RAP POINT 2

Hello Rappers,

It has been very interesting reading all the letters about nocturnal animals. Wow! There are so many!

Now it is time for RAP POINT 2.

Possums and other animals have adapted to living very close to people. Share your possum stories (or any other animal story) with rappers. It may be real, imagined or from a newspaper, a book or a movie.

Happy rapping!

Hi Rappers!

Two years ago when Gemma's family were on holidays at a caravan park in Busselton, they saw two possums in the park. Someone made a box for them to sleep in and put it under the verandah roof. The possums' tails hung out of the box. At night Gemma and her sister, Jessica saw the possums eating and playing on the brick wall.

>From Gemma and the Year 2's at Kambalda, Western Australia

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Hi Rappers,

My name's Katherine. I'm 8 years old. (I only turned 8 yesterday.) I want to tell you about my possums. I have 12 of them. Hmm! I'll tell you about Winky. He is a male possum which eats out of my hand and lets me pat him. He really is great! Also my nanna tries to catch possums in her roof. If my nanna catches any while I'm staying there I'd let them out!

Love Katherine!

PS Some of my possums are babies! PSS My possums play in the day time!

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Hello Rappers,

We are the Year 1 Rappers at Bethany Lutheran School in Ipswich, Queensland. We have been talking about nocturnal animals - animals who prefer to work in the quiet of the night like possums and foxes. We wondered if Mem Fox, like real foxes preferred to work at night. Lots of us thought she would. What do you think?

Bye for now, Year 1 Rappers.

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Wollo

On a hot summers day Wollo [a big fat wombat] was sitting under a nice cool tree at the back of Milly Primary School.The school had its sports day today and Wollo thought he would try doing what those funny looking small giraffes did .

The bell rang and out shot all the funny looking small giraffes.They started off with a running race.The gun shot and all those funny looking small giraffes ran to the end of the line but poor Wollo got trampled on. My these people are ignorant, they don't even know I'm here! He went and sat under the cool tree again.Then the next race started.It was a skipping one and you had to see who could skip for the longest.It looked like so much fun Wollo had to try it - but as soon as he did he got all tangeld in the rope. He went of in a huff and sat back down under the cool tree. He yawned and said to himself,"I think that I'll stick to my wombat stuff'"- and with that he fell fast asleep.

BY ERIN G Grade 3/4

Pinewood Primary School

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Dear Rappers

My mom likes to tame squirrels.Some squirrels eat out of out of our hands.Once a squirrel climbed into my moms pocket.When the squirrels are hungry they come in the house when the door is open.

Sometimes if a bird is hurt or has lost its mother then my mother looks after it. At the moment we are looking after a wild canary which lost its mother.We are trying to feed it seed but it does not seen to like it very much.

Regards,

Christie From Springfield Convent,South Africa.

Dear Rappers,

Its Zeenith ,Im rapping about theCheetah.

Cheetahs are cool and cheetah drool

Cheetahs are fast they never come last

With long thin legs so limp so slack

So give me a wack

See you later I will come back with some more rap.

Zeenith from Springfield Convent, South Africa

I was in the car with my family going to visit a friend when we saw a dead possum on the road. From Brianne

When my family went on holidays we returned to find a possum in our house. He had fallen through the skylight and ran around the house making a mess everywhere. From Mrs Snooke

I was in the car with my mum and dad when I saw a dead possum on the side of the road. It was really SAD. From Keisha

Year 1

Meckering Primary School Near Perth, Western Australia

mps@avon.net.au

One day a kangaroo saved me from a wild boar by tising it. and then the kangaroo skracht it on the stumec then the kangaroo jumt up and kite it in the face two tims the boar had blud on its face and then the boar ran away from the kangaroo and we never saw that wid boarl agen.Then me and the kangaroo came best frens.

from Corey

Lake Claredon School Yr2/3 near Gatton, Queensland.

Hi Rappers

My name is Max. This story is about two bats. Last year when we were going to bed we saw two little bats in my bedroom. My sister, Nico caught them and we threw them out. But in the middle of the night the bats came back. I woke up and called Nico and my mum. Then the bats flew up the chimney.

from Max Reddaway Year 2

Hi

My name is Grant. Here is a story about a rabbit.

I was happily bouncing down the paddock until a fierce fox jumped in front of me and chased me. Then I did something I'd never done before- I jumped into a deep swamp. I just managed to get to shore but the fox drowned.

by Grant Year 2

Hi rappers My name is Jake. This is about a wombat. My mum has joined WIRES (an organisation that rescues animals) so we are looking after two animals: a wombat and a wallaby.The wombat is called Paddy and the wallaby is called Calypso.This story is mostly about Paddy .His mum died of mange. He is like a rock with a furry blanket over it.When we got him he was very scared. My mum has to feed him 3 times a day. She feeds him special wombat milk. I have fed him about 5 times. He is really heavy- about as heavy as 5 bricks. By Jake Lord

The penguin story I surfed in on a wave and climbed to where seats were. Humans were there to see me and my friends in New Zealand. We started to waddle across the dirt road to go into our homes. My home is a hole in the rocks.

