Transcript

How great to see you here again at the Kids’ Poetry Club podcast. While we wait for Little Dazzy Donuts to start, I wanted to reminder you that kidspoetryclub.com contains YouTube videos of illustrated poems and a packet 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 Lilah who is today’s STAR of the episode for reading out the introduction poem that you just heard. Remember that you can also be a STAR of the episode – just check out the Kids’ Poetry Club website for more details.

I hope you’re feeling ready for some rhymes and fun today because we're going to spend the next 15 minutes listening to four poems on this week's chosen topic - are you going to guess what the topic is? Plus, Queenie said that she’ll pop in after school to update us all on the February competition about the word gray. 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. If you’ve been to the Club before then you know that this is where you get to shout out your name and get a club point for being here. So, on the count of three, shout out your name so that I can hear you through your phone, computer, or radio.

Let the drum roll begin. Here goes …. One. Two. Three! ….. Excellent!

So, by any chance do you remember the topic from last week’s episode?  Just in case you don’t, here’s a little clue …. The topic rhymed with the word Foam. Do you remember now? Yes, it was HOME! And we heard fun poems about using anteaters to remove ants from a home, about baboons in the trees around a home, and also about a tree that was growing over a home rather than up into the sky.

I wonder what this week’s topic is going to be! Let’s play some sounds and see if you can figure it out. Here goes:

SOUND

Did you work it out? Well, if you guessed that this week’s topic is “going for a walk” then you deserve a big cheer!

It’s fun to think of all of the places you can walk to. Of course, it depends where you live – if you’re in a town or city, you can probably walk to the shops, or to the movie theater, or to the post office. If you live on the coast, then you can walk down to the beach and along the shoreline. If you’re in the countryside, then you can walk down country lanes, or over fields, or perhaps alongside a stream or a river. Plus, you could walk alone – perhaps to enjoy your own company or to get some peace and quiet … or, you could walk with friends. Some people join walking clubs and go for walks with a large group. However you do it, going for a walk is fun, and it’s good for you too!

In our first poems today, we hear all about a group of friends going for a walk … in fact, it’s about a group of penguin friends, and the walk doesn’t quite go as planned. Before I can read it to you, we first need the poem to be delivered. How do you think it will get here … I’m fairly sure it’s coming by air … here it comes …..

SOUND

Yes, it came by helicopter. Why did it do that – the topic this week is walking. I’m going to have to chat with the US Poetry Office to find out why they sent it by helicopter. Well, seeing as it’s here, let’s listen to the poem “Penguins”

“Penguins”

Four penguin friends decided

to go for a walk in the snow.

They made a packed lunch

for their flippers to carry

and lined up ready to go.

The friend at the front was named Slow Coach

so the first mile took such a long time

that the one at the back gave up and went home

leaving just three penguins in line.

Next to lead was a penguin named Speedy,

but his speed meant he'd slide and he'd slip,

and after he fell over for the tenth time,

Slow Coach called an end to his trip.

This left just two penguins out on a walk:

Speedy and one name of Munch,

and at Munch’s insistence they halted the walk,

and both penguins sat down for their lunch!

Later that day the four penguin friends

were huddled at home doing fine.

When one said, "Next time we all go out for a walk,

please let's not do it in line".

Well, those penguins certainly faced challenges when they went for a walk. It would be tough if some want to walk fast, some slow, and some want to stop to eat when others want to keep walking.

Hang on, I can hear some footsteps. Can you hear them too? I wonder who’s coming to the club?

QUEENIE: Hi Little Dazzy Donuts!

Queenie! Welcome back to the club! I didn’t realize it was you because you normally arrive on a motorbike.

QUEENIE: (giggle) You’re right. I do. But it was such a lovely day that I decided to walk. I so enjoy taking walks and going on hikes.

That’s great news. Walking and hiking are so good for people. Now, what do you think is the difference between a walk and a hike?

QUEENIE: Well … that’s such a good question. If I think about my walks and also think about my hikes, then the main difference is that, for a hike, I take more food with me in my backpack or pockets. Sometimes, I go on a walk without any food at all. Like when I walk down to the Post Office, or when I walk here to Kids’ Poetry Club. But, if I’m going on a hike, like through the woods or around the fields, then I always take a snack with me … sometimes two snacks. For a really serious hike, I may even take a whole sandwich with me.

Well, that’s good to know. If I see you out and about with a sandwich in your pocket, it probably means that you’re going on a hike. By the way, all of this fits perfectly with our theme for this week, which is going for a walk.

QUEENIE: That’s wonderful news as I actually need help with a poem that’s about going for a walk. I have it here in my pocket. Can you read it out, Little Dazzy Donuts, and then perhaps we can figure it out with the help of everyone here at the club?

