Children at Sompting Abbotts Preparatory School put their feelings of frustration about lockdown into their performance of their class poem Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when?

The poem was selected to be featured on BBC South Newsnight for a news programme in which Sompting Abbotts’ Headmaster Stuart Douch was interviewed.

“BBC presenter Sally Taylor described Year 4’s lockdown poem as ‘wonderful’ and ‘beautifully done and beautifully delivered’.”

The poem words talk about feeling stranded, missing friends and hugs, going 'cross-eyed' over Zoom and how COVID words like "ventilators and flattening curves" makes them so scared.

Year 4 practised their poem in their virtual English lessons with their teacher Mr David Buckingham and their parents recorded them all saying their lines at home for their video performance.

Headmaster Mr Stuart Douch said: "It's a brilliant poem. They're saying what children everywhere must be feeling. This winter lockdown has been doubly hard for children cooped up with the cold and the dark evenings.

"We've all been applauding our wonderful NHS and keyworkers. Maybe we should be clapping our children too. I think they've been superheroes coping with confinement, isolation and such a huge change in their normal lives and routines."

Here are the poem words.

Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when ….

Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when …
Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when …
… this will all, finally, end.
All my friends are kept away
Grounded, stranded, banned from play
Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when …
… this will all, finally, end.

Stuck inside with brain all wired
Home school’s making me cross-eyed
Virtual lessons all by Zoom,
I just want my old classroom,
Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when …
… this will all, finally, end.

Behind closed doors, tempers flare
When can I go out somewhere?
If only I could play football
Fly abroad, make a sand-castle …
Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when …
… this will all, finally, end.

Now the news makes me so scared,
Ventilators, flattening curves,
Bubbles, face masks, COVID rules,
Stay at home and stay indoors
Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when …
… how I long for this to end.

When the virus has been quelled
When the vaccines keep us well,
Friends I miss I’ll get to hug
And I’ll see the ones I love
Lockdown, lockdown, tell me when …
… this will all, finally, end.

You can view the children's performance at: https://vimeo.com/512142261

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