Paul Cookson Poetry Workshop (Part 3) – Lots of minibeasts

As in the film, you can start with a list. The list could be about anything – eg, farm animals, pets, fish, birds, jungle creatures – but the example given focuses on minibeasts and creepy-crawlies.

Creating your poem

Step 1

Make a list of creepy-crawlies (about 12-14 will work well for a verse).

Step 2

Say these out loud in rhythm, asking the children to repeat after you:

Spi-ders, bee-tles
Ants and butterflies

Step 3

Add some -ing words. What are these creatures doing? There is only one rule: no words can be repeated.

Spiders climbing
Beetles creeping
Ants crawling
Butterflies flying
Say these rhythmically with the children.