Memorisation and Recitation

Last year, one of Oxford Spires' star students won the Oxfordshire final of Poetry by Heart and was invited to London for the national finals. (Read about it here.)

This week, following on from the success of Performance Poetry Day with Bridget Minamore, we have successfully maintained a flow of creative momentum in the library.

Poetry by Heart is a recitation competition open to students aged 15-18. It is a celebration of poetry, in which students select a poem from the archive, learn it by heart, and deliver it to an engaged audience of poetry lovers.

At Oxford Spires, we wanted to get some of the younger students excited about recitation, as well as seek a champion to represent the school at the regional finals in January. As such, we set up two competitions - one for the potential OSA representative, and one to get the lower school excited about poetry and their possible future success in this competition.

Last Friday, the English department selected up to ten students from years 7, 8 and 9 to come to the library for a mad flash training session. We had a mix of boys and girls, some fairly confident and some pretty quiet, some poetry lovers and some more apathetic individuals. The first hour was spent selecting the poetry they would recite, scrolling through the Poetry by Heart website, but also looking at some of the books on the shelves of the library - talking about what we liked, what we didn't like, and sharing poems that we had found.

We only had a short amount of time with the lower school students, so in the second hour, Kate Clanchy gave the students some tips on how to learn off by heart. In corners all around the room, students were practicing with friends and celebrating the written word.

Finally, it was time for the students to recite their poems. Having had such a short space of time, many did not know theirs off by heart, but we wanted to create an atmosphere of celebration and excitement around poetry, so did not put too much pressure on the children. There was no 'winner', but Kate and I were so impressed by the articulation and delivery of the students, especially those who we thought lacked in confidence.

 One student, who had been a finalist for our in school poetry competition, had not read her winning poem out the day before in assembly, but stood on stage in front of her peers and read off by heart in our event.

Yesterday, we hosted the competition for the upper school (predominantly creative writing students), to find Oxford Spires' Poetry by Heart finalist. These students had more time to prepare - it is a competition, after all! Mrs Croft attended as a judge, and the sixth formers read their poems with pride and love. It was incredible that they all seemed to select poems that sounded like something they would have written themselves.

There was one student who stood out amongst the rest - Asima is an intelligent and well-read girl who writes bright, merry poetry, and who has come on an incredible journey from a timid teen to a confident young woman. We are very excited for the Oxfordshire and Berkshire final next month at the Old Fire Station.

Just, Wow!

On Wednesday 3rd, we were honoured to welcome Bridget Minamore to Oxford Spires Academy for our second Performance Poetry Day.

Read about the first Performance Poetry Day here.

Bridget is an inspiring young writer and performer who spent the day working with a select group of fourteen and fifteen year old students. She carried out workshops to develop their skills in storytelling, creative writing and performing. The day ended with students performing their work to their classmates.

At the start of the day, the students seemed a little embarrassed and nervous. Bridget encouraged them to tell stories about themselves, in part to get to know their names but also to help them relax. The group consisted of high ability students, both boys and girls, with varying levels of confidence - some had been selected specifically in the hope that this event might boost their self-esteem.

Throughout the writing workshops, the students revealed their creativity, impressing Bridget and their classmates. Some are First Story veterans, but many would probably consider themselves reluctant poets, so I was thrilled by how engaged they became with the writing.

In the last lesson of the day, after Bridget had worked with everyone in small groups to develop their performance skills, all the students stood on the library stage and read their work. There was great variety in the subjects explored (as Bridget had given them free reign to write about whatever they wanted to), and in their performance styles, each student revealing their true colours through how they held themselves in front of the mic.

On a personal note, it was so nice to spend the day with Bridget - she is clever and open and is brilliant at working with kids, making my day so easy and enjoyable.

Here is a little sample of some of the students' work, from Y9s, Renad, Ulfat and Mukahang:

As a trio we agree
What a poem should or shouldn't be
Although each of us a different nationality
We are all beings of abnormality
 To each on our own
Our own stories to be told
 ***
 Though we all came from different places
We all have one person in our heart spaces
Our inspiration plays a big role in our lives
Our motivation, our hero, our mothers. 

