PUBLISHED 19 March 2024
During the early, drizzly days of March, an intrepid group of Year 7 pupils, accompanied by Mr. Bridges, hauled their poetry backpacks with them (stick with the metaphor here), as performed at the fabulous ‘Poetry by Heart’ House Competition House event in late-February, and parachuted in on Year 6 classes at both Heyhouses Primary School and AKS Prep. Their mission: a morning’s workshop-style interaction and quick-fire dramatic outcomes with themselves in the role of poetry performers, freeze frame producers, task coordinators and school ambassadors.
The intention behind this year’s visits, which have run annually for over ten years now, was to bring together a number of AKS Year 7 pupils with classes of Year 6 pupils; the objective was to strive towards moments of collaborative drama, using recited verse as a springboard. AKS pupils helped their small groups create visualisations of the fearsome creatures mentioned in ‘Jabberwocky’ by Lewis Carroll, and to come together to symbolise the essence of the message behind Angelou’s ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’.
The Year 6 audience were treated to renditions of these poems, as well as McGough’s ‘The Sound Collector’ (where they became the sounds), Silverstein’s ‘Sick’ (where they feigned the listed illnesses) and Mather’s ‘Schoolspeak’ (delivered in rap style by both Eloise and Hattie, whilst Year 6 acted being ‘cool’). Esme and Darcey’s dual-narrated version of ‘Snow-white’, saw a Year 6 pupil in role as the Magic Mirror, whilst Isabella’s ‘A Crime Scene’, Charlotte’s reimagining of ‘Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf’ - in Roald Dahl’s rather altered version of the fairytale - and Isaac’s ‘The Three Little Pigs’ helped the morning’s variety and added to the range of voices which were heard.
Year 7’s enthusiasm and easy communication with the younger pupils with whom they were asked to work and guide, none of whom they knew upon arrival, made both of these events memorable and offered opportunities to lead on fast-moving exercises and challenges. Thank you to Year 6 for allowing them the opportunity to work with you all.
John Bridges, Head of English, AKS Senior School