Sunday 13 November 2016

POOEMS LAUNCH


12th November, what a day to remember! 

A huge thank you to everyone who came along to Quay Arts Newport Isle of Wight to be part of the launch of Pooems - A humorous anthology of animal poo. It was a wonderful afternoon of song and verse. Great fun was had by all.

Now the hard work begins!



This copy is bound for Italy



Nigel George, founder member and director of The National Poo Museum, proudly shows off one of the museums more curious exhibits - a poo in a shoe!



Singer songwriter Spike Oatley sings The Poo Poo Train, A brilliant way for little ones to learn about the human digestive system.



Poetry challenges on the day proved very popular.



Daniel Roberts founder member and director of The National Poo Museum sharing a verse of The Poo Poo Train.






Copies of POOEMS are available for purchase at  http://www.malvernvillapublishing.com/

Friday 28 October 2016

POOEMS A humorous anthology of animal poo



Hello everyone

I am currently taking a break from Sunnysiders as I'm sinking all my energy and time into launching my first book. POOEMS A humorous anthology of animal poo. 




You can follow my adventures right here. Nicola Winsland Author

Meet some of the family!






Tuesday 29 March 2016

Poo at the Zoo




Mrs Crayon's typing fingers are a twitchin'. The rhyming cogs in her head are whizzing round at centrifugal speed. She is gripped by an overwhelming urge to grab her paintbrushes and start doodling!

So what on earth is prompting this sudden outpouring of creativity? Well, it's poo if you must know! Yes poo! Whilst quite by coincidence, the word poo is bandied about left, right, and centre by the Reception learners at Sunnyside School, due to the fact that it's currently the rudest word they know, it has nothing to do with this, but everything to do with the fact that THE NATIONAL POO MUSEUM has just opened it's doors to the public, a mere stones throw from Sunnyside School at the Isle of Wight Zoo.

What's all the more exciting about this unique happening, is that THE NATIONAL POO MUSEUM is the brainchild of Dan Roberts aka 'Daring Dan Recycle Man' one member of a group of brilliant artists from Eccleston George Public Artists. 

Sunnyside School has been fortunate enough to have worked with this talented team on a number of occasions over the years, from making art on the beach, to helping to create an outdoor classroom in the grounds of Sunnyside School. 

It is Dan's incredible inventiveness that has continued to impress and inspire Mrs Crayon, and as a result she has dedicated several stories and rhymes to 'Daring Dan' alone. So having already written about his hair-raising attempts to fly, and his ingenious clean up operation following a rather unfortunate cooking episode, how the blazes could she not put Biro to paper and conjure up a rhyme to celebrate the fact that thanks to Dan and the Ecclestone George geniuses, Whippy Cove has a poo museum!!!
    


Daring Dan poo-collector man!


Daring Dan recycles things
From bits of wood to broken springs,
Plastic tubing big and small,
Daring Dan collects it all.
Twisted metal dulled by rust,
Teapots, saucepans, Dan's not fussed!
It's all treasure in Dan's head,
And so he piles it in his shed.

Along with......

Pencil shavings, chicken wire,
Toilet seats, a tractor tyre,
Bottle tops, ceramic tiles,
Candles, handles, knobs and dials.
Deckchairs, magnets, cogs and wheels,
Curling tongs and fishing reels.
Walking sticks, an antique chair, 
Floor to ceiling Tupperware!
Bent umbrellas, fountain pens,
A stethoscope, a camera lens,
Copper piping, biscuit tins,
Watches, swatches, violins.



Now in amongst all this to do,
Dan thought he'd start collecting poo!
He made the somewhat odd decision,
To build a pooey exhibition.
It was Dan's unique intention,
To give all poo more of a mention.
And so he packed his home-made tent,
To scour the land for excrement.
Dan gathered poo from all around,
You'll be amazed at what he found!
From animals of every species,
He bagged a dollop of their faeces.
Now, whilst this might seem rather queer,
Dan set them in a resin sphere, 
And trapped within, in all their glory,
They tell a fascinating story.

