Table of contents for 518 in The Week Junior

Inter Faith Week celebrates learning about other religions and traditions. What traditional food from your culture would you like to share with someone? Find out how knowing people of other faiths benefits everyone on page 21. The original Toy Story was released 30 years ago on 22 November. Who is your favourite character from the film and why? Learn all about the Toy Story films and what makes them so special on page 14. Twelve-year-old Ehsan creates videos for YouTube where he talks to interesting people. Who would you most like to interview? Read about some of Ehsan’s adventures on page 11. The big debate Is it ok to use Americanisms? Page 10.…

The world’s biggest climate change summit began in Belém, Brazil on 10 November. COP30 is a chance for world leaders to come together to discuss how to tackle climate change. Ahead of the event, Brazil’s president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva declared that, “COP30 will be the ‘COP of truth’. It will be the moment for world leaders to prove the seriousness of their commitment to the planet. ”Most of the world’s countries have signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. As part of this agreement, made in 1992, countries promised to avoid doing anything that could lead to dangerous climate change. On 6 and 7 November, a special meeting was attended by more than 40 leaders from around the world, including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. However,…

Earlier this month, the Government announced plans to update the national curriculum in England. The national curriculum outlines the subjects and topics that pupils at primary and secondary level should be taught, to ensure that students are learning the same things. What changes have been announced? The Government wants to update the curriculum to prepare children for the modern world (see panel). Primary school pupils will be taught important skills, including how to spot fake news or false information. They will also learn about the importance of money and how it works. To help young people succeed in technology careers, the Government hopes to introduce a new qualification for 16 to 18-year-olds focusing on artificial intelligence (AI). Around one in four children leave primary school without being able to read…

On 5 November, it was announced that the fen orchid is no longer considered threatened in Britain. Thanks to work by conservationists, such as restoring the kind of natural habitats where the plant thrives, the plant can now be found at seven places in England and threeplaces in Wales. It is no longer listed as threatened on the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland’s plant “red list”. The society’s Peter Stroh said the plant’s recovery was “excellent news”.…

In the UK and across the world, audiences watch lots of films, TV and music that are made in the US. They see films made by American studios; read books by American authors; and listen to podcasts with American presenters. It’s not really surprising, then, that Americanisms have crept into the way people talk in the UK, especially children, who often hear Americanisms in YouTube videos and on Netflix, for example. Out of 10,000 teachers recently surveyed for The Times newspaper, more than half of primary school teachers said they had heard pupils say “trash” and “garbage” instead of rubbish, and 65% had heard them say “candy” instead of sweets. Some people say this doesn’t matter, but others say it is a big deal. What do you think – is…

The leaves in hedgerows die back in November and the bright red and shiny berries of black bryony are suddenly revealed against dull, bare twigs. Black bryony is a climbing plant that grows at the edge of woods and in hedgerows, mainly in England and Wales. It twists as it climbs and its leaves are heart-shaped and glossy before they die back. The plant grows up to three metres high from a tuber, which is a kind of root that stores nutrients – potatoes are tubers. However, the black bryony’s tuber is very poisonous, just like its berries. In British folklore, black bryony was often called “womandrake”. It was considered the female version of mandrake, a plant with roots that can be shaped like a human, that featured in the…

Pets in England The RSPCA, an animal welfare charity, received a record number of reports of pets being abandoned in England last year. Firefighters have also received an increase in the number of animal rescue calls. Charities say this is happening because lots of people adopted animals during the Covid-19 pandemic. Since then, as basic items have got more expensive, people are finding it harder to afford the cost of keeping their pets.…

A new device could help people breathe if they are trapped under snow after an avalanche. Avalanches are when lots of ice, rock and snow falls down a mountain (see panel). They can be deadly – about 100 people in Europe die in avalanches every year. The danger is not just from being hit by all that snow; it’s the risk of being buried. People who are buried under snow often run out of oxygen. In fact, about two-thirds of people run out of air within 35 minutes. Researchers wanted to test how well a new device, called the Safeback SBX, could help people breathe under snow. Safeback SBX is a small battery-powered fan unit that is part of a backpack. The user wears it like a rucksack and if…

