13 June 2020
Posted by Lucy Pearce
Birds with Jack Thacker
11 - 14 Age Group, 14 Attending, 15 - 18 Age Group, 7 Attending
This week, the Young Writers had something a little different and very exciting! We were lucky to have the Lighthouse Writer In Residence Jack Thacker leading the workshops, with a theme of birds - or more specifically, the collective nouns of birds!
To kick off the session, Jack talked us through all the different types of birds that can be found living in Poole Harbour (there are a lot!). These vary from the more common Seagull to the rarer Heron and Osprey. After going through these, it was then quiz time. From a multiple-choice, the Young Writers were asked to select which collective noun they believed related to each bird.
We discovered the below collective nouns:
Bird - Collective Noun
Seagulls - Screech
Kingfisher - Crown
Crows - Murder
Geese - Wedge
Herons - Siege
Starlings - Murmuration
Sparrows - Quarrel
Ravens - Unkindness
Cormorants - Gulp
Osprey - Duet
Tern - Committee
After this, the 11-14 age group read and lightly analyzed Hymn To The Birds, which incorporated collective nouns within it, while the 15-18 age group read Collective by Matthew Francis and Collective Nouns for Humans In The Wild by Kathy Fish. Both of these poems demonstrated how collective nouns can slot into poetry and be used as a tool.
The Young Writers were then asked to take three birds that weren't included in the session and create collective nouns for these. I created:
Wrens - An ovation
Swans - A braid
Parrot - A Clowning
Then, the Young Writers were asked to create collective nouns for actors, musicians, theatre-goers, and writers.
And finally, the 11-14 age group were given time to write a poem that included at least 3 of their own collective nouns, while the older group were asked to write a poem which included collective nouns used for humans.
Rosie wrote:
A Slurp of Yellow-Bellied Sapsuckers
As footsteps shower
The gravelled ground,
A quarrel of sparrows
Look around.
A slurp, in my
Saddened fear,
Of yellow-bellied
Sapsuckers appear.
They cock their heads
At my errands,
While my gaze skirts past
A siege of herons –
They call their
Scratchy mews,
A discord of
Sung blues.
Who stand stock still,
Looking down,
Battling for fish
With a nearby crown
A well of eyes,
Of tears a pail,
A pocket of memories,
Of whispers a wail.
Of kingfishers.
A birdwatcher learns
The silhouette of
A committee of terns.
A flight of evenings,
A calming of lakes,
A lentic of sobs,
Ripples in their wakes.
I have not yet learnt.
A gulp in my throat,
A gulp of cormorants
On an upturned boat
A distraught of worlds
And lives rocked.
Emptiness where once
His birds flocked.
The opposite shore,
Some distance away.
A slurp of yellow-bellied sapsuckers
Go flying away.
Thank you to Jack for a fantastic session that was both informative and fun! We hope to have you back one day!
