Author Archives: australianchildrenspoetry
“The Farmyard” by Virginia Lowe
Leave a commentTHE FARMYARD
The Farmer in the Dell
The farmer in the dell
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The farmer in the dell
The farmer births a child
The farmer births a child
Hi-ho, the derry-o…
The farmer births a child
The child gets a cat
The child gets a cat
Hi-ho the derry-o…
The child gets a cat
The farmer milks the goats
The farmer milks the goats
Hi-ho, the derry-o…
The farmer milks the goats
The child feeds the goats
The child feeds the goats
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The child feeds the goats
The cat drinks the milk
The cat drinks the milk
Hi-ho, the derry-o…
The cat drinks the milk
The farmer plants the seed
The farmer plants the seed
Hi-ho, the derry-o…
The farmer plants the seed
The child picks the peas
The child picks the peas
Hi-ho, the derry-o…
The child picks the peas
The farmer cooks the peas
The farmer cooks the peas
Hi-ho, the derry-o…
The farmer cooks the peas
The farmer and her child
The farmer and her child
Hi-ho the derry-oh
The farmer and her child
©Virginia Lowe
“Farmyard frolics” by James Aitchison
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Farmyard frolics
The farm wakes up to the sound of chooks,
The pigs give the cows some dirty looks,
The grumpy goose nips a sleepy sheep,
The ducks duck into the pond so deep.
The rabbits dig in the vegie patch
While the dogs wake up and have a scratch.
The horse goes for a little canter
And birds enjoy their feathered banter.
The scarecrow yawns and gives us a grin —
Even he can’t sleep through all the din!
What a busy way to start each day,
When all my farm friends come out to play.
“Farmyard Election” by Toni Newell
Leave a commentAt John Jackson’s farmyard,
There was a meeting held,
And all the animals were there,
To vote, as compelled.
They were voting for a leader,
And amongst themselves would choose,
Each could address the meeting,
And from that they’d win or lose.
The cow was the first to stand,
And gave out a loud ‘moo’,
He told them he was big and strong,
And very responsible too.
The pig got up to ‘oink’ a word,
And said it wasn’t true,
He was just as strong as the cow,
And cleverer too.
The chickens, geese and ducks arose,
To give their point of view,
But ‘squawked’ and ‘quacked’ amongst themselves,
Offering nothing new.
The horses and donkey stood together,
‘Heehawed’ and ‘neighed’ in chorus,
But were so loud they couldn’t be heard,
They were just a little too boisterous.
The sheep stood up and followed the goat,
Who ‘bleated’ clear out loud,
But the sheep just ‘baaed’ and ‘baaed’ and ‘baaed’,
Which didn’t please the crowd.
The rabbit hopped up to the stand,
Followed by the Border Collie,
But decided better to hop down,
For to remain would be a folly.
The Border ‘barked’ he was the smartest,
He could round up sheep and cows,
Chickens, geese and ducks, and more,
Even boars and sows.
All the animals parted,
To consider and cast their vote,
The ballot was counted with the result,
The Border Collie beat the goat!
“Boo-book Week” by Louise McCarthy
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“Boo-book week!” hooted the boobook owl,
Last night from half past two.
“Boo-book, boo-book, boo-book week.”
It hooted as it flew.
And on and on until the dawn,
When suddenly it quit.
Then “Cock-a-doodle-doodle-do!” the rooster crowed a bit.
Followed by, “Bok bawk! Bok bawk!
Bok bawk, bok bawk, bok BOOK week!
The hens clucked on, they did not cease –
All day, bok bawk, bok BOOK week!
So that is how I know,
That this week is boo-book week.
Or as the hens prefer to say –
Bok bawk, bok bawk, bok BOOK week
“Make reading your secret power” by James Aitchison
Leave a commentMake reading your secret power
Wimpy Kid and Winnie the Pooh,
Harry Potter, Peter Rabbit,
Ranger’s Apprentice and Dr Who
All give you the reading habit.
The words form pictures in your mind —
Just read a book and find out how!
You will never get left behind
When reading’s your secret power!
“Evolving Books” by Toni Newell
Leave a commentEvolving Books
When I was very young,
My mother read to me,
And I met ‘Winnie-the-Pooh’,
And young ‘Heidi’,
Then there was ‘Charlotte’,
And ‘Koala Lou’,
‘Thomas the Tank Engine’,
And the ‘Gruffalo’.
When I was a little older,
And had learned how to read,
I met Enid Blyton,
Her ‘Famous Five’, I believe,
And later it was science,
And then literature galore,
Biology and math equations,
History, art, and even more.
And later in my life,
When the decision was mine,
I embraced murder mysteries,
Biographies and crime.
There is so much to choose from,
And so very much to learn,
But with technical evolution,
Let’s pray our books don’t burn.
”Reading Is My Secret Power” by Kylie Covark
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Psst!
I’ve got special powers!
Do you promise not to tell?
My powers are a secret;
Lean in and listen well.
I can open any door,
And answer any, ‘Why?’
I can travel back
In time and space,
And sometimes even fly.
I’ve got every super power
That a kid could ever need.
And you can have them too,
My friend,
If you just sit and read

