People Who Help Us EYFS: A Poem That Celebrates the Many Roles of a Teacher
- Mark Bird
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
As a poet and teacher, I’ve always been drawn to the theme of ‘People Who Help Us’, especially in early years and Key Stage 1 classrooms where children are just beginning to understand the world around them. In my poem People Who Help Us, I wanted to take that familiar ‘People Who Help Us EYFS’ topic and gently turn it on its head. Instead of focusing on different professionals, I explored the idea that, within the classroom, one person often embodies all of these roles at once. The nurse, the mechanic, the builder, the cook; they’re all there, woven into the everyday magic of teaching.
What fascinates me most is how naturally children accept these shifting roles. One moment, a teacher is comforting a grazed knee with “magical wipes”, the next they’re fixing a broken tricycle or constructing imaginary castles from scrap materials. These aren’t just practical acts; they’re deeply symbolic of the trust children place in adults. By framing the poem this way, I hoped to reflect the quiet, often unseen versatility of teachers, and to give educators a piece they can use to spark discussion about care, creativity, and problem-solving within the familiar ‘People Who Help Us EYFS’ framework.
For teachers, this poem can open up rich conversations in the classroom. You might ask children to identify all the different “helpers” in the poem before revealing the twist: that they’re all the same person. From there, children could draw or role-play the different roles their own teacher takes on during the day, or even write their own versions about people who help them at home. It’s a lovely way to deepen the traditional ‘People Who Help Us’ topic, helping children see that helping isn’t just about job titles, it’s about kindness, adaptability, and being there when it matters most.
People Who Help Us
when I stumble and fall, bang my head on the wall
every time I graze elbows or knees
with an endless supply of magical wipes
she’s a nurse, always caring for me
when the tricycle wheels, all so old, wobble off
she just rolls up the sleeves of her dress
a mechanic, she strides and fixes the bike
with a spanner she keeps in her desk
when our wonder is hungry for fairy-tale dreams
and we wish that the stories came true
she’s a builder of castles and bridges and towers
with her boxes of junk, tape and glue
when our rumbling, grumbling tummies are sore
and we can’t concentrate on words said
she’s the host with the most and will make us some toast
she’s a cook armed with chocolate spread
but I never forget, when she isn’t a cook
nor a builder, mechanic or nurse
with an endless supply of magical smiles
my best teacher, is what she is first
Mark Bird
People Who Help Us Activities and Lessons Ideas for EYFS and KS1:
People Who Help Us – (EYFS & KS1)
Inspired by the poem by Mark Bird
🌟 LI: To explore how people help us through poetry, speaking and role-play
✨ 1. Who is Helping? (Reading & Understanding)
👀 Listen to or read the poem together.
Can you spot all the different “helpers”?
Circle or say them out loud:
🩹 Nurse
🔧 Mechanic
🏗 Builder
🍞 Cook
🍎 Teacher
💬 Talk Time:
What does each helper do?
Have you ever needed help like this?
🎭 2. Freeze Frame Drama (Act It Out!)
In small groups or as a class:
Your teacher will call out a helper.You must freeze like a statue showing that job!
👉 Nurse
👉 Mechanic
👉 Builder
👉 Cook
💡 Challenge: Can someone guess your role just by looking?
✍️ 3. My Helper Sentence (Early Writing)
Complete the sentence and draw your idea:
When I need help, someone can be a __________ because they __________.
🖍 Draw your helper below:
🎨 4. One Person, Many Roles (Big Idea)
🤔 The twist! All the helpers in the poem are the SAME person!
Talk together:
Who do you think it is?
What different things does your teacher help you with?
💬 Say it aloud:“My teacher helps me by…”
✨ 5. Build Your Own Poem (Creative Poetry)
Let’s write like the poet!
Use this pattern:
when I __________she/he is a __________who __________
👉 Example:when I feel sad she is a friend who gives me a hug
✏️ Now try your own:
when I ____________________
she/he is a ____________________
who ____________________
when I ____________________
she/he is a ____________________
who ____________________
🎭 6. Mini Performance (Drama & Speaking)
🎤 Perform your poem!
Add actions
Use expression
Work in pairs or groups
💡 Teacher Tip:Turn this into a mini “People Who Help Us” performance assembly!
🌈 Extension Ideas (For Teachers)
Create a class poem combining children’s lines
Draw a “Super Teacher” with many helping arms
Role-play a classroom day showing different helping moments
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