Khadija Shaw Shaw scored the winning goal for Manchester City as they beat Everton 2-1 in the Women’s Super League. City are top of the league. Australia men’s rugby league team On 8 November, they beat England by 30 points to eight. Australia won all three of their Ashes matches against England. Danni Wyatt-Hodge Wyatt-Hodge hit 90 runs as Hobart Hurricanes beat Sydney Thunder in the Women’s Big Bash cricket competition in Australia. US trampoline gymnastics team At the Trampoline Gymnastics World Championships in Pamplona, Spain, the US won the most medals – three gold, two silver and one bronze.…

Last November, the film Wicked took the world by storm. It broke records because so many people went to see it, and it won lots of awards – including several for costume design. The epic story concludes in the sequel, Wicked: For Good. Wicked is based on a hit stage musical (see panel), which is the story of two of the witches in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz: the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good. Before they were known by those names, they were just Elphaba and Glinda, two friends studying together at Shiz university. Glinda (played by Ariana Grande) is the most popular girl at university, but Elphaba (played by Cynthia Erivo) is misunderstood. After meeting the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their lives take…

Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking Available on Amazon Prime Hosts Oliver and James Phelps (the Weasley twins) return for series two of this magical baking competition. Watch as expert bakers make Harry Potter-inspired creations, at the studios near London where the actual films were made. Pokémon Horizons Series 3 – Rising Hope Available on BBC iPlayer In this series Liko, Roy and Dot are off on a new adventure, alongside Floragato, Crocalor and Captain Pikachu. They investigate a strange mist that is affecting Pokémon.…

Which story in Wild Journey is your favourite? This is not fair! It’s like choosing my favourite child – I can’t. Though I can say, I really enjoyed writing WOLF, because it was so different to anything I’ve written before. Have you visited the places these stories are set in? I’ve been to all of them in my dreams but only two in person. My friends who have visited them thought I’d been when I asked them to check details, which was a relief. What three things would you take to a deserted island? My children to keep me company (and because I love them), a notebook to write stories in inspired by the location, and an endless supply of sugary sweets. Yum! Do you have a favourite childhood memory?…

One of Kieran Larwood’s favourite fantasy books growing up was A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin, which was published in 1968. This novel is the first in the Earthsea Cycle series. It tells the story of Ged, a young boy known as Sparrowhawk, who discovers he has immense magical power and is sent to wizarding school. When he accidentally lets a dark magical beast loose, Ged must search within himself to stop it.…

Mummy pig’s clever escape The owner of Kew Little Pigs farm in Buckinghamshire, England, got a surprise when she discovered that a pig called Jilly and her 11 piglets had staged a daring escape. The mission was led by Jilly, who opened the gate of the pen herself before she led all 11 of her little piggies out. Their grand escape was captured on camera and the owner of Kew Little Pigs, Olivia Mikhail, said, “We were in stitches watching them exploring the farm like they owned the place”. After the excitement, Jilly and her piglets were returned to the safety of their pen. Chubby squirrels go for the win A squirrel called Chunkosaurus Rex was crowned the champion of the first Fat Squirrel Week. This is a new competition…

Name: Albi “I go to a school in Wales. The environment, community and health are important. Every first Friday of the month there is a bike bus, which is run by Sustrans charity. My school does the bike bus because it’s a lot of fun and good for you and the environment and brings us all together. We start from Thompson Park to school and about 200 children from nursery to Year 6 join in. My little brother learned to ride over the summer so he’ll join in next month’s bike bus. I enjoy the bike bus because it’s very, very fun and I love going on bike rides and it’s even more fun because my friends join in too! A few months ago I won a competition called “design…

If you love storytelling, this one’s for you! Create a story in any form – comic strip, poetry, animation, rap – with the theme of “home is where the heart is”. To take part, download an entry template and upload your creation at Stepping Into Stories’ website before the deadline on 24 January 2026. The winners will be announced at the Stepping Into Stories Kids’ Lit Fest in early February by Isadora Moon author Harriet Muncaster. Ask an adult to help you find out more and how to enter at steppingintostories.org/competition WIN A BADGE! 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…

“I had Catrina make-up done in the lead-up to the Day of the Dead celebrations in Oaxaca, Mexico.”Lyla “I made these tea bag paintings in half-term. They were really hard to make as they were quite easy to rip.” William “Deciding how we’re going to decorate our gingerbread mummies with Nugget the hamster.”Ruby and William “Me and my mum tried the gingerbread mummies recipe but used star shapes instead. We really enjoyed cooking and decorating them, everyone who tried them loved them.”Krish We’re proud to be plastic-free The Week Junior is delivered without a wrapper. This decision was made in response to requests from our readers who wanted us to reduce waste. Since removing the wrap in 2018 we have saved our planet from more than 20 tonnes of plastic…

