Simba - Spring 2011

Simba Bablake Junior School Spring 2011

“The Japanese Crane represents peace, recovery, healing and happiness.�

Never Give Up Japan!

4SD made Japanese origami cranes with Mrs Thomson as a symbol of support for the survivors of the devastating earthquake in Japan. The children wrote messages of encouragement for Mrs Thomson to take and give to visiting Japanese students at Tile Hill Wood School.

The Japanese students were really touched by the thoughtfulness of 4SD and wrote messages of thanks back to them.

They also took a photograph of themselves holding the origami message the children had made.

The message from 4SD reads, ‘Never give up Japan!’

WORLD MATHS DAY 2011 Bablake Junior children have participated in World Maths Day this term. We had three weeks to practise mental maths calculations, then 48 hours to complete a maximum of 100 questions. It was very exciting and we competed against children of our own age from across the world.

The top ten children with the most correctly answered questions were: Rajen Parekh, with 5,675 answers then Deepra Sinha, Rajan Vraitch, Jasmyn Leong, Martin McKenna, Caroline Smith, Jessica Horton, Shivani Bodalia and Connor Jelly.

The top ten highest scorers in a minute were: Deepra Sinha with 69 questions in just 60 seconds, then Rajen Parekh, Rohan Thakrar, Salim Zaayan, Ria Patel, Lorna Williamson, Jasmyn Leong, Caroline Smith and Harry Hine.

The top ten most improved pupils were: Ben Harrison, James Hodge, Jack Crinigan, Remy McNamara, Grace Hollis, Lawou Mpafe, Cherie Ng, Jessica Horton and Charanjoyt Dosanjh.

Primary Maths

Challenge

Year 6 pupils, along with tens of thousands of others from across Britain, took part this term in the Primary Maths Challenge.

Neer Patel, Ria Patel and Salim Zayyan made it into the top 400 and Ria won a bronze medal, coming in the top 200.

Well done!

BIRD SPOTTING For the past six weeks, our spinney has been full of bird song and wildlife. Our new bird table has attracted many different species of birds, as well as regular visits from the mischievous squirrel!

My responsibility is to stock up the bird table with food, which includes mixed seed, fat balls and bird cakes. A pair of greater-spotted woodpeckers was amongst the first to investigate our table and a group of long-tailed tits visit every afternoon.

I have been interested in birds for a long time and I have really enjoyed having the opportunity to tell my friends and the teachers about my hobby. I have had lots of interesting conversations with Mrs Price, who is a keen birdwatcher too.

Some children in Year 5 have been bringing food in and asking me to identify new birds such as the nuthatch, pied wagtail and chaffinch. One of our most exciting visitors has been a pair of goldfinches, who are particularly rare in our school grounds.

So far, I have spotted 17 species of birds in our spinney. It would be great to see more during Spring and Summer.

George Parker 5MB

Bablake Chess Success

Chess continues to be very popular, with many pupils now competing in the inter school UK Chess Challenge.

Bablake Junior School chess teams have also had another very positive season. Competing in the Coventry School B League, the BJS A team managed to finish 2nd. This is a remarkable achievement as our team is the only Junior School in the league.

The BJS A team has in fact only lost one fixture this year, right at the start of the season. The team finished on the same number of points as the eventual winners of the League, unfortunately losing out on number of boards won. The B team also had an excellent season, managing to win a game and draw a game. This is excellent news as some of these players will make the step up to the A team next year.

The chess team will be saying goodbye next term to Rajen Parekh and Kartik Sareen as both are moving on to Senior School. Captain and Vice-Captain respectively, the two boys have been invaluable in helping me to the run the team.

MOSAIC PATTERNS This term in their History lessons Year 3 have learnt about the Romans. They discovered that rich Romans liked to decorate their houses with mosaic floors. The floors were made up of hundreds of tiny coloured marble, stone or clay pieces which were fixed together to make designs or pictures. These pieces were called tesserae.

If you are thinking of redecorating this Spring give Year 3 a call for a quote. Their terms are very reasonable but we can’t guarantee there won’t be a bit of mess made!

