Innholdsfortegnelse for 361 i The Week Junior

On 6 November, world leaders gathered for the COP27 conference in Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. What is COP27? COP stands for Conference of the Parties, and is an event for world leaders to come together to discuss how to tackle climate change. Climate change is long-term changes in weather patterns, including rising temperatures, that are mostly caused by human activity. The first COP took place in 1995, and takes place each year. This is the 27th climate conference. Last year, COP26 took place in Glasgow, Scotland, and leaders came to an agreement called the Glasgow Climate Pact. This included agreeing to cut the amount of carbon dioxide (a gas that contributes to climate change) that is released into the atmosphere, and a plan to use less coal. What are the…

A RARE BAT SPECIES A grey long-eared bat, which is one of the rarest species of bat in the UK, has been found roosting in a church in Somerset, England. There are around 1,000 grey long-eared bats in England, but an organisation called Bats in Churches found it by analysing bat poo found in the church. A YEW TREE A yew tree in Surrey, England, has won the tree of the year contest run by the Woodland Trust. The tree, which is nearly 500 years old, beat many popular contenders, such as the “portal tree”, a rowan tree in Scotland that’s shaped like an arch. The yew will represent the UK in the European Tree of the Year contest. SAVING A PLAY AREA Young people and parents defended a play…

Jessikah Inaba has become the UK’s first blind and black female barrister. A barrister is a type of lawyer who speaks for people in court. Inaba, who is 23 and lives in London, has been blind since she was born. She completed all her university studies using braille, which is a system of words translated into raised dots on a page that people read using touch. Inaba hopes her success will inspire other people with similar challenges to work in the law. “I always believed in myself from the start,” said Inaba. “There’s nothing about me which means this isn’t possible.”…

When the men’s football World Cup kicks off on 20 November, it will be the first time many people will experience Qatar – a small country in the Middle East where all the games will take place. We take a look at the history of this tiny nation, what it has to offer and why this World Cup will be different to any other. Where is Qatar? Qatar is around 3,000 miles south-east of the UK, in an area known as the Middle East. It shares a border with Saudi Arabia and juts out into an area of water called the Persian Gulf. Qatar is a small country (it is around half the size of Wales), it is very flat and mostly desert. It has a population of about three…

If you or someone you know is being bullied it can be hard to know where to turn for help. Anti-Bullying Week from 14 to 18 November highlights the different ways people can help and support each other. Many schools take part in Odd Socks Day (14 November) as part of Anti-Bullying Week. What is bullying? Bullying is when a person or group of people hurts someone else by frightening them or making them feel bad. People think it involves making threats or hurting someone physically, but it can also mean repeatedly making fun of someone or insulting them; telling lies about them or deliberately leaving them out of a group. Bullying can happen in person and online (cyberbullying). Sadly, lots of people know how it feels: the Anti-Bullying Alliance…

We’ve got tickets to give away for a truly Horrible Christmas in Birmingham, Manchester or London. From Victorian villains to medieval monks, Puritan parties to Tudor treats, get set for a hair-raising adventure through the history of Christmas in the company of Charles Dickens, Oliver Cromwell, King Henry VIII and St Nicholas as they all join forces to save the festive season. The show will take place in Birmingham on 11 December, Manchester on 20 December and London on 27–30 December. Adults can book tickets at horriblechristmas.co.uk or enter our fantastic prize draw here. To enter the draw for a chance to win tickets to the show, ask a parent or guardian to go to theweekjunior.co.uk/horrible22 (please note that only grown-ups can enter). Three winners will each receive four tickets (minimum…

by Emma Carroll (Faber Children’s) It’s the near-future. Britain is having another summer heatwave and food and fuel are scarce. Polly and her older brother Joel are sent to spend part of their holidays at their aunt Jessie’s house, beside a reservoir known as Truthwater Lake. The reservoir is drying up, and beneath the water the remains of an old village can be glimpsed; on quiet nights, you can even hear the old church bells ringing. Swimming over the rooftops at midnight, Polly finds herself travelling through time to the lost village in the 1950s, where she becomes Nellie Foster – who dreams of becoming the first child to swim the English Channel. Although the two girls are 80 years apart, Polly soon realises there may be unexpected connections between…

