The Dirigible Balloon
Poetry for Children

The Peli Cancan

The great white pelican
I’ve heard is quite unique,
but I don’t believe
he can really hold
ten litres in his beak!
You don’t?
Well, a pelican can!


The great white pelican
I know can really fly,
but I’m not so sure
he can soar and glide
3000m high!
You’re not?
Well, a pelican can!

The great white pelican
is famous for his wingspan,
and I’ve heard it’s true,
despite large webbed feet,
but tell me, can he can-can?
No, he can’t!

About the Writer


Jacqueline Shirtliff

Jacqueline is a poet and primary school teacher on the Isle of Man. One of her favourite things is helping children to love poetry and reading and encouraging them to be writers themselves. She lives in a rose-covered cottage near the sea and enjoys gardening, crochet, and playing the tuba and harp, but not all at the same time! You can read some of her other poems in The Caterpillar, Tyger Tyger, Northern Gravy, The Toy, and Little Thoughts Press.