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rInside Victoria Park
Prima y Academy
Summer Edition 2015
Hot air balloon at school! Around the world in 80 days!
Read about our new
Changemaker Party -
THE ACHIEVERS!
Humphrey the Camel returns! Read about our Smethwick Spice
Walk!
PLUS Life After SATs, all new interviews, and we say a sad
goodbye to Year 6!
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Around the
World in 80 Days
Around the
World in 80 Days
Around the
World in 80 Days
1
VPAs 3rd Birthday Celebration
VPAs 3rd Birthday Celebration
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We came back to school at the beginning of June after our May
half term holiday. It was a normal school day, but our teachers
came onto the playground to meet us all dressed up. We couldnt
understand it, as we hadnt been told that it was a special day! Mrs
Peart was dressed as a Native American Indian and Miss Fowler was
dressed as the Empire State Building (how odd I thought to myself)
Mr Atkinson was wearing an American football outfit and Miss
Thompson was dressed as a cheerleader! All the staff members were
dressed up in different types of fancy dress!
We went in for registration and we were told that we were
attending a special assembly conducted by Mrs Dhesi. When we
arrived in the hall, we noticed that Mrs Dhesi was dressed in a
traditional Asian suit. She began to talk to us about British
Values when all of a sudden a man burst through the back doors he
was shouting someones name. He informed us that his name was
Phileas Fogg and he was looking for his companion and his suitcase
as he had so many things that he had acquired from all around the
world, but these had all mysteriously gone missing.
When we went back to our classroom we were informed that we
would be travelling around 7 continents of the world and later that
day we would be meeting Phileas Fogg and speaking to him in more
depth.
Each year group had been given a continent to decorate their
classroom in. We took part in many different activities which were
themed in our various continents Year 6 had the Americas to focus
on now, it made sense why our teachers were dressed up as they
were! We had lots of fun in our classrooms taking part in the
different activities that our teachers had planned for us to do
researching the countries that made up the Americas, food tasting
of
popular American food and drinks, puzzles and designing our own
totem poles. Later on that day we went to meet Mr Fogg. We found
one of the missing objects which was a dream catcher. We told Mr
Fogg what we had found, he told us more about himself and that he
had travelled around the world in a hot air balloon in 80 days.
We were meant to have a ride in a real life hot air balloon, but
due to poor weather conditions this had to be cancelled. We were
somewhat disappointed, but it didnt really matter as there was so
much to see and do! The following day we got the opportunity to
visit all of the other classes to see how they had decorated their
classrooms in their continents. Reception was Antarctica, Year 1
Europe France, Year 2 was Asia, Year 3 transformed into Africa,
Year 4 emerged into The Amazon and South America focusing on Brazil
and Year 5 was Australia and New Zealand. We looked at their
displays, resources and information. Some classes had prepared
exciting activities for us to take part in while other classes had
things for us to watch or listen to. We had to pick up a lot of
information on our journey as we needed to fill in our special
PASSPORT covering our experiences.
Finally a week or so later, we got to actually go up in a real
life HOT AIR BALLOON. It was situated on our school field. The sun
was shining and it was shocking to see how big the whole thing was.
Mrs Peart waited with us as we edged closer to taking our turn.
Sabrina, Nicole and I went up with Mrs Peart. It was scary at the
start but it very soon turned into a fabulous experience which was
so much fun! You could see over the tree tops and the houses.
This was the most wonderful experience ever.
By Armaan Ashfaq Class 6F
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Life After
SATs!
Life After SATs - Islamic Exhibition
On the 10th June, Year 6 went to the Islamic Exhibition Centre
in Small Heath Birmingham. The purpose was to learn all about Islam
and Islamic culture and faith. This was to help us to gain as much
information as possible to put together our own Islamic exhibition
to share with students at our sister school Rowley Park
Academy.
Once we reached the exhibition hall we sat down and a lady
showed us a video about the exhibition and what sections we would
be visiting. There were 5 sections in total. First we went into the
family section where we learnt about Muslim families and their
values and principles. The lady told us that they had a surprise
for us. The surprise was that we could dress up in traditional
Muslim dress. It was really cool!