Of course, Queenie. Well, this is a poem called Directions. So, let me read it to everyone so they can help us. Here goes ….

“Directions”

If you go from A to B,

and can’t get back from B to A,

don’t worry as I know a way

where you can turn right at B

and head on down to get to C.

Though C really isn’t the place to B,

so take another right to D.

Once at D, you’ll be pleased to C,

a path that brings you home to me.

Ummm … that’s an interesting poem. Can you figure out what shape the poem is describing? Let’s think about this a little and see if we can figure it out. In the poem, it says to go from A to B, and then to turn right at B and head down to C. And then to turn right at C to get to D. Then, when you get to D, you can see a path back to A. What shape does all of that make?

QUEENIE: I get it now. As you read the poem out, I pictured the walk in my head and it creates a shape. If you go from A to B, then right at B to get to C. Then right at C to get to D. That creates the three sides of a square. So, I can complete the square by walking from D back to A. If you do all of that, you’re walking a square!

You’re right. It is a square … which is interesting as I also know a poem that’s about walking a different sort of shape. So, not a square but a circle, or loop. Have you heard that one?

QUEENIE: No – I haven’t. But I would love to hear a loop poem. Can you read it for me before I continue with my walk?

Okay then, here it is. It’s called Loop.

“Loop”

I went for a walk,

but not in a straight line,

I walked a giant circle,

and to my surprise,

I ended back where I started,

and I’d been here before.

I knew what was here,

and I want to see more.

So, I turned around

retracing my steps,

and found myself back

at the beginning again.

The lesson I learned

is, to find somewhere new,

walk in a straight line

and not in a loop!

QUEENIE: Oooohhhh … I like that loop poem because I’m actually doing a loop on my walk today. I’m doing a loop so that I get back to my home in time for dinner. If I don’t do a loop, then I just walk a long line … and if I keep walking that long line, then I end up a long  long long way from my home and I completely miss my dinner. And as this is a walk and not a hike, I’ll miss my dinner and not have a sandwich in my pocket. So, I’m definitely doing a loop walk today.

That’s good news. We don’t want you missing your dinner!

QUEENIE: Well, I better head off now. Walks don’t do themselves you know. I need to get my legs moving again. Also, when I finish my walk and have eaten my dinner, I’m going to sit down to read all of the wonderful Gray poems that listeners have sent in. I can’t wait to read them all and pick out my favorites.

That sounds like a great plan. I think we’re all excited to hear the winning gray poems. Thank you so much for popping in Queenie. It’s always fun seeing you here at the club!

QUEENIE: Toodle pip, Little Dazzy Donuts. See you soon! Good luck with your last poem!!!!

Queenie’s right – we have reached the final poem for this episode.

SOUND

Do you remember the topic for this week? Yes – it’s going for a walk. So far, we have heard about some penguin friends out for a walk in a line. We also heard a poem about a walking around in the shape of a square, and also one about walking in a loop. Well, this final poem is about trying to go on a walk, and all of the things that could get in the way before you even set off. It’s called “Can We Go Now?” … and let’s see how the poem is going to arrive …. I hope it’s more appropriate for our topic than the helicopter we have earlier. Here it comes.

SOUND

Yes – it came by runner. That definitely fits better with our topic, so perhaps I won’t complain to the US Poetry Office after all. Okay, here’s our poem – it’s called “Can We Go Now?”

“Can We Go Now?”

He checked it once. He checked it twice.

The door was locked when he checked both times.

So, we turned around to walk away,

when he must have heard his worries say,

“Is twice enough to check a door?

You should turn around and check once more.”

Of course, it was no surprise to me,

that the door was locked when he did check three.

Surely now he knows for sure it’s locked,

we can take our walk down to the shops.

But no, he’s found there’s more to do:

to check lights are off … and oven too.

Oh no, he thinks he’s lost his phone!

I guess this means that we’ll just stay home.

Oh dear – it sounds like they’ll never set off on their walk. All that worrying about whether the door is locked, whether the lights are off, and whether the oven is off too. I’m not sure that they’ll ever do that walk!

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 kidspoetryclub.com, you can see the PodSnack video for this episode and can download the episode’s PodPack of activities. They’re all free. You’ll also see a wonderful drawing by our Club illustrator, Dot Cherch, of one of the poems that you heard in this episode. Plus there’s information on how to send in your poems and drawings, and also how you can be the STAR of the episode who reads out our introduction poem. You’ll find everything you need at kidspoetryclub.com.

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’m really hoping that, next week, we’ll have a chance to chat with Queenie’s teacher from Rhyming School. That sounds such fun! 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!!!

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