A group of 22 former sixth-grade students from Saint Lucia’s Blanchard Combined School have achieved a milestone few adults ever reach: turning routine classroom writing work into a full-length published anthology. Titled *The World Through Our Eyes*, the 260-page collection, created entirely by the school’s Class of 2026, includes more than 100 original works spanning fiction stories, personal essays, heartfelt tributes to loved ones, home recipes, and reflective personal essays, complete with original illustrations from the student creators. The official launch of the collection was held Monday, brought to fruition through partnership with local production firm Jako Productions and a coalition of community sponsors.
The project grew directly from the students’ required Continuous Performance Assessment (CPA) writing portfolios, a curriculum assignment that demands students develop original work across five distinct literary genres. When the assignment grading was complete, sixth-grade teacher Nigeleen Samuel-Hubert noticed the hundreds of pages of thoughtful student work were set to be stored away and forgotten. Seeing the depth of creativity in the completed pieces, she proposed a new goal: compiling the best work into a published anthology to share with the broader community. The idea immediately sparked extra motivation among the students, who dived into additional rounds of editing, revision, and illustration preparation to bring the collection to life.
School principal Merle Emmanuel framed the book launch as a landmark moment in Blanchard Combined School’s decades-long history. “We are here to celebrate the power of our young minds, the beauty of written expression and extraordinary possibilities that emerge when children are encouraged to dream beyond the boundaries of the classroom,” Emmanuel shared during the launch ceremony. “Today we are not simply launching a book; we are launching ideas, celebrating talent and opening a window into the minds of our young people.” She emphasized that the students’ journey from classroom learners to published authors is an accomplishment they should carry with pride throughout their academic and personal lives, and credited Samuel-Hubert for conceiving the project and Dr. Anderson Reynolds of Jako Productions for guiding the concept through to publication.
District 6 Education Officer Stephen Auguste joined in celebrating the students, noting that this cohort has already earned distinction across academics and athletics, particularly in table tennis, prior to their publishing debut. “During our graduation, we said that they were among the top students on the island, certainly among the top students in the district,” Auguste explained. “We recognised them as brilliant athletes, having dominated the events in our district. They did well in table tennis, and now they are young authors. This is something special, and that’s just the beginning because they have the world ahead of them.” He added that the anthology serves as a reminder of what young people can achieve when they receive encouragement to imagine, access to the tools to create, and space to share their work with an audience — outcomes that benefit both the creators’ learning and the readers who engage with their stories.
Event organizers publicly recognized the financial and community support of three key sponsors: Massy Stores, the Freezone Management Authority, and the Department of Creative Industry under the Ministry of Tourism. Massy Stores Marketing Manager Kelly Mitchell told the young authors their achievement carries a far greater meaning than the book itself. “At such a young age, you have accomplished something that many adults only dream of. You are now published authors. But beyond the achievement itself, I hope this experience teaches you something even more important – your ideas matter, your voices deserve to be heard and your circumstances should never define the limit of your potential,” Mitchell said.
Those sentiments were echoed by Allen Chastanet, Member of Parliament for Micoud South, the constituency where Blanchard Combined School is located. “Never allow where you come from to determine how far you should go,” Chastanet told the students. “Today, we celebrate something truly remarkable. At an age when most children are still discovering the joy of reading, these children have already taken the next step. They have written their own stories, expressed themselves in a way many other students have not, and shared their own ideas and imagination with the world. That takes courage to do.”
After securing parental permission to publish the students’ work, receiving official guidance from the Ministry of Education, and earning buy-in from school leadership and fellow staff, the project crossed the finish line earlier this month. All 22 student authors, who have now progressed to Form 1 at different secondary schools across the country, received a complimentary copy of their anthology during the launch event.
*The World Through Our Eyes* holds the distinction of being the first book released under Wavin Kann Press, a newly launched imprint of Jako Productions. Readers can purchase copies locally at Books ‘n More in Micoud, Back to Basics and T&M in Vieux Fort, and globally through the online retail platform Amazon.