I Have A Dream gives your students the opportunity to write a poem about their hopes, wishes, aspirations - or something wild and impossible. Personal or worldwide changes, achievable or improbable dreams, they can let their creativity fly. Let's begin the new school year with some positivity and joy!
The free online resources take the pressure off you - with a lesson plan, PowerPoint and engaging idea generation activities, the planning is done for you your students will be buzzing with inspiration and eager to get writing.
The learning opportunities are wide-ranging: students can build their writing and vocabulary skills while reflecting on social issues, personal growth or imagination, and it allows you to link to key themes in English, history or PSHE.
Students can write in any style and can interpret the theme as they wish, so they have the freedom to express themselves in a way that suits them, creating something that is uniquely theirs. The incredible prizes will also help to inspire them, with £250, Apple AirPods and cinema vouchers up for grabs!
Keep the momentum from National Poetry Day going - there's no better time to explore poetry with I Have A Dream!
Request as many entry forms as you need from the Printed Resources tab to get your whole school involved and we'll post them out for free. Alternatively, check out the Writing Portal in your teacher account where students directly type their work, allowing you to submit them all together with the touch of a button.
Your dream of a school full of enthusiastic and confident writers? It's about to come true!
[Rules] =>The school that submits the best overall set of entries will win £1,000 and Young Writers' Award of Excellence.
PLUS every participating school receives a free copy of the book their pupils feature in!
(Remember, you receive 1 free copy for every 30 entries you submit! E.g. 1-30 entries you receive 1 copy, 31-60 entries you receive 2 copies, etc.)
[Student Prizes] =>Our favourite poem will win £250 and a trophy
One 2nd place winner will get a pair of Apple AirPods and a trophy
Three 3rd place winners will each win a £50 cinema gift card.
PLUS
Every entrant receives a bookmark. We award a certificate of merit to all young writers whose work we'd love to publish.
(Winners will be chosen from entries received in the Autumn Term 2025 that have permission to be published. Prizes will be awarded in the following term.)
[Tips] =>A huge thank you to everyone who took part in the I Have A Dream competition.
We loved reading all of the entries we received.
[Winner Word] => [Schools/Clubs] => Schools [Thumbnail] => https://bonacia-sites.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/young-writers/ems/competitions/1756288495-3455-I-Have-A-Dream_KS3_Page-Icon.jpg [Background] => https://bonacia-sites.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/young-writers/ems/competitions/1756288495-5111-I-Have-A-Dream_KS3_Background.jpg [Logo] => https://bonacia-sites.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/young-writers/ems/competitions/1756288495-6414-I-Have-A-Dream_KS3_Banner-Logo.png [Independent Intro] =>What do you dream about?
I Have A Dream gives you the opportunity to write a poem about your hopes, wishes, aspirations - or something wild and impossible. Personal or worldwide changes, achievable or improbable dreams, you can let your creativity fly and have fun with words.
It’s an ideal activity for National Poetry Day on 2nd October, or you could link to Martin Luther King Jr's 'I have a dream speech' for Black History Month.
You can write in any style and can interpret the theme as you wish, so you can express yourself in a way that suits you, creating something that is uniquely yours. There are incredible prizes to be won too, with £250, Apple AirPods and cinema vouchers up for grabs!
Download the entry form (which also includes some ideas to help you plan your poem) and get writing (you can also type your piece). We can't wait to read about your dream, and if it's to be a published poet, then maybe it's about to come true...
How To Enter
Ask permission from your parent/guardian to email your entry along with your name and full home address to: [email protected]
OR
Upload your entry at www.youngwriters.co.uk/competitions/enter
OR
Post your entry along with your name and full home address to:
Young Writers SS
Remus House
Peterborough
PE2 9BF
Closing Date: 24th October 2025
Our favourite poem will win £250 and a trophy
One 2nd place winner will get a pair of Apple AirPods and a trophy
Three 3rd place winners will each win a £50 cinema gift card.
PLUS
Every entrant receives a bookmark. We award a certificate of merit to all young writers whose work we'd love to publish.
(Winners will be chosen from entries received in the Autumn Term 2025 that have permission to be published. Prizes will be awarded in the following term. Independent entrants are eligible to win.)
[Meta Title] => I Have A Dream Poetry Writing Competition for 11-18 year-olds [Meta Description] => I Have A Dream competition for 11-18 year-olds is perfect to help inspire your class with writing poetry. [Meta Keywords] => I Have A Dream, poetry, poem, poetry competition, teacher toolkit, teacher resources, free resources, writing resources, poetry resources [Share Title] => I Have A Dream Poetry Writing Competition for 11-18 year-olds [Share Description] => Teach your students how to write a poem, and inspire them to express themselves and make their opinions heard. [Layout] => main-comp [Icon] => https://bonacia-sites.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/young-writers/ems/competitions/1756288496-6507-I-Have-A-Dream_KS3_Page-Icon.jpg [Category] => Secondary 11-18 [Type] => poetry [Country] => UK [Resource Hub Text] =>
Congratulations to all the winners! The results for this competition have been published.
View WinnersOpen competitions can be found here.
Remus House, Coltsfoot Drive, Peterborough, PE2 9BF
[email protected] | 01733 890066