Innholdsfortegnelse for 287 i The Week Junior

Restoring the small-flowered catchfly is just one part of a bigger project called Colour in the Margins. The scheme aims to recreate the diversity of flowers, insects and other wildlife at the edges of fields used for corn and other crops. The project aims to re-establish 10 separate plants and three beetle species at sites ranging from Cornwall to Norfolk. These species will help other plants, insects, birds and mammals, and increase the variety of plants and wildlife on farmland across the country.…

The National Basketball Association (NBA) in the US is the world’s biggest basketball league, home to famous teams and players. Now, the NBA has helped set up another basketball league outside the US for the first time. Called the Basketball Africa League (BAL), it has 12 teams from 12 African countries that battled on court to become champions of the new competition. There were 26 games played in total and last month Zamalek, from Egypt, beat Tunisia’s US Monastir by 76–63 to be crowned BAL winners. Basketball is very popular in Africa. The 12 BAL teams come from countries across the continent, including Algeria, Cameroon, Madagascar, Nigeria and Rwanda. The national champions from six countries are automatically entered into the BAL, but others have to play qualifying games. Teams were…

Cloud Soup by Kate Wakeling. Illustrated by Elina Braslina (The Emma Press) Bake a weird cake, pay a visit to the deep and take a closer look at the clouds in this fun collection of poems by Kate Wakeling, with quirky illustrations by Elina Braslina. Their previous collection, Moon Juice, won the CLiPPA Best Children’s Poetry Award, and this sequel is just as funny and imaginative. Shaping the World: 40 Historical Heroes in Verse chosen by Liz Brownlee (Macmillan Children’s Books) This anthology brings together 40 brilliant “shape poems” inspired by some of the remarkable people who have shaped our world. Inside, you’ll find poems about Greta Thunberg, Rosa Parks and Albert Einstein – each with a biography, a quote and a fascinating fact. Take Off Your Brave by Nadim.…

From 19 to 26 June, Independent Bookshop Week will be taking place at bookshops across the UK and Ireland. Independent bookshops are ones that aren’t part of a larger chain. Pop into your nearest independent bookshop to celebrate – some shops will have storytelling, author signings and face painting. You can have a look at the books that have been shortlisted for the Independent Bookshop Week Award, including those in the children’s fiction category, at tinyurl.com/TWJ-bookshop…

What if I have a disability? People who have a range of disabilities or learning disorders can play football. There are clubs and competitions for amputee, blind, partially sighted, deaf, frame and powerchair football, plus lots more. Take a look at the FA website to find out more. What is futsal? Futsal is a version of football with five on each team, played on a small court (usually indoors) with a smaller ball. It is played in two 20-minute halves and players need to have quick skills. Playing futsal often helps improve your technique and passing, plus the end-to-end action is great fun to watch.…

Email your news, views and pictures to hello@theweekjunior.co.uk Please include your full name and address so that we can send you a Roving Reporter badge if your contribution makes it onto the page. We will only use the details you provide to arrange delivery of badges, and we will not share them with anyone else. By submitting your reports and pictures, you give consent to The Week Junior to print them in the magazine and digital editions. We reserve the right to edit contributions for length, accuracy and suitability. Ensure you have your parent/guardian’s permission before sending anything to us.…

In 2014, the UK Government promised £143 million in foreign aid to help people in Kenya who were suffering a drought. This drought (a long period without rain) has put millions of people in danger. The money, given over 10 years, has so far helped 600,000 people, including families. The money has been used to set up important health services for pregnant women so that they can have their babies safely. The UK project will end in 2024, and it will then be taken over by the Kenyan government.…

COMPLETING A COOL PROJECT The Queen’s Norfolk house, Sandringham, has been knitted in wool by a 92-year-old woman called Margaret Seaman, from Great Yarmouth in England. Seaman spent two years making it, and it features a church and ballroom, plus knitted figures of the Queen and other members of the royal family. A CANINE READING COMPANION Children at Burry Port Community School in Carmarthenshire, Wales, are being helped by reading sessions with a King Charles spaniel. One pupil said, “When I get a word wrong she nudges me to tell me to keep trying.” Some experts think that animal reading companions could help young people read more confidently. A ROYAL ANNOUNCEMENT Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have announced the birth of their second child. Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor…

A statue of the 17th century slave trader Edward Colston has gone on display in a museum in Bristol, England. The statue was pulled down and thrown into Bristol harbour during anti-racism protests in 2020. Racism is when people are treated badly or unfairly because of their skin colour, culture or nationality. The statue has sparked debates about how the UK should address its history of slavery. It can now be seen lying on its back at Bristol’s M Shed museum with a selection of signs from the protest.…

In the courtyard of Somerset House in London, a forest has grown. It is part of the London Design Biennale, a series of exhibitions held every two years, and was thought up by the Biennale’s artistic director, Es Devlin. When she took the role in 2019, Devlin was told that “the one thing you can’t do is plant trees”, she tells The Week Junior. According to the rules of the 18th century building, plants must not get in the way of the architecture. Devlin ignored this and came up with the design for the Forest for Change, a free exhibition of 400 trees planted by landscape designers Philip Jaffa and Angus Cunningham, with a birdsong soundtrack by musician Brian Eno. In the middle is a clearing with 17 pillars in…

