A spoken-verse category in which each entrant performs a poem written in Jamaican language, with the older classes offering two contrasting poems, recorded on the template as a four-minute entry scored out of 100 and offered in all seven classes.
Speech – Jamaican Poems is the fifty-eighth entry on the Jamaican national performing arts festival template and the third category of its Speech discipline. It sits straight after the two standard English classes and is the first one built around the language most people in Jamaica speak at home: the entrant performs a poem written in Jamaican language, with no music and no scenery. The handbook files it as category 3 of the speech syllabus, marked as a poem category, and the abbreviation used on entry forms is JP(A).
The shape of a round depends on the class. In Classes 1 to 4 the entrant presents one selection of poetry. In Classes 5 and 6 the entrant presents two contrasting poems, for example one comedic and one tragic, and the handbook adds that the items must show variety and contrast to demonstrate range of emotions and vocal performance. It explains that “contrasting” means opposing emotional content: if the first poem is about love, the second should be about hate, revenge, sadness or joy. Each selection is limited to three minutes.
What makes this class different from its standard English twin is the sound of the language, not the task. A Jamaican poem keeps its own rhythm, stress and vocabulary, and the speaker has to carry them naturally. A speaker who tidies the language into standard English loses the poem; a speaker who mumbles it loses the audience. The handbook’s own marking table is shared across the whole Speech discipline and asks for audibility, clear articulation and enunciation, stage presence and believable feeling, so a strong entry is one the whole room can hear and follow while it still sounds like the voice the poem was written for.
The usual entry rules apply: the right author must be acknowledged, the entry must say it is a poem and not prose, and a copy of the selection is submitted with the entry form. The handbook suggests an online anthology, but also allows a text used in Jamaican schools, earlier published anthologies and other approved published material. Costume should suit the character or situation of the poem, and the handbook discourages school uniform and plain black, white or grey unless the mood of the text calls for it.
The template records the item as a team entry, both genders together, with English as the language, a four-minute window with the warning bell at three minutes and a score out of 100, in all seven classes. The handbook describes the category as a solo class with three minutes per selection. An organiser who wants to follow the handbook should set the entry type to individual and set the time limit to suit the number of poems the class performs. Organisers run a Jamaican-language poem class because it gives children and adults who think and joke in that language a place to be judged on it directly.
Where Speech – Jamaican Poems comes from
Competitive speech and drama festivals in many countries run separate classes for verse in the language of the home and verse in the formal language of school, because the two are heard differently by an audience. Nothing in the source for this template says when the Jamaican poem class joined the festival, who has won it or how it developed, so no festival history is claimed here.
Where Speech – Jamaican Poems is run
On eTalenter this item is used in one template, the Jamaican national performing arts festival template, where it is assigned to all seven classes (six age bands from the youngest children to adults aged 20 and over, plus a combined class) in the Speech discipline, after the standard English classes and ahead of the Jamaican prose class and the mixed standard-and-Jamaican classes. Classes for verse in a local or dialect language appear in school, community and cultural festivals in many countries, but each event sets its own text lists, time limits and age bands, so the rules on this page apply to the festival the template is built from.
- Jamaica (the national performing arts festival the template is built from)
Key facts
- A poem category: the entry must state that the selection is a poem, not prose, and the right author must be acknowledged
- Classes 1 to 4 present one selection of poetry; Classes 5 and 6 present two contrasting poems, for example one comedic and one tragic, showing variety and range of emotion and vocal performance
- “Contrasting” means opposing emotional content; each selection is limited to three minutes
- The template gives a team entry, both genders together, English as the language, a four-minute limit with the warning bell at three minutes and a score out of 100, in all seven classes; the handbook describes a solo category
- Marked on the shared four-part speech table: voice production, speech, presentation and interpretation, weighted 20, 30, 20 and 30 at auditions, 10, 35, 15 and 40 at parish level and 4, 20, 4 and 22 (out of 50) at the national finals
- Ideas, not rules, for choosing poems: a humorous poem about market day or a family argument for the comic piece; a quiet poem about leaving home or loss for the serious one; the handbook-approved anthology and school texts are the safe starting points. Always check the poem against an approved source and the age of the entrant
On eTalenter, Speech – Jamaican Poems is filed under On Stage and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Speech – Jamaican Poems is most often entered as an Team competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 4 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Speech – Jamaican Poems
What a Speech – Jamaican Poems panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- The handbook prints one marking table for the whole Speech discipline, so a Jamaican poem is scored on the same four headings as every other speech class; the points below follow that table and are a summary, not a quotation of the rule
