Poetryclass History & Case Studies

Brief History

Poetryclass was an initiative set up by The Poetry Society with funding from the DfE (which was the DfEE at the time). The inset service was launched on National Poetry Day, 7 October 2000.

From 2002-2005, the Poetryclass team of 40 professional poets took part in a training and planning programme, led by poet Jean Sprackland, designing training days for teachers, supporting them to deliver the teaching of poetry in the classroom in a creative way, whilst adhering to the National Curriculum and the National Literacy Strategy.

The project was the first of its kind to work on a large scale with teachers to support them directly with the teaching of poetry, and to provide an informational exchange between the arts and education sectors. As far as we can tell, there hasn't been an initiative like it since, one that is entirely devoted to the teaching of poetry.

Since the launch of Poetryclass, we have delivered INSET courses in Lancashire, Exeter, Manchester, Birmingham, Cumbria, Surrey, Liverpool, London, the West Midlands, Kent, Leicestershire and Bristol. Hundreds of primary and secondary teachers have participated in training so far, plus 12 PGCE students and four teacher training lecturers.

Case Study: Exeter Model

In partnership with the School of Education at Exeter University, Poetryclass worked with teachers right at the start of their careers. Poet Ann Sansom worked with a group of 12 PGCE students and their partner teachers on teaching practice. Together they explored creative ideas and methods for approaching poetry in the classroom at Key stages 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Download PDF case study of the Exeter model