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 primary school teacher on the Isle of Man. She is passionate about instilling a love of poetry and reading in the children she teaches and encouraging them to be writers themselves. She lives with her husband and youngest son in a rose-covered cottage near the sea, and when she's not teaching or writing she enjoys gardening, crochet and playing the tuba and harp, but not all at the same time!