Table of contents for 455 in The Week Junior

Trucks carrying much-needed aid have been allowed to enter Darfur, a region of Sudan, through the Adre crossing. The crossing is the quickest route into Darfur from Chad, a country that borders Sudan to the west. In Darfur, millions of people are facing severe food shortages. What is happening in Sudan? Since April 2023, people in Sudan have been suffering because of a civil war (a war between forces in the same country). Sudan’s army has been fighting a group called the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The war has disrupted farming and affected food supplies. Both the army and the RSF have been accused of blocking the delivery of aid as a way to stop supplies from reaching the other side’s forces. Heavy rainfall and flooding have also made it…

• The first school uniform in Britain was thought to have been the “cappa clausa”, a kind of robe that was worn at some church schools as long as 800 years ago.• In the UK, the majority of schools have a uniform. However, in the US uniforms are fairly unusual.• In England, nearly nine out of 10 schools say they give uniforms to children whose families struggle to afford them.• Some studies have shown that uniforms can improve pupils’ behaviour and learning levels but others suggest that the evidence for this isn’t very strong.…

These tiny birds are just passing through the UK as they head south from northern Europe and the Arctic. Little stints nest on tundra – cold, treeless environments – before heading to southern Europe and Africa for the winter. You can spot them in muddy areas around the coast of the UK, especially the east and south coast of England. They wade to find crustaceans and other creatures to fuel them for their long journey. The birds are about 15 centimetres long – the smallest wading birds in the UK. Little stints have brown and grey feathers on top and are white underneath. By September, most little stints in the UK are young birds, which arrive after their parents. These have two white stripes running down their back.…

Dogs have been given a special job at Railway Land Nature Reserve in Lewes, England. They are helping to rewild it. The furry assistants are given special backpacks with holes in them that are full of seeds. As the dogs go sniffing and exploring, the seeds fall out. This is just one example of rewilding happening across the world. What is rewilding? In general, rewilding aims to return stretches of land and oceans back to a more natural state. The goal is to create areas where nature is left to take care of itself with no (or very little) help from humans. It can be done in lots of different ways. Sometimes, people help things along by, for example, introducing missing animal species or planting new trees. In other cases,…

Erling Haaland Haaland scored a hat-trick (three goals) as Manchester City defeated Ipswich 4-1 in the Premier League. Lydia Ko At the Women’s Open golf competition at St Andrews, Scotland, Ko won the trophy by finishing two shots ahead of her nearest rivals. Armand Duplantis At the Diamond League athletics event in Poland, Duplantis set a world record height of 6.26 metres in the men’s pole vault. Dina Asher-Smith, Desiree Henry, Bianca Williams and Amy Hunt The British sprinters won the women’s 100 metres relay event at the Diamond League in Switzerland.…

Number 1 Barbie The Barbie doll was invented by Mattel co-founder Ruth Handler and was inspired by, and named after, her daughter Barbara. Number 1 Barbie was the very first model, released in 1959. It was hand-painted and they now sell for thousands of pounds. Black Barbie Designed by Kitty Black Perkins, the first black Barbie went on sale in 1980. The box read “She’s Black! She’s beautiful! She’s dynamite!” There is a film called Black Barbie telling the story of how the first black Barbie came to be made, which is available on Netflix (rated 12). Totally Hair Barbie 1992’s Totally Hair Barbie is the best-selling version of all time. More than 10 million of the dolls were sold across the globe. The model featured the longest hair of…

What is your favourite thing to draw and where is your perfect drawing spot to do it? My favourite thing to draw is people. And the best drawing spot right now is by my living room window, where I have a view of my home town, Oslo. What is your favourite place to be in nature? My favourite place is in the leafy forests on an island south of Oslo where my family goes in the summer. It feels like being in a Robin Hood story. Cross My Heart and Never Lie was about Tuva, Save Our Forest! was about Bao. Will we get a book starring Linnéa in the future? I hope so. I have worked a little on her story, but I want to make sure it’s really…

Word fill in All these words fit in the grid. Can you work out where each word goes to complete it? 3 letters Bed Key 4 letters Lawn Pool 5 letters Floor Linen Patio 6 letters Mirror Unpack Waiter 7 letters Baggage Balcony 8 letters Bathroom Elegance 9 letters Reception Telephone Wordsearch Can you find all of the words listed here? They are hidden horizontally, vertically or diagonally and may read forwards or backwards. BARBECUE BEACH COAST CRICKET FAN FESTIVAL GRILL HAT HEATWAVE HOLIDAY PADDLE PICNIC POOL SALAD SAND SHORTS SUNSHINE SURFING SWIMMING TENNIS Answer…