We would like to thanks the John Betjeman Poetry Competition for Young People for making this event possible.

Number 10

So last night I found myself in Number 10 Downing Street.

Yeah, I know, right?!

(Right to left:) Mrs Croft, Esme, me!

Fortunately for you, there is photographic evidence, albeit from outside the infamous historical home of the British Prime Minister (we weren't allowed to take phones inside).

I attended the reception with the Oxford Spires Principal, Mrs Croft, and one of our star creative writers, Esme. The event was hosted by Frances Osbourne for First Story, and Esme was thrilled to give a speech about why she loved the charity so much.

Esme and I left school after lunch to visit the V&A (my favourite museum) and release some of the nervous excitement we were both holding on to. In the Islamic Art section, Esme rehearsed her speech and poem one final time - she was presenting a new piece written just last week; a piece which reflects her growing maturity and independence and the incredible impact of First Story on her life.

She spoke about the presence of Kate Clanchy in our school, the friends she had made and they changes she had seen in their self-confidence, and how much she loves the way First Story see her not just as a student and teenager but as a writer

At Number 10, I was so relieved to be surrounded by my friends from First Story (having held myself together for most of the day in order to keep Esme calm, I found myself tipping over into childish excitement by the time we arrived).

David Cameron was not there, but Mrs Osbourne welcomed us all and introduced Esme and Reem, another First Story alumni who read an emotional poem about her home country. The venue was better than I could have imagined - we walked up the staircase lined with images of past Prime Ministers, and the rooms were filled with extravagant chandeliers and priceless art.

I am still reeling of the thrill of it all - I feel so privileged to have been invited and to have visited Number 10.

Poetry Hub Update

I thought it was about time I wrote a little update regarding our progress with the Poetry Hub at the Oxford Spires Library.

Earlier this year, a group of creative writing students initiated a Learn to Lead project in the Library, by which they would transform an unused space into a comfortable, inspirational environment for reading and writing.

In the final few weeks of the last academic year, I met with the group (a mix of students from year 8 through to sixth formers, participating as much as they could between revision sessions and exams), and we managed to develop a proposal to take to the Principal, Mrs Croft. The proposal included a breakdown of their objectives and intended outcomes, including removal of the existing furniture (some dirty blue chairs), cleaning of the walls and carpets, and the purchase and installation of the new seating and lighting.

Mrs Croft was excited by our proposal, and was happy to fund labour and furniture from the Learn to Lead budget, with thanks to Oxford City Council.

Over the summer break, the brilliant site team removed a block of old wooden shelving along the back wall, and it was discovered that the wall behind it was not in a good state. As a result, the area required more cleaning and redecorating than expected; but I returned in September to rediscover that the carpet was a beautiful bright purple - a colour I hadn't seen before due to all the grime and dirt trodden in to it.


Through September, I caught up with all the Learn to Lead students to get their thoughts on the specific furniture they wanted in the Poetry Hub. They asked for a sofa, bean bags, new chairs, and space dividers, so they can block out the sounds of the students in the rest of the library and enclose themselves in privacy.

I have taken to ordering a little of the furniture at a time, so that we can see how it looks before we can add to it. But I am under full instruction from the students who keep coming to tell me what to do next - I have never been bossed around quite this much, and I love it!

The Poetry Hub is well on it's way to being an ideal space for creative writing and reading, though there is still work to be done. More furniture is on it's way, and Kate and I are still looking for sources to fund some new shelving and additional stock. But for ambitious perfectionists like our Learn to Lead Poetry Hub team, nothing is impossible.

Hopefully more news to follow soon!

Foyle and Betjeman Competitions

Thursday 2nd October has to be one of my favourite days of 2014.

Kate and I travelled to London together, where we met with the families of two of our students, Jasmine and Helen.

Jasmine was one of the 15 'super winners' of the Foyle Young Poet of the Year competition, whilst Helen was highly commended, along with another student, Emee. Elsewhere, both Helen and Jasmine were finalists for the John Betjeman Poetry Competition for Young People; a competition in which Jasmine had been a finalist in 2013 as well!

