English
Apart from its excellent record in State Exams, the English Department in Sligo Grammar School prides itself on its encouragement of creative writing. Samples of students’ work are printed in the school newsletter on a regular basis.
2022 – 2023
ANNUAL SPELLING BEE
This year’s First Year Spelling Bee took place on October 28th. The winner was Adam Lydon with second place going to Eleana Manolaki and third place going to Seán Cashell. Well done to all who took part. The Spelling Bee was organised by Ms Claire Treacy and Mr Richard Mitchell.
LOCKDOWN JAN 2021
Ms McGlone’s 2A class are studying their first Shakespearean play “Romeo and Juliet” online during Lockdown. One of the tasks set was to get creative around the play. The instructions were:
Capulet is holding a masked ball, an “old, accustomed feast.” Imagine you are the costume designer for a production of “Romeo and Juliet.” For each of the characters Juliet, Romeo, and Tybalt. Describe what costume design and what props you would choose to suit their personalities and explain your choices. Refer to the play to support your design decisions.
The Reponses were stunning from the majority of students and here is a sample from Jean Van Aswegan. Simply click on the image below, of a Renaissance mens doublet.
Well done all!!
As part of their online learning first form students in Mrs Treacy’s 1C class produced their own two stanza poems with the aim of revising alliteration. James Winters-O’Donnell chose the very topical and poignant theme of the current pandemic crisis. His fine work is transcribed below:
Poetry In A Pandemic.
By James Winters O’Donnell
COVID chaos caused the crisis,
Crowds, close contacts, confined spaces,
Closed the classrooms,
Rendering us reclusive.
Wake up, eat, screen school, repeat.
Separation, social isolation, sedentary, scrums no more.
Missing mischief, with friends and foe.
The numbing numbers halt our hugs,
Pandemic poetry portrays our pain.
Sample below some of the creative writing from Lockdown 2020:
Students are also taken to the Hawks Well Theatre and further afield to see performances of plays – both those on the exam syllabus and others just for the hell of it!
Above: Leaving Cert students in Dublin to see the Playboy of the Western World, Oct. 2019
Spelling Bee 2019
The SGS Spelling Bee competition was held last week. Well done to the prize-winners: 1st Place Dawn Enabulele, 2nd Place Daniel Akande, 3rd Place Isis Cashman-Legg, all pictured with last year’s winner Tiarnan O’Connor
Winning Scribes!
This year Ms Stinson set up a creative writing club for our students and it has been a great first year. Joshua Gordon (5th yr.) was shortlisted in the Wild Words Competition and has been invited to attend a Writing Masterclass in June at the Wild Words Festival. Anushka Pathak and Siobra O’Callaghan were shortlisted in North West Words’ Competition – Junior Fiction Category and Annushka won while Siobra was Highly Commended.
SGS SPELLING BEE!
The inaugural first year inter-class Spelling Bee competition was held on Friday April 5th with three teams competing for prizes. Three students were left standing after what was a very tough final round: Conor Ryan (1A) 3rd place, Dara Poonia (1C) 2nd place and Tiarnan O’Connor (1B) 1st place. Well done to all involved!
Poetry Prizewinners
3rd Yr students, Ye Ji kim and Zoe Alexander were highly commended at this year’s Patrick Kavanagh Student Poetry Awards for their poetry. Zoe’s poem was entitled “Diversity” while Ye Ji’s was called “Adversity”, and they were written as part of their English class. Well done girls