COBIS international Poetry Competition

by Alison Tansley, Year 3 Teacher

As a COBIS member school, we were invited to highlight our students’ creative talents by submitting some entries into the COBIS international Poetry Competition. The COBIS Poetry Competition offers a brilliant opportunity for young writers to compete internationally and showcase their talent. The theme of the COBIS competition this year was ‘Who am I?’. Students were permitted to interpret this theme in any way they wished, but this message had to be reflected in each poem.

Poetry is the art of words. A poem is also a piece of literature or artistic writing that expresses feelings and uses words to create images for people to picture and think about whilst reading or hearing the poem. The aim of a poem is to stir a reader’s imagination or emotions. The poet does this by carefully choosing and arranging language for its meaning, sound, and rhythm.

Poetry can appear in a great many forms and styles. Some poems, like nursery rhymes are simple and humorous. Other poems may try to express some truth about life, to tell a story or to honour an important figurehead or famous person. Poets choose their words very carefully and their poetry may include figurative language and imagery to suggest ideas and create images in the reader’s mind.

Over a two week period, students in Upper KS2 (Year 4-6) had a poetry focus during their literacy lessons, in which to learn or refresh the key components of a good poem, such as figurative language and a powerful message.

The students really impressed all their teachers this year, producing great results that showcased their creativity and literacy skills. The students themselves really enjoyed the freedom that poetry writing can provide; poetry is a very different style of writing to a narrative or an information text.

The Upper KS2, the teachers chose their favourite three poems from within their class to be the finalists. From these 12 poems, they conducted an overall vote to select the one poem we would submit to the COBIS competition.

The winner was Eva Popescu from Class 6M.

Eva was delighted when she found out: “For me, I am still in a giant shock I made it in the COBIS competition. It was a tremendous process but I loved it. I love every single part of my poem. I planned, I wrote, I started over again, until I eventually got my final product of ‘Who Am I?’. When my name was called out in assembly, my heart was racing. I enjoyed every moment of it. Although, when I heard my name, as overall winner, I felt great, I knew from 3rd place last year in Year 5H, to 1st overall in IBSB was an enormous jump.”

‘Who am I?’

by Eva Popescu

I finally figured out who I am. I am the turbulent storm in the deep, The occult colours of unique flowers, The phoenix with vigorous powers. The hydrating showers over the bitter mountains.

The calm palm trees dancing to the wind, The lucid rain droplets falling graciously from the sky, I am one who will never cry. It’s me!

I am all the vibrant colours of the rainbow, The joy people feel, As brave as a lion, The hardest cliff to climb, That’s all me!

I am the sporadic crystals found in sunken caves, As pure as the tenacious waves, As soft as the somber sand, As gleaming as the shady night skies, That is who I am!