There are several charities and organisations providing help to people in Sudan. UNICEF, Save the Children and the British Red Cross are among those trying to raise money for aid. If you’d like to donate or fundraise for those in need, ask an adult for help. Despite the seriousness of the crisis in Sudan, some people say it is not being given enough attention in the news. Another way of helping is to try and raise awareness of what is going on in the country. You could have a discussion with your parents, or ask a teacher if you could talk about the situation in class.…

A FLOWERY PROTEST Harry Smith-Haggett, a 22-year-old from Horsham, England, has been planting flowers in the town’s potholes. He started his “pretty potholes” project with the hope that it might make the local authorities notice the holes in the roads and start filling them in. ENDANGERED BIRDS IN NEW ZEALAND New Zealand is in the second part of vaccination trials against a deadly type of bird flu that has harmed many birds in other countries. The aim is to protect five critically endangered native bird species (around 80% of the country’s birds are endangered). Experts say tests show that the vaccine works. A GROUP OF AFGHAN DOCTORS Nineteen trainee female doctors from Afghanistan have arrived in Edinburgh to complete their medical degrees. Women’s education was banned in their country in…

Now that you’ve read a bit more about it, tell us what you think by voting in our poll at theweekjunior.co.uk/polls. Vote YES if you think schools should ditch uniforms, or NO if you don’t. We’ll publish the results next week. The aim of the Big debate page is to present two sides of an issue fairly and objectively, in order to stimulate discussion and allow our readers to make up their minds. The views on the page do not reflect those of The Week Junior, and the page is not funded by third parties.…

Scientists in Australia have found a way to study the health of soil – by listening to it. The team think their method could help to monitor and improve soil all over the world. All living things – mammals, insects and even plants – make sounds, and “ecoacoustics” is the study of them. The method has been used to observe bats, birds and sea creatures. Scientists from Flinders University in Australia wanted to see if they could use ecoacoustics to check how healthy soil was. Dr Jake Robinson from the university told The Guardian newspaper it was like a doctor using a stethoscope to listen to a patient’s heartbeat. Soil can be home to many living things (see panel), and the greater the diversity, the healthier the soil. Invertebrates (animals…

West Blean and Thornden Woods, Kent, England This is home of the Wilder Blean project where you can spot European bison, which were introduced into the area in 2022. The animals were brought in as they are known to help other species thrive. Dundreggan Rewilding Centre, Inverness, Scotland The Dundreggan estate has been rewilded since 2008 and now provides a home for over 4,000 species of plants and animals. Learn all about it at their Rewilding Centre (the first centre of its kind in the world), which is free to visit. Gilfach, Powys, Wales The old farm was rewilded by planting trees, adding a wetland and reducing the numbers of animals grazing on the land. See if you can spot one of the 55 different types of birds on the…

1839 AWARDS COLOUR PHOTOGRAPHY CONTEST 2024…

If you’re starting a new class or school, you may be nervous about making friends. Understanding friendship will help you connect with people who make you happy. What does friendship mean? A good friend is someone you know well and want to spend time with, whether you’re having fun or facing a challenge. Friendships can build slowly or form fast over a shared interest like music or sport. Even if you don’t see each other often, you can still feel close when you’re together. Friends make you happy – but you may also feel angry or sad sometimes. Judah Racham from the mental health charity Place2Be says it’s normal to have difficulties with friendships. “Being friends doesn’t always mean agreeing or getting along with others all the time,” he says.…

She Speaks by Honor Cargill-Martin. Illustrated by Camelia Pham (Magic Cat) Explore classic Greek mythology with this beautiful book, which will introduce you to eight well-known stories, told from the perspective (point of view) of the female characters. You’ll hear from sorceress Medea, princess Ariadne and the legendary Helen of Troy, and many more characters of myth. Science Is Lit by Big Manny (Puffin Books) Online science sensation Big Manny shows you how to become a real-life scientist yourself, creating awesome experiments at home using ordinary ingredients. You’ll learn about everything from combustion to chromatography, and along the way you’ll discover why he thinks science is “lit”. Welcome to AI by Matthieu Dugal. Illustrated by Owen Davey (Wide Eyed Editions) What is AI (artificial intelligence) and how will it change…

