Here are the WINNERS! Let's...

Whoop an' Shout!
Poems by Valerie Bloom. Illustrated by David Dean.
Macmillan Children's Books. 96pp

Ten winners each receive a copy of Valerie's book...

Look On The Bright Side by Ellie Shepherd (aged 13)

If ever you feel angry or sad,
Just look at this poem, it's not so bad,
Every cloud has a silver lining,
So look at this poem when you need reminding,
That life is not always as grey as it seems,
Hold on to your wishes,
Believe in your dreams,
If you look on the bright side you'll go the mile,
In the meantime relax and just SMILE!

Holiday Happiness by Kirsty Lane (aged 14)

Here today, gone tomorrow
A smile upon my face.
Happiness around me,
Preparing to pack my case.
Going on holiday,
Flying away.
Me and my family,
Off today !
Going out,
To have some fun.
Swimming in the sea.
Bathing in the sun.
Every holiday,
Is a time of joy.
For adults, families,
Each girl and boy.
I love going on holiday,
It makes me feel good.
Go on holiday…
I think you should !!!

Whoop And Shout: A Triolet by Anya Sun Corke (aged 13)

A voice resounds above the crowd
Of laughter, shouts and pounding feet.
Guitars are raging, wild and loud;
A voice resounds above the crowd.
The audience, enraptured, wowed,
Sashays and dances to the beat.
A voice resounds above the crowd
Of laughter, shouts and pounding feet.

Karate!!! by Jack Harris (aged 9)

I was graded last week,
to get a new Karate grade.
I'd passed, I was very happy,
then it started to fade.

When my next session came,
I did a round house kick,
I pulled a muscle, then fell
to the ground, feeling sick.

Next session was better,
my fiend, Ian, came.
He showed me how to spin heel kick,
that improved my game.

The Rounders Match by Thomas Greenslade

William in our class hit the tennis ball
Three people chased after it
and they all started to fall
William ran like the wind.
scoring a rounder for everyone
Our team won the match
We WON WON WON WON WON WON

The Day the Book Came Out by Natasha Khan (aged 10)

As I run along the street
My heart begins to beat

In a very strange fashion, for you see
I hear a thumping noise, and it comes from me

But my heart does not beat in fear
It beats in excitement for excitement is near

I have waited for a month, a week, a day
I have waited a year, yet I have more to say

Today is the day that the book comes out
I am so happy that I want to shout

My heart is so light I could jump to the moon
My happiness is like an overflowing spoon

My head whirls and noises I hear
My palms grow sweaty and I shed a tear

But it's happiness, I assure you my friend
Happiness that I'm sure could never end

Slowly I walk towards the bookstore
From inside comes a comfortable roar

It is the roar of the book fans who have waited so long
Happily I run to join the throng

Tonight everyone is focused on a special book
A book that's not hidden in a cranny or nook

No, this book is on a shiny new table
And the area round seems to have a label

For the people are crowded by the thousands, the millions
To me there are so many I think there could be billions!

But finally it's the turn of me and my dad
At this moment I think I'll never be sad

I reach out and pick up the book
I fell in love with it when I took my first look

I don't know if since then
I'll ever be as happy again

Friends by Ruby Ettle (aged 10)

Friends are what make me feel good
When I'm sad or unhappy
I can play in the street with Becky, Sarah & Daisy
In the playground Cathy, Joseph, Jasmiina & Shannon
But
When I'm all alone my best friend of all
that makes me smile is my
MOM

Shadow by Cally Steadman (aged 15)

She makes a storm seem like an adventure,
Brightens up the sky,
When it's cold and the air is stale,
Her shining star flies by.
When a tear trickles down my face,
For whatever reason that may be.
She casts her spell and there you go,
My face shines on with glee.
When she walks, I walk with her,
When she talks, I do too.
Sometimes I pinch myself,
To make sure that she is true.
Her laughter is contagious,
She follows wherever I go,
The reasoning for this,
Is that she is actually my shadow.

William Peark by Rachel Buckley (aged 8)

The problem was with William Peark,
He never did his homework.
He'd scrunch it up and put it in the bin,
And hide it when his mum came in.

And every week he did the same
He turned it into a paper plane.
He never got merits, the teacher wasn't pleased
Do your homework this week, she wheezed.

But William knew, he hadn't got the time.
And he thought not doing your homework,
wasn't a crime.
The teacher told his mother, who went red in the face.
William tried to look innocent, and tied his shoe lace.

The next day at school William Peark,
Didn't hand in his homework.
The teacher went mad and decided to say,
You no longer have homework, William,
Starting from today.

