Laureate na nÓg Sarah Crossan visits St Brigid's

Laureate na nÓg (Ireland’s Children’s Literature Laureate) poet and novelist Sarah Crossan was in Mullingar on Friday March 15 last to attend a unique event at St Brigid’s School.

Pupils at the school have participated in weekly creative writing classes as part of the Laureate na nÓg #WeAreThePoets Project – which is inspiring young people across Ireland to express themselves through poetry.

Sarah Crossan’s ambition for her two-year term as Laureate is to show children and teenagers that ‘poetry belongs to them’.

The St Brigid’s School #WeAreThePoets workshops were facilitated by local writer Paul Timoney, who helped the students compose poetry by using sensory stimuli, including sound and texture.

Sarah said: “It has been such a pleasure to work with Paul Timoney and the pupils at St Brigid’s School, their imagination and creativity are inspiring. Their work truly captures the spirit of #WeAreThePoets, and I feel very privileged that they are part of my Laureate project.

“Well done to them all, they have done St Brigid’s proud!”

Thirteen pupils participated in the #WeAreThePoets workshops, and they presented their work in a showcase to four classes at the school. Paul Timoney said: “I loved getting to do this project with St Brigid’s School.

“My favourite part has been helping students to create their own poetry, especially the poem titled St Brigid’s Well Walk, where they wrote about the sound of people ‘gossiping and gospelling’, ‘the chirping of birds like ringtones’, and ‘the alarming but quiet r-r-r-r-r-r of a royal horse’.”

St Brigid’s School principal Bob Keating added: “We were delighted to have the opportunity to engage in this project.

“The students have thoroughly enjoyed the experience and have produced a beautiful collaborative and engaging workshop for our younger students.”

About Sarah Crossan

Sarah Crossan is an internationally acclaimed verse novelist, best known for her books for young adults, including Apple and Rain, One, and Moonrise.

Her books have won many awards, including the Carnegie Medal.

In May 2018, she was named as Ireland’s fifth Laureate na nÓg by President Michael D. Higgins.

Sarah has a particular interest in working with marginalised communities.

Under the #WeAreThePoets banner she is collaborating with a team of writers to deliver workshops, as well as a national event showcasing the young voices that have participated in her Laureate project.

About Laureate na nÓg

Laureate na nÓg is an initiative of the Arts Council. It is supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, the Department of Children and Youth Affairs and Poetry Ireland and is managed by Children’s Books Ireland.

The honour was established by the Arts Council to engage young people with high quality literature and to underline the importance of children’s literature in our cultural and imaginative lives.