Wicklewood schoolchildren showcase their poetic skills

Teachers hope to have fostered a lasting admiration for poetry among pupils at a south Norfolk primary school who have been learning the art of writing the powerful, witty and often personal verse.

This generation's Ted Hughes or Carol Ann Duffy could be found at Wicklewood Primary School where parents were invited on Friday to hear a showcase of some of the impressive poetry their children had created over the last few weeks as part of a pilot scheme called the Well Versed Project.

The young poets took inspiration from nature, food, relationships, emotions and even the recent Japanese tsunami to put together an impressive line-up of literature, some of which belied their tender years.

Headteacher Sheila Greenacre said she was 'very proud' of the work her pupils had created.

'Some of it has been very profound, while some has been funny.

'It has certainly made them think and developed their writing skills a massive amount over the last few weeks,' she said.

'I think poetry is good for children. It's not something that requires a massive long piece of writing.

'They can put ideas into it very easily and it's something that works for them and they can use as a vehicle to express themselves more than they would normally.'

The children's skills had been nurtured by two visiting poets Tom Warner and Molly Naylor through a series of workshops.

Miss Naylor said: 'The children have changed their whole aspect on poetry and they want to continue writing poetry in their own time which for us is really rewarding.'

The poets were brought to Wicklewood by the Writers' Centre Norwich as part of the Well Versed Project, which is taking place in 14 schools across Norfolk.

The scheme plants writers in schools and helps teachers improve the ways they teach poetry in a bid to increase pupils' interest in the literary art form.

Leila Telford, from the centre said: 'It's about appreciating the magic of words and language and if children understand that it's something they can use not only within school curriculum but for the rest of their lives.'