A pumpkin knocked at my door
I was shocked, I fell to the floor
The pumpkin had a toothless grin
In the end I asked him to come in
The pumpkin shook my hand
And said I knew you’d understand
I wanted to come to your party
I was all alone
With witches and ghosts
They frightened me so
It’s you I’d rather see
Someone warm and bright
On this Halloween night
So what have we got for tea
Trick or treat but…
It will be a whisky for me
Gillian and Thomas Sims
Posts Tagged ‘literature’
The Visitor
Posted in Halloween, Poetry By GILLIAN SIMS, Poetry written by Gillian Sims, Thomas Sims, tagged blogging, kids, literature, manners, parents, pumpkin, writing on October 30, 2017| 1 Comment »
A Poem of Good Company Manners | Manners & Etiquette
Posted in All about manners, KIDS, Manners, PROMOTE YOURSELF, Your favourite kids poems, Your favourite poems, tagged compamy, good manner, literature, poetry, postaday, rhyme, writing on March 9, 2014| 2 Comments »
There is a tiny book titled, “The School of Good Manners,” written in 1822 by Nancy Sproat, that contains the following charming poem. It is written in rhyme and outlines the basic manners of being “in company,” that still apply today!
In Company
Intrude not where you’re not desired,
Nor stay till every one is tired.
Writhe not your limbs in every shape
Of awkward gesture, like an ape,
Nor twirl your hands, nor hit your toes –
Nor hum a tune – nor pick your nose –
Nor keep in motion as you sit,
Nor on the floor or carpet spit,
But in the first with prudent care.
Nor lean upon another’s chair.
If you must cough, or sneeze, be still
In doing it, if possible.
If you must yawn, just turn aside,
And with your hand the motion hide.
And when you blow your nose, be brief,
And neatly use your handkerchief.
All whispering, giggling, squinting shun,
Don’t turn your back on any one.
Nor bite your nails, nor lolling stand,
Nor in your pockets keep your hand.
Do not allow yourself to look
In letters, papers, or a book,
Till you have leave. If one is reading,
Don’t overlook him; ’tis ill breeding.
Don’t wear a frown upon your face;
Let cheerfulness your aspect grace.
To your superiors always strive,
In walking, your right hand to give.
A proper distance keep in mind,
Crowd not too near, nor lag behind.
To equals let your conduct be
Marked with sweet affability.
by Nancy Sproat
Have you brushed your teeth yet by Gillian SIms
Posted in Health and safety for kids, Healthy eating, Information, KIDS, Poems from The New Manners Collection, Poetry By GILLIAN SIMS, Poetry taken from the manners book, Poetry written by Gillian Sims, PROMOTE YOURSELF, videos from the manners collection, Your favourite kids poems, tagged allaboutmanners allaboutmanners allaboutmanners allaboutmanners allaboutmanners allaboutmanners allaboutmanners animals aviation books breakfast cars children climate cooking dessert FAMILY food frog , books, entertainment, Gillian Sims, literature, poetry, postaday, video on February 12, 2014| 1 Comment »
The Snowman
Posted in Poetry written by Gillian Sims, Snow, tagged fox's.squirrels, garden, goodnight, home, literature, nature, postaday, smile, snow, top hat and tails, winter on January 23, 2014| 1 Comment »
There’s a strange man
In my garden
With top hat and tails
He is looking rather pale
He’s been standing there
For some time now
Just standing and staring
And looking all around
He very often smiles
But doesn’t often frown
The squirrels and the fox’s
All adore him
As they pass by
He lifts his hand
To wave at them
And smiles to say goodnight
Thomas and Gillian Sims
It’s Raining in My Bedroom
Posted in KIDS, Poetry, Your favourite kids poems, tagged bedroom, books, children, creative, kids, lifestyle, literature, manners, motherhood, parenting, poetry, postaday, rain, soggy, writers on November 12, 2013| 1 Comment »
It’s raining in my bedroom.
It’s been this way all week.
I think the upstairs neighbor’s plumbing
might have sprung a leak.
They may be on vacation.
They must be out of town.
And, all the while, my bedroom rain
continues pouring down.
My shoes have gotten soggy.
My bed is growing mold.
A pond is forming on my floor.
It’s all so wet and cold,
that frogs have started spawning.
An otter wandered through
with salmon splashing upstream,
and some guy in a canoe.
Now waves are growing larger.
The weather’s turning grim.
A tide is rising rapidly.
I’m glad that I can swim.
My parents called the plumber.
He’s nowhere to be seen.
Does anybody know where I
can buy a submarine?
