Grade 4 Poetry
4AV
Grade 4 students have been learning about the similarities between songs and poetry. They both use emotion and interesting words to appeal the reader/listener and often include rhythm, rhyme and repetition. There are many songs that start out as poems and if you read the lyrics of songs they often sound like poems.
First, students read the lyrics of a song we often sing at assembly, "I Am Australian", and considered it as a poem rather than a song. Each verse represents an aspect of Australian history, culture or environment. Students then wrote their own original verses using the structure and rhythm of the song as inspiration.
I am the Snowy Mountains
the cold wind when it blows
I am the desert and the valleys
I'm the river as it flows
I am the sand, I am the sea
The burning heat of the sun
Destroyer and creator
I am Australian
Felix
I am all of the water
the ocean is my name
I controlled the tsunamis
and the riptides when they came
Iʼm the oldest Aussie here
and I love celebration
I may not be human but
I am Australian
Mia
I came from the red earth
I point to the sun
I look forward to the rain
I am many, I am one
The wind sweeps through my leaves
I shelter everyone
I've lived here for a hundred years
I am Australian
Sid
I come from Australia
with scorching desert air
I am the man from Snowy River,
riding my horse with no fear.
I am Ned Kelly the bushranger,
stealing with my gang
The Southern Cross shines above me
I am Australian
Angus
I come from the bush
and only eat gum leaves
I have soft grey lovely fur
I live up high in trees
My beautiful joey is carried in my pouch
Playing around in trees all day is very fun
but sadly I am very slow
I am Australian
Daisy O’Reardon
I’m the sacred red rock of dream time
I rise from the ground
People come to see me,
to hear the ancient sound
of the Anangu people who love to dance and sing
Now we respect Uluru from afar
But it remains a good meaning
Just because we can’t climb the rock
Doesn’t mean we can’t keep dreaming
I am Australian
Lochie
I was born in England
came to Australia as a boy
I was part of the first group
to go to the South Pole
Knighted in 1914, my work exploring Antarctica is legendary
and I'm on the one hundred dollar note
I am Australian
Theo
I spent my lifetime in a field
I hit the ball into the crowd
I kick the last minute winning goal
I work to make my country proud
I run around the oval ground
I tackle, race and run
the sport field is my home
I am Australian
Bailey
I am faster than the roaring forties,
I am swifter than an emu
that is hunting in the reeds,
I am Cathy Freeman
I extend beyond the horizon,
I am home to countless breeds
I am Kati Thanda
I am Australian
Julian