Poetry rules at St Benedict’s!
Published on isbi School News dated Friday 6th of November 2015
Poetry rules at St Benedict’s! At least it did during the last week before half-term holiday when the Junior School celebrated Book Week, organised by the Librarian, Mrs Celia Sweetman. At the final Assembly, class after class proudly displayed their own illustrated poetry anthologies and children chosen by classmates recited favourite poems before a brightly costumed throng of staff and children from Nursery to the top year of the Junior School. Poems about the dancing leaves of autumn, sinister verses from Roald Dahl, sonnets from Shakespeare, and the Dinosaur Rap to name but a few, brought pleasure and laughter to those assembled in the Cloisters at the end of a fun–packed week. The theme had been Poetry and Pictures both of which figured large in the week’s activities. Led by enthusiastic class teachers, poetry was chosen, learnt by heart and written. All the children met a real live poet, the zany and insightful James Carter. Older classes read picture books to younger classes. Anthologies were illustrated. And all the children met a real live author-illustrator of picture books, the imaginative and talented Mark Robertson. James Carter, poet, guitarist and dreamer beguiled all on Tuesday with humorous performances of his poetry. Wednesday was a day of relative calm. The School Read In in the morning ensured that all children and staff enjoyed half an hour’s uninterrupted reading time. On Thursday, the quiet of the hall was shattered by the roar of a dragon as the lid of a battered brown leather case was raised to reveal a large egg inside. This was the introduction to a magic world of dragons, castles, and mermaids created by Mark Robertson in his stories and illustrations. Friday was Dressing up Day. To the stirring notes from Star Wars, the characters formed into a colourful procession moving round an admiring throng of parents before disappearing into school. The final Assembly brought everyone and the week’s events together and rounded off a memorable week.