- Voice production: audibility, projection, tone, resonance, colouring, texture and pace, worth 20 at auditions, 10 at parish level and 4 of 50 at the national finals. In a Jamaican poem the pace is often quick and musical; marks go to a speaker who stays audible and varied at speed, and are lost to one who rushes into a blur or trails off at the end of lines
- Speech: articulation, enunciation and pronunciation, worth 30, 35 and 20 of 50. The handbook defines pronunciation as the accepted way a word is articulated and names Oxford English as its reference. It does not explain how that applies to Jamaican language, so an entrant should ask the organiser how the panel reads it. Whatever the answer, every word must be clear to the listener, and sloppy word endings cost marks
- Presentation: costume, stage presence, performance energy, style and visual impact, worth 20, 15 and 4 of 50. The costume should suit the speaker or situation in the poem. Strong posture, direct eye contact and a few deliberate gestures usually score better than constant movement
- Interpretation: comprehension, expression, mood and feeling and believability, worth 30, 40 and 22 of 50. This is where a Jamaican poem is won. The panel rewards an entrant who understands every line, makes the humour or the hurt felt and is believable as the person speaking, and marks down one who recites without meaning
- Range and contrast in Classes 5 and 6: the two poems must differ in emotion, so the panel listens for a real change in voice, pace and mood between them rather than the same delivery twice
- Time: three minutes for each selection. A poem that runs over must be cut or performed faster in rehearsal, never rushed on the day
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Speech – Jamaican Poems under Scoring Setup, or start from the full recitation and poetry judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Speech – Jamaican Poems
How entrants and their teachers usually get Speech – Jamaican Poems right on the day:
- Choose a poem you understand completely. Read it aloud several times and say in your own words what happens in each verse; if you cannot, choose another. A Jamaican poem you only half understand sounds like a recited list
- Check the rules first: a poem, not prose; written in Jamaican language; author acknowledged; a copy of the selection ready for the entry form; and, for Classes 5 and 6, two contrasting poems. Use the approved anthology, a school text or another approved source
- Time it. Say the poem at performing speed with a stopwatch and aim for about two and a half minutes so the three-minute limit leaves a margin for nerves. Trim a verse rather than speed up
- Mark up a printed copy. Underline the words that carry the feeling, put a slash at every breath and write beside each verse the mood it needs, such as teasing, anger or tenderness. Memorise verse by verse, not word by word
- Practise clear endings. Jamaican language is quick and rhythmic, so record yourself and listen for words that disappear at the end of a line. Slow the poem down by ten per cent in practice, then bring it back to speed without losing the words
- Choose a contrasting pair on purpose for Classes 5 and 6: one poem that makes the room laugh and one that quietens it. Decide in advance how your voice, face and pace change between them and rehearse the pause that separates them
- Rehearse for a mixed audience, including someone who does not speak the language every day. Ask what they understood and where they lost the thread, then adjust pace and gesture, not the words
- Plan the stage picture and costume: where you enter, where you stand, what you do with your hands and how you finish. Choose clothing that suits the speaker in the poem and avoids school uniform and plain black, white or grey, as the handbook advises
- After a result, ask for the adjudicator’s comments and note which of the four headings lost the marks. Most improvement comes from interpretation and speech, so pick a more demanding poem next season and keep working on the lines that were marked down
Ready-made event templates that include Speech – Jamaican Poems
Open any template to preview it in eTalenter and install it as a live, editable event.
| Template | Category | Score label | Competitions |
|---|---|---|---|
| JCDC National Performing Arts Festival (Jamaica) | On Stage | Marks | 7 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Speech – Jamaican Poems judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter’s templates it’s most often run as an Team entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
Is Jamaican Poems the same as Standard English Poems?
No. They are separate categories in the handbook, numbered 1 and 3 in the Speech syllabus. Standard English Poems uses poems written in standard English, while Jamaican Poems uses poems written in Jamaican language, and there is also a mixed class for selections that use both. The entry must say which category it is for.
How long can the poem be?
The handbook allows three minutes for each selection, and Classes 5 and 6 perform two. The template gives a four-minute window with the warning bell at three minutes, so an organiser following the handbook should change the limit to match the number of poems in the class.
Do I have to perform two poems?
Only in Classes 5 and 6, which are for ages 16 to 19 and 20 and over. In Classes 1 to 4 the entrant presents one selection of poetry. In Classes 5 and 6 the two poems must be contrasting, for example one comedic and one tragic, and show variety and range of emotion and vocal performance.
Is this judged individually or as a team?
The handbook describes it as a solo category. The template records it as a team entry, so an organiser who wants to follow the handbook should set it to individual. Group versions of verse classes are separate speaking-ensemble categories.
Where do I find a poem to use?
The handbook says the organising body suggests an online anthology, but a text used in Jamaican schools, earlier published anthologies and other approved published material may also be used. Whichever you choose, acknowledge the author and submit a copy with the entry form.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full recitation and poetry judging criteria guide, or browse every on stage competition item.
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