Do you like cracking jokes? Do you make your friends and family giggle? Is your bookshelf stuffed with joke books and are your favourite shows always funny? If so, then getting involved with comedy could be for you. Comedians (someone who entertains by telling or writing jokes) make it look easy, but actually thinking of your own ideas and jokes takes planning and practice. The best comedians are original and bring their own jokes and personality to their performances. The first step to is to notice things that make you laugh and write them down in a list. These could be something silly you spotted at school, something funny that happened to a family member, or a strange story in the news. The Week Junior always has lots of quirky…

British Heart Foundation The British Heart Foundation raises money for research into treating and curing heart disease and circulation problems, which affect millions of people in the UK. At the moment, researchers are working to develop virtual reality technology to help surgeons plan heart operations. The charity also offers the public easy-to-follow heart health information. Recently, the British Heart Foundation teamed up with Royal Mail to deliver CPR training for one million young people. To find out more about its work, head to bhf.org.uk…

Tell your nature story The Week Junior Science+Nature and environmental charity The Tree Council are launching the Story in Nature writing competition. To enter, just write about why nature is important to you. It could be a poem about your favourite tree or a story told from the point of view of a natural object. Your piece can be set in the past, present or future, on Earth or elsewhere – the idea is to gather inspiration from nature and see where the seeds of your imagination take you. People aged between eight and 15 based in the UK can enter. Winners will get a £50 book voucher and a year’s subscription to The Week Junior Science+Nature. Find out more at tinyurl.com/TWJ-naturestories and send in your work before the deadline…

One of the biggest signs that the season of autumn has begun is when the leaves on trees turn orange and start to fall to the ground. Although at first they’re lovely to look at and feel crunchy underfoot, they can cause problems when they start to build up on roads and pavements. Cardiff’s local council recently announced the seventh year of its “Big Sweep” scheme, which encourages people to get out and sweep their streets. Many people love the idea because it brings people together to help clean up the community, and everyone in the family can get involved. However, others think it shouldn’t be their job and that people from the council should be doing it instead. What do you think? Should we sweep up the leaves on…

The animals The national animal of Qatar is the Arabian oryx, a rare antelope saved from extinction in the 1970s. The most popular pets are camels, horses and falcons. Falconry (owning and training falcons) is part of traditional Qatari culture. The food The Qatari national dish is called machboos – a meal made from a blend of rice, spices and chicken or lamb. Qataris with a sweet tooth like to snack on dried dates and might treat themselves to luqaimat – these are yummy deep-fried warm doughnuts that can be dipped in sugar syrup or honey. The monarchy Qatar has been ruled by Sheikh Tamim ibn Hamad Al Thani since 2013. The king and his family are extremely wealthy. He has a yacht worth £500 million and owns Paris Saint-Germain…

Between 29 October and 6 November, more than 400 of the world’s top gymnasts took part in the World Gymnastics Championships in Liverpool, England. Athletes from 74 countries competed in team and individual competitions and the US topped the medal table, winning three golds, four silvers and one bronze in total. Great Britain came fourth, winning six medals – the most they have ever collected at the event. The highlights were gold medals for Jessica Gadirova and Giarnni Regini-Moran. Gadirova won the women’s floor exercise and Regini-Moran became world champion in the men’s floor. Floor exercise is an event in gymnastics with a routine of jumps, tumbles and twists performed on a large bouncy mat. Each routine is marked by judges for its difficulty and execution (how well the display…

Every year, Anti-Bullying Week (14–18 November) is a chance for young people, parents and teachers to talk about bullying and learn how to deal with it, whether it’s in school, at home or online. Sadly, it’s a common problem. A Government study showed that 40% of Year 10 students had been bullied in the last year. Online, one in five children aged from 10 to 15 in England and Wales have experienced bullying – that’s around 764,000 young people. Fortunately there are plenty of people who care and can help. There are also some helpful websites, apps and podcasts featuring stories and good advice about how to respond to bullying if it happens to you, or if you see other people experiencing it. Start with the Anti-Bullying Alliance (anti-bullyingalliance.org.uk), which…

Favourite lake? Any of the lakes in the Lake District. I love that they’re in valleys carved by ice and so are very deep (and cold!). Do you believe that there are underwater worlds? I’m certainly fascinated by the idea that there might be… If you had a time-travelling machine, where would you travel to? I’d love to lie in a field on a warm summer’s day, at a time when there were no cars, no tractors, no aeroplanes, no toxic chemicals in our soil. I’m imagining the birdsong, the scent of wild flowers, the quiet. Have you ever tried wild swimming? Lots of times, yes, though we didn’t call it “wild” swimming when I was growing up, just plain old swimming. One of my favourite times was swimming on…

