Noss pupils' lockdown poetry book to raise money for young carers

Twenty-two pupils from a Wick primary school have written poems about what life has been like for them in lockdown.

The creative efforts of Noss Primary 4 Green have been brought together in a book that is being sold to raise money for Caithness Klics, a charity supporting young carers in the community.

The book, entitled Home School, contains 22 acrostic poems about learning and life during the coronavirus pandemic. Acrostic poems spell a word or phrase down the left-hand side, using the first letter of each line.

The pupils wrote the poems and typed them up, but they also learnt about calculating profit and then decided which charity to support. The pupils agreed that all profits should go to Caithness Klics, which supports around 100 young carers around the county.

Politicians from across the spectrum have taken to Twitter to praise the book, describing it as “wonderful” (John Finnie, Green MSP) and “excellent” (Maree Todd, SNP MSP), while local MP Jamie Stone (Lib Dem) said: “This is really wonderful.”

One MSP, Jamie Halcro Johnston (Conservative), was even inspired to try his hand at poetry too – but then suggested that the poems from P4G were probably better!

The book is available online and a limited number of hard copies will be on sale at Harrold’s butchers in Wick from this coming week.

I would recommend that you read it with a box of tissues – it’s beautiful but a bit emotional.

P4G class teacher Judith Crow said: “I’m just overwhelmed by the fantastic response the children have had to their book. But it is completely deserved, because each and every poem in it is something special.

“There’s a bit of humour, a bit a frustration, a lot of missing our loved ones and looking forward to being together again. I would recommend that you read it with a box of tissues – it’s beautiful but a bit emotional.”

Edith Coghill, the school’s head teacher, said: “The past three months have been a challenge for us all and the lockdown has resulted in life being lived at a slower pace. This has given more time for reflecting on our families and communities, our priorities and our beautiful environment.

“These poems by P4G pupils sum up how our lives changed so quickly and they make wonderful reading.”

Wendy Thain, manager at Caithness Klics, said: “Caithness Klics supports around 100 young carers in Caithness at the moment – we offer weekly support sessions in Wick and Thurso and we do lunchtime drop-in sessions for rural schools. We offer respite and fun, letting the kids be kids again.

“As we support young carers in Noss Primary School we were delighted when Miss Crow contacted us regarding raising money for Klics by selling the lovely poems her class had written during lockdown. We intend to get our own special edition of the poems for our Klics centre in Wick as a memory and for all our young people to read while visiting the centre.”

One of the poems in Noss Primary 4 Green's Home School, written by Robert Jenkins:

Happy to be with my family

Or able to play in my garden

Missing everyone so much

Everything is so hard some days

Seems so long since seen my family

Coronavirus makes me sad

Hope to play with my friends soon

Or maybe go to the farm

Outside with the farm animals

Like going on a walk with my family

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