Toads are breaking out all over
- or maybe breaking in?
Over the last year, I've been contributing to various other
blogs and journals. I thought a list of opening paragraphs and links might
prove interesting….
Wild Storytelling
June 2015: a piece on storytelling and landscapes for
Highland Environment Network's newsletter issue on environmental art
It begins….
Telling tales of wonder and delight, stories to
enchant, intrigue and captivate. Telling tales to draw people into the
landscapes, plants and animals around them. Or at least that's what I hope I
do. It's certainly what I set out to do but as with most creative activities we
share with the public (or pursue as individuals) in the end, like water and
weeds, the creativity finds its own path....
"…on this day that hopes for
rainbows"
Using the environment to inspire poetry
May 2015, a piece for the Natural Connections OutdoorLearning blog.
It begins…
We started with a venue we all valued
and a belief that children’s language grew more by direct experience than by
just reading, listening and being told about things. Then we stirred into the
mix Simon Armitage’s recent translation of “Gawain and the Green Knight” with
its beautiful sense of rhythm and movement. A pinch of Michael Porpurgo’s
Gawain followed and a grant from the Clore Duffield Foundation coordinated by Mid-Pennine Arts and we were
ready to bake, with myself -
environmental storyteller, artist and general creator-of-celebrations - as the
spoon that stirs the pot.
A River In The
Classroom worksheets
Musician Steve Brown and myself produced a set of
worksheets for the Ribble Rivers Trust inspired by the workshops that were
followed through "The Hatching" blogs in 2015 and 2016
You can download a version of the worksheets here
There are 5 worksheets in this set offering everything
from how to compose your own watery soundscapes to techniques for building your
own folding river. While these are river-specific activities the techniques and
principles involved could be applied to a much wider range of themes.
Over the hills and
far away….
July 2015, and I had the excitement of reciting one of my poems
for a film about fell-running by Jimmy Hyland. The film is a lovely few minutes of watching, so please tune
in, relax and imagine yourself up in the hills….
I hope the film link works!
 |
| Pym Chair above the Dale of Goyt |
A broad broken bow of a
bridge:
June 2014, another piece about working with poetry, this time for an
Environmental Education journal based in Brazil. The link will take you to a
copy of the article. Look at the rest of the journal - but you might need to
some Spanish or maybe Portuguese!
It begins…
A broad, broken bow of a bridge:
using classic literature and outdoor sites to inspire
poetry with children
Once upon a time…
This story began some 700 years ago when a scribe in a
monastery started writing - or recording - the narrative poem that was to
become known as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight.
Mixing Pagan imagery with Christian morality tale and straightforward heroic
adventure, Gawain has survived the centuries since then and stands now as a
classic text of early English literature
 |
| Packhorse Bridge at Wycoller Country Park |
Thanks for sharing - loved the River of Words in the classroom river worksheet. The collaboration with a musician looked great fun. Have just returned from a visit to UK cousins and enjoyed being in the Brecon Beacons and visiting the Mountains of Mourne, so the idea of the fell-running was particularly apealing!
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