We started our day at Royal Festival Hall, where a variety of celebratory events were taking place for National Poetry Day. On the fifth floor, the one hundred commended poets and winners of the Foyle met and shared their success. Grace Nichols and Simon Barraclough had done an incredible job of selecting the best poems from over 13,000 entries, and we were privileged to hear the best fifteen read aloud. There was a great variety, including comedy, philosophy and epic descriptions. Hearing poetry read aloud by the individual who wrote it adds meaning to the work, and even the youngest of the winners read with confidence and fluency.

I was also honoured to be recognised by the Poetry Society as a Teacher Trailblazer. It is no secret that I simply love my work.

From the Southbank, we traveled north, up to St Pancras, where the prize ceremony for the Betjeman competition takes place. It shows the brilliance of the young writers at Oxford Spires that Helen and Jasmine had two different poems shortlisted in two different competitions.

Alongside a statue of John Betjeman, Helen and Jasmine read their poems, along with the third finalist, Noah Bodley Scott. We were so proud when Helen was announced as the winner - her poem is complex and sharp, especially for a thirteen year old!

On my journey home at the end of National Poetry Day, I felt infected with love for the written word, so was relieved to have so many poetry books to entertain me.

#thinkofapoem

Because I was in London, there was a weirdly small amount of creative writing and reading taking place in Oxford Spires on National Poetry Day. In preparation, Kate and I created a poetic atmosphere to leave in our absence, including arranging for some students to go to Blackwell's on Broad Street, Oxford for a Pop Up Poetry event. This was a great opportunity for select sixth formers to share their work with the general public. Emee Begum, who was in the 85 commended poets for the Foyle Young Writer of the Year, read out her winning poem in Blackwell's as she could not make it to London for the ceremony.



Throughout the week, at school, I had been getting excited about the #ThinkOfAPoem campaign from the Forward Arts Foundation. Poets, students and educators were encouraged to get the conversation started with transfers and posters and workshops. At Oxford Spires, Kate carried out a 'first lines' workshop, in which she gave our young writers the first line of a famous poem and asked them to write where they saw it going. In some cases, the line was lost when their imaginations ran wild, but we were lucky to get some brilliant pieces like this:

Meanwhile, I have come away from the whole week buzzing with inspiration and excitement. Part of the Teacher Trailblazer Award was getting some new poetry books, which will go straight on the Library shelves (after I have read them and maybe even dabbled in some writing). I also got my copy of the Forward Book of Poetry 2015 (see my review here), and have been popping in and out of the pages whenever I get the chance.

Over the next couple of weeks, I hope to use this momentum to get some students to enter the Forward Young Responses competition; I cannot wait!

First Story Festival

On Thursday 25th and Friday 26th September, First Story hosted their annual Festival at Lady Margaret Hall.

This year, with the charity expanding into more and more schools across London, Oxford, Leicester, Bradford, Nottingham and Cheltenham, the festival is spread over two days. More schools, more writers, more brilliance!

I attended on the Thursday as a volunteer, and was thrilled to see the First Story team again. This festival takes a lot of hard work and dedication, culminating in an incredible and inspiring day. For many students, it is their first contact with First Story, introducing them to what they will experience over the course of the year, which finishes with them publishing an anthology of their own writing.

On Friday, I took thirty budding writers from Oxford Spires - from zany year eights to literary sixth formers. The day was made up of talks from First Story alumni, performances from poets and novelists, and workshops with writers they otherwise would not come into contact with. Mark Haddon, writer of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, was the key note speaker, describing his journey into being a novelist and answering questions about where his stories come from; and Philip Pullman was a surprise guest at the end, awing children and adults alike.

At the end of each day, First Story try to get one student from each school to read out one of the pieces they have written during the day. For Oxford Spires, the chosen student was a modest, quiet girl called May, who has won in-school writing competitions but is consistently reluctant to read out. But at the Festival, in the excitement of the moment, she read her poem beautifully - a poem about her dislike of maths. I am so proud of her - I know how nervous she would have been, and I am impressed by what she achieved.

First Story have just launched a really exiting competition, with the chance to win a trip to an Arvon residential. The theme of the competition is 'Home' - a subject about which I know every young writer has something to say. There is even a sub-competition for teachers!