Next we went into the Science of Islam section. Here we were
taught about great scientists who were Muslims. Then, we went into
the Prophets section where we learnt about all of the different
Muslim prophets these were: Adam, Abraham, Noah and Moses to name
but a few.
All in all, we had a fantastic day and learned many new things
about Islam that would help us with presenting our exhibition. We
put a lot of work into researching information and preparing the
resources for our own Islamic Exhibition. We used various
artefacts, drawings, paintings, models, leaflets and posters, Power
Point presentations, quizzes and goody bags!
The day of our visit to Rowley Park had arrived and we travelled
to Stafford ready to meet the children and staff there. We set up
our exhibitions and spoke to different classes of children and
teachers. The pupils at Rowley were very friendly and seemed very
interested and responsive to what we had to tell them and show
them. We had lunch and went to socialise with pupils in the
afternoon before we left.
It was good getting to know new people and sharing all we had
learnt about the Islamic faith!
Thank you Rowley Park Academy for making us feel so welcome.
By Sara Saeed Class 6F
Life After SATs - Cinema and Bowling Trip
On Wednesday 20th May, the whole of Year 6 went on a trip to the
Cinema and Bowlplex Arcade at Castlegate Dudley; this was to
congratulate us on our efforts towards our recently completed SATs
tests.
Firstly, we began our jazzy journey to get to the cinema. If you
are wondering why it was jazzy, it is because the driver had played
several nineties songs as we made our way to where we were going!
Once some of us had arrived at the cinema, we purchased our
over-priced refreshments, we took some selfies on the iPads and
made our way to the screen which was showing our film. The film
which had scored the most votes from the year group was, Spongebob
Squarepants the Movie: Sponge Out Of Water; I have to say, this
actually surprised me as I began to watch it! I had thought that
the film was going to be like the programme of Spongebob. However,
it was quite different. It was funny and entertaining. It ended
with an amazing rap from the future dolphin, Bubbles.
After watching the film, we made our way to the Bowlplex Arcade.
Here, I was totally astounded by an abundance of arcade machines
and games. I played lots of games, including: car racing, claw
machine, dance battle, basketball toss. I gained 846 tickets which
I exchanged for items from the gift shop at the end of the day.
Next, we went over to the bowling lanes. None of my group won
the bowling overall because we didnt have enough time to finish all
of our rounds as Mrs Peart, Miss Fowler and other people from our
team ended up taking each others goes, as a few of us needed to
exchange our tokens for prizes.
Sadly, before long, it was time to make our way back to school.
This time, the driver played more recent music, much to my
dismay!
All in all, I had a fantastic day with my friends and teachers.
It was well worth the wait!
Thank you, teachers!
By Nicole Eccles Class 6F
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SATs!
VPAs Changemaker Achievers PartyIn May our school elected their
own Changemaker Party to represent the children when making
decisions about the school. The various parties put their
manifestos together and during an assembly pitched their policies
to everyone. The whole school voted for the party that they thought
would best
represent the school
Q1) Why did you choose the name THE ACHIEVERS? A1) We chose the
name because anything we put our minds to do, we always make sure
we achieve it; so the idea just popped in to one of our heads
Q2) What makes you think that you will be the best party to
represent our school?A2) We are confident that we will be good team
players, we have had lots of practise using our collaborating
skills. We are ready to listen to what the pupils want and we will
do what we can to get things done!
Q3) How did you choose the ideas for your manifesto?A3) We
thought about what ideas people would be interested in voting for.
We were keen to attract as many voters as possible. We needed to
think tactically!
Q4) What is the first project that The Achievers will be working
on?
A4) Firstly we will start off with some of the easier ideas like
simple fundraising events and non-school uniform days.