At the very centre of the Milky Way lies a supermassive black hole – an object called Sagittarius A* (pronounced “A-star”) that weighs four million times as much as the Sun. A black hole is an object that packs so much material into such a tiny space that it pulls everything else nearby towards it; even light cannot escape. Although Sagittarius A* is hidden by clouds of gas, astronomers know it exists because of its effect on nearby stars – they spin around it at high speed because of its gravitational pull. Most galaxies have similar – or even bigger – monster black holes at their centre.…

Pasta comes in many shapes, from bow-shaped farfalle to twisted fusilli, which means it can take up a lot of space and use more packaging. However, scientists have come up with a way to make flat pasta shapes turn into three-dimensional ones when cooked. By imprinting grooves into flat pasta dough at different depths and spacing, they can control how it curls and twists when boiled, to form a variety of shapes. Using this idea in factories could allow far less packaging to be used. Enjoy these stories? Find more in this month’s The Week Junior Science+Naturemagazinesciencenature.theweekjunior.co.uk…

Fran Kirby and Kevin De Bruyne Kirby, who plays football for Chelsea, and Manchester City’s De Bruyne won the PFA women’s and men’s Player of the Year awards. Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid They won the wheelchair doubles at the French Open. The British pair now have now won 11 Grand Slam tennis titles together. Sifan Hassan The Dutch athlete set a world record time of 29 minutes 6.82 seconds in a 10,000-metre race in the Netherlands. Alex Yee Britain’s Yee won his first gold medal at the World Triathlon Series championships in Leeds, England.…

• Many sports, including football, are organised at county level, and each county has a website that lists clubs in your area. An online search of sports clubs near to you is also a good place to start. • Try asking classmates, family friends and teachers. They might be able to recommend a club for the team sport that interests you or you’d like to try. • Remember that team sports don’t have to be formal. You could grab a rounders bat and ball and invite friends for a game in your nearest park. This is a great way to try out new sports.…

The Cooking Club Detectives by Ewa Jozefkowicz (Head of Zeus) Erin isn’t sure about moving to a new home and starting at a new school. However, she soon makes some friends at the ramshackle but welcoming Skipton House Community Centre. Erin especially loves the after-school cooking club – cooking has always been an important part of life for Erin and her mum, Lara, who dreams of cooking as a career. However, Skipton House is threatened with closure and Erin and her friends must become detectives to work out what’s going on. Celebrating the importance of community, family and friends, this is a lovely, warm-hearted story that shows how food can bring people together. The story is interspersed with some great recipes you can try out, such as banana bread, fajitas,…

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What you need • Colouring pencils and/or felt tips • A black-and-white printout of your famous person • Scissors • Sheets of paper of various colours • Glue stick Olaf Falafel is a children’s author, illustrator, dad of two daughters and a comedian. His current favourite joke is, “Knock, Knock! Who’s there? Spell. Spell who? W, H, O.” During the first lockdown he created an online Art Club (tinyurl.com/TWJ-olafart). Each episode is filled with jokes, useful tips, animations and facts about his favourite artists. Over to you, Olaf... Trust me, my art is better than my jokes! As Euro 2020 is under way, I thought I would make my own Kehinde Wiley-style picture of England forward and all-round superstar Marcus Rashford. You don’t have to make a picture of a…

Follow The Week Junior on PopJam@TheWeekJunior. You can download the PopJam app from the App Store or Google Play. In last week’s debate, we asked if you would consider using snail slime soap... “Yes, I would if snails aren’t hurt in the process.” “No way!” “I don’t really know. It might smell nice but I don’t know if it would work. I would like to try something new though, so I’ll say yes.” “No, because the snails should be left in peace and we can use other types of soap.” Tell us what you think of this week’s issue and we’ll print some of the best comments here.…

In 2018, Rick Stanton, a diver from the English city of Coventry, helped rescue 12 boys and their football coach from a flooded cave in Thailand. The group were stuck in the cave for 17 days. The dramatic rescue is now being made into a major Hollywood film, and Stanton will be played by Viggo Mortensen (who played Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings film series). “I think Viggo is an excellent choice,” Stanton told ITV News. He added, “I have been spending the last nine months on Zoom calls with him, training him up to be me.”…

A neatly trimmed, lush green lawn might look nice but gardening experts at the Royal Horticultural Society say it’s better for the environment to let your grass grow and turn brown over summer. Each year, UK gardeners use 205 billion litres of water outside the home, including keeping their lawns green each year. In hot years this can be a big factor in water shortages. Using rainwater collected in a large tank or butt helps to avoid straining the mains water system – and it can also be kinder to your garden plants. Another way of helping the environment is to ask whoever mows the lawn if they really need to. Countless insects make their homes in the grass during summer and frequent cutting is bad news for them, as…

