Students were invited to write an original poem to reflect the competition theme, 'Today's actions shape tomorrow's world'. We received hundreds of entries from students worldwide. Congratulations to everyone who entered; our judges thoroughly enjoyed reading your excellent poems. 

Watch this video to see some our talented students reciting their poems!

2020 Competition Winners and Runners-Up

The winners are listed below, along with the judges' comments. To read each poem, please click on the student's name.

Category A: 10 yrs and under

Winner: Hamza Al Mobaress, British International School of Marbella

“A simple poem, yet effective in its use of repetition, imagery and alliteration. The use of rhetorical questions served to address the reader on this current, tragic news story.”

“Great use of rhythm, questions and shape. Very moving!”

Runner Up: Rameesah Hannan, The Alice Smith School

“The poem uses excellently depicted images of what was once the beauty of coral reefs in contrast to the damage and decay. This image is successfully portrayed through the use of ambitious adjectives and alliteration. Personification is used to paint an image of the reality of the problem of overfishing. Excellent rhetorical question as an ending.”

“A powerful poem that begs the reader to question the future of our reefs. Wonderful use of alliteration and sophisticated vocabulary throughout. Well done Rameesah, keep writing!”

Category B: 11-14 yrs

Winner: Sophie Watkins, International School of Moscow

“Excellent vocabulary, fitting the meter and the rhyme perfectly. Each stanza rolls off the tongue”

“Great attempt at rhyme and brilliantly focused on the theme.”

“There is an excellent message in this poem, along with the skilful use of rhyming couplets.”

Runner Up: Joshua Thomas, Budapest British International School

“Joshua, this is an incredible poem which reflects so many aspects of this year's theme. Using the metaphor of life being like a game of dominoes is a clever and powerful analogy. I especially like the end, where you are handing out an ultimatum to the world. Well done!”

“I really liked the simile of the dominoes.”

Category C: 15-19 yrs

Winner: Aayami Jaguri, Doha College

“I loved the use of alliteration and consonance in this poem. The imagery used was very vivid, creating an ominous atmosphere across the first four stanzas. I especially like the sense of hope for the future in the final stanza.”

“Evocative imagery, excellent use of onomatopoeia.”

“Extremely powerful poem. Fantastic imagery that paints a vivid picture of the state of the world.”

Runner Up: Karolína Kubičková, Park Lane International School

“The image of the children under the old apple tree is particularly poignant and evocative.”

“Clearly a lot of time has been taken to craft a poem with so much visceral imagery of humanity and aging. The last lines were particularly moving 'weary, I smile at my twisted apple tree... children dancing beneath...' I took this to be a direct comment on the naivety of humans not being aware of the nature around them and how much it does for us. I loved the use of metaphor, as well as the rhythm  - it's certainly a poem to be read aloud.”

Prizes

A certificate and prize was awarded to the winner and runner-up of each category.

Winner: £75 Amazon voucher     
Runner-up: £25 Amazon voucher

Judges

The success of our Poetry Competition is dependent upon the expertise of our external judges. Thank you to all the judges who volunteered to support this competition, including teachers from COBIS Schools, experts from COBIS Supporting Associate organisations and professionals from the writing industry.