Stars in Jars (6 page)

Yr2

RAHSAAN – putting away equipment in the stripy box

TYLER – always being friendly to everyone in his class

Yr 3

BUNTARIG – being a great football team player

MERWISH – listening so hard that her ears fell off

Yr 4

HUZAIGA – playing with the younger children outside

ADEELA – being someone everyone wants to be like

Yr 5

WAJIHA – smiling through it all

MUSTJAB – trying to make friends and join in

Yr 6

DARIUS – helping to put all the animal books in the library into alphabetical order

It was cold when Lou got ready for bed,

it was warm in her school uniform,

she couldn't see the point of taking it off

to shiver in her bed till dawn.

So she pulled her nightie over the top

and climbed into her bed,

her mum was gone to work by seven,

so nothing was ever said.

Until one day her headteacher

dragged Lou into her room.

“Why is your uniform so crumpled,

do you not have an iron at home?”

“We do have an iron,” said Lou in defence,

“but it's cold at home in my room,

so I sleep inside my uniform.”

Lou let out a huge wide yawn.

“Doesn't your mother tell you off?”

“Oh no, she sees my nightie.

I put it on over the top,

then pray to the Almighty.”

Lou's mum was phoned straight away,

she came into school for a meeting.

Lou now has a new smooth uniform,

and her house has central heating.

Kassandra is my silent friend,

she doesn't know how to speak,

she smiles and sticks her tongue out

and dances down the street.

Her hair is spun like candy floss,

her skin is ivory white,

she runs across the playground,

jumping like a kite.

The other day I asked her,

if she had a wish or three,

What would she want?

What would she wish?

What would she want to be?

She stood there in amazement,

she spun around three times,

she came to a halt,

knelt down on the ground

and drew pictures in the sand.

First she drew a wide sun,

its rays long and strong,

then she drew a reindeer

dragging a sledge along.

Then she drew a lily,

its petals curved and sleek,

then she drew a mountain

with a tall spiky peak.

Last she drew a little girl

standing by a tree,

she pointed at the little girl,

then pointed straight at me.

He slid into our classroom –

a six-foot man in a block of ice.

Cool, or what?

We stood him near the radiator –

a pool of water spread across the floor.

The tip of his nose,

the back of his hands,

then his shoulders began to show.

The water lapped around our feet.

Mark went home to get his swimming gear,

Sureya made a fleet of boats,

Esther floated up to the window.

Our teacher gave up on the Egyptians

and blew up a lilo.

Just before the water reached the top of the door

the Ice Man began to drink,

he slurped and gulped and swallowed and gurgled

until the room was completely dry.

His mouth unfroze to a smile,

his chest heaved with a sigh,

then he left the room as silently as he'd arrived.

There is a damp patch where he stood

which never quite goes away.

I'm sitting still

on the roundabout,

the trees are all a blur,

the slide and swings

spin into one,

I can hear a gentle whirr.

The clouds are rushing

through the sky,

like pillows on a stick.

Two boys

are playing football.

Kick, kick, kick.

The ice cream van

comes round three times.

Which flavour would I choose?

A strawberry cone?

A Ninety-Nine?

Or a lolly made from juice?

Two girls

are on the climbing frame,

they've nearly reached the top.

I've been spinning,

spinning, spinning round.

My head says it's time to stop!

For Oldfield Park Infants, Bath

I like the taste of computers,

I like the feel of the sky,

I like the sound of potatoes,

I like the look of a sigh.

I like the smell of windows,

the feel of a wide rainbow,

I like the taste of winter,

and the sound of thick deep snow.