In the earlier days of consoles, games were released and that was it. They didn’t get updated with new features, bugs didn’t get patched (fixed) and there was no downloadable content. That all changed with the internet. Today’s games are updated frequently, giving you new ways to play months (or even years) after you first got them. Space-exploring game No Man’s Sky originally came out in 2016 but is still getting updates in 2024. The most recent was “Worlds Part I” in July, adding better-looking waves and clouds, spectacular storms and giant insect aliens. Colourful obstacle-course game Fall Guys is also still getting updates four years after it was released. Its “Fall Forever” update came out in May with a new mode called “Explore”. Up to 10 players can get…

On 9 August, in South Queensferry near Edinburgh, a Burryman walked through the streets covered in around 13,000 thistle burrs (the prickly part of the flower). The tradition, which is thought to bring good luck, dates back about 400 years. The Burryman is not allowed to speak for the whole day but during the nine-mile procession, townspeople give him money and whisky, and shout “Hip hip hooray, it’s the Burryman’s Day.” Council worker Andrew Taylor was this year’s Burryman. “I really love the tradition,” he said.…

Name: Fearne “I’d just finished sailing in Christchurch harbour in Dorset, England, and was putting my boat away when I saw something in the seaweed. I thought it was a crab leg but I picked it up and was surprised to see it was a seahorse. It was spiky but sadly it was dead. I showed my friends and someone asked me if I should take it home. I decided not to in case it was pregnant but when we sent the picture to The Seahorse Trust they said it was a female, so it wouldn’t be pregnant because the males give birth. The trust founder, Neil Garrick-Maidment, said, “What a great find and so apt at the moment as we are about to start a project in the area.”…

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 magazine and digital editions, and mention on our podcast. 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.…

We love hearing from you! It’s easy – just write a comment when you vote in our online Big Debate poll, or even record a voice note for The Week Junior Show. Last week, we asked you if shops should stop selling plastic bottles… “My opinion is yes because people litter.” “They should stop selling bottled water and instead put in a tap.” “If bottled water was to be banned, then shops should all be required to have free tap water refills.” “Shops should sell less bottled water, but keep selling it.” Tell us what you think of this week’s issue and we’ll print some of the best comments here.…

1 Where was the Paralympic flame first lit this August? □ a) London □ b) Paris □ c) Stoke Mandeville 2 True or false? The Rothschild medal has been awarded to Sir David Attenborough. □ True □ False 3 More than 200 unexploded shells were discovered in Honiara, the capital of which country? ________________________ 4 According to a survey, how many pupils found school uniform uncomfortable to wear? □ a) 7% □ b) 47% □ c) 77% 5 True or false? Connie Chiume played Zawavari in the film Black Panther. □ True □ False 6 Toni, a baby pygmy hippo, made her first public appearance at a zoo in which country? ________________________ 7 Which animals are being used to help rewild Railway Land Nature Reserve in Lewes, England? □ a)…

Many pupils will be going back to school this September, which means wearing uniforms again too. These can vary from blazers and ties to more casual sweatshirts, and schools may have strict or relaxed rules around how they are worn. School uniforms were first worn in charity schools in England. Christ’s Hospital school in West Sussex, England, claims to have the oldest school uniform that still exists. The school, founded in 1552, began the tradition because it took poor children and gave them clothes to wear. Today, uniforms can be a big expense. The Children’s Society charity found that families spent an average of £287 on primary and £422 a year on secondary school uniforms last year. What do you think? Should schools ditch uniforms? Yes – they are too…

After a nice long break over summer, lots of pupils around the UK are getting ready to go back to school. If you’re feeling a bit nervous, you’re not alone. David Clark is a headteacher at a school in Kent, England, which partners with children and young people’s mental health charity Place2Be. He told The Week Junior that he always gets nervous when he starts working at a new school but it is something he gets used to. The headteacher revealed that, just like for pupils, it can be challenging for teachers to get back into early mornings and term-time routines. Despite this, Clark enjoys the start of a new term. He said, “I like getting people back together again,” and added that he enjoys chatting to students about their…

