A Strabane schoolgirl had more reason to smile than most recently, when she beat almost 2,000 other young people to scoop a prize in an international poetry competition.

Ten year old Aoife Kerlin, a pupil at St Mary's Girls Primary School, Strabane, was named joint fifth overall in the eight to ten year old category of this year's WordFlight Young People's Written and Verbal Arts Project. A total of 2,300 pupils from across America, the Middle East and Europe took part in the competition. The subject this year was based around The Flight of the Earls and school children were asked to pen a poem on the subject of loss and new beginnings.

Aoife's work was selected by a panel of well known poets and writers, and for her achievement she has had her work published alongside 99 other writers in a new poetry anthology entitled Wordflight.

Congratulating the young poet on her achievement, St Mary's Girls principal Dympna McNamee said: "I was absolutely delighted for Aoife when I heard she had won. It was lovely for her and great for the school and we are all extremely proud."

Aoife's winning entry was entitled Extinct Animals.

I think it stinks that animals are becoming extinct,

I feel really bad because it's so sad.

My favourite animal is the panda,

And the same with my friend, Amanda.

They're black and white and cute and furry,

But they can be dangerous too,

So you have to worry.

but not as much as ou have to worry about humans,

Sure look at the damage they're doing.