Living Life Twice

    May20 On May 20, 1932, Amelia Earhart accomplished her goal of flying solo across the Atlantic Ocean. An amazing feat, achieved under extreme conditions. Today, it's all about brave Amelia...   Amelia’s Aeronautical Achievement In a flight filled with danger And wild icy weather And a broken altimeter Amelia took off early one morning In her Lockheed Vega From Newfouldland With a copy of a local newspaper tucked under her arm Confirmaing her departure date And spreading local news far and wide Along the perilous flight path Flames shot out of the exhaust manifold And fuel leaked into the cockpit.   She pulled out of an unscheduled tailspin Before landing in a field in Culmore North of Derry, Northern Ireland   A farm hand asked Have you flown far? ‘From America Said an undaunted Amelia.   The first woman Flying solo across the wide Atlantic Ocean Amelia set her own course in aviation And received...

  May 3 May 3 brings a bag of mixed lollies… On this day in 1978 the first-ever “spam” email was sent out to every ARPANET address on the US west coast. Spam has been blighting our lives ever since.  It is also Chocolate Custard Day, Lumpy Rug Day, Raspberry Tart Day and Different Coloured Shoes Day. It’s a day filled with numerous and somewhat obscure celebrations.   Different Coloured Shoes Apparently It’s different coloured shoes day A concept that seems to have gotten off On the wrong foot I admit to finding brown shoes with a blue suit triggering but that's a whole other matter... Socks of different hues Is an idea people choose regularly Deliberate sartorial disorder A less obvious imperfection Some wacky sock subversion. But shoes? It seems they lose… Different coloured shoes Have been given the boot. An idea blighted And rarely sighted. Alan j Wright

The effective use of mentor texts is something worth sharing. Exposing impressionable young writers to exemplars and allowing the words of a trusted author to influence the writing student writers produce, is important in our work as teachers of writing, and teachers of writers. My friend and colleague, Leanne Hunter currently teaches Grade 3 at Toorak College, Mount Eliza in my home state of Victoria. Leanne choose to read a personal favourite of mine, 'Pookie Aleera Is Not My Boyfriend,' by Steven Herrick to her eager young learners. In this verse novel, Award-winning author Steven Herrick presents a heart-warming tale about friendship, grief and the importance of baked goods. In a country town, in a school just like the schools you know, the kids in Class 6A tell their stories.  – it's honest, quirky, funny and frequently heartfelt. It is written from many characters' points of view - the cool kid, the funny kid, the bullied kid, the teacher, the school cle...

 Returning To Spine Poetry Because it is Friday. Poetry is in order. Poetry is always in order, but particularly as the working week ends. I welcome it like wine on the weekend. To try this poetry idea I grabbed a plentiful supply of books. I went to my personal library, scanned the shelves for suitable titles before arranging them in an order I felt provided some cohesive flow of ideas. This provides some spine splendid viewing fun. It's word play. Spine time. Something all writers need to indulge in, from time to time. When I was satisfied with the order, I photographed my creations. Always an easy, fun way to engage young poets, and more experienced poets too, in creating words of wonder and delight. The top one is brand new. Inspired by some poetry titles in my collection. It has just emerged from the Poet's oven. The other two are earlier creations, re-presented for your viewing/reading pleasure. 

Today's poem was inspired by observation of another person. It's important to choose a subject you know well.  In this case my best friend, my dear wife, Vicki.  Sit still for a moment and observe carefully and a picture will emerge. A picture capable of translation into words...  Visions Splendid I have watched you Walking the shoreline The water calm at your feet Your favorite hat of the moment Silhouetted by a descending sun. And I have watched you Reading on a couch Curled up and content in another world I have watched you Gardening among your favorite roses Nurturing and encouraging new life I have heard you singing Only because you want to and to hell with original lyrics Any time, any place. And I have seen Sparkling eyes that greet small discoveries With an enthusiasm that inspires greater deeds I have watched you skip along the street Because the sky is blue Or the warm sun has touched your face ...

I actually quite like peas, but over the years I have met many kids who don't like them, so this list poem is for them. I recall those far off days when my Mum and my Nana would sit together shelling fresh peas picked directly from the garden. Now, most of us reach into the freezer at the supermarket and get our peas in a snap frozen plastic bag. Anyway, today as I reach the mid way point in my Spring Into Verse poetry challenge,  it's poetry to peas... I DON'T LIKE PEAS I don't like peas I really don't like peas So I always say to Mum No peas please And my dear Mother says to me Give me ten reasons why I shouldn't serve you peas Number 1. They're green. Number 2. They're the wrong shape. Number 3. They roll off the fork. Number 4. They roll under the table. Number 5. They get squashed in the carpet. Number 6. You always make me clean up the mess. Number 7. Even the dog refuses to eat them. Number 8. The baby gets ...