It’s morning in the valley,
the air is crisp and sweet,
the irrigation’s on
before the noonday heat.
The cows are grazing quietly
the day’s work has begun,
across Australian farms
a living must be won.
Teacher’s note: This morning scene was captured at Moyhu in Victoria’s King Valley.
For five years across the fields
Brutal shells crashed down.
Destruction claimed a savage cost
In every ruined town.
Lethal waves of metal rained,
Stole eight million men.
And when the guns fell silent
They said, “No war again!”
But the hearts of men are dark,
War runs through their veins.
It seems that peace is fragile
Compared with wartime’s aims.
In response to November prompt Remembrance Day
Teacher’s note: When the First World War ended on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day, 1918, everyone called it “the war to end all wars”. Using this poem, students can discuss why wars break out and how we can avoid them in future.
Aboard an old steam loco,
many years ago,
the driver and the fireman
worked by the firebox glow.
They stood upon the footplate,
wood layered over steel,
where the engine driver could
control the loco’s wheels.
The fireman shovelled coal —
he had no time to dream —
heating water in the boiler
to keep up lots of steam.
I wonder who lived here;
I wonder why they went?
What fate struck these pioneers
and left their spirit spent?
They built their dreams to last,
stone by golden stone,
but now these dismal relics
lie ragged and alone.
Teacher’s note: One of many abandoned dwellings in Burra, South Australia.
You can carry a laptop to school,
but it wasn’t always that way.
The first computers were huge,
way back in the day.
They were used to break secret codes,
so we’d know the enemy’s plans.
And after the war was over,
they were soon in everyone’s hands.
We take them for granted today,
but once they didn’t exist.
If we didn’t have them now,
do you think they would be missed?
Teacher’s note: During the Second World War, Alan Turing (1912—1954) was a code breaker who worked in Hut 8 at Bletchley Park in England. Pictured above is a bombe, the electromechanical machine which cracked the enemy’s Enigma code. Turing’s pioneering work in computer technology sped the development of today’s computers. It is estimated that his code breaking computer science shortened the war in Europe by more than two years and saved over 14 million lives.
I bought a tube of toothpaste
and squeezed it from the top.
I was getting lots of toothpaste out,
till people yelled for me to stop!
“You should squeeze it from the bottom,
then roll the tube up neatly.
That way you won’t waste toothpaste
’cause you’ll use it all completely!”
Teacher’s note: Use this poem to ask students how they avoid wasting toothpaste and other products around the home, and why it’s a good idea to avoid wastage of any kind.
We’re celebrating pasta
all around the world,
spaghetti and linguine
are being swirled and twirled.
Ravioli’s all the rage!
Rigatoni’s lots of fun!
I think my gnocchi rocks!
Some penne anyone?
Macaroni and fusilli,
canelloni, fettuccine,
tagliatelle, vermicelli,
agnolini, tortellini —
Let’s celebrate them all,
every kind of pasta!
There’s nothing like a pasta
to fill your tummy faster.
In response to Celebrations prompt.
He’s big and fat and noisy,
He buzzes ’round my head.
I know he carries lots of germs,
That’s why I want him DEAD!
He crawls across the windowpane —
He’s absolutely rude! —
Then squats and rubs his grubby legs,
On top of all my food.
I tried to swat that blowie
With a paper nicely rolled,
But — tinkle, crash — I missed
And smashed mum’s wedding bowl.
Next I got a schoolbook,
And whacked him hard with that,
The monstrous fly went down
With a great big juicy SPLAT!
The moral of my story
Is that education’s great,
Not only does it make you smart,
It keeps flies off your plate.
What’s that bird
doing on my head?
Why doesn’t it
fly away instead?
It’s not fair
being a statue,
because I know
what birds like to do!
James’ poem was inspired by the image below which was taken in Venice
Imagine living here
with all those stairs to climb,
and every room you enter
takes you back in time.
Everywhere you wander,
every corner you explore,
could there be a ghost or two
behind a secret door?
Teacher’s note: Martindale Hall, Mintaro, South Australia, famously appeared in the movie Picnic at Hanging Rock. Completed in 1880 with 32 rooms, and once the home of the Mortlock family, this Georgian mansion is now open to the public six days a week.
Australian Children’s Poetry 