Rotorua children express themselves through poetry competition

Many children got their pens or pencils out and let the creativity flow as they wrote a poem about themselves.

A poetry competition was run by NumberWorks'nWords Rotorua, and required children to write a piece about themselves in 17 words – no more, no less.

The competition winner was Kevin Wu from John Paul College.

He says sticking to the 17-word limit was difficult and he rewrote it a couple of times.

When asked how he felt finding out he was the winner he said he'd been surprised.

As the winning entrant, Kevin got to choose a year of tuition with NumberWorks'nWords Rotorua in either maths or English, beginning in term 2.

He chose maths and has already started the tuition, which he says has been going well.

Leanne Stewart, owner of NumberWorks'nWords Rotorua, says, "We work with where the child is at so if that is extension or catch-up, we will work hard to ensure the student gets what they need".

"We will be able to support them with exam preparation as well, if needed."

She says after last year's interruption to student learning, she wanted to offer a prize that could make a substantial difference to a student's achievement.

"I decided on this particular poetry competition because it was limited to 17 words. This meant it wouldn't take a huge amount of students' time and was achievable for a variety of ages, levels and abilities."

She says they had a pleasing response from individuals through their Facebook page and from individual classrooms, with 51 entries altogether.

The judging panel was made up of four people - local principal, teacher, sportsman and council employee.

"All poems were recorded and sent to the judges without any names, schools or ages so that they were judged wholly on their own merit. The top four were fairly close.

"The winning piece is honest and gives you a great insight into the child's personality.

"One judge commented that it resonated with her and she was able to relate to the poem on a personal level."

NumberWorks'nWords is a specialist tutoring company providing expert tuition in English and maths.

The company was established in 1984 by a New Zealand couple with a passion for education and is now one of the world's longest-running tuition providers with 68 centres around the world.