Another poem from me – the truth about pandas! Filmed in the snow a few years ago!
Tag: Liz Brownlee
National Poetry Week, Back to the Future with Liz Brownlee
Here is another poem from me. It is blatant lies. But it was fun to write and fun to perform… May 2018, with Eric Ode. It’s called Back to the Future. There’s a little out-takes piece on the end.
National Poetry Day, Climate Truth Poem by Liz Brownlee
Happy National Poetry Day everyone! Here is my National Poetry Day Truth poem, published last month in Be the Change, Poems to Help you Save the World, Macmillan.
Greta Thunberg
When the whole world is deaf
by greed and by choice,
how do you change things
with only your voice?
It’s hard to be noticed,
harder to be heard,
but she stood up and spoke,
could not be deterred.
What made them listen?
What cut through their lies?
Not the pollution
or the fast melting ice,
not the experts or science,
not hunger or flood,
not the extinctions,
our hands red with blood,
it was her steady gaze,
on our planet, alight,
her desperate calm,
her demand, make it right.
It’s what we’ll recall
of her fight for our youth,
her luminous words
her courage, her truth.
© Liz Brownlee
National Poetry Week Climate Truth Poem from Roger Stevens
Roger Stevens is a National Poetry Day Ambassador, a founding member of the Able Writers scheme and runs the award-winning website www.poetryzone.co.uk for children and teachers. Roger (link to 3 Simple Steps to Perk up your Poems) has published 40 books for children. His book Apes to Zebras – an A to Z of Shape Poems (Bloomsbury), written with Sue Hardy Dawson and Liz Brownlee, won the prestigious NSTB award in 2018. Recent books include I Am a Jigsaw; Puzzling Poems to Baffle your Brain (Bloomsbury 2019) and Moonstruck; an Anthology of Moon Poems (Otter-Barry). This poem is from the Tricky Questions, Talking Points section of the just published Be the Change; Poems About Sustainability (Macmillan) written with Liz Brownlee and Matt Goodfellow.
.
Getting to the Truth
Some people say
drinking cow’s milk is bad
For one thing
cows expel huge volumes
of greenhouse gasses
which contribute
to global warming
They say
Drink almond milk.
Almonds are good for you.
And they are.
Very good for you.
But it turns out
that nearly all the world’s almonds
are grown in California*
where there are often droughts
And did you know that
in California
it takes
six thousand litres of water
to produce one litre of almond milk?
That’s BONKERS!
And farmers are ripping up
healthy citrus groves
to meet the rising demand
for almond milk.
Oatmilk seems to be a better alternative
But the whole point is this.
Don’t always accept
what you read on a label.
or what people tell you.
Don’t always believe what you read
in the papers
or see on TV
or on the internet
If you really want to help
Just dig a little deeper
Try and get to the truth
*around 80%
.
© Roger Stevens
.
Thank you for the poem, Roger!
National Poetry Week, Climate Truth Poem from Liz Brownlee
Happy National Poetry Day Week from me! If you don’t know who I am, I’m a children’s poet, I own Lola the poet assistance dog, I quite enjoy performing but prefer organising poetry events, I write this blog, and my own, and I have five published books, the latest of which is Be the Change, Poems to Help you Save the World, from which the following poem comes. It is not too late to change the world. The truth is we just need to love one another, help one another and cooperate with one another.
Snow
Swirling slowly
in lilting flight,
as cold as stars,
in soundless white,
their drifting feathers
spread their wings,
and sing the songs
that snowflakes sing,
of how small gifts
of peace and light
can change the world
in just one night.
© Liz Brownlee
Roger Stevens; My Favourite Poetry Books
My Favourite Books of Poems
Here is the first in a series where I’ll be asking children’s poets what their favourite poetry books are – they must choose one of their own, and they can if they wish choose a book of poems for adults, too. First to go is Roger Stevens, who idea this was!
Quick, Let’s Get Out of Here (Puffin) Michael Rosen. Michael reminds us what it’s like to be a child. The poems are funny, clever and full of heart.
The World’s Greatest Space Cadet (Bloomsbury) James Carter. There are so many brilliant books around to choose from but, well, I just really like this one.
The Dictionary of Dads (Otter-Barry Books) Justin Coe. This book is full of funny, sad and very thoughtful poems, brilliantly written. Every class should have one.
Picnic, Lightning (Random House) Billy Collins (for grown-ups). If you don’t know Billy Collins check him out. He has a very natural style, and is easy to read. But the way he tackles both big themes and small themes, is so skilful, it almost makes you gasp.
Apes to Zebras: an A – Z of Shape Poems (Bloomsbury) Liz Brownlee, Sue-Hardy Dawson and Roger Stevens. A tricky book to put together, but it turned out well in the end. It won an award you know.
Thank you, Roger! There will be more poet’ choices to come. Do you have a favourite book of children’s poems? Let me know what it is in the comments!
# A to Z Challenge, B is for Liz Brownlee
Sue Hardy-Dawson, Me and Roger Stevens after our NSTBA win
The second post is me, because I handily have a surname beginning with B. I write poems for kids and I’m a National Poetry Day Ambassador, a role I take very seriously.