A letter from Kare Adenegan regarding wheelchair basketball.

Dear Crusaders Wheelchair Basketball Team, Thank you for making my Thursday night fun. I love playing tag, stuck in the mud, races and assault courses. It is very exciting blending in with other children and learning other things that I have never done before.

I love whizzing around in the sporty wheelchairs.

I enjoy it so much, I feel like a proper wheelchair basketball player. I have a smile on my face through every lesson.

It was good seeing my dad in a wheelchair and then overtaking him like a pro!!! I will always remember this opportunity. I always look forward to the lessons.

After a lesson I feel worn out and tired but I still want to do it again. I wish I could do it every single day. It’s so much fun. It is SO great!

From Kare Adenegan Class 5P

Bablake School Scholars 2011

Five Bablake Junior pupils were awarded Scholarships to the Senior School following the Entrance Exam in January. This continues a fine tradition of Junior School pupils winning significant awards into Bablake School.

Ria Patel, Salim Zayyan, Kartik Sareen and Deepra Sinha received Academic Scholarships, Avni Kant a Music Award.

Their achievements would not have been possible without the support and assistance of their colleagues and teachers over the years.

It was also wonderful to note that everyone in Year 6 was once again offered a place at the Senior School. A great effort and tremendous success.

Well done!

4GD Visit the

Alex Williams Care Home When we went to the Alex Williams Care Home we sang the songs from our concert to the people there and then we sang some carols so that they could join in with us.

Most of the people at the care home were old and some of them were blind, deaf and very forgetful. Sathvika had some chocolates to share with the people and us. Santa Claus came in later and gave us chocolates to eat with some juice.

There were two cats at the care home, one called Boots and another called Laces. Boots was the softy and Laces was the one who scratched loads. Then we got to speak to the old people, wish them a merry Christmas and ask them what they would like for Christmas. Then at the end we got to stroke Boots and have a look at the fish tank.

Alex Hyde 4GD

COVENTRY SCHOOLS CROSS COUNTRY RELAYS 2011 Teams from 21 Coventry schools gathered at Keresley Grange last Saturday to battle it out for the Cross Country Relay prizes. The previous week’s warmth had given way to a cold chill that at least meant the runners wouldn’t overheat!

The boys’ race started dramatically with a great dash for the first corner. The field quickly spread out and it was not until the second lap that Salim Zayyan, running for the eventual winners Bablake, powered ahead. This lead was held in convincing fashion until the end. The Stivichall team ran with great determination to come in second with the Parkhill boys digging in to complete the podium places.

The girls’ race again saw Bablake dominate, this time Caroline Smith taking the lead half way round the first lap.

The Mount Nod and Christ the King girls made up the medal positions, both teams girls running with great style and strength.

BOYS RELAY RESULTS: Winners - Bablake Junior School GIRLS RELAY RESULTS: Winners - Bablake Junior School Our mixed team also ran exceptionally well to come in fourth out of the sixteen schools taking part. Every one of the 200 runners gave their all and once again the spirit of determined competition was inspiring to everyone there.

BOYS FOOTBALL SEASON 2011 This has been a fantastic season with almost 40 matches played by our A, B and even C Teams. The vast majority of these fixtures resulted in victories for Bablake and all games were keenly fought and much enjoyed. Losing on occasion might have felt painful but is undoubtedly a lesson well learnt!

Our U8 Team beat Eversfield, drew with Solihull and narrowly lost to King Henry VIII. The B Team were undefeated.

The U9 A Team has also had an outstanding undefeated season and the B’s enjoyed their games, both the wins and the defeats. The U10’s lost a single game, against The Crescent, but enjoyed notable victories against Warwick, King Henry VIII and Arnold Lodge. The B Team won every match. The U10 C Team had a great run out against The Crescent, beating their B Team 3 -1. The U11’s too had a great season, beating King Henry’s and Eversfield, whilst drawing with The Croft and losing just the one game at Solihull. Giving everyone the chance to play sport for the school remains integral to our sports programme and it is fantastic to share the thrills of competition with the children. Well done everyone.