Dan soon developed an affection 
For his mounting poo collection,
But then arrived the perfect day,
To put his poo gems on display.
Now everybody else can see 'em
At The National Poo Museum,
You won't forget the day you came,
You'll never look at poo the same!
And once you've seen this pooey show,
You'll find you're in the pooey know,
Then no doubt you'll become a fan,
Of poo-collector Daring Dan!

"Ahhh! I can see it all now.....Poo-fuelled rockets to the moon!"



For more information about THE NATIONAL POO MUSEUM







Saturday 26 March 2016

Pink pigs and croissants



Now that the annual Easter makes are in full swing in the Reception Class at Sunnyside School, much whispering and wittering can be heard among the excited little learners regarding the imminent visit of a secretive long-eared furry creature, bearing chocolatey eggs aplenty, for each and every one of them. 

In preparation for this Eastertide delivery to Sunnyside School, the Reception learners wasted no time in creating Easter baskets to transport said chocolatey eggs home in at the end of the day. 

As the classroom disappeared under a mound of tissue paper, cellophane, glue sticks, and pom poms, Mrs Crayon (whilst endeavouring to find the lost end of the cellotape for the four thousandth time) worked with a small group of little learners who were busy drawing pictures and retelling the Easter Story in their special 'Golden Books'. 

Despite only hearing the story once, and watching a short animated version on the Smart TV, Mrs Crayon was astounded not only by the amount of detail in the little learners' depictions, but also the content of their brilliant verbal accounts when describing the events leading up to the Crucifixion. Whilst aspects of the Easter story appeared to merge with that of the Christmas story in places, Mrs Crayon nonetheless hastily scribed as the children spoke to produce this completely unedited version of the Easter Story courtesy of her little charges. 
     
Enjoy!!    



The Easter Story
(...it's something to do with Peppa Pig!)

'Cheesus' had his last meal with the shepherds. They had beer and croissants and garlic bread. Then 'Cheesus' went to another place, it was some woods in Germany. Everyone liked 'Cheesus' except for one of the shepherds. One of the shepherds had a chicken and it went 'cockerly-dooderly-doo' four times and the army came and took 'Cheesus' away and put him in a cage under a bridge. Then someone opened the door and 'Cheesus' got out and the army made him carry the plus sign up the hill and 'Cheesus' didn't have his T-shirt on. The army put spikes on his head and screwdrivers in his feet. After three days it rained and 'Cheesus' went to prison, but before he went he said 'hello' to his friends Peter and Harry, then everyone said Amen.


Happy Easter holiday everyone!!

Friday 19 February 2016

Fish cakes and fugitives






There's no doubt about it, little learners love their cuddly toys. 

Be it bears, bunnies, monkeys, sheep, or even strange one-eyed yellow creatures sporting blue dungarees, little learners love them all......a lot!

The Reception team at Sunnyside School know this fact only too well. For whenever this treasured menagerie of fluff and stuffing comes into school, and winds up lost amongst the classroom paraphernalia, (as it so often does,) there is always tears and tantrums from despairing little learners, until they are reunited with their fluffy friends once more.   

And it was a fluffy friend related melt down that caught Mrs Very Jolly and Mrs Crayon by surprise today, as it happened right in the middle of Mrs Very Jolly reading Julia Donaldson's 'Monkey Puzzle' to the class. 

As the group listened attentively to the tale of a young monkey who looses his Mum, a little learner sitting at Mrs Very Jolly's feet, suddenly burst into floods of tears, and with head in hands deeply lamented the loss of his penguin.     
As Mrs Crayon comforted the distraught little learner, he revealed that his much loved penguin had gone missing from home, and as he had no clue as to it's whereabouts, he was fearful that he'd never seen his flightless friend again. 
When the little learner informed Mrs Crayon that his penguin wore a scarf, was no taller than a pencil and had glittery eyes, she was completely satisfied they were dealing with a stuffed toy, and not a real live penguin.   