In a desert north of Las Vegas, in the US state of Nevada, engineers at a company called Virgin Hyperloop are developing a train that will one day travel almost as fast as sound. It will have passenger pods that hurtle at speeds of up to 750 miles an hour and its founders say that it will revolutionise the future of travel. Since the invention of trains in the early 19th century, the rail network has completely changed people’s lives, connecting people and countries in remarkable ways. With the Hyperloop the future of trains looks as if it will be just as groundbreaking. Here are six trains and journeys that, in their time, changed the world. The first inter-city train In 1829, English engineer Robert Stephenson unveiled his steam train,…

An amateur explorer has found some previously unknown rock carvings inside one of Scotland’s most famous prehistoric sites. Dating to between 4,000 and 5,000 years old, the carvings of red deer are some of the UK’s most ancient art. The carvings were found at Kilmartin Glen in Argyll – a valley in which there are several burial mounds from the Stone and Bronze ages, as well as a royal fort from around AD600. Hamish Fenton was visiting the site when he decided to crawl inside Dunchraigaig Cairn – an ancient tomb built of large stone slabs covered in earth. Shining his torch up onto the slab that forms the roof of the tomb, Fenton noticed delicate markings in the rock. “I could see that I was looking at a deer…

Basketball will be an exciting team sport to watch at the Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan next month. There are 12 countries taking part in each of the women’s and men’s basketball events, including Australia, France, Japan, Spain and the US. The US are the current women’s and men’s Olympic champions. Each basketball team has five players on the court. Players can score either one, two or three points for their team by shooting the ball through the opposition’s hoop.…

Earwig and the Witch Out now in cinemas When a girl called Earwig is taken in by some new guardians, she discovers her magical past. This film is based on the book of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones. It was made by the Japanese animation company Studio Ghibli. Its other films include Spirited Away and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. Penguin Town 16 June on Netflix This documentary series follows a group of endangered penguins as they find mates, raise children and mix with the locals in a South African town.…

What was your favourite and least favourite subject at school? My favourite subject was English because I loved reading books! My least favourite was maths, as I wasn’t particularly good at it. What inspired you to start writing this book? The work of Magic Breakfast, a wonderful charity that provides healthy breakfasts for children at risk of hunger in the UK. Favourite dish? I love a good spaghetti bolognese with a decent sprinkling of cheddar cheese, but I’m also a huge fan of pierogi, which my grandma used to make for me when I was little. They’re Polish dumplings that can be cooked or fried and they come with all sorts of different fillings. What are you most passionate about? I’m passionate about giving everyone the chance to own books.…

I’m a firm believer that there’s a sport or activity for everyone – it’s just that sometimes it can take a little time to find one that suits you. Solo activities are fantastic but team sports can offer something extra. Many of us love the feeling of being part of a group of like-minded friends working towards a goal while having a lot of physical fun. This week’s Wellbeing page (p19) explains how team sports can help you learn valuable lessons such as how to interact with others, win and lose gracefully, and make new friends. I am one of the managers of my daughter’s football team and it’s always fantastic to see the players congratulating each other or giving words of encouragement if something goes wrong. If football sounds…

The National Theatre and Unicorn Theatre are running a fun storytelling project for state primary school pupils aged from eight to 11 years old. The aim is to get you finding and sharing exciting stories from across the globe, and to help you reconnect with learning and your school community after the pandemic. The free six-week project will consist of filmed theatre performances and workshops, plus training and resources to support your teacher. If you’re interested, make sure you tell your teacher about the project. They have until 17 September to book your class a space for the autumn term. Direct them to tinyurl.com/TWJ-StorySeekers where they will be able to find all of the details.…

Teacher’s name: Mr Leone School: Whitstable and Seasalter Endowed School, Kent “If you are upset Mr Leone is kind to you. If you do something wrong he won’t get mad at you. He likes to make jokes and is a great school disco DJ too. Mr Leone also runs an after-school car club and this week he arranged for someone to bring a Lamborghini Huracán to the school car park for us to take a closer look at a supercar, which was super exciting!” Ruby If we pick your teacher as Teacher of the Week, we’ll send yourschoolthreefreeissuesof The Week Junior. Send your nominations, along with a picture of your teacher and your school’s full name and address, to hello@theweekjunior.co.uk…

1 Which animal is being reintroduced to India? □ a) Cheetah □ b) Leopard □ c) Hedgehog 2 True or false? The world’s deepest pool will be built in Cornwall. □ True □ False 3 What is the name of the mine-detecting rat in Cambodia who recently retired? 4 Which Roman emperor is currently the subject of an exhibition at the British Museum? □ a) Nero □ b) Claudius □ c) Augustus 5 True or false? Somerset House is in Paris. □ True □ False 6 Which animals are helping rare wildflowers to grow in Devon? 7 In which country does the world’s fastest train operate? □ a) China □ b) Japan □ c) Scotland 8 True or false? Stonefish are the world’s most venomous fish. □ True □ False…