Transcript

Welcome to the Kids’ Poetry Club podcast. Before the fun starts, here’s a quick reminder that all episodes come with free support materials. Just go to kidspoetryclub.com to see YouTube videos of illustrated poems and to download a pack of activities based on this week’s episode. It’s all free. Okay … let the fun begin …

Let's have some fun 

with things that rhyme

welcome Kids 

it's poetry time!

Hip Hip Hurray!

Welcome back to Kids Poetry Club with me, Little Dazzy Donuts, and a massive thanks to Pickle from Renton, Washington, in the United States, who read out the introduction poem that you just heard.

I hope you’re feeling ready for some rhymes and fun today because we're going to spend the next 15 minutes listening to three poems on this week's chosen topic - are you going to guess what the topic is? Plus, we have a guest poem of the week, and Queenie is back with us. She’s  bringing a box of tissues with her – I wonder why. So, while I play our intro music, get wriggling around to find a comfortable spot ... I’m so excited! It's time for this week's Kids’ Poetry Club!

Music

Before we play "guess the topic of the week", let's start off with club registration. This is where you get to shout out your name and get a club point for being here. How about I show you how …. Here goes …. Little Dazzy Donuts! So, on the count of three, shout out your name so that I can hear you through your phone, computer, or radio. Here goes …. One. Two. Three!

If you remember, our topic last week was School, and we had fun poems about Pods, about a dinosaur eating homework, about going to school on Opposite Day, and about losing your balance at school.

So let’s see if you can guess this week’s topic. I’m going to play you four sounds – however, to make it more challenging, I’m going to play them all at the same time. Does that sound challenging enough for you? I hope so. Here goes. Listen carefully, and see if you can figure out what the topic is this week.

SOUNDS

So, did you guess it? Yes, this week’s topic is feeling poorly, or feeling ill, and sitting here with me surrounded by tissues is a poorly Queenie. Let me move the pile of tissues and see if I can find her.

Sound

QUEENIE: Snoring

Well, it looks like she’s currently sleeping it off …. So why don’t we let her sleep a little longer before we chat to her. Poor Queenie.

While we wait for Queenie to wake up, why don’t we start off with our first poem on today’s topic of feeling poorly. This first poem is called Ailments, which is another word for an illness or a sickness. In this poem, we hear all about things that people say that sound like they might be ill, but they really aren’t. Back when I was a kid, I was often being told to not sit too close to the television as I would get square eyes. Have you ever been told that? Well, I’m pleased to report that my eyes are still their normal shape! Still, it’s an unusual term, square eyes, and so let’s hear what other unusual terms are mentioned in our first poem this week.

But how is the poem going to arrive? What do you think? How would an ailments poem arrive? Here it comes!

Yes … it came by ambulance!!! That seems somewhat appropriate given our topic. Okay, here it is. The poem is called Ailments:

I know you need me out of bed.

I'm sorry but I could be ill instead.

I've listened so much to things you say

that I'm feeling them now in every way.

My eyes have moved to the back of my head.

My foot's in my mouth, and I have a dead leg.

My elbow is greased. There's a pat on my back.

My leg has been pulled. My heart is now black.

There's a slap on my wrist. I'm a sight for sore eyes,

and the chip on my shoulder was quite the surprise.

I have a knee-jerk reaction, and a frog in my throat.

I'm down in the mouth, with no antidote

for my cauliflower ears and my sweet tooth

though my lips are all sealed, I'm telling the truth.

My eyes are now square, and I'm getting cold feet,

plus I have a cold shoulder, please turn up the heat.

I know this will cost an arm and a leg,

so my gut feeling's saying to stay here in bed!

I hope you enjoyed that poem. What did you make of all of those unusual terms? Have you ever heard them being said? Things like “someone being down in the mouth”, or “something costing an arm and a leg”. That’s a good example of a phrase that is called an idiom. Idioms are phrases that have a meaning that may not be easily grasped by simply knowing what the individual words mean. Like the term “I put my foot in my mouth”.

Well, I think it’s time to check on Queenie. I hope she’s feeling well enough to solve a riddle that I have with me today. Let’s move those tissues again and see if she’s awake.

Sound

Queenie! Queenie! Are you awake?

QUEENIE …. Snore!!!

Queenie!

QUEENIE … splutter. Oh my … I must have fallen asleep. I’m so sorry Little Dazzy Donuts! I’m feeling tired because I … because I …. Because I ….. SNEEZE ….. have a cold!

I’m so sorry to hear that. It seems to be cold season right now – nearly everyone I know has a cold. Still, now that you’re awake, would you like to hear a riddle … or a poem … or perhaps both – a poem that’s also a riddle?

QUEENIE … Yeah. That sounds like fun, Little Dazzy Donuts. A riddle that’s a poem would cheer me up and make me forget that I have a cold.

Okay – in that case, I’m going to read out a poem written a long time ago by British poet Christina Rossetti, who lived in London, England over 130 years’ ago. Christina Rossetti is known for writing poems for adults and for children, including some really famous ones. Queenie, I’d like to read to you a short poem of hers called “A Riddle” …. Are you ready?

QUEENIE … Oh yes! Despite my cold, my brain is in gear and ready to solve this riddle.

Great! Here it is: “A Riddle” by Christina Rossetti.

There is one that has a head without an eye,

And there's one that has an eye without a head.

You may find the answer if you try;

And when all is said,

Half the answer hangs upon a thread.