by William Love Year 1

Hi Rappers

Once my brother Josh caught a mouse in a trap. We put it in a box and it ran around. It stopped after a while. Then my mum stabbed it with a stick with a sharp end.

from Laura Year 2

Froggies On the 26th of April at Cataract Dam it was my aunty's wedding. There were tiny cute yellow frogs in the top of the toilet. My cousin Matthew got one out of the top of the toilet and threw it up into the air and it landed on the power line. Matthew, my sister and I put them in to the toilet and when the people went to the toilet, they screamed!

by Leah Jones Year 3

Hi rappers

Here is a story about dingoes. One day the whole of Infants class went to Yellow Pinch Wildlife Park. We went on a little train in a wagon. We saw lots of animals in cages. We saw crocodiles and dingoes. When it was nearly time to go the zoo keeper took us up to the dingo cage. We got to pat a big dingo called Sandy and we got to pat a baby dingo.

by Tahlecia Year 3

A few weeks ago seven frogs arrived in my house. The first one I found was under a log and then my brother Terry found two frogs under a rock all the rest were found in similar places like under things. I found a little one in the bath room. They are black and yellow on their tummies and dark on the rest of their bodies.

P.S We think one had a baby by Gary

>From Tanja Public School via Bega NSW Australia

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POSSUM.

When my mum went to do the clothes she heard a banging noise behind the washing machine. She pulled it back and saw a mother possum with a baby on it's back.

BY MELANIE

DEAR RAPPERS, One day my friend Stephanie and I wanted to go to another place at the coast, which is called North Durras. We were walking to the North Durras when we saw a huge GONNA that was as big as three cats.

By Rebecca (this was a true story)

Lanky and Turbo

One day Lanky visited Turbo. Turbo was in her same old place, the sunny spot around the back. "What's wrong Lanky?" asked Turbo. "I don't feel very well" said Lanky. "Oh That's very bad, we will have to take you to the vet." So Lanky and Turbo got Mum's attention and Mum rang the vet straight away. The vet said "We're not very busy today so you can come in at any time." "Thank you!" said Mum. So they all went to the vet. The Doctor said "She's very sick you have to give her these pills." In a few days Lankey was better. Both Turbo and Lanky were very happy. Hi my name is Katherine. I will be 10 years old on the 11th of November. Lanky and Turbo are my cats. Lanky is 16 and Turbo is 15 and I love them very much.

Hi I'm Elkie and I am 10 years old. We have 220 cows and we milk 170 of them. My favourite cow is Belinda. I have rode her before and I help Dad milk her sometimes.

On Thursday I got a Beagle. We named him Flaska. He makes a good companion for my other dog DJ. Flaska is 3 and a half weeks old. They are both very good guard dogs.

>From Stephanie

Hi I am Tegan and I am 10 years old. This is my story. One day my pet budgies Bluey and Chacha went to the vet to have a check up. Bluey was sick and had to stay a night. Chacha was fine and could come home. When I got home I played with Chacha. The next morning we got news that Bluey was too sick and would have to stay a whole week. I was very sad. Three days went past then four. Finally it was time for Bluey to come home. I was very HAPPY.

Year 4 Girls Grammar School, Canberra, Australia.

Hello,

This is Tara from Learning Hills. We use to have big gray and yellow spiders in our garden that we called garden spiders. They spun beautiful webs in the late summer and fall. I have not seen any of these spiders for 2 years and it breaks my heart. I hope that they have not become extinct.

Thank you,

Tara Learning Hills Boise, Idaho USA

Hi to all rappers,

We have been reading the replies and find them interesting. In our class we talked about some nocturnal animals and wondered what an animal was so off to the dictionary we went. We found out that an animal is a live being that can move around and so the suggestion that we could choose a spider was voted in.

Around our places we get the beautiful Golden Orb Weaver. This is a big spider of about 45 mm that weaves a large circular web each night and takes it down each morning. It leaves two or three of the outside lines each day and hides in a leaf or under the gutter of the house which is at the end of one of these lines. The line shine a very nice golden colour in the sunlight.

The male spider lives in the edge of his wife's web and is about 6mm in size.

We also have the flying fox or giant fruit bat around our farms. They cause trouble with the farmers because the eat the crops. They were called flying foxes because they have a very fox like face.

They live in New Guinea and Australia. The natives in New Guinea catch them and eat them. They smoke them to cook the meat.

Year Five at Elimbah SS. near Caboolture, Queensland, Australia.

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Once there was a tasmanian devil he ate 6 parrots and two sauages and 1 dog and 2 cats. Blake

Here is an owl eyes full of knowing hooting hello from its tree Paige

I saw a book called the dog and the cat they played jump the fence and they played catch the ball. danielle

I saw a snake on my uncles farm and there were cows thetre. Rhys

miss spider made a cake web at forest and in the midlle s he made a good web and at the bootom she made a buton. Katie

A little kitten went playing out in the world when she was home she had a picnic. eleanore

once upon a time a horse lived at a kingdom the king was very happy about the horse. at night time a rober came and she killed the horse. Natasha

I caught 12 frogs and tadpoles and lots of them hatached Samantha

1B Kelso Public School, Kelso, New South Wales.

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Maintained by Cherrol McGhee

Updated 30 April 1999