1 When was the BBC founded? ☐ a) 1892 ☐ b) 1912 ☐ c) 1922 2 True or false? The homelessness charity Crisis has announced plans to buy housing for the first time. ☐ True ☐ False 3 Which country sent its youngest-ever astronaut into space? 4 Which of these words is an Americanism? ☐ a) Candy ☐ b) Rubbish ☐ c) Pavement 5 True or false? String theory is the scientific idea that the universe is made of tiny vibrating strings. ☐ True ☐ False 6 What is the name given to a scientist who studies glaciers and ice? 7 Who voiced the character of Woody in the film Toy Story? ☐ a) Tim Allen ☐ b) Tom Hanks ☐ c) John Ratzenberger 8 True or false? Snow avalanches…

As COP30 gets started in Brazil, people across the world are hoping that leaders can come to an agreement to protect our beautiful planet. You can read about who is there on page 5, alongside a story about the winners of this year’s Earthshot Prizes. One of the winners, the Friendship project in Bangladesh, is a lovely example of people working together to protect and strengthen their community. Community is also at the heart of our Wellbeing feature this week (page 21), about Inter Faith Week. We explore how getting to know neighbours and finding out about their beliefs and traditions not only builds a stronger society, it makes you kinder and more resilient. Being interested in others is the basis of being a journalist, and on page 11 we…

On 9 November, Tim Davie resigned (left his job) as director general of the BBC. The director general is the head of the BBC. On the same day, Deborah Turness, the head of BBC News, also resigned. Why did they resign? They resigned after a document sent to the BBC was seen and published by The Telegraph newspaper. The document was written by Michael Prescott, a former journalist who used to give advice to the BBC. In it, Prescott wrote about a number of concerns he had over the BBC’s fairness. One of them was about an episode of a programme called Panorama, which the BBC showed in 2024. Prescott said the episode presented Donald Trump in an unfair light. This included the way a speech that Trump gave in…

One of the changes being introduced is making citizenship lessons a requirement for all Year 1 to Year 6 pupils in England. In citizenship lessons, children learn about democracy (the UK’s political system, where people have a say in how the country is run), respecting other people and climate education. Lord Blunkett, from the Association for Citizenship Teaching charity, said the changes are “important and long-overdue”. He said, “If we want young people to play a full role in our democracy, then we must teach them clearly about how our political system works.”…

Twelve-year-old Ehsan Adouane makes videos for YouTube, a social media platform. On them he interviews interesting people and documents his own adventures. Ehsan began his YouTube channel as a way to combine three things he really enjoyed: performing, helping people and building things. “By interviewing people all around the world, I can see so many different cultures… so many different careers,” he told The Week Junior. On his channel, Ehsan shares his adventures, such as learning to cook a curry and skiing down mountains. He has interviewed people including a marine biologist and an astronaut. One of his favourite people to interview was Professor Jim Gates, a scientist and expert in string theory (the idea that the universe is made of tiny, vibrating strings). Ehsan says, “It really made me…

Over two months in 2022, the Hektoria glacier in Antarctica retreated (shrank) by just under five miles. This is almost 10 times faster than any glacier retreat ever recorded. Scientists have been puzzling over this, but they now think they have figured out why it happened. Glaciers are large areas of ice that move very slowly over land, formed by compressed snow that builds up over many years. They can grow bigger (advance) and smaller (retreat) over time. Glaciers cover about 10% of the Earth’s land area but scientists are worried that climate change is making them melt quickly. As they melt they release fresh water into the salty oceans and can make sea levels rise. Naomi Ochwat, a glaciologist (see panel), led a team to study the glacier’s retreat.…

A study carried out on chimpanzees has revealed they can change their minds when presented with new information. This provides evidence of “rationality” (the ability to form and change beliefs based on evidence). Traditionally, it was thought that humans were the only species that could do this. For the study in Uganda, Africa, researchers presented chimps with two boxes, one of which contained food. They gave the chimps evidence of which one held food. The chimps then chose the box they wanted. Afterwards, the researchers gave the chimps new evidence about which box contained food and asked them to try again. For example, in the first part of the experiment, the chimps couldn’t see inside either of the boxes, but one contained a piece of wood and the other a…

