The KS3 Poetry Slam 2014 finale took place today, Thursday 3rd July at Wilton’s Music Hall. The event was the final showcase for Tower Hamlets participants from Swanlea, Sir John Cass, Stepney Green, Bow Boys, and Morpeth Secondary Schools. Winners go on to participate in the Poetry Society’s national Slambassadors UK events.
The winners of the 2014 Creative Writing Competition have been chosen!
Children and staff and their guests were entertained by author and libraries campaigner Alan Gibbons on the 17th June as the prizes for the 2014 creative writing competition were awarded for winners in six categories for poetry and short stories.
Several winners read from their work, which will be published as an eBook in July – available here and on the Amazon marketplace. The next day Alan hosted exclusive creative writing workshops for the lucky winners.
The Schools Library Service would like to thank Alan Gibbons for judging this year’s entries, Clifford Chance for hosting the prize-giving, and all of the teachers and librarians who encouraged the hudreds of pupils to write the amazing poems and stories that we recieved.
Previous creative writing competitions:
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40 of the best new books for your primary school Library
40 of the best new books for your collection.
The Teenage Booklist is selected annually by librarians from the Schools Library Service and secondary schools.
Titles from the Teen and Primary lists will be chosen for the Book Award Shortlist in July. Remember to let us know if you want to participate!
The list represents a selection of the best new fiction first published in paperback within the last year, and aims to cover as diverse a range of subjects, genres, authors and interests as possible.
Posters and bookmarks will be sent to subscribing secondary schools from May.
Please contact the library for more information on the Teen List or to request additional posters or bookmarks (where available).
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Schools in Tower Hamlets, Hackney and other authorities the opportunity to accredit their library service via our award scheme.
What is the award?
Launched in 2012, the SLS School Library Award was initiated by Warwickshire Schools Library Service and are now available to all schools through SLS-UK. It enables any primary or secondary school to work towards achieving a Library award or the Gold version for high-achieving services.
The award is a self-assessment process conducted by the designated member of staff in charge of the library and endorsed by the Head Teacher. It is an audit of 20 key activities with supporting documentation where necessary.
Schools record across three levels how their library service is operating in a range of activities and services:
Developing Establishing Enhancing
An award is given to a school where the library is achieving 10 or more separate activities / services in the ‘establishing’ and/or ‘enhancing’ category. A Gold award is given for 15 or more services in the ‘enhancing’ category only.
How do schools apply?
Order your pack when you subscribe to Tower Hamlets Schools Library Service using SLA online, or, for schools outside Tower Hamlets, email schoolslibraryservices@towerhamlets.gov.uk for an application pack, marking your subject line Tower Hamlets SLS School Library Award
Please ensure your full name, job title and school name are in the body of the email.
The award is open to all schools. If you are from an area where there is a nearer schools library service, we may pass your request on to them.
We will send you the pack together with an invoice for the fee, unless you pay via SLA online.
Using the audit sheet in the pack, the designated library or literacy specialist will need to complete the assessment form and return it to us signed by him/herself as well as the head teacher.
Staff from the Schools Library Service will assess the submission and make an award to the school via a certificate as appropriate. Their decision is final, but a school will usually be welcome to re-submit following a minimum six-month gap
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Winners from a record number of primary and secondary schools in Tower Hamlets gathered in the hospitality suite of the Clifford Chance offices in Canary Wharf to collect their prizes for the 2013 Tower Hamlets Creative Writing Competition.
The competition, an annual event run by the Tower Hamlets Schools Library Service, is for poetry and short stories and is open to pupils aged 9 to 16.
First-place prizes, winning £50, were awarded to Niamh Bush from Guardian Angels Primary School, Priya Begum from John Scurr Primary School, Tahira Chowdhury from Central Foundation Girls’ School, Caitlin Finnerty from Bishop Challoner Catholic Collegiate School, Jaydeen Lee Kusi from Sir John Cass Foundation and Redcoat School and Tania Begum from Oaklands Secondary School, and were awarded by Josh Lacey, author of Island of Thieves and the Dragonsitter series, who judged the work this year.
Prizes were also collected by children from Bow School of Maths and Computing, Stepney Green School of Maths and Computing, Morpeth Secondary School, and primary schools Globe , Hague , Our Lady, Cayley, Lansbury Lawrence , Bangabandhu, Thomas Buxton, Osmani , St Paul with St Luke’s, Chisenhale and Canon Barnett.
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Slam is the competitive art of performance poetry, rapping or emceeing (with or without beatbox, but with no backing track), where artists slam it out over a hot microphone in front of a loud and lively audience – and a panel of judges made up of professionals in the field.
“Before Slam I was getting excluded from school and was the BIGGEST underachiever in my year group. I was in all sorts of different types of trouble but you lot gave me a chance to excel and rise about that, and for that I thank you…… Since slam I have been doing all sorts of crazy things and have gone so far beyond my expectations and imagination.”
Hussain Manawer, ex-SLAMbassadors UK participant, now Poetry Mentor
The Tower Hamlets Poetry Slam consists of a 2 full-day workshops in your school led by a well-known poet or spoken word artist. The first day will feature a performance from the poet, look at poetic techniques, writing stimulus, beatbox, and writing a poem or rap piece around a common theme. The second day focuses on performance skills and rehearsals.
The Slam finale is a half-day of performance on stage at a theatre with all participating school groups in attendance. Schools can each bring up to 30 students along to cheer on the performers!
The Slam is about more than exploring poetry, it’s about your students exploring identity, self-expression and self-confidence. Over the years Tower Hamets schools have produced performance poets of incredible talent who have gone on to national acclaim.
I learned who I am.
I learned that my voice can be heard.
The most valuable aspect was learning how to express feelings that you may not know you have.
Joelle was great and taught us loads also it really improved my self-esteem; and I found out that dyslexia doesn’t stop you from doing everything.
I learned how to make my feelings heard.
I have found me. I have learned that I can be proud of my work.
Comments about the workshops from the students
Sign up via your school’s SLA Online portal. Contact the Schools Library Services for more information about this event.
Latest for the Book Award
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About the 2013 Award
It’s that time again where we prepare for the new Tower Hamlets Book Award. This is our 7th year of running this successful event for Tower Hamlets primary and secondary schools.
The shortlist for the award will be drawn in July from the Teen and Primary booklists in time for the Summer Reading Challenge
The booklists are an opportunity to start reading groups around some of the best new fiction for the year.
Don’t forget that you can arrange author, illustrator or storyteller visits to get your school enthused about reading, writing and being creative.
Book Awards and reading help raise achievement in literacy, and are great fun as well, so what are you waiting for?
40 of the best new books for your primary school LibraryTel: 020 7364 6428 email: schoolslibraryservices@towerhamlets.gov.uk for more information.
Must Read 2013 and THe List posters and booklet based on a design by Shahi Ibtesam, Sir John Cass Foundation and Redcoat Secondary School
Other Must Read booklists
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