Our Experiences With the French Spelling Bee

Me (Izzy), Ben and Eva have qualified for the regional round of the French Spelling Bee. This round will take place at Newcastle University in May with other schools from all around the North-East.

Personally, I feel that the bee is a good chance for us to represent the school and, although I am a bit nervous for the next round, I’m excited too! We are all hoping to go to the national finals. I try to practise as much as I can, but since I love French and learning languages as a whole, it’s not so much of a chore!

Here are some questions for Ben:

1. Q) Do you feel that the spelling bee is a great opportunity for you?

1. Yes, definitely.

1. Q) Are you looking forward to the next round?

1. Yes, but I’m nervous as I’ll be in front of others this time.

1. Q) Are you aiming for the national finals?

1. Yes.

1. Q) How often do you practise?

1. At least twice a week, but I’ll prepare more as the event draws nearer.

1. Q) Do you enjoy French outside of the spelling bee?

1. Yes, especially the songs – they help my memory. It’s great to learn another language; it’s a very useful skill!

Here are Eva’s responses to the same questions:

1. Q) Do you feel that the spelling bee is a great opportunity for you?

1. Yes.

1. Q) Are you looking forward to the next round?

1. Yeah, I’m really nervous but really excited too!

1. Q) Are you aiming for the national finals?

1. Yes.

1. Q) How often do you practise?

1. Not that much now, but after my piano exam, I’ll practise as much as I can.

1. Q) Do you enjoy French outside of the spelling bee?

1. Yes, I do.

By Izzy, Y7

Cancer is a broad term for a collection of diseases caused when an oddly behaving cell starts to mutate and grow out of control. Families across the world are devastated by this disease, which is why scientist and biologists at The Save Our Seas Foundation Shark Research Centre at Nova Southeastern University in Florida have been working hard to discover a cure.

They have realised that a shark genome (a complete set of DNA) can heal and repair quicker than any human genome, and sharks have evolved to live lives because they have alway been near the top of the food chain.

Scientists will expose the mice to carcinogens, substances which can cause cancers in living tissue, before trialling it on humans, but  if it works, the shark DNA could be spliced into human DNA.

Michel Stanhope, co-author of the study, emphasizes that it will take years to turn these genes into a cancer cure for humans. Even so, he says, “I hope that people recognize the remarkable biological adaptation of these animals.”

By Freya and Eva, Year 7

In Arts Award we have been designing the back drop for the show (on image).

School of Rock is this year’s summer show. It is a big project which includes Chantry and Newminster choir as well as some teachers. Some of the teachers we interviewed Miss Larsen, Mr Storey and Mr Todd who have  worked together to make the whole show.

We asked some of the teachers involved some questions and here is what we found out…

What role do you play?

Mr Todd: Ned

Miss Larsen: Summer’s Mum

Mr Story: Dewey Finn

Do you like the idea of co-operating with the students?

Mr Todd: Yes

Miss Larsen: Yes

Mr Storey: Yeah it’s been really good fun so far. I love how talented all of the musicians in our school ( and Newminster ) are.

What is your favourite part?

Mr Todd: The Choir.

Miss Larsen: Everyone coming together and performing, singing and dancing.

Mr Storey: Dewey Finn. He’s a bit of a douchebag who gets a job in a school. The kids and Dewey form a band and get up to all sorts of mayhem.

What is your favorite song?

Mr Todd: ‘ If only you would listen’.

Mss Larsen: ‘ You’re in the band’.

Mr Storey: ‘You’re in the band’ is a great song where the pupils learn how to play electric guitars and drums. It also has a stage dive for me!!!  

By Ellie & Imogen, Year 8

The North East Teenage Book Awards (NETBA) takes place on  11th March. It’s an annual event where children in Year 7 and above are encouraged to read five books from a long list of recent books.

Once each student involved in NETBA has read the five books, they will vote on whose book they enjoyed most. The results are kept a secret until the night it takes place at the Centre for Life in Newcastle upon Tyne.

This year NETBA are celebrating its 20th year running. The organization running the event say, “We pride ourselves on talent spotting in the NE and try hard to uncover new authors and powerful, life-changing stories.”

We interviewed Mrs Inverarity, Chantry and Newminster Middle School’s Librarian:

How long have you been attending the North East Teenage Book Awards?

I’ve been doing the awards since 2007 – quite a while back.

How do you feel the students can benefit from the awards?

The awards exposes students to a whole variety of genres and styles, whilst writing their own reviews they must consider their responses and listen to others. They have to really think – you won’t enjoy every book, but you will be taken out of your ‘comfort zone’, which will broaden your horizons and give you a good early start to high school examinations. In addition to this, they have to reflect on some of the powerful issues raised in the books, which all has a positive impact.

