Exceptional Double Win for CDL Students in Nord Anglia’s Global Campus Writing Competition

We are delighted to share some exciting news from the Nord Anglia Education Global Campus Writing Competition — an international celebration of creativity that brings together young writers from across the globe.

Each year, students from Nord Anglia schools around the world are invited to showcase their creativity in the annual Global Campus Writing Competition. This year’s space-themed challenge inspired thousands of young authors to reach for the stars, with over 6,000 students participating and 140 entries submitted from 60 schools. Entries were first reviewed by a panel of Nord Anglia Education judges, before the top 20 were sent to acclaimed children's author Kate Peridot, who selected the winners and runners-up in each age category. We are proud to share that two of this year’s winners are students from CDL— an exceptional achievement on the global stage!

A Double Celebration: Emily and Jiaheng Shine on the Global Stage

Congratulations to Emily, Level 3 student, who won the 7-9 age category, and to Jiaheng, Level 7 student, who won the 11-14 age category of the Global Campus Writing Competition.

We invite you to explore Emily’s captivating story The Lost Baby Alien and Jiaheng’s inspiring story Star Music — two beautifully crafted tales that captured the imagination of readers and judges alike. Their stories are a reminder of the imagination and potential that live within our CDL community. Their talent, originality, and passion for storytelling stood out among more than 140 submissions, making this a truly exceptional achievement.

“We are extremely proud of the creativity and imaginations of all our students who participated and are thrilled that Emily won.” –  Ms. Prentice, Primary Teacher and Global Campus Leader.

“Students developed their stories through a full fiction writing unit, revising and editing based on peer and teacher feedback. Jiaheng’s win is a fantastic outcome of that hard work.” – Ms. Bessuges, Middle School Secondaire Head of English.

Jiaheng, winner of the 11-14 category, receiving the Global Campus Certificate
from Ms. Bessuges during the Middle School Secondaire assembly.

A Community Effort

At CDL, competitions like these are more than an individual success — they reflect a culture of creativity, collaboration and support. 

In Primary, details of the competition were shared  in classes through our Global Campus Student Leaders and posters on campus. We held lunchtime workshops to go over the details of the competition and to provide our interested students with some guidance as well as sharing the planning templates. Our students completed their stories in their own time and handed them in to be judged in the last week before Christmas. Our winners were announced in assemblies at the start of the new year and have been keenly following the judging process at every step.

“Thank you for sharing this excellent news. We are very happy and proud, and Emily will cherish this achievement. She is drawn to the storyline format of introducing a ’twist’ at the end and has even brought a new story to school to show you today! We are happy to see that she has kept going with her writing.” – Emily’s father.

Emily, winner of the 7-9 category, receiving the Global Campus Certificate 
from Mathieu Hartmann, Primary Principal

In Middle School Secondaire, students worked on their entries as part of their fiction writing unit in class. They explored how to engage the reader through an original plot, specific vocabulary choices, sentence structures, and dialogue. They learned how to edit their stories using different kinds of feedback, until they were ready to enter the school competition. This intentional approach to storytelling clearly paid off.

Celebrating Language and Diversity

This year’s competition was a celebration of linguistic and cultural richness, with stories showcasing over 30 different languages — from imaginative, invented dialects to Latin, Ancient Greek, and even an Aboriginal language. It sent a powerful message to all our international students: your voices matter.

A Global Recognition and Exposure

As part of the recognition, Emily and Jiaheng have each received a Global Campus certificate and their work will be featured in the Global Campus Showcase Area. 

Left: Emily, level 3 Primary student, winner of the 7-9 category.
Right: Jiaheng, level 7 Middle School Secondaire student, winner of the 11-14 category

Their winning stories are also being brought to life by professional illustrators and will be published in a beautifully designed Global Campus eBook, launching on Wednesday, 21st May 2025 — a fitting reward for two budding talents whose words have captivated a global audience.

Congratulations once again to Emily, Jiaheng, their teachers, their families, as well as our Global Campus Leaders who encouraged and supported their participation in this competition. The whole CDL community is proud of you for making the school shine across the globe.