Playful Poems...

It's National Poetry Day on October 2nd and this year, the theme is 'Play'.

There are lots of brilliant free poems and resources on the Forwards Arts Foundation website so do take a look there if you want some ideas for bringing poetry to life on the day.

(Great to see that 'And I Hear Dragons' edited by National Poet of Wales Hanan Issa and featuring poems from me and a wide range of fab Welsh writers is among the books they recommend)!

More generally, the Dirigible Balloon is an absolutely brilliant poetry resource. There are thousands of poems on the site from both established and new writers, and many poems have audio versions which helps make it super accessible for children. You can search by theme, key word, or author name. For schools in Wales wanting to share writing by Welsh poets, take a look at the poems by Sarah Ziman, Kate Williams and Rachel Burrows (and you can of course also look at mine while you're there!)

If you want to add Welsh writers to your poetry book collection then I strongly recommend both Sarah Ziman and Kate Williams' debut collections. Alex Wharton has four brilliant collections too.

If you're looking for poetry for younger children then The Big Welsh Rhyme Time from Book Trust Cymru is also great. My action rhyme from 2023 is supported by voice and body warm up videos (in English and Welsh).

I thought I would share a few of my poems that fit with the this year's playful theme in case they're useful in assemblies or the classroom...

Potion Puddle

(For Isla)

There's a magic potion puddle 

Just outside the school

A shallow world of wonder

In a rainmade pool

We mix in parts of buttercup

Pieces of a leaf

Little bits of dandelion

We drop in some belief

We count in daisy petals

A few tiny purple flowers

Then stir it with a long dark stick

To wake up all its powers 

We wait and watch the puddle 

In the glinting sun

Then when it's time for school to start

We drop our sticks and run

And on the way home, we discover 

It's magic was quite strong,

Because this morning's potion puddle

Has vanished! 

Yes, it's gone!!

Everyday Discovery

Put the TV onto mute and make up your own words,

Go to bed straight from school and get up with the birds,

Paint a picture upside down, try a whole new look,

Hop, skip, jump into town, choose an offbeat book.

Have dessert before your dinner, have breakfast for your tea,

Discover a whole range of ways to live life differently.

No need to trek the jungle or zoom off into space

If you’re alive to the adventure that’s right there in your face.

The feet on the street

Gliding, sliding, soft light feet

Dancer whirling down the street

Tap-tap, steady rhythmic feet

Drummer marching down the street

Tiptoe, tiptoe, careful feet 

Robber sneaking down the street

Wibbly, wobbly, wiggly feet

Clown trip-tripping down the street 

CRASH BANG BOOM HEAVY FEET

GIANT STOMPING DOWN THE STREET

Jump, hop, leap, playful feet

Children bouncing down the street

(Maybe this poem could be read out in an expressive arts lesson, and the children could practice moving along to the words).

Te Gyda Tedi

Helo Tedi, Croeso, plîs eistedda lawr

Mae’n amser i gael paned a bwyta te prynhawn.

Wyt ti eisiau dechrau gyda brechdan ham?

Neu efallai rhywbeth melys, trïa brechdan jam! 

Mae brechdan tiwna hefyd, a brechdanau caws,

Ti'n bwyta nhw i gyd! Penderfyniad haws!

Dewis pwysig nesa - mae’n rhaid cael cacen, 

Efallai cacen lemwn? Neu siocled gyda hufen?

O reit, y ddau, o waw, wyt ti bron â llwgu Tedi!

Dwi ddim yn credu bydd gen ti le am y bisgedi!

Ond, o! Anghywir!  Sori, dwi’n flin,

Ie, Trïa un o bopeth a helpa dy hun.

I orffen, beth am ddiod, wyt ti eisiau paned? 

Coffi bach neu de? Holl ddiodydd y blaned?

Dwi’n hapus i weld ti mwynhau dy de Tedi,

Ti yw’r tedi mwyaf llwglyd Cymru dwi’n credu!

Ond bwyta’n araf Ted! Dwi’n gwybod bod e’n flasus

Ond bydd bola tost da ti os nad wyt ti’n ofalus!

All these poems were first published by The Dirigible Balloon.

I hope that's helpful - have a great day celebrating all things poetry :)