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Dad

Dad is the dancing-man
The laughing-bear, the prickle-chin,
The tickle-fingers, jungle-roars
Bucking Bronco, rocking-horse,
The helicopter roundabout
The beat-the-wind at scream and shout
Goal-post, scary-ghost
Climbing Jack, humpty-back.

But sometimes he's
A Go-away please!
A snorey-snarl, a sprawly slump
A yawny mouth, a sleeping lump,

And I'm a kite without a string
Waiting for Dad to dance again.

Copyright: from Walking On Air (Hodder Children's Books, 1999) © Berlie Doherty 1993, used by permission of the author

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Dad is the dancing-man The laughing-bear, the prickle-chin, The tickle-fingers, jungle-roars Bucking Bronco, rocking-horse, The helicopter roundabout The beat-the-wind at scream and shout Goal-post, scary-ghost Climbing Jack, humpty-back. But sometimes he's A Go-away please! A snorey-snarl, a sprawly slump A yawny mouth, a sleeping lump, And I'm a kite without a string Waiting for Dad to dance again.

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ALLIGATOR PIE

Alligator pie, alligator pie,
If I don't get some I think I'm gonna die.
Give away the green grass, give away the sky,
But don't give away my alligator pie.

Alligator stew, alligator stew,
If I don't get some I don't know what I'll do.
Give away my furry hat, give away my shoe,
But don't give away my alligator stew.

Alligator soup, alligator soup,
If I don't get some I think I'm gonna droop.
Give away my hockey-stick, give away my hoop,
But don't give away my alligator soup.

Copyright: from Alligator Pie (HarperCollins, 2012), © Dennis Lee 1974, used by permission of the author and the publisher

About ALLIGATOR PIE

Let me tell you a story. When my children were very young we read Mother Goose at bedtime. Soon, I started making new nursery rhymes myself, and believe it or not, one of them came to me on a bicycle. It's true, one day as I was riding my bike to the store I started hearing some strange words. They had the same rhythm as my feet on the pedals. The first part that came into my head was "Alligator pie", but some parts didn't have words yet, so it went like this "Alligator pie, Alligator pie, If I don't get some De-do-de-do-de-die". Then I started to hear another verse about Alligator stew. Finally I turned the bike around, rode home and wrote down as much as I could remember. After I worked on my poem for a while it sounded like this...

Copyright © 2024 All rights reserved. Charity No. 1093858. Registered No. 4336052

The Poetry Archive is a not-for-profit organisation with charitable status.

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ALLIGATOR PIE - The Children's Poetry Archive

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Listen and read along to 'ALLIGATOR PIE'.

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Air

The yawn in the morning filling your mouth
with no one to start you yawning
air in my hair
air in the air
fffffffffffff
The swing in the playground swinging
with no one on the swing to swing it
air in my hair
air in the air
fffffffffffff
The balloon with its skin blown up tight
with no one blowing to tighten the skin
air in my hair
air in the air
fffffffffffff
The open window where the cool blows in
with no one to blow the cool

Copyright: from Michael Rosen's Big Book of Bad Things (Puffin, 2010), copyright © Michael Rosen 2010, used by permission of the author

Copyright © 2023 All rights reserved. Charity No. 1093858. Registered No. 4336052

The Poetry Archive is a not-for-profit organisation with charitable status.

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Where Do You Get Your Ideas From?

From the space between my ears

from the world behind my eyes

from delving deep inside me

where inspiration lies

From memories that haunt me

from things I hear and see

from mystical concoctions

From words that come and find me

from dreaming hard and long

from life and books and music

my poems: that's where they're from

Copyright: from Journey To The Centre Of My Brain! (Macmillan, 2012), © James Carter 2012, used by permission of the author and the publisher

Copyright © 2022 All rights reserved. Charity No. 1093858. Registered No. 4336052

The Poetry Archive is a not-for-profit organisation with charitable status.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. We use cookies. Accept More info

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Where Do You Get Your Ideas From? - Children's Poetry Archive

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From the space between my ears from the world behind my eyes from delving deep inside me where inspiration lies From memories that haunt me from things I hear and see from mystical concoctions From words that come and find me from dreaming hard and long from life and books and music my poems: that's where they're from Copyright: from Journey To The Centre Of My Brain!