I am the vast waters beneath the ramparts,
the icy wash against black rocks;
I am the broad distances veiled by mist,
the deep and eerie lochs.
I am embedded
in every Scottish soul,
so that man, with country,
becomes part of the whole.
Author Archives: australianchildrenspoetry
Love Was Sweet by Graham Seal
Leave a commentI wrote a poem for you,
straight from my heart,
to say how much I loved you,
right from the start.
But now it is all over,
our time was short, but sweet –
my double choc gelato,
you were wonderful to eat!
Time Flies by James Aitchison
Leave a commentA billion hours ago,
(count them if you must),
our ancestors were living
before they turned to dust.
It was the Stone Age then,
and Man was in fine fettle,
after which the Bronze Age
saw Man start using metal.
I wonder if their knives and forks
back then were made of stone?
Or did people eat without them,
or maybe they used bone?
Did they go to school back then,
or did they work all day?
I think that I am lucky
to be alive today!
Teacher’s note: The prehistoric Stone Age period, when stone tools were used, lasted 3.4 million years, ending with the advent of metalworking. It is believed that the Stone Age represents nearly 99.3% of human history.
There’s A Possum. . . by Jeanie Axton
Leave a commentThere’s a possum on my roof
and he’s not eating cake
He is stomping up and down
keeping me awake
There’s a possum on my roof
learning the highland fling
He is happily enjoying it
but it’s not my sort of thing
There a possum on my roof
tapping out a beat
He finds it pretty handy
having thumbs on both his feet
There’s a possum on my roof
I wish he would go home
Up to his branch in the tree
and leave me quietly alone
Dinner Invitation by Jenny Erlanger
Leave a commentLast night we had a dinner guest.
The food was such a treat.
I know you’ll all be so impressed
with what we had to eat.
A light and fluffy cheese soufflé
then lobster thermidor
And for dessert, a crème brûlée,
the best I’ve had, for sure.
But now it’s back to snags and chops,
to carrots, rice and beans
to tasteless soups and other slops,
to normal food routines.
A dinner guest, it seems to me
is all you really need.
to skip an uninspiring tea
and get a decent feed.
Jeremy James Johnson by Margaret Pearce
Leave a commentJeremy James Johnson was a very naughty boy.
Fatty fried junk foods were all that he’d enjoy.
Now Jeremy had a little dog, his name was Mut.
He sat under the table, his mouth never shut.
Mut liked cauliflour, carrots and celery stewed,
He ate every scrap because he just liked food.
Mut even ate cabbage and broccoli as well
Although why he liked them no one could tell.
So Jeremy was able to show a plate scraped clean,
And demand two helpings of chocolate ice cream.
He got away with this for month after month,
Jeremy got skinny and Mut strong and plump.
Jeremy looked at Mut who shared his day,
And saw how fast he ran around to play.
“Mut’s not tired and runs faster than me.
Why does he still have so much energy?”
His father with glee got to Jeremy at last.
“Mut eats all your vegies that’s why he’s fast.”
Jeremy James Johnson is now very very good.
He eats all his vegies as every child should.
And fatty fried foods make him feel very sick
Because Jeremy is now on a fitness kick.
Jeremy can now run very very fast
So his little dog Mut often ends up last.
The Land That Never Was: Part 2 by Andrew Plant
Leave a commentIn the Land that Never Was things were very strange because
People who were living there used to have quite messy hair
But this no longer is the case but still it is the weirdest place
The folk there act peculiarly for they stand on all they want to see
Stand on anything they need stand on books they want to read
Stand on people when they talk like they’re the ground on which they walk
Stand on mirrors to brush their hair stand not sit upon the chair
The reason why they stand is clear it’s so that things won’t disappear
The people remember very well the day the goblin cast his spell
Saying “what they saw would go away only that on which they stood would stay”
He was thinking of the land for this is what he hope and planned
That all the folk would walk around looking only at the ground
One day a clever person thought “In this spell a lesson’s taught
Anything I wish to see must be stood upon by me”
He found a friend – pushed him down and stood on him which made him frown
Then shouted so that all could hear “LOOK HE DOESN’T DISAPPEAR”
Quickly then he went around throwing people on the ground
To show them how there was a way to change what the goblin had to say
Soon everyone in every street heard how things placed under their feet
Remained – even if they were looked upon whether pen or paper dog or swan
So now in the Land that Never Was though things are still quite strange because
They stand on everything that’s there and at least they don’t have messy hair!
The Land That Never Was: Part 1 by Andrew Plant
Leave a commentIn the Land that Never Was something’s very strange because
Everyone who’s living there always has quite messy hair
In this land as you look around things disappear without a sound
So you must be careful where you look which makes it hard to read a book
A spell was put upon this place by a goblin mean with nasty face
Who people tried hard to avoid which made the goblin most annoyed
So angry did he get one day he said “I’ll make these people pay
Since they refuse to look at me I’ll take away all that they see”
“Gingel gangel gungel gel” went the nasty goblins spell
“to smell and taste and hears’s okay but where they look will go away”
“All except what they stand on this will always carry on
The ground will always remain there as one safe place for them to stare”
It didn’t take the people long to realise what was going on
They’d look in mirror to brush their hair and find themselves no longer there
And so with family and friends one look would surely mean their end
Thus they learnt to move around looking only at the ground
Mirrors had to be thrown out and people soon forgot about
The need to brush their hair each day for no one would see it anyway
The goblin clapped his hands with glee and said “Oh clever clever me”
Which made everybody look at him and that removed his nasty grin
Now the ugly goblin’s gone but his spell still lingers on
And the people still have their messy hair because there are no mirrors there
The Secret Lake by James Aitchison
Leave a commentA rambling path
I chose to take,
until at last it led me to
a secret magic lake.
Trees formed walls
on every side,
and there a little bridge
I spied.
It crossed the moat
to a fortress green,
where adventures waited —
perhaps a submarine?
I closed my eyes
and made a wish
that my backyard
could look like this!
Teacher’s note: This lake is located in Red Cow Farm, Sutton Forest, in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales. The farm boasts a series of different garden “rooms”.
Exercise Routine by Marcus Ten Low
Leave a commentstretch out your toes,
as far as it goes!
let your long fingers
out, so each one lingers…
breathe from down low,
let the good air flow!
jump like the stars,
or leap over the bars!
lie down on the mat
and arch like a cat!
or extend a leg or arm,
and sway slow like a charm!
stretch every good muscle
slooow…among others’ hustle –
don’t forget to drink water,
and cooling down after!
to get fit needs routine
to get muscley and lean –
whether morn or afternoon,
please do come again soon!
Australian Children’s Poetry 