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Monday 4 February 2019

'BRITISH VALUES' POEMS, BY YEAR 7

I recently returned to Plashet School in Newham, London, where I was lucky enough to spend three years as poet-in-residence, between 2014 and and 2017. I spent the day working with classes of Year 7 girls, where the theme was to explore ideas connected with 'British Identity'. Plashet is notable in having a vast majority of students from an Asian background, most of whom speak more than one language. We looked at Benjamin Zephaniah's poem 'The British', which is written in the form of a recipe. With this in mind, I encouraged the students to think about their own ideas as to what constitutes 'Britishness'. I encouraged them, in fact, to cast their nets wider and to think about their identity in a much broader sense. I am excited to share four fantastic poems that were produced during my workshops at Plashet.

I Come From by Eerum (Year 7)


I come from chocolate cookies.
I come from apple tarts.
I come from endless cakes and milkshakes
and this is just the start.


I come from a place called Britain,
sweet like a fruit but spicy like a chilli.
I come from a place where the flavours can vary
and each bite will give you a unique feeling.


I come from a place where it’s cold.
I come from a place where it’s hot.
I come from a place where it rains all day
and looks like it will never stop!


Britain is like a piece of cake,
it’s easy to make with the right ingredients.
With the same amount of heat and the same amount of cold
and you’ve made a tremendous cake.


What’s the flavour, you ask?
it’s not chocolate,
not vanilla, not strawberry.
It’s British.


Recipe by Rahab (Year 7)


Take a dose of care
and leave it to settle.
Then add tolerance to the mix.


Take a lick.
Still a little bitter?
Add lots of democracy.
Don’t forget
a right to a good education -
a vital ingredient
for the perfect recipe of life.


Mix the law in there.
Nearly there.


Then take a blend of sweet equality,
combine with a mix of religion
and a large dose of community.


The perfect recipe for life.


My Britain by Kahloon (Year 7)


Britain is salt and pepper
with a pinch of Asian spices
Britain is fluffy
with solid rocks at the corners
Britain is a light spread of unity and equality
Britain is the feeling of a merry-go-round
Britain is a flag of a mansion
Britain is where uniqueness and individuality is popular
Britain is where Brexit takes over
gentle flowing streams
Britain is Theresa May farting [!!! - ed.] on paperwork
Britain is the scent of shepherd’s pie with mustard
Britain is hope with a bright red cherry on top


Britain Is… by Nadira (Year 7)


Britain is my past,
Britain is my future
Britain is my present,
where I live as a peasant.
Britain is like a fruit mix
where you have a combination of cultures,
Britain is a world
where love and hate is spread
Britain has people known as ‘friends’,
who betray, hate and hurt my feelings.
Such ‘friends’ are a stab in the back,
They don’t have a heart,
They lack,
If they did have a heart
They would come back.
Britain makes me feel unloved,
I don’t feel adored,
My friends don’t love me
If they did they wouldn’t dump me,
I don’t know who I am any more
Britain doesn’t seem like my destiny or future,

Britain was my past.