Q5) How did your meeting go with the schools senior leadership
team?A5) We havent actually met with them yet, we will need to
arrange a meeting soon! Members of The Achievers Party are:
Lorenzo Cooper Freeman 5EDanish Ali Aziz 5BAmaan Khalid
5BMohamed Saif-Ulaah Farid 5BLecharn Shani Heath 5ERemar Farrell
5ESonia Kaur Gill 5ELenka Lazakova 5EAaliyah Downie 5EMohammed Issa
Khan 5E
Interview compiled and conducted by Armaan Ashfaq Class 6F
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BALLOT STREET SPICE WALK
On Thursday 18th June, VPAs Spice Ambassadors and certain
members of staff went on a trip around school and the local area
with Humphrey the Camel. The aim was to draw peoples attention to a
camel walking around Smethwick, thus encouraging them to enquire
what was happening?
Our aim was to promote our Ballot Street Spice products: Mrs
Mahals Masala, our new tea spice blend and Ballot Street Spice
aprons and mugs. We wanted to speak to members of the general
public to see if they used spices in their cooking, if they had any
family spice recipes that they could share with us or if they had
any interesting spice stories that they wanted to let us know
about.
Just before Humphrey arrived, the Spice Ambassadors met up in
the meeting room to have a briefing with Mr Clitheroe he was
dressed in a very funny red chili outfit; in-keeping with our
theme! We were issued
with iPads so that we could record our interviews.
Eventually, Humphrey arrived! We met Mr Morrish and Mrs Dhesi
outside in our Great Garden area. We took photographs with the BBC
News camera men and they were interviewing Mrs Mahal and various
other people. Parents began to arrive and sat on the benches
listening to speeches and interviews. We took more pictures and
then we began to make our way walking the streets of Smethwick on
our incredible Spice journey!
We walked along to where ASDA is situated; the BBC camera men
were running about looking for any opportunity to film us. It was
exceptionally exciting as who wouldnt enjoy grabbing the medias
attention?
Once we arrived outside ASDA, many members of the local
community stopped and stared; as they could barely believe
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their eyes we had to admit, it was a very peculiar sight having
a spicy camel standing right in-front of ASDA shopping centre. We
began asking members of the public questions about their spicy
experiences.
Hours and hours flew by, however it did not feel like it. We
hadnt noticed that the whole morning had flown by! We were treated
to lunch at ASDA. Once we had finished eating, we made our way to
Charles Pearson Court, Sheltered Housing Accommodation in Ballot
Street. We began asking the residents how they were introduced to
spice and they shared many historical stories and events with
us.
One of the residents shared a birthday on the day we visited, so
we all sang Happy Birthday to her. She gave us all hugs as we had
sung beautifully! The photographer then took photos of us with the
camel and the residents together.
We had posed for a special photograph on the corner of Ballot
Street next to the road sign itself; Mrs Dhesi (Headteacher) and Mr
Wynne (Deputy Headteacher) were both with us. We had experienced an
incredible day of fun and communication. It was now time for us to
head back to school. The fun and work was over (for now) and
Humphrey had to leave us. There was a lot of work still left to do
to promote all of Ballot Street Spices work, but that would all be
left until another day!
You can see all the work the Spice Ambassadors have been
involved in on our website, along with our merchandise which can be
purchased. There is a special preview of our snazzy new song/rap
which was written and performed entirely by the Spice Ambassadors -
log on to www.ballotstreet.co.uk
By Jaskirat Kaur Class 6A
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Reception Visit Telford WonderlandBoth Reception classes went to
Telford Wonderland at the beginning of June this visit was part of
their NICER Challenge about making the forest magical. Kaleem and
Zarah from RH and Beatrice and Kiana from RM shared their memories
of the trip with us
Reception Visit Bayton Primary C of E School and Ninevah Ridge
FarmRecently both Reception classes went to visit another Reception
class at Bayton Primary School in Kidderminster. The school is
closely situated to a childrens farm. Iqra Zaheer and Emre Umur
from RH told us all about their adventure
Q1. What animals did you see at the farm?A1. Pony, pig, duck and
horse.