It is one of the most famous birds ever to have lived but the dodo is still a bit of a mystery. It’s often portrayed as a heavy, slow and not very clever animal – in the 2002 film Ice Age, some very silly dodos fight over three watermelons – but a new research project is challenging this image. Scientists know the dodo was a flightless bird that lived on Mauritius, an island in the Indian Ocean (see panel). Little is known about dodos because they became extinct in the 17th century, before accurate modern methods for recording animals had been introduced. In the latest study, a research team looked through 400 years of writing on the dodo and analysed scientific collections around the UK. They concluded that the dodo…

Kris Kim has had an unusual summer. In May and June he was taking his GCSEs but he combined that with playing his first professional golf event in Texas, US. The 16-year-old from Surrey, England, got his results on 22 August, just a week before he took part in the British Masters competition. The competition “is an event I have grown up watching and to have the chance to play is a dream come true,” he said. His passion for golf comes from his mum, Ji-Hyun Suh, who was born in South Korea. She was an LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) player and now helps coach her son. “I probably first hit a golf ball when I was around five. I always used to watch [my mum] and ended up…

A new exhibition has opened at the Design Museum in London, exploring “the world’s most famous doll” – Barbie. The show, called Barbie®: The Exhibition, has been timed to mark Barbie’s 65th anniversary. Visitors can see the story of Barbie through the years, how the dolls were designed and how Barbie has influenced fashion and culture. The show has more than 250 objects dating back to 1959, including dresses, houses, vehicles and more than 180 dolls, with a chance to see rare and best-selling ones. The first thing visitors will see is “Number 1 Barbie” – the first model to be released by the Mattel toy company in 1959. Other special dolls on display include the popular Sunset Malibu Barbie from 1971 and Day to Night Barbie from 1985, where…

(Farshore) When Bao finds out the forest she loves is set to be destroyed and turned into a car park, she is determined to take a stand. With the help of her friends Tuva and Linnéa, Bao organises a protest. Abdi and the other boys at school take a bit more persuading – how can she help them understand why it’s so important to save the forest? What’s more, how can she make the adults around her really listen and understand the seriousness of the situation, when she’s only 12 years old? This lovely graphic novel, translated from Norwegian, celebrates the natural world. It’s also about friendship, standing up for what matters and the power everyone has to take action. At the back of the book you’ll find “Bao, Tuva…

This award celebrates the creativity and craft in books for younger children, where illustration plays a big part. The winner will combine pictures with words in an engaging tale that works well when read aloud. Amy Gets Eaten By Adam Kay. Illustrated by Henry Paker (Penguin Random House Children’s) This is the funny tale of Amy, a piece of sweetcorn making her way through a boy’s digestive system. This anatomically accurate adventure delivers lots of laughs and fascinating facts about digestion. GIGANTIC By Rob Biddulph (HarperCollins Children’s Books) This rhythmic and rhyming sea-life story features a very small and determined little whale who proves that size doesn’t matter when you have a big heart and great friends. Can I Come Too? By Owen Davey (Rocket Bird Books) Teddy is off…

Our cover star is a firm reader favourite, Sir David Attenborough, and he has been rewarded for his work for nature and The Wildlife Trusts (page 5). I love the wildlife-themed cake the team presented to him. We’ve got some wonderful animal stories in this issue too. On page 6 there is the happy story of Charlie the elephant, released at last and settling in with some wild elephant pals. Animal friends can’t get much closer than penguin pair Sphen and Magic (page 7). When Sphen died recently, Magic began to sing – and the other gentoo penguins joined in. Friendships are just as important to humans too (page 19). Schools in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are coming to the end of their summer break. Are you a bit…

Calling all young writers aged seven to 12. The Yorkshire Festival of Story’s children’s story competition is back, and this year’s theme is “Kindness”. Write and send a story of up to 500 words around kindness – it could be about a world without kindness, a kind person or anything your imagination can dream up. Prizes include book tokens, a tree planted in your name and a personal response from award-winning author Alex Falase-Koya, who is also a judge. The deadline for entries is on 29 September and you can find out how to enter at tinyurl.com/TWJ-settle…

Teacher’s name: Mrs Linnane School: Maltman’s Green School, Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire “Mrs Linnane has been the best teacher. She has helped me reach my full potential in mathematics, and I am SO much more confident. I have just finished my last year of primary school, and even though I’m a bit nervous for secondary school, I have no doubt that I will succeed in everything I do all thanks to Mrs Linnane. I will miss her very much.” Olivia 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…