With a description to go on, the rest of the group then sprang into action and began producing a ton of hand drawn 'missing penguin posters', all pleading for folks to be watchful and alert in case of a penguin sighting.       

And so the hunt is on dear readers for a small, sparkly-eyed penguin, possibly carrying a suitcase but definitely wearing a scarf. It's worth noting that as he has no prior knowledge of the great outdoors, he will more than likely appear a little disorientated. 
Should you spot him, he answers to 'Penguin', and according to his owner, "he really likes fish cakes!" 

Thank you in advance for your help!




My Penguin Packed His Bag One Day!


My penguin packed his bag one day
And left his home to run away.

He didn't tell a single soul
That exploration was his goal.

He took no compass or a map,
(He's not a forward thinking chap.)

His destination was unclear,
(Not my penguin's best idea.)

He set his sights on who knows where,
(This reckless penguin didn't care!)

But recklessness comes at a cost,
'Cause now my penguin's very lost.

He's left no clue, no single trace,
It is the most perplexing case.

He may have moved to warmer climes,
(He's dreamt of that a thousand times.)

He could have found a place to stay 
On a fishing holiday.

Perhaps he jumped on board a bus
And just forgot to contact us.

Either way he isn't here
And for his safety I now fear.

There's only one thing I can do, 
And that's to ask each one of you,

Please keep your eyes peeled every day,
In case my penguin comes your way.


Please note:

HE'S BLACK AND WHITE,
HIS EYES ARE BRIGHT,
HE WADDLES LIKE A DUCK,
NOW PLEASE DON'T LAUGH,
HE WEARS A SCARF,
TO HELP BRING HIM GOOD LUCK.
HE'S VERY DIM,
BUT I LOVE HIM,
I WANT HIM BACK WITH ME,
ONCE THROUGH THIS DOOR,
HE'LL 'AVE WHAT FOR,
AND FISH CAKES FOR HIS TEA!

Thank you for your cooperation



"Phew! How's a penguin s'posed to decide!"



Saturday 30 January 2016

Porky pies and pointy fingers





There are days when the Reception classroom at Sunnyside School resembles that of a busy accident and emergency department, as wave after wave of little learners come hobbling in from outside, nursing all manner of injuries and seeking some first aid attention. 

As we have seen before in previous Sunnyside stories, this first aid attention usually comprises of the now legendary dampened paper towel applied to the injured area, or should that particular remedy fail to work it's mystical magic an ice pack straight from the fridge.

Following this treatment and a few gentle words of comfort from the grown ups in the setting, most little learners are immediately cured of their aches and pains, and will miraculously leap to their tiny feet, and head for the outside once more before you can say 'Florence Nightingale'.

However, every now and again an accident may occur during the school day which will turn out to be a little more serious than the usual bumps and scrapes, and it may even involve real blood! Just like today, when a little Sunnysider stood before Miss Kind with blood trickling from one of his nostrils. 

After sitting her completely unperturbed patient on a chair and pinching the soft part of his nose for a bit, Miss Kind asked the little learner if he had done anything to make his nose bleed. 
"Um....I think I didn't," said he, stealthily sliding his bloodstained pointy finger behind his back.
"Well...I wonder what on earth could have caused your poor nose to bleed then?" queried a deeply suspicious Miss Kind.
The little learner thought for a moment, and with Miss Kind's thumb and forefinger still clasping his nose, he squeaked, "I think it's 'cause my Mum shouted at me!"

Well....there's nothing like blaming a bit of nose picking gone too far on your Mum, thought Miss Kind, as she struggled to suppress a giggle.

  

  

Watch out! watch out! 


Watch out! Watch out!
My Mum can shout,
Her voice doth travel miles.
She will indeed,
Make your nose bleed,
And shatter all yer tiles!

Your tender ears, 

Your chandeliers,
Aren't safe from my Mum's yells,
Make no mistake,
It's hard to take,
Her mighty decibels! 




FOREWARNED IS FOREARMED! 

Saturday 16 January 2016

Tambourines and underpants



Happy New Year everyone! 

