MY FUNNY VALENTINE
(Allergic to love…)
My love is like a red, red rose
That tickles my poor girlfriend’s nose.
It makes her wheeze,
It makes her sneeze,
Be my Valentine, there she blows —
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh CHOOO!
“A Summer Ottava Rima” by James Aitchison
Leave a commentA SUMMER OTTAVA RIMA
The crash of waves is always in the air,
And caravans adorn the crowded shore.
People roast on towels without a care,
Or find new rocky outcrops to explore.
Crunchy crystal sand grows too hot to bear,
Yet we stay: it’s what all Aussies yearn for!
In summertime, this is our golden place;
Then winter comes and banishes all trace.
James Aitchison
THE OTTAVA RIMA is a very rhythmic form of Italian poetry, first written in the fourteenth century.
Lord Byron and William Butler Yeats also used the form.
The rules:
- Each stanza has 8 lines
- You can create one stanza as a stand alone 8-line poem, or write multiple stanzas
- The first six lines have an a-b-a-b-a-b rhyme scheme, capped with a c-c couplet
- Mostly an ottava rima is written in iambic pentameter or 10-syllable lines.
Have fun!
“Cupid has Struck” by June Perkins
Leave a commentCupid has Struck
Labrador protects duckling,
while cat cuddles fox,
that’s when you can tell
Cupid has struck.
A dog and elephant water play,
And chicken warms some puppies,
that’s when you can tell
Cupid has struck.
A dog howls with the owl
giraffe and ostrich nuzzle necks,
that’s when you can tell
Cupid has struck.
These dear ones
love beyond feather, furs and skin;
see friendship
Is more than luck.
Inspired by stories of unusual animal friendships and playful Jazz songs.
https://www.boredpanda.com/unusual-animal-friendships-interspecies/
” Mudpies for my Valentine” by Mary Serenc
Leave a commentMudpies for my Valentine.
I stirred the mixture
and poured it in
each round hole
of the muffin tin.
I baked them
in the burning sun
and waited
till each pie was done.
Mudpies, Mudpies
For my Valentine.
I tapped them out
and served her three.
“Oh,” she said.
“Are these for me?’
She was just about to
take a bite
when she said,
“These don’t look right.”
Mudpies Mudpies
For my Valentine.
“You eat one first,”
she cried.
“Oh I’m not hungry,”
I replied.
She laughed
then placed her hand in mine,
my funny
clever Valentine.
Mudpies Mudpies
For my Valentine
“A Scorpion’s Search” by Pat Simmons
Leave a commentA Scorpion’s Search
A scorpion christened Cruella, left home to search for a fella.
She sifted through sand and she searched under slate.
She peered under pebbles to look for a mate.
She reached under rocks and she gazed at the ground but a masculine mini beast couldn’t be found.
Cruella, poor creature, was filled with despair.
There had to be someone who loved her out there.
But wait! She heard rustling and spotted the cause.
From a burrow appeared some spectacular claws.
They belonged to a sumptuous scorpion male.
What glorious eyes, and that sting in his tail!
It was love at first sight for Cruella and friend,
Which is how satisfactory quests all should end.
“Mirror Image” by JR Poulter with Teacher Notes
Leave a commentMirror Image.
Looking in the mirror,
What do I see?
A very magnificent
Image of me!
Do others see me
Just like that,
Or do they see
A ginger cat?
I wish folk looked
Beyond the fur,
The very gentle
Kitty purr,
And see
The lionheart In me,
The part my human
Always sees!
Notes:
Beauty and bravery are much more than skin deep!
The poem encourages us not to be too quick to judge others, but to get to know them and appreciate the qualities that make them unique.
The people who love us are generally the ones who see our best qualities and try to help us develop them the more.
Activity:
Write a list of things that might not look particularly attractive but which have qualities we might really appreciate. Example – cocoa bean which is used to make chocolate.
Australian Children’s Poetry 