What is stand-up? “Stand-up” is the term used to describe a comedian standing in front of a crowd and telling jokes and stories. Popular stand-up comedians in the UK include Michael McIntyre and Jason Manford. Stand-up star Axel Blake won this year’s Britain’s Got Talent TV show. What else will help? Watch children’s comedy and try it out – schoolofcomedy.com offers lessons and Comedy Club 4 Kids has workshops. “Our workshops get you happy standing in front of others and understanding what you find funny,” says children’s comedian Tiernan Douieb.…

Dog food super-poo promise Having a pet dog has many benefits: cuddles, sloppy kisses and lots of walks. There’s one downside, however: picking up the poo. A dog food company says it has found the formula for the “perfect dog poo”. According to HugMyDog, a pooch’s poo should be “well formed in small lumps,” depending on the size of the animal. Anything else could be a sign of stress or a bad diet. The company claims its food will make picking up after your pet a more pleasant experience. Given that dogs create around 340 grams of poo a day, it’s not to be sniffed at. Having a “wheelie” good day out When Kris Nesbitt from Perth, Scotland, was asked by a friend to take their bin out for collection,…

Teacher’s name: Ms Saunders School: Newnham Junior School, Eastcote, England When moving into Year 6, I was so nervous but after meeting Ms Saunders my worries were washed away. She is calm, cool and collected and loves animals (especially cats). She always makes us learn in new and fun ways, and she usually takes lessons outside for science as we are learning about animals and leaves. We are so lucky to have her.” Prateek If we pick your teacher as Teacher of the Week, we’ll send your school three free issues of 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…

Joe Wicks has loved to exercise since he was a child. “I was always a bit of a clown,” admits the famous fitness instructor. “If I hadn’t exercised, I would have been a nightmare. No one would have been able to control me.” He says exercise helped him to cope. “PE was the one subject I looked forward to because it helped me focus.” Wicks has never lost his love for exercise. In fact, his passion pushed him to become one of the best-loved fitness coaches in the country. His PE with Joe workouts on YouTube attracted millions of viewers during the pandemic. This month, Wicks is inspiring kids to get outside and get active with his Walk with Joe campaign for BBC Children in Need. He’s encouraging everyone to…

Did you know that honeybees can count up to five? A new study has also suggested that they count from left to right, just like many people do. Lots of humans and some animals count, or order, numbers from left to right and arrange smaller amounts on the left and larger amounts on the right. This is called the “mental number line”. Scientists have long argued over whether mental number lines are learned or if they are a natural behaviour. Humans who grow up with languages that are written from right to left, such as Arabic and Urdu, have been found to count from right to left, too, but there is also evidence that babies, who haven’t been taught to count, naturally organise amounts from left to right. There are…

We need your help! We want you to design a colourful, exciting cover that sums up 2022 for our bumper double issue, which is due out on 24 December. The winner’s design will be the cover, and they will receive a framed copy of their artwork. The winner and the runners-up will win a copy of Olaf Falafel’s book Trixie Pickle Art Avenger. Be bold and bright, but we need your original design, please, not a photo of it. How to enter Design your artwork using the template below (you can download more at tinyurl.com/TWJ-bumper22). Please draw your designs around THE BEST OF 2022 box and the grey box on the bottom right. Fill in your details at the bottom and send it to us at: Bumper Cover Competition, The…

The benefits of houseplants on people’s wellbeing have been known for some time, but researchers have now found a way to make them even better for people’s health. Using a method called genetic modification (GM), scientists have raised plants that cut indoor air pollution. GM means changing a plant or animal by altering its DNA (a natural chemical that carries the instructions for how living things grow), including adding DNA from another species. Indoor air pollution is produced by cleaning products, cooking and dust, and it can be bad for people’s health. In 1989, research done by NASA said that houseplants could clean the air in a home – but later studies showed that they actually make too small a difference to help much. Since then, scientists have been tweaking…