Believe it or not, it's the start of the Spring term. However, there was nothing Spring like about the weather today, far from it, as rain soaked little learner after rain soaked little learner was catapulted through the classroom door on a chilly and very gusty wind first thing this morning.

Strangely, this combination of high winds, heavy rain and dripping children occurred last year at this time. It failed to dampen the spirit of the little Sunnysiders of the day, and it failed to quash the excitement of the current cohort upon their return to school following the Christmas break.  

With the festive season a dim and distant memory, the time has come for the little learners to launch into a brand new topic, which for the next few weeks will be the rhyming stories of Julia Donaldson. As well as revelling in the wonderful world of, The Gruffalo, Stickman, Superworm and Tiddler, to name but a few, the little learners will also be focusing on learning more phonic sounds. Their next step will be to learn to blend these individual sounds to make words. Some children find this easier than others, so the Reception Team are always trying to devise fun ways in which to help all little learners achieve this skill, like involving puppets for instance during their phonic activities, or hungry lions no less!

And it was hungry lions that sprang into Mrs Very Jolly's mind when she stumbled across the remains of one, while crashing about (in search of pipe cleaners) in the far reaches of the store cupboard today. She hadn't found a real lion of course, it was one of Mrs Crayon's creations (from a few years ago now) made to support a variety of literacy activities, including learning phonic sounds and letter names.  The idea was for the little learners to feed 'Lester' lion (as he became known,) a diet of letters and sounds by posting them straight into his open jaws, so long as they were able to say the sound and name the letter correctly. 

The children loved Lester, and they made it their mission to ensure that he had plenty of letters and sounds to eat each day. They also made it their mission to ensure he had plenty of other things to eat, especially at tidy it up time! It was only when the Reception Team spotted that the draws and cupboards in the classroom were strangely bereft of equipment and materials, and that tidy up time was taking an extraordinarily short amount of time to complete, did they put two and two together and realise just what their crafty pupils were up to. Lester's bulging belly, along with the little learner's uncharacteristic willingness to tidy up after themselves, should have provided the Team with all the clues they needed to determine the whereabouts of the contents of their classroom! 

Anyway, after reminiscing with Mrs Very Jolly about 'Lester The Lion' and deciding it was high time they either repaired him or created a new one, Mrs Crayon set off on a mission of her own, and that was to pen a poem celebrating their beloved phonic friend and his remarkable ability to consume a classroom!!!!

Better late than never Mrs C!   

    


Roll up!

Roll up come see our lion,
You're in for a surprise,
When you see the size of him,
You won't believe your eyes!
Our lion's always hungry,
So his jaws stay open wide,
And to see all that he's eaten,
Why not take a peek inside!


 You'll find a......



Stick of glue,
Somebody's shoe,
A plastic frying pan,
A tambourine,
An aubergine,
A tiny Lego man.
A writing pen,
A number ten,
A pair of underpants,
An ironing board,
A length of cord,
A herd of elephants!


There's a.....


Roll of tape,
A squishy grape,
A shell from the sea shore,
A wooden spoon,
A popped balloon,
A scary dinosaur!
A telescope, 
A skipping rope,
A paper aeroplane,
A teddy bear,
With fuzzy hair,
A teapot and a train,


Then there's a.....


Cotton reel,
Dried orange peel,
A shark with spiky teeth,
An apple core,
Oh wait there's more,
Lurking underneath.
A piece of chalk,
A knife and fork,
A magnet and some dough,
A spotty dice,
A ton of rice,
Four conkers in a row.


There's a....


Racing car,
A small guitar,
A necklace and a ring,
A set of scales,
A map of Wales,
A Ninja Turtle thing!
A rubber duck,
A dumper truck,
That's very nearly it,
Well fancy that,
A policeman's hat, 
And someone's PE kit!


Now that you've seen our lion,
We hope you are impressed,
It seems to us there's nothing
That our lion can't digest!
Should we forget to feed him up
Our lion will complain.
So when tomorrow comes around,
We'll do it all again!




"Eat up all your sounds Lester...then you can have some glue sticks!"