Some of our students have had their poetry work selected for publication in a book called Through Their Eyes – The Other Side in a writers’ competition run by Young Writers.
After receiving word of the Through Their Eyes poetry competition from Young Writers, English teacher Jenny Goodwin was keen to get our students involved. “We have some incredibly gifted children at Heart of England and it is great to showcase their talents,” she said.
Many of our students are good writers and enjoy reading and competitions like these are great opportunities to spread news of their success both inside and outside the school.
The competition run by Young Writers is an annual event and has been running for nearly 30 years with more than 10,000 entries this year! The aim of the poetry competition is to encourage students to enjoy reading and writing. “The standard of entries we have read so far have wowed the editors,” said editor Wendy Laws. “Through Their Eyes has really ignited imaginations nationwide!”
Our successful students Maddy (Year 8), Charlotte (Year 9), Willow (Year 9), Caitlin (Year 9) and Farah (Year 9) are due to have their work published in February 2020. Year 9 student Esme also had her talents noted by the judges who are interested in her rewriting her poem and resubmitting with the hope of inclusion in the collection.
Speaking about the students, Miss Goodwin said: “After speaking with the students, it was clear that they were delighted with their achievements and very excited to have work published at such a young age. To have six of our students achieving this award is remarkable and we are so proud of all the hard work they have put in!”
Let us hope this great news helps spark interest in other students to have the confidence to write and consider competitions in the future. “We have a lot of great young voices waiting to be heard,” said Miss Goodwin.