Gareth Bale The Welsh footballer scored a dramatic late goal to help his club, the US team Los Angeles FC, win the MLS Cup. Holger Rune The 19-year-old tennis player beat Novak Djokovic in the Paris Masters final. It’s Rune’s first Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) Masters title. Gemma Dryburgh At the Japan Classic golf competition, Scotland’s Gemma Dryburgh finished first to win her first Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) victory. Sharon Lokedi and Evans Chebet Runners Lokedi and Chebet are both from Kenya and they won the women’s and men’s New York marathon.…

On 10 November, the caves that lie beneath the city of Nottingham in England are welcoming the public for the UK’s Being Human festival. The festival, which is running until 19 November, is a celebration of humanities, which means studying parts of human culture and history. In Nottingham, people can take part in free tours and walks around the caves, which have been used for many purposes since at least medieval times – and perhaps even further back. There are around 870 caves beneath the city, carved out of soft sandstone. Over the centuries they have been used as air raid shelters, cellars to store drinks or places for people to sleep. There is even a cave system beneath Wollaton Hall, a large grand house that was built in the…

You Can Do It by Marcus Rashford with Carl Anka (Macmillan Children’s) Following the bestselling You Are a Champion, footballer and activist Marcus Rashford is back with another positive and energising read. Find the power in your voice, be kind to yourself and others, champion difference and become a great team player. This inspiring book will give you lots of ideas. Happy from Head to Toe by Fearne Cotton (Puffin Books) From the tips of your toes to the top of your head, discover the many ways in which your mind and body are connected. Including interviews with experts like Tom Daley and Joe Wicks, this book is packed with tips to help you understand your body, stay calm and find joy every day. A Better Day by Dr Alex…

Name: Ella Escape Room By Christopher Edge “Exciting, mysterious, jaw-dropping. I read it in two days as I couldn’t put it down. The end was a huge plot twist!” YOUR TURN Email your book review to hello@theweekjunior.co.uk. If your review is printed in the magazine you’ll receive a Roving Reporter badge. Tell us what you liked about the book and why you’d recommend it to others, and don’t forget to include your name and address.* *If you are the competition winner, we will only use the details you provide to contact you and arrange delivery of your competition prize. Further details about how we manage the data you provide can be found at www.futureplc.com/privacy-policy…

Whether you’re turning on lights, charging a phone, watching TV or cooking dinner, your home needs a lot of energy, such as electricity or gas. There are lots of good reasons to save energy. First, you will be helping to cut the cost of your family’s energy bills (a statement that comes every month and says how much gas and electricity your family has used and how much you owe the energy company). Second, it can help to protect the environment by using fewer resources. Finding ways to save energy can be fun. Why not take on these six challenges and become your family’s energy superhero? Tell us how you and your family get on, or share your own ideas and tips with us by writing to hello@theweekjunior.co.uk 1 Switch…

It’s rare for the entire world to be interested in the same event, but surely everyone is watching and waiting to hear what is decided at COP27, the talks about protecting Earth from the worst effects of climate change. By the way, did you spot the hidden map on this week’s cover? Look closely and you’ll see that Dave, our clever art director, has lined up the M to point towards Egypt, where the world leaders are meeting. You can read our report on their discussions on page 2. In fact, the whole cover has a slight COP27 theme – there are some great tips on how to help your family save energy on page 25; how bees like to have fun on page 10; and a story about the…

Follow The Week Junior on PopJam @TheWeekJunior. You can download the PopJam app from the App Store or Google Play. We asked you if climate protests are going too far. You said… “I think what they are doing is great.” “The climate is important but they have taken it too far.” “I don’t think climate protests are going too far because it’s important to stand up for what you believe in.” “Soup on a famous painting?! Way way too far.” Tell us what you think of this week’s issue and we’ll print some of the best comments here.…

1 Where is COP27 being held? □ a) Glasgow, Scotland □ b) Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt □ c) New Delhi, India 2 True or false? Once a census is taken, people’s personal details are locked away for 2,000 years. □ True □ False 3 Where has a theme park dedicated to Studio Ghibli just opened? ____________________ 4 Which season is called “fall” in America and Canada? □ a) Winter □ b) Autumn □ c) Summer 5 Which charity did Joe Wicks raise £1.5 million for with a 24-hour PE challenge in 2020? ______________________ 6 Which insect counts from left to right, according to a new study? _______________________ 7 What is the national bird of Qatar? □ a) Falcon □ b) Eagle □ c) Crow 8 True or false? Qatar is around…