Poem: I Can't Said the Ant

About this teaching resource

I Can't Said the Ant by Polly Cameron, 1961 (old as me) and a favourite, is a perfect poem for writing innovation. We’ve been talking a lot about poetry in podcasts and this is one of those poems that has danced along with me through childhood and into adulthood. A great example of an epic poem that lets the reader quickly dip into the language/rhyming/having fun game, and considering their own versions. The repetition allows for the never ending expansion of ideas.

It begins....

I was taking a walk 

When I heard a loud clatter!

I rushed into the kitchen

To see what was the matter,

Hear more about what to do with this poem on our 'Motivation to Read Profile' podcast Episode 31 of the Teacher's Toolkit for Literacy..