Song
(after Charles Causley)
I am the song that lifts the sky
I am the wind that flames the fire
I am the cloud that calls the flood
I am the stream that draws the sun
I am the tide that drinks the moon
I am the air that sings the leaf
I am the bird that stirs the branch
I am the tale that flies the word
I am the note that spreads the song
© Katherine Gallagher
Most animal legs
will have some knees.
Including birds,
including bees,
including dogs
like Pekinese,
including cats
like Siamese.
There’s also apes
like chimpanzees
and watery-mammal
manatees.
And most of them all
have kneecaps, two.
including us,
the gnu, the shrew,
and even frogs
have kneecaps too.
But NONE are found
on a kangaroo.
Pondering These Knees by Celia Berrell
https://www.realclearscience.com/blog/2019/04/02/four_fascinating_facts_about_kneecaps.html
http://kneesafe.com/fun-facts-animal-knees/
Each drop of water
from sea, soil or stream
is teeming with life.
A mi-CROS-copist’s dream!
Diatoms shimmer
in rainbows of light.
Their intricate coats
a magnificent sight.
These algae have skeletons:
glassy-grown cases
with species-specific
designs on all faces.
Placed on a slide
only microns apart,
kaleidoscope patterns
delight us as art.
First published in Double Helix (April 2018)
Reproduced with permission of CSIRO http://www.doublehelix.csiro.au
inspired by:
Klaus Kemp – The Diatomist – & Algae Kaleidoscopes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxkbSk–EUY
Published on Feb 9, 2017
Struck by the beauty and symmetry of diatoms, modern-day microscopist Klaus Kemp recently revived the Victorian art of diatom arrangement. In this short film by Matthew Killip, peer into the peculiar art form and witness a modern-day diatom master at work.
Naturally Artistic
Kids are naturally artistic,
In so many different ways,
Free from self-judgement,
Not restricted in anyway.
Their mind’s an open palette,
With fearless application,
Producing works of art,
With gusto, not frustration.
There are no expectations,
Just imaginations wild,
Creating an extension,
Of what they feel inside.
Greed
Knowing you was swell.’
Quatrain Poetry celebrates the number four. It is easy and fun to write. A Quatrain poem is a four-line poem that rhymes.
There are four ways to organise a Quatrain rhyming scheme.
Example 1. Using the information that cat feet are neat and round. They need less energy to lift during movement. They grip on rough terrain. They are paws for endurance, not short bursts of speed.
Cat Feet: Rhyming scheme: a/b/a/b/ Four lines
Not for speed, not for the race
Not for the swift or fleet
Steady the rhythm, steady the pace
Arched and round cat feet.
Example 2. Using the information that hare feet require more energy for locomotion, but are designed for speed. The two centre toes are longer than the outside toes and the toes arch less. Designed for running with short, high bursts of speed.
Hare Feet: Rhyming scheme: a/a/b/b/ Four lines
Two centre toes, long and strong
Grip the ground, speed me along
Race with me if you dare
Mine is the fleet foot of the hare.
Example 3. Using information that webbed feet are for swimming to retrieve birds or drag fishing nets ashore. The toes are connected by membrane similar to that of a frog to assist with locomotion in water.
Webbed Feet: Rhyming Scheme: a/a/b/a/ Four lines.
Bred to swim, bred to achieve
Webbed feet through the water cleave
Downed birds and fishing nets I carry
My goal in life is to retrieve.
When I was born a gift was sent
From far across the sea
A teddy bear from USA
Mum’s pen-pal sent to me.
He kept me nice and warm in bed
I cuddled him all night,
But Ted was spewed on several times
Poor bear he looked a fright.
So Mum washed Ted time and again,
I’d never let him go;
At story time I’d hold him near,
He listened close, I know.
He was a constant friend of mine
Whenever I was sad,
Like back when I was seven years old
The time I lost my dad.
So Ted’s been through a lot with me
And still he lingers near
With scruffy fur and just one eye
And flippy floppy ear.
But as he’s nearly of an age
–my lovely little bear –
When Ted’s considered to be old,
A friend like him is rare.
So he and I will travel on
Till one of us is dead,
I hope like hell for my own sake
The first to go is Ted!
Shoebox World
You need a shoebox nothing more,
Then cut out a little door.
Inside the box is just the space,
For you to make a special place.
Is it a tiny teddy’s home?
Or a world where dinosaurs like to roam?
Does it hide treasure or a golden key?
A pirate’s world for all to see?
Is it a space adventure with moon and stars?
With rockets racing off to Mars?
Or you could make it a minature zoo,
With monkeys, lions and tigers too.
Put the lid on and open the door
Let’s see the world that you adore.
Australian Children’s Poetry 