–Kenn Nesbitt
Oh Jemima
Posted in KIDS, Poetry, Your favourite kids poems, tagged blogging, books, ducks, kids, literature, parenting, people, poetry, pond, postaday, swim, writing on November 12, 2013| 1 Comment »
A funny old ryhme my mother used to sing to us does anyone else remember it or know its origin:
” Oh Jemima look at your uncle Jim,
he’s in the duck pond learning how to swim,
first he does the breast stroke, …
then he does the side,
but now he’s under the water
swimming against the tide”…
Dedicated to my mum Josie Icke (nee Lomas) 11.11.1923- 20.10.93
Originally born Tideswell, High Peak but lived in Coniston Avenue, Litle Hulton, Salford 1952 -1993.
And my friend Nigel found another version of the same rhyme/tune.. was this a second verse or the original rhyme that was changed for fun?
“Oh Aunt Jemima, look at your Uncle Jim
Scrubbing out the passage with water, soap and vim.
First he kneels on his left knee
Then he kneels on his right
Now he’s knelt on a bar of soap
And skidded right out of sight”
Sent to you by Simon Icke #SimonIckeUK
Darians freedom
Posted in KIDS, Poetry, tagged books, circles, creative, feet, literature, parenting, people, poetry, postaday, puddles, writing on November 12, 2013| Leave a Comment »
Walk in circles
Run in squares
Skip in zig zags
Jump up stairs
Step over cracks
Walk backwards
Splash in puddles
Balance on curbs
No need to talk
Just love walks
Might sing a note
Off with my socks
Toes sparkle
Feet are so cold
Crunch of leaves
In no ones mold
Being free, young
What I want, I’ll do
No chains on me
You should try it too
Bernadette Rivera USA
Poems about the Future
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged day dream, future, literature, poems, poetry, politics, postaday, quotes on September 1, 2013| Leave a Comment »
POETRY ABOUT GRANDFATHERS
Posted in Poetry written by Gillian Sims, PROMOTE YOURSELF, Your favourite kids poems, Your favourite poems, tagged GILLIAN SIMS POSTADAY, home, literature, motherhood, poems, poetry, tHOMAS SIMS on June 15, 2013| 3 Comments »
One does not have to do anything to become a grandfather. It simply happens when your child has a child. It is up to you to decide how involved you will be in your grandchild’s life. There is an inherent biological relationship but the emotional bonding between grandfather and grandchild comes only with effort. It happens when the grandchild sees that you are open to forming a relationship. It happens when you get off your easy chair and make the effort to see what matters to your grandchild.
My Granddad
You are my Granddad
You are not just a fad
Like an x box, tablet or phone
I know you tend to groan
But you are my Granddad
Who makes me happy and sad
You can be very annoying
But when you’re in the bath
And I hear you sing
I am glad you are around
When I hear that sound
You are like a Victorian pear
You have always been there
Very mellow and soft to touch
Granddad I love you so much
Gillian Sims
My Dads Dad
My Granddad came to stay
My Dad bought him a card
I’m only four
And not sure
What this card was for
And this puzzled me
Was Granddad doing his family tour
I’m not sure
I’m only four
Was it Granddads birthday
So I asked my dad
To explain to me
What this card was for
He said it’s Fathers day
And your Granddad is daddy to me
THOMAS SIMS
About Easyread and Helping a Child to Read
Posted in Tips for mums and dads, tagged books, education, kids, literature, mental-health, parents, postaday, reading on June 11, 2013| 1 Comment »
Many very bright children find learning to read English very hard. That can be surprising until you understand what’s going on. The truth is that their intelligence often leads them down the wrong path when they first try to read. As the text gets harder they will find progress more and more difficult. So they end up on a reading plateau, with lots of wild guessing and a collapsing self-confidence. If you guide them back onto the right path, they will usually progress fast.
There are actually multiple possible reasons for reading difficulty, but what I have described above is the most common. We call it Optilexia.
The key to getting progress with reading for a child is to understand what is causing the difficulty. That might be Optilexia or eye-tracking difficulty or Irlen Syndrome or one of the other 7 causes of difficulty we see the patterns of routinely with the children we help.
Once you understand a child’s reading difficulty, guiding the child to success usually becomes fairly easy.
So, at the heart of the Easyread System is a process of trying to understand the patterns shown by each child. We then make sure we apply the right help to get the child reading confidently. It normally takes around 6-9 months to achieve that.
It can be quite complex, but we have had years of experience helping thousands of children, so there are not many things left we have not seen! And if we don’t succeed we do not charge for our help.
Learning to read is probably the most critical educational step in every child’s life. So we focus hard on doing everything we can to make it go the right way. English is a very tricky language to learn to read, so just going with your intuition on how to help does not always work out well. One in five English-speaking children cannot read by the age of 11.