I have my own website, but run this website to showcase all children’s poets and the wonderful work they do to celebrate children’s poetry and everything it encourages, such as empathy, understanding, reading ability, education, etc. The website contains poetry videos for kids, poetry activities for kids, poetry games for kids, everything to do with poetry for young people!
I run the Children’s Poetry Summit Twitter feed, as well as my own, and also the Twitter account for KidsPoets4Climate, supporting our children in their fight for their climate. If you have any suitable sustainability poems, do send them for tweeting! There is also my blog called BetheChange about sustainability for children.
In August, a book of sustainability poems I have written with Matt Goodfellow (link to Matt’s article, What Poetry Offers in the Classroom) and Roger Stevens (link to Roger’s article, Three Simple Steps to Perk Up Your Poems) will be out, called Be the Change – we are all very excited about it!
I also love going into schools, to libraries, performances and literary festivals with all the books’ subjects, but my favourites are animals, rainforest and sustainability readings and workshops.
You might think I’d have no time for writing, but I love writing for children; my books are Animal Magic, Poems on a Disappearing World (about endangered animals), Reaching the Stars, Poems about Extraordinary Women and Girls (about some of the countless women who have shaped history, until now), The Same Inside, Poems about Empathy and Friendship (what it says on the tin), Apes to Zebras, an A-Z of Shape Poems, a book of animal poems in the shapes of the animals they are about, and out on August 8, Be the Change, Poems About Sustainability.
Reaching the Stars won the prestigious NSTBA for poetry in 2017 and Apes to Zebras won it in 2018, with The Same Inside being shortlisted.
Here is my poem for the poetry feast:
Pelican
And here’s the poem written down!
Pelican
.
A pelican scoops up to consume
its seafood soup with its own spoon;
the spoon unfolds into a dish,
and soon as it is full of fish
which wiggle-waggle round inside,
the pelican swallows, goggle-eyed.
Oh, what efficient use of space
to keep a kitchen in its face!
.
© Liz Brownlee, poem and shape.
If you’d like to blog hop to another A-Z Challenge, follow this link.
Liz Brownlee
Children’s Poets’ Climate Change blog: Be the Change
Liz’s Blog: Liz Brownlee Poet
Liz’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Lizpoet
KidsPoets4Climate Twitter: https://twitter.com/poets4climate
Children’s Poetry Summit Twitter: https://twitter.com/kidspoetsummit
Whale Poems Wanted!
Here’s my Lego blue whale – please read the information after the poem about the danger they are in. Send me you Lego animal photo and maybe I’ll write a poem about it! Here is my blue whale poem:
.
Lone Blue Whale
.
Far out at sea
where waves clash and toss
and the wide sky holds
just one albatross,
where light surrounds
and the winds blow long,
this is where you hear
the lone whale’s song,
horizon to horizon
winding on and on,
the air’s too weak
to carry the sound
of the pulses and cries
in the water around,
the beat of its heart’s song
has oceans to cross,
under a wide sky
and albatross,
and only the lone whale
that swims wild and free
has a love song as large
as the wide green sea.
.
© Liz Brownlee
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The Japanese Government has indicated that they are going to allow commercial killing of whales to start again. Many whales are still endangered, and all sea life is battling against plastic in the water.
Fabulous author, poet and animal lover Nicola Davies asks: “Calling all uk children and their teachers. Please send your best whale pictures and poems to The Japanese Embassy to protest against the decision to start hunting whales again”.
If you would like to do this, please tweet, blog and also send the poems to:
Ambassador Koji Tsuri
Embassy of Japan
101-104 Piccadilly
Mayfair
London W1J 7JF
Lego Poetry Challenge
This year I will be making Lego models of animals and writing a poem for them, or adding an already written poem to them.
Send me a picture of your Lego or building block animal and perhaps I’ll show it or write a poem to go with it!
.
Christmas Robin
.
The spirit of joy
is a bird,
bright eyes,
star feet,
the colours
of wild things,
free,
its song
the art
of giving,
its red breast
a heart
.
© Liz Brownlee
Sue Hardy-Dawson reads Crocodile from Apes to Zebras, an A-Z of Shape Poems.
Roger Stevens reads Tiger, from the award winning Apes to Zebras, an A-Z of Shape poems
Liz Brownlee Reads Narwhal, from the Award-Winning Apes to Zebras, an A-Z of Shape Poems.
Apes to Zebras, Winner of the North Somerset Teachers’ Book Awards 2018 for Poetry
There aren’t many awards for children’s to poetry so it’s pretty special to win one of them!
I’m thrilled to announce, with Sue Hardy-Dawson and Roger Stevens, that we have won this year’s North Somerset Teachers’ Book Award for Poetry, which is voted on by teachers from North Somerset and all over the UK.
A huge thank you to all the teachers who took the trouble to read the entire shortlist and vote on them. What a special thing. We are overjoyed that our book is helpful and being used in schools.
Over the next few days I will be sharing videos of some of the poems from the book read by the authors.
Liz Brownlee Reads her Poem, Snow Leopard, #NationalPoetryDay
Another poem with the loose association with Change, for National Poetry Day.
Liz Brownlee Performs her Poem, Back in the Future, for #NationalPoetryDay
Well, this poem is about change all right. BIG change. Thanks to wonderful puppeteer and poet, Eric Ode.
