House Literacy Competition
House Literacy Competition
This year's House Literacy competition theme was 'A World of Words'.
Each Tutor group was given a Tier 2 word to explore, discuss and then use as a writing prompt.
A Tier 2 word is a non-subject-specific word, but which is sophisticated and academic (such as benevolent, altruistic or philanthropist) as opposed to a Tier 3 word which is a subject-specific academic word (such as photosynthesis, sonnet or trigonometry). At Glyn School, we recognise the importance of teaching Tier 3 vocabulary, but also understand the need to explicitly teach students Tier 2 words to improve their general use of vocabulary across all subjects.
To promote this, some of the words given to the Tutor groups included: legacy, serenity, sabotage, serendipity, epiphany and even psithurism and petrichor (a couple of words for you to Google!).
I was very impressed with students’ entries, and there was a wide range of stories, essays and poetry to enjoy.
Results
Year 7 Winner - Lewis 7C, whose word was 'omen'.
Year 8 Winners (Joint) - Jacob 8SB, whose word was 'juncture' and Alex 8D, whose word was 'nobility'.
Year 9 Winner - Benjamin 9M, whose word was 'panacea'.
A special mention goes to all students in 8 Carew who submitted entries from the whole Form, and to Joseph and Kai in 10A, who were the only optional Year 10 entrants; they entered an acrostic poem based on their word 'fragmentation'!
Here are some highlights from the competition:
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Nobility - Alex 8D Nobility is the great separator in society, While some sit on thrones and stand on balconies, Others sweep and scrub the stones on the street. A select few have the privilege of dominating society, While others are caught in the murky below, struggling to escape. They are forced to pick up the scraps left behind, Getting the worst of everything they require.
But there is a more admirable definition of nobility, A word aligned with all the good people in the world. The act of kindness can be performed by anyone; Nurses, firefighters, soldiers, police officers and vets, Doing what is right to help or protect anyone in need.
The greatest part is you don’t have anything to lose, But what you will gain is the pride of helping someone, Making you more of a hero than Superman, As noble as a knight, And as kind as a doctor. |
Legacy - Luke 7B Legacy, Legacy What is a legacy? Is it something left behind, A treasure perhaps for others to find? Maybe just a memory, Surfacing from long suppression. Or yet how someone is seen, In the eyes of their peers, How strange and endless it can be, Once told it’ll never stop, Until it surfaces to the top, Legacy, legacy Don't try to undermine, For once you’re gone that's all you've left , ‘til time comes to an end…
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Juncture - Jacob 8SB The boy arrived at the meeting place. It was an interesting juncture, where two roads and a derelict railway line met. The line had been abandoned for a long time, however the smell of tar still lingered, a throwback to a distant past. The children's shadows were long, cast by a warm evening sun. He looked across the barren, Californian desert, and it was clear from his posture that he did not want to be there. Who could blame him? Not many people would want to be hanging around with a bunch of dodgy folks, doing who knows what.
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Miss E Kay, Teacher of English, Lead Practitioner for Language and Literacy