On 22 November, the film Toy Story is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The hugely successful film changed the world of animation and led to four sequels, including Toy Story 5, due out in 2026. What’s it all about? The film is set in a world where toys come to life when humans aren’t around. The main characters are Woody, a cowboy sheriff, and Buzz Lightyear, a space ranger, who are both owned by a child called Andy. Despite getting off to a rocky start when shiny new toy Buzz first comes to live with the other toys in Andy’s bedroom, the pair become best friends. Since then, the toys have gone on lots more adventures together. In Toy Story 2 the group had to rescue Woody from a toy collector.…

It’s the Journey Not the Destination by Carl Honoré. Illustrated by Kristen and Kevin Howdeshell (Magic Cat) Set off on 40 different “slow” adventures – by foot, bike, boat or train – in this illustrated non-fiction book. You’ll roam the rose city of Petra, follow the Great Stones Way and sail along the River Nile. Incredible Journeys by Levison Wood. Illustrated by Sam Brewster (Hachette Children’s) Join real-life explorer Levison Wood to embark on 20 epic expeditions. Follow along on journeys including medieval pilgrimages (long journeys with a religious aim) to the Holy Land; Nellie Bly’s trip around the world in 72 days; space missions to the Moon and daring voyages deep under the sea. Journeys of Empire by Sathnam Sanghera (Puffin Books) This book tells the story of the…

Name: Mia Once by Morris Gleitzman “Historic, humorous, engaging. This book makes you cry, then five seconds later it makes you laugh. It’s a wonderful book about the Second World War.” YOUR TURN Please email your book review to hello@theweekjunior.co.uk. If it is printed in the magazine you will receive a Roving Reporter badge. Describe your chosen book in three words, tell us what you liked about it and why you would recommend it to others. Don’t forget to include your name and address.*…

In the early 1990s, Japanese games developer Masahiro Sakurai was working on a platform game for Nintendo’s Game Boy console. He hadn’t yet designed the main hero, so used a ball-shaped blob as a temporary character to test out the levels he’d built. The more he worked, the more Sakurai liked the blob, so he kept it in the game – and Kirby was born. The cute pink ball has since appeared in more than 50 games, from platformers and puzzlers to pinball – and even the Super Smash Bros. fighting series. Kirby’s latest game is a racer: Kirby Air Riders. It’s different from a lot of other racing games, though; your vehicles move forward automatically, so all you have to do is focus on drifting (turning), timing speed boosts…

Wordsearch Can you find all the types of soup? They are hidden horizontally, vertically or diagonally and read forwards or backwards. BEAN BISQUE BROCCOLI CARROT CELERY CHICKEN CHOWDER CONSOMME FISH GAME GAZPACHO GUMBO LENTIL NOODLE OXTAIL PACKET PARSLEY PARSNIP SPINACH TOMATO Split words Join up pairs or groups of letters to find words about space travel. Number fit All of these numbers fit in the grid. Can you work out where they go? We’ve placed one to start you off. 3 numbers 297 381 648 840 965 4 numbers 1380 5230 8057 8682 5 numbers 65543 80127 99115 6 numbers 435713 555321 660089 7 numbers 1468532 2555633 8876404 8 numbers 57334463 86372170 96870573 9 numbers 133512017 303077320 458162740 Sudoku Place the numbers from 1 to 6 exactly once in each…

Teacher’s name: Mrs Gerrard School: Our Lady Catholic School, Hitchin, Hertfordshire “I would like to nominate Mrs Gerrard because she is loving and caring. Whenever we do something cheeky she doesn’t shout but says “Eh, no” because she is French. She always lets us pick our learning buddies and makes learning fun. I like that she lets us do show and tell, which means bringing in things or speaking about our experiences to share with the whole class. She is really good with foreign languages too.” Dante 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 JOKE OF THE WEEK What…

