The Dirigible Balloon
Poetry for Children

Water Mess

At bedtime, when you brush your teeth, do you let the tap run
And only turn it off when you are well and truly done?

You'd better be so careful that the plughole never blocks
Else the sink might overflow and you'd get soggy socks!

And if you still don't sort it out, you'd have an unplanned bath,
As water sploshes out the house and gurgles down the path.

The streets would all be flooded and you'd have to build a raft
To dodge those paddling dinosaurs. No wait, erm that's just daft!

You'd have to dodge the crocodile and watch out for the shark
And who knows what would swim around the play park after dark?

Pretty soon your tired town would be at loggerheads
Well nobody could get to sleep in sopping, sodden beds!

So be an eco-hero, really it's not hard to do
For when you save tap water then you save the planet, too!

(And save your whole community from stinky croccy poo!)

About the Writer


Helen Addyman

Helen has always been fascinated by language and has a degree in French, German and Linguistics. A SCBWI member, Helen primarily writes kidlit and has longlisted in competitions for picture books and chapter books. She is also currently a mentee on WriteMentor's summer programme. Although she has been writing kidlit for a number of years, she has only recently started writing poetry - putting all of her rhyming picture book knowledge to good use! Helen lives in Manchester, England.