Timothy Grimothy: a Surreal Mud Poem for Kids Who Hates Washing

Timothy Grimothy

Timothy Grimothy – grimy and grim

he’d not had a shower all year

and only one bath

he’d had for a laugh

submerged in baked beans and stale beer

Timothy Grimothy – started to reek

his friends wore big pegs on their noses

not choosing a cure

he rolled in manure

which squelched between all of his toeses

Timothy Grimothy – no more friends left

just girlfriend remained - Mudpie Sally

but even she fled

on seeing the spread

of sprouts twisting out of his belly

Timothy Grimothy – crannies and nooks

completely been sealed with the grime

two earfuls of wax

one bum without cracks

a nose jammed with bogeys and slime

Timothy Grimothy – huge ball of filth

the sludge seeping into his blood

then getting much bigger

a J.C.B digger

thought he was a great mound of mud

Timothy Grimothy – Mama screamed “NO!”

ran over to save her poor child

she dug in the dirt

found pieces of shirt

two eyeballs both staring and wild

Timothy Grimothy – crumbled to bits

his mama she reached for the spade

packed him in sacks

and carried him back

to fertilise lilies she’d laid

Timothy Grimothy – nose, lips and all

eternally glad how it ended

decomposing with slugs

and lots of dead bugs

dissolved in the earth as intended

Timothy Grimothy – centuries on

the lilies had died long ago

instead a new breed

of flowery weed

in hundreds of thousands had grown

'The Timothy Grimothy Yucky-Muck Plant'

with eyeballs that stared from each flower

but down they would sink

to the ground and then wink

at even a slight chance of showers

©2009 Mark Bird

💡 KS2 Poetry Lesson Ideas for Teachers and Students:

Here are some fun and creative lesson ideas inspired by your mud poem for kids, "Timothy Grimothy." Children can explore the themes of hygiene, personal care, and consequences through a humorous lens. Discussions can focus on what might happen if we never bathed, using Timothy as a cautionary (and hilarious) example. Students can invent their own grimy characters and write silly poems or short stories, playing with rhyme and gross-out humour to build literacy and creativity. Role play activities could include acting out scenes from the poem or imagining how other people might react to Timothy’s stinky adventures.

Children could analyse the poem’s structure, identifying its rhyme scheme and rhythm, then try writing their own gross-out poems using similar patterns. Lessons can focus on building vivid imagery and playful language, encouraging children to use all five senses to describe their characters or settings—especially the stinkiest ones! Students might also experiment with character-driven storytelling, developing backstories for Timothy or creating spin-off poems about other messy misfits. Collaborative writing games, like “pass-the-poem,” can build confidence and teamwork while reinforcing poetic techniques in a fun and engaging way. I'd love to hear your own mud poem for kids.

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