Twenty-five chairs facing forward

Each with their history indelibly etched

On their blue plastic surface

They’ve endured many a student’s assault

With compasses and markers

But they still stand proud

As they wait for the students

To arrive in the autumn

And for school to be in full swing

In front of each chair is a desk,

Wooden and worn

With many years’ worth of used gum

Clinging to the underneath

The desk lids are scratched and marked

From writing, art, and maths

The legs are scuffed

Their varnish worn away

From being kicked by students

Almost every day

Facing the chairs and desks

Is a board that’s black

With a light coating of chalk

It sits on the wall

Blank and unassuming

But when lessons begin

It can be transformed

Into almost anything

With a swish of the chalk

And a dash of creativity