Finally, do you feel like the shortlist of books this year has a good variety of material for our teenage readers?

There was a good variety of material. Did I like all the books, no.

We also interviewed Mrs Dunphy, SENCO at Chantry Middle School who is participating on 11th March:

How long have you attended the awards?

This is my first year taking part – but I have attended (the sister award), NEBA, 2 previous times.

As an English teacher yourself, do you see any benefit for students taking part?

Yes, I do. There is such a wide range of books – books that students would not usually read, and is really giving them a broad range of opportunities.

Do you feel like NETBA is an important event for students?

Of course it is. From everything such as book club, where students can informally discuss with their peers their opinion – to stretching their minds on reviews.

To finish off, what do you enjoy most about these types of events?

The enthusiasm our students show for reading! They are dedicated and pleased to be able to meet the authors of some of their favorite books.

The books in the shortlist are:

By Amy and Ethan, Year 7

According to the BBC, the government has suggested a two hour break from screen-based activities. 

(Image provided by Getty images)

As this image shows, children are using technology at the dinner table, which the has government advised against. It is found that 43% of the 7,000 parents across Europe that were surveyed were concerned that gadgets such as phones mean children don’t get enough sleep. The BBC did a survey proving that children crave screen time more than sweets and other sugary products! British children are now more likely to be looking at a screen than play outside!

But maybe we’re looking at it the wrong way. When children are on screens, they are less likely to fight with siblings etc, and cause less trouble for parents or carers. Also, a phone acts as a tool for communicating with friends and family. Occasionally, it could encourage learning, using websites like mangahigh, mathletics, purple mash and sumdog.

Overall we think that children should be allowed screen time but the amount of time that kids spend on their devices, especially when it comes to dinner and bedtime should be restricted.

By Ben and Jack, Year 7

Today we visited Chantry Middle’s music teacher, Mr Todd, who is currently standing in for  Mrs Wilson. We asked for his opinion on the extra curriculum ensembles. Our ensembles include Percussion band, Jazz band, Ceilidh band, Choir and various paid ensembles, such as Steel Pans. Steel Pans originate from Trinidad and Tobago, they are traditionally made from old oil drums.  In Jazz band, they play instruments such as the saxophone, clarinet, drums etc. In Ceilidh band they play Northumbrian pipes, penny whistles, keyboards and more. Percussion band play drums and the choir sing songs. We asked some students about their ensembles…

First we interviewed Izzy about her time in Jazz band:

Do you take part in any musical ensembles?

I take part in the Jazz band and I play the clarinet.

Do you enjoy it?

Yes, I do enjoy it.

Does the band influence you outside of school?

We haven’t had a concert yet, but we have an upcoming event in April.

If you could join any other ensemble group, what would you join and why?

Probably the choir if I had Mondays free.

Sophie then interviewed fellow Steel Pan players, Gabrielle and Emily:

Do you enjoy your ensemble opportunities?

Yes we both enjoy Steel Pans.

Do your lessons influence you outside of school?

We take part in Wansbeck every year, it’s a local competition we compete in.

Would you consider taking part in any other music groups?

No.

Next we interviewed Katie and Eva in the choir:

Do rehearsals affect your home life?

Eva – Yes because in School of Rock Katie’s a dancer and I am Summer, so I have to learn my lines and she has to practice the dance outside of school.

Finally, would you join/ rejoin any other ensembles?

Eva – I would rejoin Jazz band because I used to play the cornet but I quit.

Katie – I would rejoin Percussion band because at the time I had an ear infection and it was really loud in there, but it was really fun.

By Eva and Sophie, Year 7

Researches from an animal behaviour clinic at Lincoln University have carried out tests on 3,300 human and animals’ personalities and have returned with astonishing results: cats replicate the personality of their owners!

For example, if an owner was moody or aggressive, the cat would likely to be a cross kitty (much like the famous Grumpy Cat)! On the contrary, if the owner was a lively, pleasant and upbeat, the cat would most likely be the same.

The scientists split the cats into two groups (both of which received perfect care). The first group was kept indoors close to their owners, and the second group was kept both indoors and outdoors, and were kept outside overnight.

The results showed that the first group that was kept inside, adapted similar eating, sleeping and activity patterns to their owners, while the second group became nocturnal and behaved more like a feral farm cat.

Giuseppe Piccone indicated that human and cat obesity in the same household could be linked to these kind of results. Jane Brunt, DVM and executive director of CATalyst Council says, “Cats are intelligent animals with a long memory,” and believes that cats can not only learn from us, but we can learn from them.

By Eva, Year 7