Dozens of primary school children celebrated the history and culture of the East End through the medium of poetry.

Pupils from four eastern schools did poetry readings and a musical number in honour of the Unesco World Poetry Day yesterday.

The youngsters met with dignitaries, bystanders and other artists in King’s Square to recognise 25 years of the area being designated a Unesco World Heritage Site.

Crystal Caesar, the Minister of Education, said: “World Poetry Day celebrates one of humanity’s most treasured forms of cultural and linguistic expression.

“Every culture and every continent has poetry as part of its cultural diversity.

“It speaks to our humanity, it speaks to our shared values and it transforms even the simplest of understanding into words that we can all understand.”

World Poetry Day this year had the theme of “Celebrating poetic expression and linguistic diversity”.

Classes from St George’s Preparatory School, St David’s Primary School, East End Primary School and Francis Patton Primary School recited works that they composed.

June Caisey, a musician and entertainer, also recited a poem about the natural beauty of Bermuda and performed a duet with her son, Taur.

Ms Caisey said that, despite being a singer, poetry was her favourite art form because it was the bedrock of many other mediums.

She added: “Poetry reaches out to children, if they are interested.

“There is so much talent on this island and we need schools to allow children to express themselves.”

Gail Smith, the principal of St George’s Prep, said that poetry was a great genre for children to explore because of the creative freedom that came with it.

She explained: “It taps into all of their emotions and it takes them beyond the very structure of writing, which can be difficult for some kids.”

Ms Smith added: “I’ve never seen kids who don’t respond well to poetry. It’s amazing.”

Ms Smith said that World Poetry Day was also the perfect time for the youngsters to learn about the “great history” of St George’s.

She added that is was important for these children, many of whom were “St George’s kids in St George’s schools,” to think about the local heritage.

Deidrea James, a P4 teacher at East End Primary, said that the celebration was a great way for the pupils to feel like a part of the St George’s community.

She said that there has also been a noticeable change in her pupils’ writing after they studied poetry.

Ms James explained that learning about it helped expand their vocabulary and introduced them to figures of speech such as similes and metaphors.

She added that her pupils enjoyed poetry because it was a great medium for them to express themselves.

Ms James said: “Poetry is such a beautiful platform to bring out that raw talent in our children.

“You can sing poetry, you can rap poetry. It’s like creativity on fire.”