Poetry in motion for record-breaking students

Hunstanton students joined thousands of others in an attempt to set a new Guinness World Record on National Poetry Day this year.

The Year 7 cohort at Smithdon High School were participating in what the organisers hoped would be the world’s largest poetry lesson, on Thursday 3 October. 

Funded by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, the project was a collaboration between the Forward Arts Foundation charity, who launched National Poetry Day in 1994, The Poetry Archive, the National Literacy Trust, the Centre for Literacy in Primary Education, and The Poetry Society.

The record attempt saw poet Laura Mucha lead a multi-venue digital poetry workshop where around 60,000 students from schools across the UK worked together to co-create a poem on the theme ‘what counts’.

“National Poetry Day is a day dedicated to reading, reciting and creating poetry,” said Amanda Wright, Head of English at Smithdon, and organiser of the event at the school.

“We celebrate the written word throughout the year, but this day – the first Thursday of October – is an opportunity to honour verse in a way that does not have to be connected to the curriculum.”

The school, which is a member of the West Norfolk Academies Trust, observes World Poetry Day every year, but was taking part in the world record bid for the first time.

“Students were engaged in a session delivered by the poet Laura Mucha,” Ms Wright explained. “They decided how the poem took shape by voting. We started the process in September, asking students to consider ‘what counts’. Their responses, including love, family, honesty, et cetera, showed strong emotional intelligence.

“Year 7s were timetabled for Maths during the attempt, and, because the theme was ‘counting’, I was easily able to persuade Mrs Sheena Evans, the Head of Maths, to bring the students to the Hall with the Maths team to participate.”

Also present alongside the students were English Teachers Natalie Carlton, Charlotte Mortoza-Cowles, Vicky Faulkner, and Kezia Howlett, along with Headteacher and English Teacher Amanda Gibbins.

“Guinness World Records set out strict guidelines about who counted,” Ms Wright continued. “For example, all students in each centre had to be in the same location – we used the Hall. Following the lesson, English teachers and the Headteacher had a Google form to complete to help count the numbers, and we also had to submit photographic and video evidence.

“All students in Key Stage 3 participated in National Poetry Day activities, but the Guinness World Record Attempt was for Year 7s only. Around 112 Year 7s ‘counted’ towards the attempt.

“An independent third party has to review the evidence, and Guinness World Records have to confirm the title break. They said it could take up to four weeks – that’s a lot of counting.”

Other World Poetry Day activities taking place at Smithdon included participation in a poetry competition held by the North Norfolk Festival of Literature & Landscapes, and the exploration of poems such as ‘How to Cut a Pomegranate’ by Imtiaz Dharker and Keisha Thompson’s ‘Tankas for Andre’.

“So often we hear students say that they don’t like poetry or that they don’t understand it,” added Ms Wright. “Stopping to celebrate World Poetry Day and doing something helps to remove barriers that students have towards poetry.

“They usually learn best when they don’t realise they’re learning, so experiencing the attempt to break the Guinness World Record for largest poetry lesson – whether they were participating, spectating, or heard about it from other students – made them feel involved.”