Incomplete by Elinor Rew (aged 12)

For every day in life,
There is a puzzle piece,
But at the end few puzzles are complete.
every time a sneer is passed on,
One puzzle piece is wasted, lost.
An evil person by the name 'Bully'
Steals one of your pieces everyday without right.
No matter how hard you try,
The bully will carry on
No matter how hard you look,
That puzzle piece will not be retrieved.
No matter how hard you wish
That day cannot be relived.
Nothing can change that bad memory,
Therefore that piece will be lost forever.
That bully robs you of happiness,
That bully robs you of rights,
That bully robs you of a puzzle piece
No one can bring those pieces back,
But by replacing that sneer with a smile,
A person can help you keep your remaining pieces
But still your life remains,
INCOMPLETE!

Winners - you should receive your prize within the next three weeks. If you don't please let us know at the usual e-mail address.

Runners up.
No prize I'm afraid, but a very big Well Done!!!

Rain Beyond My Window by Sarah B. Bernardo (Age 9)

I stare through my window wall
The grass and stars,
I can see them all.
The whispers of angels surround me
As the rain drizzles as far as I can see.

The rain begins its song
Graceful, smooth and long.
Listen carefully,
Listen hard
For the song of the rain unbarred.

Without dismay or despair,
Listen for the song so rare
And take to your heart the song of the rain
Which cools the soul without the pain.

Smile by Jessica Price (aged 11)

Simple little lovely things that make you smile with glee
Many gushy words that are said make you smile with love
In homely places where you want to be make you smile with pleasure
Little compliments can make you smile in any way
Everlasting love can make you smile forever

India by Oliver James Stockley (aged 11)

I once went to India,
I had a good time there.
I was staring at the monkeys,
Scratching all their hair.

I went to the jungle,
Leeches all over the floor,
There were lots of animals,
Like snakes and wild boar.

It was incredibly hot,
About 40 degrees.
In fact I'm very lucky,
I didn't get a disease.

India was great fun,
I went at age six or seven,
But as I'm writing this poem,
I'm actually eleven.

My First Fish! by David Williams (aged 9)

We went out on a boat
Then we stopped
And began to float!
But then my weight plopped
Down and down
Until it reached
I lifted up
And my reel screeched

I reeled in
And caught my first fish
Yes someone has
Granted my wish!!!

Easter by Molly Wilding (aged 8)

Easter time is nearly here,
So buy your eggs.
I had one with legs
so everybody cheer.

We had a huge response to this competition and can't publish everyone's poem. But here are some more entries that we liked.

The Clash of Rounders by Callum Omelasz (aged 9)

The wooden bat of rounders,
Swinging to hit the ball.
Some people hit it very far,
It's a very big fall.

People going to catch the ball,
Three people may try.
But they go and hit each other,
And the ball falls through the sky.

The ball has hit the ground,
The batsman's on the second post.
He tries for two others,
and wins for his team, The Ghosts.

My Party by Nicola, Jade and Megan (all aged 9)

I went to my friend's party,
We played Sleeping Lions too,
We all had a packet of Smarties,
We went to play with Lou-Lou,

I didn't want my picture taken,
I had a golden teddy,
I had some bacon,
I named my teddy, Freddy.

Luke's Party by Ryan Gittings (aged 9)

I go to Luke's parties,
When I go I eat Smarties
I had something to eat,
Then I sat on a seat.

We all had a dance,
And dreamed of France,
We played loads of games,
And made paper planes.

Holidays are Fun by Tara and Darcy (aged 9)
.
Orange is the colour of the sun
Lollies are a treat.
In the sea there is a seat
Dads are always sunbathing
Aunties always get a tan.
You and me are friends forever.
So now the day is done.

Letting My Spirit Go by Crystal Mendoza (aged 11)

It made me feel good
To let my spirit go
In my elementary school I was leaving behind.
I wanted my spirit
To be a part of Turnbull Learning Academy forever.
It can roam around Turnbull day and night
And can spy on the teachers and be part of a class without anyone knowing.
It may sound strange to you, but to me it felt wonderful.
Wonderful to know
That I will always be in Turnbull-
Or at least my spirit.
Because visiting isn't enough for me.
I want my spirit to ALWAYS be part of Turnbull.
When I leave this Earth behind
And join God and all his angels in Heaven,
My spirit will still be in Turnbull.
It doesn't only feel good
It feels comforting and reassuring that part of me
Will always be in Turnbull
No matter what.

William! by Thomas Parry (aged 9)

One day we were playing rounders at school,
A boy called William hit the ball,
Three people tried for the ball but no one succeeded,
The ball went through them all and nearly hit the hall wall!

The three people were hurt,
William goes for a rounder - yes!
They threw it from post to post,
William laughed and said, "I'm the best!"

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