Talented Year 11 Bim Bim is celebrating for the second year running after being named a 2022 National Poetry By Heart Champion.
Despite a busy exam schedule Bim Bim was awarded the 2-poem National Championship accolade after wowing the judges with her expressive and creative flair, performing ‘We Wear the Mask’ by Paul Dunbar and ‘Border’ by Gillian Clarke.
In the national Poetry By Heart competition young people aged from 7-18, in key stages 2, 3, 4 and 5 choose poems they love, learn them by heart and perform them in a school or college performance event. As the winner of the Key Stage 4 Classic category Bim Bim had to give a solo performance that demonstrated her individual skills in a simple, classic style.
Each participant had to learn two poems – one published in or after 1914, and one from before 1914. Their judged performances relied solely on the young person, their chosen poems and their natural speaking voice or signing style. National Championship judging focuses on voice, understanding, performance and accuracy.
Poetry By Heart was founded in 2012 by poet Andrew Motion, UK Poet Laureate 1999-2009, and educator Julie Blake, and initially developed by The Full English with The Poetry Archive. This collaboration now been expanded to include The Poetry Society, the English Association, the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education, the National Association for the Teaching of English, Homerton College, University of Cambridge, Shakespeare’s Globe and Oxford English Dictionary.
The celebration event for finalists took place at Shakespeare’s Globe, London on Monday 20th June 2022, an event that unfortunately for Bim Bim clashed with her exam timetable. Nevertheless, her achievements were celebrated with her peers and teachers during an emotive end of year Chapel service, where her spectacular performances were recognised with the awarding of her trophy. Well done Bim Bim, what an amazing accomplishment.