WHITE RHINOS A rare white rhino has been born at Cotswold Wildlife Park in Oxfordshire, England. The calf, named Markus, is the only one of his species to be born in the UK this year. He now takes the number of rhinos in their crash (the name for a group of rhinos) up to eight. JODRELL BANK A composer called Hannah Peel has created a special piece of music to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the Jodrell Bank observatory. The deep-space radio observatory, in Cheshire, England, helps scientists study the universe. Peel’s piece, which is called Pulsar, is inspired by the noises the telescope makes. A NEW ARCHBISHOP An event was held on 8 November in Newport, Wales, to celebrate the first female Archbishop of Wales being enthroned (formally welcomed)…

The charity Crisis has announced plans to buy housing in London and Newcastle for people and families experiencing homelessness. This is the first time in its history that the charity will own homes and rent them out to people. Crisis recently published a study that said nearly 300,000 families and individuals in England are experiencing “the worst forms of homelessness”. Matt Downie from Crisis said, “No one should be forced to live in unsafe conditions.”…

Scientists’ understanding of radioactive elements was completely changed by the work of Professor Darleane Hoffman. A radioactive element is a substance that gives off radiation, a type of energy that can be dangerous. Hoffman didn’t start out wanting to work in chemistry. When she first went to university she studied art – but she had to do a chemistry class. The teacher was so good she was inspired to study chemistry instead. Hoffman faced some difficulties because of her sex. When she was offered a job at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, US, she wasn’t allowed into the lab at first because she was a woman. That didn’t put her off and eventually she became the first female division leader at Los Alamos, setting an example for lots…

The Marine Conservation Society says there have been three times as many sightings of frilly-mouthed jellyfish – also known as barrel jellyfish – around the UK and Ireland as last year. This could be linked to warmer ocean temperatures. If you see one, don’t touch it because they sting. • LIFESPAN: 12–18 months. • HABITAT: Southern and western coasts of the UK. • SIZE: Up to 1.5 metres long. • DIET: Plankton (tiny sea creatures). • FUN FACT: Jellyfish are composed of 95% water and don’t have brains, hearts or lungs.…

England, Spain and the US have enjoyed success at senior women’s international football tournaments in recent years. At the Under-17 Women’s World Cup, though, North Korea is the country with an impressive record. On 8 November, the Asian nation won the competition for young players for the second year in a row and the fourth time in total. No other team has won the Under-17 Women’s World Cup as many times. The tournament was organised by FIFA, which runs the world’s biggest football events, and was held in Morocco. It started on 17 October and 24 countries took part, including Colombia, France, China, Italy and New Zealand. The teams were placed in six groups of four and each team played the other three in their group. The countries that performed…

The first images from a new musical about Paddington Bear have been revealed. Inspired by the children’s books by Michael Bond, Paddington The Musical tells the story of the marmalade-loving bear who travels to London from Peru and finds a home with the Brown family. This new show has been a long time coming. The team began working on ideas for the musical nearly 10 years ago, shortly after the first Paddington movie was released in cinemas. Music for the show has been created by McFly star and children’s author Tom Fletcher, and performers James Hameed and Arti Shah will bring Paddington to life on stage. Hameed will provide his voice from off stage, while Shah will be on-stage playing the famous bear. Paddington The Musical opened this month at…

Fantasy author Kieran Larwood’s Dungeon Runners: Hero Trial won the Younger Fiction category at this year’s The Week Junior Book Awards. The book is about Kit, a gnorf (part gnome, part dwarf) who has always wanted to be a Dungeon Runner. When a spot opens up for a new team in the Dungeon Running League, Kit takes on the challenge with his friends Sandy and Thorn. On their adventure, they’ll have to face mazes, puzzles, monsters and treasure. Larwood, who also wrote The World of Podkin One-Ear series, fell in love with fantasy after reading J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit as a child. When Tolkien built his fantasy world, Middle-earth, he drew maps to help him picture it. Larwood tells The Week Junior that he uses the same technique for his…

Cleaning the bathroom is one of those household chores that needs doing regularly. After all, it’s a busy room and it sees a lot of soap, toothpaste and splashes. If you’re new to cleaning, bathrooms are a good place to start because they are usually one of the smaller rooms in the house and they contain less clutter, so they’re easier to tackle. Before you start, ask an adult for advice on what needs doing and how they like to do it. That’s because everyone does things differently. Some people use different cleaning products and different cloths for certain areas. Gather everything you need and then follow the four steps below. What you need • Rubber gloves • Dust cloth • Wet cloths or sponges • Bathroom cleaning products •…