Q2. What was your favourite animal at the farm? Why?A2. I liked
the pony it seemed gentle Iqra I liked the horse it was big -
Emre
Q3. What did you do at the school?A3. I took pictures and
pointed at the places where the pictures were taken - Iqra I talked
to the teachers and children from the school - Emre
Q4. Describe your visit in one word.A4. Amazing Iqra Surprising
- Emre
Q5. Did you learn anything on your trip? If so, what?A5. The
horses had to stay in the stables at night Iqra Ducks swim in the
pond - Emre
Q6. What was your favourite part of the day? Why?A6. My
favourite part of the day was going to the farm because there were
ponies there Iqra My favourite part was going to the school because
there was lots of things to do there Emre
Interview compiled and conducted by Armaan Ashfaq and Nicole
Eccles Class 6F
Q1) What did you do at Telford Wonderland?A1) We went on really
fun rides. We walked around the wonderland and we went in a maze.
We also saw a giant- it was the biggest giant in town and it could
speak!
Q2) What different things did you see?A2) We saw a giant! Lots
of nursery rhyme and story characters.
Q3) What was your favorite part?A3) Our favorite parts were when
we went on the rides. It was so much fun! I liked it when we went
digging in the seven dwarfs mine.
Q4) Did you meet any characters?A4) We met Little Red Riding
Hood, The Three Little Pigs, Humpty Dumpty and so many more.
Q5) What fun rides did you go on? A5) We went on the spinning
rides and the tea pot rides they were great fun!
Q6) Did you find anything interesting on your trip?A6) Yes, the
giant. He was huge! Taller than the highest building!
Interview compiled and conducted by Rupinder Kaur and Jaskirat
Kaur Class 6A
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Q1.What did you learn while you were taking part in your
pedestrian training?A1. I learned what to do when I was out and
about on busy roads and how to cross the road safely.
Q2.How do you cross the road safely?A2.First, you look left and
then right and then left again. You need to look and listen all the
time you cross the road.
Q3.What was your favourite part of the training? Why?A3. My
favourite bit was when we were learning how to deal with cars that
are in the way of us seeing the road clearly, because it is
important
to be able to cross safely in traffic.
Q4. What is the most important thing you learned while crossing
the road?A4.Looking left and right at all times and being safe.
Q5.Did you find it useful? Why?A5.Yes, because it will help me
in the future.
Q6.Do you feel confident in crossing the road?A6.Sometimes, as
it is so dangerous. I must make sure I always cross with an
adult.
Interview compiled and conducted by Sara Saeed Class 6F
Year 1 Visit to Weston-super-MareYear 1 visited
Weston-super-Mare as part of their NICER Challenge Pack back in
May. They had a great time and this is what Khyanna Grey from 1H
remembered from her visit
Year 1 - Child Pedestrian TrainingThe children in Year 1
recently took part in Child Pedestrian Training to help them to be
more aware of traffic and hazards on the streets around us This is
what Awwal Adigun from 1H told me
Q1. What was your best moment at the beach?A1. Eating the
ice-cream which we all had.
Q2. What did you do at the beach?A2. We played games with our
friends, went for a ride on a donkey and made sandcastles.
Q3. Did you see any animals? A3. Only donkeys and seagulls.
Q4. Can you describe how the beach looked?A4. The sand was
yellow and wet and the sea was blue, the sun shone for a bit
too.
Q5.How was your ride on the donkey? Did you like it?A5. Yes I
really liked it because it was bumpy.
Q6. How could you describe your day?A6. Amazing and nice.
Interview complied and conducted by Nicole Eccles and Sara Saeed
Class 6F
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Year 4 Birmingham Think Tank InterviewYear 4 visited The Think
Tank as part of their NICER Challenge Pack Crazy Contraptions.
Caroline Smith and Esra Umar Class 4J told me about their day
Q1. What did you learn at the Think Tank museum?A1. We learnt of
an easy way to make slime. We also learnt how to control robots and
different moving objects.
Q2. Would you recommend this venue to other people?A2. Yes. The
reason being is that we were fascinated by all of the inventions
that we saw. We had lots of fun and there were lots of things to
see and do.
