Last week, our school celebrated National Poetry Day, which this year took ‘play’ as its theme. How fitting: no community knows the value of play quite like ours! At Channing, we see this spirit shine in everything from the festive creativity of Channing Christmas, when classrooms are transformed into extraordinary scenes, to the exuberance of House Singing, when music, imagination and teamwork come together in joyful competition. Whether it is in the classroom, the playground, or our wider school traditions, the spirit of imagination and experimentation runs through Channing life.

Play, as Albert Einstein once observed, is not a distraction from serious thought, but often the very condition that makes creativity and insight possible. When we play, we allow ourselves to try without fear of failure, to combine ideas in unexpected ways, and to discover new connections. This is why play sits so close to the heart of learning, and why it resonates so strongly with James Nottingham’s idea of The Learning Pit.  Stepping into the Pit requires curiosity, resilience and a willingness to engage with uncertainty. It is through this process of grappling, questioning and experimenting that students develop confidence, adaptability and fearless learning.

Poetry, too, is a form of play. It is language at its most experimental – bending rules, exploring rhythms and sounds, and inviting us to see the familiar with fresh eyes. Just as children create whole worlds out of imagination, poets transform ordinary words into something extraordinary. Rhyme, metaphor and wordplay remind us that language can be a game as well as a tool. Wrestling with a challenging poem is very much like entering the Learning Pit: it may feel uncertain at first, but with resilience and a willingness to take risks, students emerge with new insights, deeper understanding, and the joy of discovery. Poetry encourages this fearless engagement, showing that play and perseverance are inseparable in the pursuit of knowledge and creativity.

Last week Year 13 students from Literary Society, Opal, Maisie and Yasmine, led our National Poetry Day assembly, exploring riddle poetry with the school community. These playful verses ask us to solve, imagine and delight in surprise. From Jonathan Swift to Emily Dickinson, poets have long hidden answers in plain sight, daring us to puzzle them out. In doing so, they remind us that reading poetry can be as active, joyful and challenging as any game.

To celebrate National Poetry Day, KS3 and KS4 tutors launched the ‘Write Your Own Riddle Poem’ competition, open to individuals, groups or whole forms. It promises to be a wonderful opportunity for students to experiment with language and share their creativity with the community.