A solo spoken-verse category in which each entrant performs a poem written in standard English, 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 – Standard Poems is the fifty-sixth entry on the Jamaican national performing arts festival template and the first category of its Speech discipline. It is the festival’s plain verse-speaking class: the entrant stands up alone and performs a poem written in standard English, with no music and no scenery to carry the story. The handbook files it as category 1 of the speech syllabus, marked as a poem category, and separates it from the standard English prose class that follows it, so an entry must say clearly that it is a poem.
What a round looks like depends on the class. In Classes 1 to 4 the entrant presents one poem. In Classes 5 and 6 the entrant presents two contrasting poems in standard English, for example one comic and one tragic, and at least one of the two must be of Caribbean origin, meaning the author or the text. The handbook says the selections must show the performer’s emotional range, with sorrow, joy and anger given as examples, and it allows three minutes for each selection. A strong round therefore has a clear opening, a voice that moves with the poem and a landing the audience can feel.
A good entry is less a recitation than a performance of understanding. The panel hears whether the entrant knows what each line is doing: where the poem turns, which words carry the feeling, where a pause says more than a phrase. The handbook describes a poem as an elevated composition about feelings or imaginative description, usually short, using rhyme, rhythm and figures of speech such as simile, metaphor and onomatopoeia, and it expects the speaker to bring that to life with emotion, tone and expression. Standard English also means pronunciation is held to the Oxford dictionary form, so the sound of the words matters as much as their meaning.
The template records the item as a team entry, both genders together, 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 this category as a solo for males and females in Classes 1 to 6, with three minutes per selection. An organiser who wants to follow the handbook should set the entry type to individual, adjust the time limit and warning bell to the number of poems each class performs, and decide whether to run the combined Class 7 at all.
Organisers run a standard English poem class because it is one of the cheapest and most inclusive items to stage, needs only a clear floor and a good ear, and works across a very wide age range, from three-year-olds saying a short rhyme to adults performing a demanding work. It also gives a festival a natural showcase for schools and teachers who work on speech, articulation and confidence all year.
Where Speech – Standard Poems comes from
Spoken-verse classes are a long-standing part of competitive speech and drama festivals across the English-speaking world, and the idea of a separate class for formal, standard English verse, kept apart from classes in local speech, is common wherever more than one language form is in everyday use. Nothing in the source for this template says when the category was added to the festival, who has won it or what its history is, so no festival history is claimed here.
Where Speech – Standard 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) inside the Speech discipline, ahead of the standard English prose class and the Jamaican-language poem and prose classes. Verse-speaking and poetry-recitation classes appear in school, church and community arts festivals, eisteddfodau and speech and drama festivals in many countries, but each event sets its own poem list, 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 poem; Classes 5 and 6 present two contrasting poems in standard English, at least one of Caribbean origin (author or text)
- Each selection is limited to three minutes; the handbook describes a solo category for males and females in Classes 1 to 6
- The template gives a team entry, both genders together, English, a four-minute limit with the warning bell at three minutes and a score out of 100, in all seven classes
- Marked on one 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
- For standard English speaking only Oxford dictionary pronunciations are accepted, and a copy of each selection must be submitted with the entry form
- Ideas, not rules, for choosing a poem: a light, comic verse for the cheerful piece and a quiet, serious poem for the heavier one; a poem by a Caribbean writer such as Claude McKay, Derek Walcott or Mervyn Morris for the Caribbean requirement in Classes 5 and 6; a short, rhythmic poem with a clear story for the youngest classes. Always check the choice against the approved anthology or source and the age of the entrant
On eTalenter, Speech – Standard 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 – Standard 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 – Standard Poems
What a Speech – Standard Poems panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- The handbook prints one speech marking table for the whole discipline, so this class is scored on the same four headings as the other speech classes; the points below follow it and the wording is a summary, not a quotation of the rule
- Voice production: the table lists audibility, projection, tone, resonance, colouring, texture and pace. It carries 20 marks at auditions, 10 at parish level and 4 of 50 at the national finals. Marks are won by a voice that carries to the back without shouting and that changes colour and speed with the poem; they are lost by a flat delivery or a rushed middle
