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Kēreru Poem Worksheet

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Kēreru Poem Worksheet

Read the poem aloud. Then explore its sounds, images, and word choices. Kēreru are also known as New Zealand pigeons.

A Kēreru at the Canteen

At lunchtime, Mere and Arjun look up as a kēreru settles in a tree beside the school canteen.

A Kēreru at Lunchtime Above the canteen, a soft wing-beat, A round green shape finds a leafy seat. The kōwhai bows; the branches sway, As sunlight spills its gold-green day. It nibbles fruit, then lifts away, A quiet cloud against the grey. Mere watches, still; Arjun smiles, The bird drifts on for leafy miles.

Explore the poem

Use details from the poem in your answers. For questions about interpretation, more than one thoughtful answer may be possible.

1.Where does the kēreru settle at the start of the poem? Choose the best answer.
  • On the canteen roof
  • In a tree above the canteen
  • On the ground beside Mere
2.Find and copy two words or phrases that help you imagine what the kēreru looks or sounds like.
3.What might “The kōwhai bows” mean? Choose the best answer.
  • The tree bends slightly, perhaps in the breeze.
  • Someone is saying hello to the bird.
  • The tree is falling over.
4.In the line “sunlight spills its gold-green day”, what does the word “spills” suggest about the sunlight?
5.Which two words rhyme at the ends of the first two lines?
6.True or false: The poem says the kēreru eats fruit.
TrueFalse
7.Put these events in the order they happen in the poem: the kēreru flies away; the kēreru settles in the tree; it nibbles fruit.
8.Why do you think Mere watches “still”? Give one idea and use a clue from the poem.
9.Write two new lines for the poem about what the kēreru might see as it flies away. Include one vivid describing word.

2 printable pages

  • Kēreru Poem Worksheet, page 1 of 2: A Kēreru at the Canteen, Explore the poem

    Page 1

  • Kēreru Poem Worksheet, page 2 of 2: 4. In the line “sunlight spills its gold-green day”, what does the word “spills” suggest…

    Page 2

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