Grade five pupil Krysten Barbour says that she gave of her best in the recently concluded Courts OECS Reading Competition finals in St Lucia.{{more}}

The nine year-old St Mary’s RC student, who placed fourth in the finals, described the competition as “tight,” as she came up against the top students from the region last week Thursday.

The competition was won by the lone male in the competition, Grenada’s Dean Bedeau, with Shanda Francis of Dominica placing second and Asharie Wrensford of St Kitts and Nevis third.

Barbour said that she was satisfied with the results, and when asked if she was nervous during the event, her response was an emphatic “no”.

“I wasn’t nervous because I had confidence in myself. Both the narrative and the news item were easy. I knew the words and I knew how to read them.”

Barbour won the local leg of the competition on October 17, which earned her the right to represent St Vincent and the Grenadines at the regional finals, which is in its fifth year.

Among her prizes, Barbour won a Dell laptop computer, along with $1,000 cash, which she said that she would save for her college education. The other prizes she said she will be using wisely.

Offering advice for persons who do and don’t enjoy reading, as well as for potential reading competitors, Barbour said that they should read a lot, and not just short stories.

“Read the poems and the narratives and the newspaper articles; that would help you to become strong readers.

“Practise every day, and when you become strong in one area, move on to the areas where you are not so strong,” Barbour said.(JJ)