LOUGHBOROUGH LIGHTNING vs SURREY STORM On the Saturday 12th February, girls in Years 5 and 6 went to watch a Superleague netball match at Loughborough University. We really enjoyed the action between all the netball players, it looked as though they weren’t even trying, but they were pouring with sweat. When they were passing the ball they were doing long passes that were extremely quick and we found it hard to see where the ball was because it was being passed so fast. It looked like they were running with the ball because they play way so fast! We were amazed by their shooting because they would shoot from a long way out. They were scoring in every quarter and each quarter lasted for 15 minutes, but in the end the score was 56-43 to Surrey Storm. It was a great trip.

Amy Smith and Megan Rose 5MB

The girls with Surrey Storm Stars Tamsin Greenway and Becky Trippick

We met the England Goal Shooter Rachel Dunn

We were impressed by the fast pace of the game

COVENTRY SCHOOLS GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS 2011 Saturday 29th January at Keresley Grange School

A TEAM WINNERS : BABLAKE JUNIOR SCHOOL B TEAM WINNERS : BABLAKE JUNIOR SCHOOL Congratulations to all our girl cross country athletes for achieving first place in both A and B team races. This was a remarkable team performance from all our competitors, from the pupils in Year 3 making their debut run, to the more experienced girls in Year 6.

Twenty nine schools entered the championships with over 170 competitors in the A team race and 97 runners competing in the B team race. All members of the Bablake A and B team received team GOLD MEDALS. Well done to all.

A TEAM – Caroline Smith (7th), Christie Thompson (8th), Isabelle Hemus (11th), Hannah Smith (15th), Sophie Hollinrake (20th), Remy McNamara (32nd).

B TEAM – Katy Davis (4th), Chandra Singh (5th), Freya Bennett (9th), Emma Alroggen (10th), Jessica Brake (12th), Lawou McPfafe (13th), Yasmine Hamud, Imogen Starling, Bryony Camwell, Jessica Moffitt, Georgie Paterson, Ria Athwal, Grace Fisher, Jaspreet Lall, and Davina Thakrar.

SPRING TERM GAMES REPORT Despite the poor weather at the start of the Spring Term, which saw the cancellation of one of the U11 netball tournaments, our teams played over 14 fixtures and participated in 4 other netball tournaments and a hockey tournament.

Outstanding netball victories this term included a fine 7-0 defeat of KHPS by our U11B team, an amazing 21-2 victory over St Martin’s, Solihull by our U10A team, and a narrow but well deserved 2-1 victory over Warwick Prep by our U10B team. Congratulations to the Bablake U9 team who have won all four matches this term and recently beat King Henry VIII 6-1. To date over 20 of our Year 4 pupils have played in the team. A special mention must be made to our U11A team who achieved 4th place in their section at the IAPS Regional Finals at Bakewell in Derbyshire, our highest place to date. The same team lost to a ‘golden goal’ in the plate semi final of the Rugby School Tournament.

On the hockey front, the U11 team have won 1 of their 2 fixtures this term. They gained valuable experience at the recent Warwickshire Tournament, and although they were unable to produce their best performance, all players have consolidated their skills. A special mention must be made to thank parents for their help and support at fixtures and tournaments throughout the term.

BIATHLON NEWS The Year 5 and 6 pupils have recently participated in our very own Bablake Biathlon, organised by Peter Evans, the West Midland Development Officer. The competitors were all timed individually over a 500m run and a 40m swim. These times were converted to points and the top 3 boys and girls from each age group received medals and all competitors were awarded certificates.

Congratulations to the following Year 5 pupils: Gold Medallists: Isabelle Hemus and Lewis Carroll Silver Medallists: Megan Rose and Kieran Thomas Bronze Medallists: Lorna Williamson and Xander Bennett Year 5 Victor Ludorum: Isabelle Hemus GIRLS INTER-HOUSE TOURNAMENTS Our girls have been busy playing Inter-House matches during games lessons and lunchtimes. Congratulations to the following houses: Year 6 Hockey: Winners Nelson Year 5 Netball: Winners Eliot Year 4 Netball: Winners Eliot

Willy Wonka Projects In Year 6 we have been making projects following our class work on the novel ‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory’ by Roald Dahl. This has been a scrumptious event and some delicious projects produced!

