Two Vashon-based artists are collaborating on a new podcast for kids, Kids’ Poetry Club, that will have its first release on Jan. 27.
The podcast is the creation of life partners Dazzy Short, a poet who describes himself as having had recently “escaped from corporate life,” and illustrator Dot Cherch, who is well known on Vashon as a member of the VALISE art collective.
The podcast fulfills a dream for Short — using the poems he writes on a daily basis as the foundation for a podcast for kids.
“There are a few kids’ podcasts around, but very few spotlight fun poetry, and those that do tend to be just two or three minutes long,” Short said, adding that he has designed the lighthearted podcast to be “a nice break from everything else happening in the day.”
The couple’s podcast — available on many platforms including Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, Spotify and others — will offer weekly 15-minute episodes of fun poems for kids of all ages and their parents. A trailer for the podcast, and more information about where to access it, can be found at kidspoetryclub.com.
Each episode, narrated by the British-accented Short, (who goes by the moniker Little Dazzy Donuts on the podcast), has activities based on a different, specific theme. Each episode also comes with a free PodPack (a downloadable PDF of illustrated poems and activities), and also PodSnacks (short videos of illustrated poems).
Children who are listening to the show will be encouraged to send in their own poems and drawings to be featured in upcoming episodes or online.
The new podcast launches on Monday, Jan. 27, with three episodes releasing that same day. After that, the podcast will settle into a regular rhythm, with a new episode each Monday.
“By keeping the episodes to a tidy 15 minutes, the hope is that the podcast will be ideal for parents and kids on short car journeys, for before bedtime, and for general family time,” Short said.
To support the release of the podcast, special in-person versions of Kids’ Poetry Club are now being scheduled at select libraries across Puget Sound, starting with the first one taking place at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 4, at the Vashon Library.
“My Ant Problem”
It all started on Monday when I found a single ant
sat down on my kitchen floor.
We had a nice chat, and I explained he should leave,
and I politely showed him the door.
The next day, I walked down to my kitchen,
to find ten ants in a long line,
they were making their way to the fruit bowl,
with its oranges, lemons, and lime.
By Wednesday, it was starting to get desperate.
There were ants everywhere I could see.
I could tell that if any of us would be leaving,
the ants all thought it was me!
So, I got myself an anteater,
to vacuum them up with its snout,
and as soon as the ants saw her enter the house,
those ants were quick to march out.
What I’ve now learned about anteaters,
is that, when they come, they’re coming to stay,
and they seem quite a sociable creature,
as four more arrived the next day.
So, now I have a house full of anteaters.
They’re on all the couches and chairs.
There’s a few in the bath, and two in my bed,
and about twenty sat on the stairs.
It seems that I sorted my ant problem,
but I’ve replaced it with another, you see.
If anyone knows what clears anteaters,
please send those details to me!
— Dazzy Short
