Redhill's Remarkable Roald Dahl Day

And it really was remarkable! From the moment I saw an oompa loompa crossing the road, which is not an everyday sight.

The whole of junior school got into the Roald Dahl Day with gusto, oompfh, and Gadzook-oids of enthusiasm. Classes were inventing new rooms for Wonka's chocolate factory, making up brand new types of chocolate (and from the sounds of it, tasting a fair bit too...), writing news reports about naughty new characters, painting, writing, drawing, colouring...

PLUS...

Making up a brand new poem about the man himself. Many thanks to Grandpa Jo (otherwise known as Mr Padgett) and Year 4P, who were amazing, awesome, and flabbertastic, to say the least.

Here it is...

The Amazing Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl is epic

Roald Dahl is ace

Roald Dahl’s books are

Better than Space!

Roald D! Roald D!

Best author in history

            Roald D! Roald D!

          Best author in history

                        Roald D! Roald D!

                Best author in history!

Roald Dahl is awesome

Roald Dahl is cool

We read his books

Every day in school

Roald D! Roald D!

Best author in history

            Roald D! Roald D!

          Best author in history

                        Roald D! Roald D!

                Best author in history!

BUT...

That was not all...

They decided to be even more brilltastic after break, and make up a totally new Oompa Loompa song about Mike TeaVee. Here it is (hum along to the Oompa Loompa songs from the film (the ORIGINAL, not the ghastly Johnny Depp one))...

Don’t Turn Out Like Mike Teavee

Oompa Loompa Doopedy Doo

We’ve got another puzzle for you

Oompa Loompa Doopedy Dee

Don’t spend your life in front of TV

What do you get watching too much TV?

A brain that’s the size of a bumble bee

Sitting in front of the TV all day

You’ll find you start to waste away

You’ll end up with a sweaty bum

No good crying for your mum

Oompa Loompa Doopedy Doo

We’ve got something better for you

Oompa Loompa Doopedy Dee

Come and read a book with me

Books give you lots of imagination

Chock full of awesome information

Read a good book and get a good job

Too much TV turns you into a slob

Listen carefully to me

Don’t turn out like Mike Teavee

Oompa Loompa Doopedy Doo

That’s all we have got for you

Doopedy Do!

Thanks to everyone at Redhill for a great day full of fun. Thanks also for the last minute Mike Teavee costume for me (phew!) and for the AMAZING homemade cheesecake. I was channelling my inner Augustus Gloop around mid morning break...!!!

See you all in January.

Je m'appelle Safa

What a great day I've just had at St Stephen's C of E Primary school in Bradford. I was invited in to work with them as part of the Arts Partnership scheme at Tong High School. I worked with lower KS2 in the morning, and then upper KS2 in the afternoon, teaching them how to perform poetry. What I hadn't bargained for, was that they would end up writing a poem each and performing that at the end of the day! As they barged in to the library after break, they were all chatting away saying 'Je m'appelle...'. I explained that it would be helpful to say their name after that, seeing as how it's the French for 'My name is...'. One girl piped up 'Je m'appelle Safa.' It wasn't long before that had turned into...

Je m’appelle…

Je m’appelle Safa

Je m’appelle Safa

Je m’appelle Safa

And I like to have a laugha

With a smile on my face

In such a cool place

It’s called School

Cool School

School’s cool

It’s called School!

Je m’appelle Imama

Je m’appelle Imama

Je m’appelle Imama

And I like to read with mama

With a smile on my face

In such a cool place

It’s called School

Cool School

School’s cool!

It’s called School!

Je m’appelle Keith

Je m’appelle Keith

Je m’appelle Keith

With a set of gleaming teeth

With a smile on my face

In such a cool place

It’s called School

Cool School

School’s cool

It’s called School!

Je m’appelle Con

Je m’appelle Con

Je m’appelle Con

And I like to sing this song

With a smile on my face

In such a cool place

It’s called School

Cool School

School’s cool

It’s called School!

What a great poem, and, as is often the case with poems, even better when you see it performed. The chorus with the Cool School bit was directly influenced by the wonderful Mrs Borscherd (try and pronounce that - I couldn't!), who is a bit of a poetry genius, it turns out. 

The older group wanted to make up their own poem, using a spoonerism. As we'd spoonerised Mr Timms that morning, turning him into Tister Mimms, we used that as a starting point. I wasn't sure we were going to manage to get a poem out of it, but the children made sure we did. Here it is...

Poor Old Tister Mimms

Tister Mimms, Tister Mimms

Eating food from all the bins

Sandwich crusts and mouldy cakes

Goodness how his tummy aches

Tister Mimms, Tister Mimms

Eating food from all the bins

Rotten grapefruit, teacher’s socks

Dried up bits of chicken pox

Tister Mimms, Tister Mimms

Eating food from all the bins

Mouldy old banana peel

How’d you think that made him feel?

SERY VICK!

Blaaaarrrgghhhh!!!

 

Fantastic! And the children's enthusiasm for pretending to be violently ill at the end of the poem drew a large round of applause from their peers who were watching all this. 

Well done to everyone who took part today - you certainly put a smile on MY face!