Everyone dressed in red as we joined with people across the country to raise money for Comic Relief. We all had fun and raised almost £300 for this worthy cause. Thank you to everyone for your support.

Every Spring the Year 5 classes are visited by a very interesting team from the Coventry Fire Service. The aim of the visit is to introduce the children to fire safety, prevent hoax calls and raise awareness of the importance of smoke alarms.

The visit serves a double purpose in that we also use it to inspire our work on persuasive writing. We are currently working on letters to persuade head teachers in other schools about the importance of letting Sparks visit them.

SPARKS!

BABLAKE SPINNEY In the spinney we have been rebuilding the paths, which now look brilliant and go all over the spinney.

We have also been building a shelter which we learnt how to do at the brilliant Year 5 trip to ‘Bushcraft’.

There is also something we now think of as an outdoor classroom, in which we can enjoy lessons with nature.

After school Mr Benfield has been running Spinney Club, for Class 5MB. This is when we do all the jobs to help people enjoy the spinney more. In the future we plan to make a vegetable patch and we are also going to put up a parachute over the outdoor classroom.

By Megan Rose and Hannah Yolland

Earlier this term 5P studied “The Highwayman”, by Alfred Noyes. The poem centres around three main characters - the Highwayman, his sweetheart Bess and Tim the Ostler, who is jealous of their love. The children acted scenes from the poem and were then asked to write about the tragedy that occurred from the perspective of one of the characters. Below are the introductions to some very powerful pieces of writing they produced.

My life as a Highwayman How did it come to this? That my beloved Bess, oh sweet beloved Bess, is now dead; her head hanging down with blood dripping on her breast. Those red coats! I will kill every one of them if it’s the last thing I do. Oh, I remember way back when first I laid my eyes on her… Her long black hair flowing over her dress. Oh sweet beautiful Bess, I love her with all the love left in my heart.

Anish Jaspal 5P

My life as Bess How did it come to this? I didn’t have a choice. If I hadn’t of shot myself, the highwayman would have died. I couldn’t bear to watch my love being killed outside my casement. I do not regret what I did and there is nothing I can do about it now. I am already dead. My love for the highwayman was too strong for me to let him die. Every time I’d have looked out of my casement, I would have had to look at my love’s rotting body, hanging on a tree by the dark, cobbled road on Gibbet Hill…

Brooke Walton 5P

My Life as Tim the Ostler

THE HIGHWAYMAN

How did it come to this? Beautiful Bess was dead and it was all my silly fault! Calm down! It wasn’t entirely my fault, it was also that stupid and lazy Highwayman’s fault. I was furious but slightly cheered up to know that the stinking highwayman was dead, shot down painfully on the roadside!

He deserves it, if you ask me. I still look at his body happily sometimes, but when it reminds me of Bess I weep.

James Chalker 5P

To make your teacher angry Is considered to be bad, So follow this tasty menu, To send them raving mad!

A Menu to Make My Teacher Angry…

A flavoursome platter of daydreaming, With a sprinkle of spelling mistakes, Light, crisp and golden graffiti, Marinated with a dressing of bad manners.

Mixed leaves with salted whispering, Added with succulent slamming desks, With honey roasted fiddling, Garnished with a lovely, stuffed bunch of carelessness.

Lastly, a big bowl of untidy writing, With a side of capital letters, Soaked with bad behaviour, Last of all a piece forgetfulness.

TO MAKE MY TEACHER ANGRY

by Jessica and Jasmyn 4GD

DOES A CIRCUS STILL NEED ANIMAL ACTS? Many people are wondering if circuses still need animals? Some people think that animals are not well treated in circuses. Others disagree as animals have been in circuses for centuries and are a tradition.

Circuses do still need animal acts because if we don’t it won’t be as popular, a lot of people will lose their jobs and they won’t have any money. People also want to see entertainment and want to continue seeing animal acts! Animals are given a reasonable amount of food a day, they live in large cages and they run around when they are being trained.

