Earlier this year, on Wednesday, 30th January, a group of eight Year 7 Manchester Academy pupils were selected to be part of the North West launch for the Mother Tongue, Other Tongue writing competition run by Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU).
This is a national project, led by the Poet Laureate and Director of the Manchester Writing School at MMU, Carol Ann Duffy.
- Mother Tongue encourages children who do not have English as a first language, or who speak a different language at home, to share a lullaby, poem or song from their Mother Tongue and to explain what it means to them.
- Other Tongue encourages children learning another language to use that language creatively by writing a poem in that Other Tongue.
Below is the poem titled, Building Bridges which was written by the students and was also read at the launch event.
Building Bridges – Manchester Academy
Guten Tag my darling
I am a dream
Once the world was full of dreams,
Now it’s hard to sleep
I see the world as how the person creates it
La haleine qui coole
Freedome flows
La helaine qui coole
Life flows
I am imaginative, creative and endless
I like to draw things
And I will draw to make them come alive
La haleine qui coole
Freedome flows
La helaine qui coole
Life flows
Ich bin ein Traum
Je suis une reve
Ana Ahlaam
Nanorley mulaley nanawa
La haleine qui coole
Freedome flows
La helaine qui coole
Life flows
By Ms Martin
Manchester Academy