Choosing Shoes
Gum boots when it’s raining
Sports shoes when I’m training
Sparkly shoes for dancing
Riding boots for prancing
Sandals for a summer’s day
High heeled shoes for dress up play
Then sadly comes that time of year
When Mum says, ‘Let’s go shopping dear.
Your feet keep growing, time to choose
A nice new pair of (yuk!) School Shoes.
The Visit
Cautiously, creeping down the stairs,
carefully avoiding the creaks,
we stop
and take each other’s hand.
At the bottom we tiptoe,
trembling,
towards the door.
Almost afraid to breathe
we slowly, gently, push it open.
Beneath the twinkling lights
sit the gifts.
‘He’s been,’ we whisper
‘He’s been.’
Silver slime creates a pathway.
Night time is when journeying begins
Across leaf litter, deep into the rainforest
In silence they explore,
Leaving little trace of their adventure. Just a sparkle.
She spins her intricate web
Perfectly positioned between bending branches.
Invisible to unsuspecting insects, she waits.
Dinner is served.
Effort rewarded, hunger satisfied, she rests.
Rain lashes branches. She begins again.
Wriggling your way through life
Overturning soil, helping our environment
Rarely making the news, but
Making a difference.
A 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.
Twiggy
Stick insects are so very thin
Yet still insist on shedding skin
And even when they grow much bigger
Will maintain their sylph-like figure.
Sally’s Treasure
Sally McPhee’s a collector of keys.
She keeps them concealed in a drawer.
Some she has found just lying around.
But several she stole from next door.
She has keys that fit windows
and keys for the shed.
She’s got keys for a diary
she hasn’t yet read.
She has keys for a money box
owned by her brother.
And keys for the Volvo,
She has keys for a tool box,
her father’s great treasure.
To see him in search mode
gives Sally such pleasure.
She has keys that are ancient
and keys that are new.
Well, people are careless,
that’s Miss Sally’s view.
Sally McPhee’s a collector of keys.
She keeps them concealed in a drawer.
Her intention is clear.
That year after year,
she’s going to collect hundreds more.
Teacher Notes: by Jeanie Axton
What are the keys to engage children with poetry?
Check out this site especially the “Ten Top Tips to Engage Kids with Poetry”
https://www.thebookchook.com/2014/04/ten-top-tips-to-engage-kids-with-poetry.html
There is even a link to The Australian Children’s Poetry website.
Trim
I’m a black cat
A special cat
A ship’s cat.
I was born on the Reliance in 1799.
Of all my mother’s kittens
I was the one most fine.
I’m a black cat
A special cat
A ship’s cat.
I have four snow-white paws
And a white star on my chest.
Of all the cats on board this ship
The sailors like me best.
I’m a black cat
A special cat
A ship’s cat.
When it’s time for dinner
I don’t eat with other cats.
I sit at table with the men.
I don’t care for rats.
I’m a black cat
A special cat
A ship’s cat.
I have a trusty friend
And Matthew Flinders is his name.
He has called me Trim.
I think together we’ll find fame.
I’m a black cat
A special cat
A ship’s cat.
Matthew is a clever man
He’s sailed all round this land.
He’s given it a name
And that’s Australia – how grand.
Perhaps you have a cat at home
Is it as fine as me?
Would it like to come aboard
And sail upon the sea?
With a black cat
A special cat
A ship’s cat.
Pat Simmons
