Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts

 

Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts  …

… they say, but at Ireland Wood primary school Apollo brought enchantment and poetic delight.  A large plaster bust of the Greek god served up inspiration and the starting point for creative writing of original poetry, carefully edited and redrafted to produce honed and thoughtful poems.  Live at the Apollo, reimagined.

Local writer and poet James Nash worked his own magic once again with sixty youngters in year 6 in his series of poetry workshops culminating in a performance assembly in front of the classes in year 5.  Oh, and they were videoed so all parents have access to the work that was produced.  Quite intimidating if you're only ten years old, and you have to read out some or all of your poem to the listening classes, teachers, support assistants and visitors present in the school hall.

 

Occasionally the nerves showed – shaking papers and quavering voices – but most stepped up to the microphone and declaimed their own words with brio and pride.  Even though some had to stoop to reach the fixed microphone and others reach up to ensure their words, literally their own words, were heard. The quality of the vocabulary, the empathy and immersion in the world of ancient Athens was astonishing.  

 

The effort that the school put into arranging James' workshops and in the final assembly showed the strength of their commitment to the vale of the work.  As year 6 class teacher Ms Pliener said, “My pupils have been on a real journey, gaining in confidence and excitement and volunteering en masse to read the whole of their poem to the assembly.”  Mr Burgess, who teaches the parallel class, also commented that “It's so important for youngsters to learn how to have the confidence to speak in public as it's so important in any aspect of life and work.”

 

The pupils first learned from James that Apollo was the god of archery, music & dance, truth & prophecy, healing & diseases, the Sun & light as well as the god of poetry.  Plenty there to inspire them - and it showed in the range of comments about him and his work. We heard of golden arrows, the Creator of Remedies,  the bustle of Athens, and the smell the olive trees that surrounded the city.

 

Profound handicap did not stop two boys from reading out their own work – it would have been very difficult to stop them, I think – and one girl who had been panicking before the assembly then took to the centre stage to read her work with aplomb.  These experiences were observed in rapt attention by the year five pupils in the audience, so the value of this work just keeps on giving. As Ms Blair, a learning support assistant said, “I have seen confidence of some of the most nervous members of the class just shoot through the roof.  It's an absolute joy.” There was high praise too from Ms Kerr, another learning support assistant, for the way James held the attention of the youngsters and she commented that she too had got a lot out of his work.  Yet another gift from a Greek god – Apollo, not James!

 

Just one example of so many; this from a god reflecting  on life 2000 years later:

 

I am Apollo

 

I am Apollo

The graceful god of music and dance,

The all-needed sun and light,

Future, truth and prophecy.

 

I still hear shout of praise for me,

Smell the sacrifices in the temples

And the taste of sweet success,

For I protected their young.

 

Oh, the music I played for them

On my golden lyre

For my beauty they could not resist,

They could not resist, they could not resist.

 

As I sat atop Mount Olympus,

Foreseeing the future,

I thought about what more to do.

Was there any more to be done?

 

So now as I sit on a dusty windowsill,

The sun bathing me in light, I think about what would happen

If I were never born.

 

Comments from the youngsters involved included:

It was great to be able to ask questions of a Real Writer

It's really useful to me as I now plan to be a writer

It's really good to share your work with others as it builds your confidence

It was fun!

 

Headingley LitFest is very grateful for the funding to complete this work, granted once again by the Inner North West Area Community Committee.