Daydreams and Jellybeans

In Daydreams and Jellybeans, Alex Wharton has created a lovely variety of poems from the dreamy to the hilarious. There’s Dear Brother, in which Wharton describes a brother who snores so loud that it sounds like a crisp packet stuck in a hoover nozzle, and in Letter From a Football, he tells the story of a football that’s just very tired of being kicked. In Maths Test, the poem is in the guise of a recognisable maths riddle, with a more sensible answer than might usually be encouraged…

In Weeping Willow, Wharton observes the sadness  and beauty of the tree in the title, and there are many more thoughtful poems inspired by nature in the book, exploring waterfalls, stars, the sea, butterflies and clouds – all of which will be great inspiration to children reading this book with a view to creating their own poetry.

Illustrated by Katy Riddell, this accessible collection of poems is fun and thoughtful and an ideal resource for teachers. The focus here is on poems that sound great read aloud, so be sure to sing them, chant them and enjoy the way they sound.