QUEENIE … Oh my! Can you read that one out again? My brain might be in gear, but I think it’s only in first gear and so isn’t going very fast.

Of course … here it is again. Let’s see if you can solve the riddle:

There is one that has a head without an eye,

And there's one that has an eye without a head.

You may find the answer if you try;

And when all is said,

Half the answer hangs upon a thread.

Do you know the answer yet Queenie?

QUEENIE: Ummm … not yet. I’m thinking it through. One has a head without an eye, and one has an eye without a head. That means that there are two things. But what are there? Is one a camel and one a horse?

A camel and a horse? What makes you think that?

QUEENIE: Well, a camel has an eye without a head, and a horse has a head without eyes. At least, I think that’s right. Ummm … why don’t you read some more poems while I think about this a little longer?

That sounds good. I think that you better think some more about the riddle as a camel definitely has a head, and horses definitely have eyes.

QUEENIE: Here I brought a poem with me for you to read out. I like this one as I describes a little of how I’m feeling today.

Okay then, while Queenie thinks some more about Christina Rossetti’s riddle, let’s hear the poem that Queenie brought with her about today’s topic of feeling poorly. It’s about what happens if you feel poorly and don’t stay in bed, and instead try to battle through your cold. You know, some people who feel poorly refuse to accept that they’re ill and they instead battle on – they go to work or school, they go to the shops, they visit their friends. What this can mean is that it takes them longer to recover, and it also increases the chances that they spread their germs to others. Let’s see how that all plays out in our next poem, which is called “My Cold”.

SNEEZE sound

I sneezed so hard 

that my ears fells off,

which made me laugh 

and I started to cough.

Then I coughed so hard 

that I started to shake,

and I shook so hard

that I felt my neck break.

Which led to my head

falling onto the floor,

and it was impossible to find

as I couldn't see any more.

So I stumbled around

and bumped right into harm,

when my hips dropped off

and so did my arms.

I knew this would happen

when I started to sneeze,

now the only thing left 

are some knobbly knees.

They say colds can be tricky,

so I should have been smart

by staying in bed

and not falling apart.

My gosh, that poor person really should have stayed in bed. They completely fell apart, and all they had left were some knobbly knees. That whole poem sounds like a good one for doing some drawings. If you’d like to draw a picture based on that poem, or indeed any of the poems you’ve heard on this episode, you can do that and then send them into the Club by emailing them to drawings@kidspoetryclub.com. We’re also really interested in your own poems, including any you write for the current competition, which is about writing a poem that includes the word gray. We look at everyone that you send in, and will use as many as we can for the website and for a future episode. Also, Queenie has promised to read out the winning gray poem. Just email your poems to poems@kidspoetryclub.com.

Talking of Queenie, let’s check in with her to see if she has solved Christina Rossetti’s riddle.

Hi Queenie … how are you feeling now?

QUEENIE …. AAAAAA hhhhhhhh ccchhhheeeewwwww!!!!!!!

Oh, poor Queenie. Did you at least manage to solve the riddle?

QUEENIE …. I did. Silly me! It wasn’t a camel and a horse. What was I thinking?

So what are the two items that Rossetti was describing?

QUEENIE …. Well, the one that has a head without an eye … I bet that’s a pin! And the one that has an eye without a head, that one must be a needle. I think that’s right as the final line of the poem was that half the answer hangs upon a thread – and a needle would hang on a thread. So, it must be a pin and a needle.

Well, Queenie … I think you’re right! I’m so impressed that you managed to do that even though you’re feeling ill! Well done!!!!!

CHEER sound

Well Queenie … we’ve reached the final poem for today!

AHHHH sound

Queenie … why don’t you celebrate solving the riddle by listening to our final poem. It’s called Elephant Cold, and so it fits in perfectly with our topic of the week of Feeling Poorly. But how’s the poem going to arrive? We had one earlier arrive by ambulance  – although I’m not sure that we needed an ambulance. Still, it was very nice of the ambulance driver to bring it. How do you think this final poem will turn up? Here it comes ….

Well, it came by motorbike … but it definitely sounded like the motorbike had a bad cough too! I hope it feels better very soon.

So, here’s our final poem, called Elephant Cold. It’s a short one, so pay attention …

NOSE BLOWING sound.

Imagine what it’s like to be

an elephant with a cold.

All those tissues that you’d need

just to blow your nose.

Then imagine what would happen

if you need to sneeze,

and everything right in front of you

suddenly disappears.

Well, sadly, we have reached the end of our club time for this week. Don’t forget that there are lots of ways to join in with the club. If you go to the Kids’ Poetry Club website, you can see the PodSnack videos for this episode and can download the episode’s PodPack of activities. They’re all free. Plus there’s information on how to send in your poems and drawings, and also how you can be the person who reads out our introduction poem for an upcoming episode. You’ll find everything you need at kidspoetryclub.com. Also, if you go to the website, you’ll see a wonderful drawing of one of this week’s poems by our Club illustrator, Dot Cherch.

It has been so lovely to spend time with you! Thank you for joining me and Queenie - I hope you enjoyed yourself, and hope you will be back for more next time the Club meets. I'd love to see you here again. Until then, stay happy and stay rhyming ... and let's finish with our short goodbye poem.

We've had some fun 

with things that rhymed

goodbye Kids 

until next time!

This is Little Dazzy Donuts saying .... keep rhyming!!!

MUSIC