- Speech: articulation, enunciation and pronunciation, with 30 marks at auditions, 35 at parish level and 20 of 50 at the national finals. In a standard English class this is a very large block. Clear consonants, clean vowels and Oxford-accepted pronunciations earn it; a swallowed line ending or a word said in the wrong form costs it
- Presentation: costume, stage presence, performance energy, style and visual impact, worth 20, 15 and 4 of 50. The handbook asks for costume that suits the piece and discourages school uniforms and plain black, white or grey unless the mood calls for it. Stillness, eye contact and controlled gesture usually score better than constant movement
- Interpretation: comprehension, expression, mood and feeling and believability, worth 30 at auditions, 40 at parish level and 22 of 50 at the national finals. This is where a poem is won. The panel rewards an entrant who clearly understands the poem and makes the audience believe the feeling, and marks down one who recites the words correctly but without any sense of what they mean
- Range and contrast in Classes 5 and 6: the two poems must differ, for instance one comic and one tragic, so the panel looks for a real shift in voice, pace and mood between them rather than the same delivery twice
- Time: three minutes for each selection. A shorter poem delivered well is not penalised for its length, but a poem that runs over must be cut or sped up in rehearsal
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Speech – Standard Poems under Scoring Setup, or start from the full recitation and poetry judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Speech – Standard Poems
How entrants and their teachers usually get Speech – Standard Poems right on the day:
- Choose the poem carefully and early. Read several, say them aloud and pick the one whose meaning you can explain in your own words; a poem you like and understand will always be performed better than one that merely looks impressive
- Check the rules before you commit: poem, not prose, in standard English; the author acknowledged; a copy of the selection ready for the entry form; and, for Classes 5 and 6, two contrasting poems with at least one of Caribbean origin. Use the approved anthology, a school text or another approved source
- Learn the meaning before the words. Write the poem in your own words, mark where it turns, underline the words that carry the feeling and decide what you want the listener to feel at the end. Then memorise it phrase by phrase, not line by line
- Work on the speech mechanics every day for a week or two: tongue-twisters for consonants, long slow vowels, breathing from the diaphragm and finishing every word. Check the pronunciation of every unfamiliar word in a dictionary and keep to the standard form
- Plan the pace on a copy of the poem. Mark the pauses, the speed-ups and the slow-downs, and then rehearse with a stopwatch against the three-minute limit. Leave a small margin so nerves on the day do not push you over
- Rehearse in front of people, including someone who has not heard the poem. Ask them what they understood and where they lost interest, and fix those places. Record yourself and listen for a flat middle or a rushed ending
- Plan the stage picture: where you walk in, where you stand, what you do with your hands, and how you begin and end. Choose a costume that suits the mood of the poem and avoids school uniform and plain black, white or grey, as the handbook advises
- If you are placed lower than you hoped, ask for the adjudicator’s comments and note which of the four headings lost the marks. Most improvement comes from interpretation and speech, so choose a poem that stretches you, fix any pronunciations that were marked down and try again next season
Ready-made event templates that include Speech – Standard 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 – Standard 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 a standard English poem the same as a Jamaican poem?
No. Under the handbook they are separate categories. Standard English Poems is for poems written in standard English and judged on standard English pronunciation, while Jamaican Poems is for poems in Jamaican. There is also a mixed class for poems that use both. An entry must state 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 poems. 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 poem. In Classes 5 and 6 the two poems must be contrasting, for example one comic and one tragic, and at least one must be of Caribbean origin, meaning the author or the text.
Can I choose any poem?
Not quite. The handbook points entrants to an online anthology but also allows selections from texts used in schools, earlier anthologies and other published material approved by the organiser. A copy of the selection must be submitted with the entry form and the author must be acknowledged.
Is this judged individually or as a team?
The handbook describes it as a solo category for males and females. The template records it as a team entry, so an organiser who wants to follow the handbook should set it to individual. Ensemble versions of poem classes are separate categories.
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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