Australian Kookaburra

SYDNEY — An Australian school principal has asked students to stop using the word "gay" when singing a classic children's song, but said Thursday no offense was intended — he was simply trying to keep the kids from laughing.

Principal Garry Martin of Le Page Primary School in Melbourne said he instructed students to substitute the line "Fun your life must be" for the original "Gay your life must be" when singing "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree." The song about a native Australian bird is a favorite around campfires.

Martin said he was playing a recording of the song for the students about a month ago when the line "gay your life must be" produced a flurry of giggles throughout the classroom. And so, to calm them down, he told them to swap in the word "fun" for "gay."

His decision erupted into a controversy, he said, after one of the students told his parents about Martin's change to the song. Word then spread from the parents to friends to the local newspaper, which ran a story — and Martin found himself being bombarded with angry e-mails.

"Some think I'm the devil incarnate," he said.