If we do not use animal acts it doesn’t necessarily mean that it won’t be as popular. The people who trained the animals could always use their skills in a different way. They could even be a different act in the circus. Animals also have the right to be free and live in the wild, they should be able to catch their own food and play around.

I am against putting animals in circuses. They could get hurt consequently leading to death.

We really shouldn’t be risking their lives.

By Shivani Bodalia

Bablake Open Evening Friday 24th June 2011 5.00pm - 8.00pm

One of the country’s leading independent schools is closer and more affordable than you think

The Magic Box

The Magic Box

I will put in my box Magical wishes from an unknown world, Water from an underground stream, Ice that never melts.

I will put in my box The sharpest horn from a Triceratops, The freshest air from the mountain tops, Dried fire bombs from the mouth of a dragon.

I will put in my box The sweet-smelling scent of mouldy cheese, The terrible odour of mixed flower petals, An electric eel’s electric sting.

I will put in my box The clear voice from the most talented poet, A piece of mould from an ancient orange, A feather from a phoenix.

I will put in my box A tablet for a sick fairy, A newborn baby riding an old elephant, A wig for every day.

I will put in my box A princess with fangs, A monster with a dress and a crown, A tree covered with chocolate.

My box is fashioned from Rubies and emeralds and diamonds galore, Gold door hinges from 1863, A ring from Queen Elizabeth’s finger.

My box is fashioned from unmelting ice, And hardened chocolate with sprinkles, The hinges are made from dark chocolate.

What I’ll do in my box...

I will go on an adventure in my box in the jungles.

I shall experiment in my box with scientific Equipment and find mysteries.

I’ll swim in the Mediterranean, Dive with dolphins, And spot polar bears.

By Rebecca Dodd 4GD

Christie Thomson 4SD The Ice Man

I saw a…

This little poem is not about me So sit there and read it then you will see.

I saw a chicken with a red beak, I saw a carrot with a huge cheek, I saw a man in a fruit bowl, I saw a mouse score a great goal, I saw a footballer eat some cheese, I saw a penguin fly in the breeze.

I saw a plane eating some fish, I saw an elephant sitting in a dish, I saw food in the park zoo, I saw a cat say moo, I saw cows hunting for a bird, I …Hang on a minute! I’ve run out of time, I hope you’ve enjoyed this little poem of mine.

By George Parker 5MB

On the edge of the dark town The black trees stand as high as the moon Cracking their great icy Fingers one at a time.

Each hedge has a thin Sheet of ice on it, the grass, like A river shimmering in the moon-light.

Along the deep, dark path a man walks alone, his name is The Ice Man. He walks for a long time - about an hour.

His cold feet so numb – he can’t walk any longer.

A house, the warmth like a hot fire.

On an armchair, A fat cat naps.

A fire burns in colours of red, yellow and orange.

When the Ice Man comes to the door.

Let him in! Let him in!

Christina Tomschey 5MB

Simile Poems 3L have been looking at how similes are used to emphasise and exaggerate descriptions. We looked at some different examples of poems and wrote our own poems inspired by what we had read.

Today I Feel Today, I feel as: Fit as a FIDDLE, Bouncy as a BALL, Sharp as a NEEDLE, Deep as a WELL, Cool as a CUCUMBER, And as healthy as a VEGETABLE, I’M SO HAPPY - I AM JUST LOST FOR WORDS.

By Jay Senghera

Vampire Burn The burn in my throat is too much to bear, If I don’t feed soon, I’ll pull out my hair.

The scent of sweet human wafts in the air, Should I feed, do I dare?

No! I can’t, it’s sunny outside For I have rules to abide.

The Volturi, our royal family, They shall come for me, If I step outside.

‘I need to feed!’ I cried, Then I layed down and sighed.

Then night fell over, So I ran to Dover, Five hours later, My stomach was satisfied.

I’m sorry poor dead humans, I couldn’t help myself.

You were all so deliciously yummy, And now your blood’s in my tummy!

Hana Dhanani 5MB

The Writer of this Poem The writer of this poem, Is as wonderful as the sea, As fresh as a daisy, As busy as a bee, As As As As

good as gold, sweet as honey, sparkling as a diamond, lively as a monkey,

As As As As

fit as a fiddle, strong as an ox, bright as a button, cunning as a fox.

The writer of this poem Is purer than a pearl, As glamorous as a film star, But not a modest girl!

by Bhavan Amar

SCIENCE - Absorbency Year 3 have tested different kitchen towels to see which was the most absorbent. We planned a fair test as a group using post its and a planning sheets. We used pipettes to measure the same amount of water, and a 30cm ruler to measure the spread of water on the towel. 3F and 3L both concluded that Plenty was the best at soaking up 3 ml of water.

As part of our topic on ‘Characteristics of Materials’, we also helped Nora Wrinkly find the stretchiest tights to stop them wrinkling around her ankles. Then we helped a clothes designer find the hardest wearing fabric for children’s trousers.

TEETH INVESTIGATION Year 3 used eggs instead of teeth to investigate which drinks where bad for our teeth. We conducted a fair test with water, Diet Coca Cola, Coca Cola, long life orange juice, Lucozade Sport and squash (no added sugar).

3L and 3F both concluded that orange juice was the worst for your teeth with 9.1 g of sugar in our 100ml. Water was by far the best drink overall, which was also the drink that the dentist recommended we had by our bedside at night.

Miss Love’s Maths set then asked the whole school a variety of questions about a healthy diet and looking after your teeth. 31 pupils chose orange juice as their favourite drink.

56 pupils said they had a glass of milk by the side of their bed at night.

SAFETY CENTRE

VISIT Dear Tony, Sheila, Angie and the staff at the Safety Centre, We are writing to thank you for teaching us about keeping safe. The whole class really enjoyed our trip because we all had an exciting, amazing and brilliant time.

In Sheila’s group, Jaydeep learnt that if a smoke alarm goes off, he should get out of the house immediately. Bethany found out that you need to also shut the door behind you when you leave. Doors should be closed when you go to bed too. Ria discovered that if you find someone lying on the floor, dial 999 and then check if they are breathing. We all learnt about the recovery position. Meanwhile, Joshua learnt that when someone falls into water, you should never dive in after them. You should call 999 as well as throwing the person a life belt or life line. Gracie M. found out that children under 16 years of age should never fill a car with petrol.

In Angies’s group, Anna learnt that it is important to put tools away after you have used them, otherwise someone might hurt themselves seriously. Grace F. learnt that a red or orange square on the side of a bottle means that if you get it on your skin, it will burn you, if you get it in your eyes it will blind you and if you eat or drink it, it will poison you. Jhodi said that it was wrong to take things without paying as this is called stealing. Manav knew not to leave bottles etc on the floor as dogs might hurt themselves. Bhavan learnt that you should never leave plastic bags lying around, especially on farms, as animals might get injured. Luke discovered that smashing or vandalising telephone boxes could stop someone from calling for help in an emergency.

Finally, in Tony’s group, Harry discovered that if you can smell gas, don’t turn electricity on (or off) as the sparks might cause an explosion. Ehren knew not to put water near a television, as it might cause a fire. For example, a vase with fresh flowers and water in. Freya learnt not to put chemicals into a plastic drinks bottle in case someone drinks it. Joe knew not to touch farm equipment because you could get injured. Benjamin learnt that no one should smoke in a petrol station.

We learnt an enormous amount at your Safety Centre. We are now looking at your website (http://www.safetycentre. co.uk/) and others to learn more. We are going to use our information and your booklets to help write a non chronological report on keeping safe in English lessons. Thank you once again for your help.

Yours sincerely, 3L and Miss Love

Excellence through care....

BABLAKE JUNIOR SCHOOL COUNDON ROAD COVENTRY CV1 4AU TEL: 024 7627 1260 www.bablakejuniorschool.co.uk

Electrical Circuits & Clowns

Electrical Circuits & Clowns

Henry VIII... This is Your Life

Bablake Knitting Club

Making Bird Boxes

Junior Christingle Service

Bablake Chess

Football

Bird Table