Q3. Would you like to work at a museum like this when you grow
up? What are the reasons for your answer?A3. Yes and no. Yes,
because wed get the opportunity to learn more and no, due to the
fact that some things seemed very complicated to operate and to
understand.
Q4. What was your favourite part of the trip? Why?A4. Science
activities, because we got to wear cool clothes and everything we
took part in was so much fun!
Q5. If you could describe this trip in one word what would it
be?A5. Fascinating!
Q6. What was the one thing that you learned while you were there
that sticks in your mind?A6. We learned that there is a chemical
called Barox and what it is used for.
Interview compiled and conducted by Armaan Ashfaq Class 6F
Q1. When you went to Twycross Zoo, what animals did you see?A1.
Penguins, Monkeys, Meer Kats, Tortoises,
Zebras, Elephants, Giraffes and many more.
Q2. What was your favourite animal there? Why?
A2. The Monkeys because they were bouncing
around everywhere and the Meer Kats because
they were always following us around.
Q3. Did you learn anything at Twycross Zoo? If
so, what did you learn?A3. That most of the animals have come
from
other parts of the world.
Q4. Would you like to work at a zoo? If yes,
why? If no, why not?A4. No because the zoo smells of the
animals
business and some animals are vicious and
fierce.
Q5. Would you recommend that others attend this zoo? Why? A5.
Yes because it is a good experience and you
will learn a lot of new things.
Q6. Did any of the animals that you saw do anything funny? If
so, what?A6. The Monkeys were eating their fleas, the
Meer Kats were trying to get out of their cage and
one of the Giraffes passed wind and then did a
number two in front of everyone!
Interview compiled and conducted by
Armaan Ashfaq and Nicole Eccles Class 6F
Year 3 Visit to Twycross ZooYear 3 visited Twycross Zoo as the
end of their NICER Challenge Dinosaur Stomp comes to an end.
Tychique Otette and Shakayra Heath both from Class 3F told us a bit
about their visit
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Q1. How has your life changed since you became a Headteacher?
A1. It has changed for me because I have to manage the whole school
now, not just a small group of people.
Q2. What has been your most embarrassing moment as a Headteacher
so far? A2. I havent had one so far however, a long time ago I was
writing on the black board and then I turned around. At this point
all of the writing went on the back of my top!
Q3. Do you prefer working in a classroom environment or in your
new Headteachers office? A3. I like my office, but I love the
classroom more; as the children are always buzzing.
Q4. If you could change one thing about your job as Headteacher
what would it be? Why? A4. I would change the frequency of my
meetings as there are so many and I seem to be having them all of
the time.
Q5. What is your biggest accomplishment as a Headteacher so far?
A5. Travelling to Sweden for a conference to talk about VPPA as
there were many different schools there from all over Europe.
Q6. Do you enjoy being the Head of our school? A6. I enjoy the
fact that I get to see what the whole school is up to. I also get
to make decisions that will have a positive effect on the
children.
Q7. How do you think the school has changed since you became our
Headteacher? A7. I think there is more focus on the spices now than
before.
Q8. If you could describe your life as Headteacher in one word,
what would it be? A8. INCREDIBILE!
Interview compiled and conducted by Armaan Ashfaq Class 6F
Q1) Why did you go to the National Space Centre? A1) We went to
the Space Centre in Leicester as it
was part of our NICER Challenge Pack How can we
design an App about Space? We went to explore
and learn more about space.
Q2) What did you see there? A2) There were so many things that
we saw but
to name a few: we loved the moon rock, we saw a
colossal model of a rocket; with another rocket that
you could talk into a communicator and what you
said could be heard from inside the rocket - how
cool is that?!
Q3) What was your favorite part of the day? Why? A3) There was a
cinema inside the actual Space
Centre. That was our favorite part. It was great to
be inside it. It was 3D and a first time experience
for us. You could look all around the cinema as
there were special screens everywhere. Wherever
you looked, there was a photograph - It was
amazing!
Q4) When you got there, what were your first
thoughts? A4) At first, we thought it was going to be quite
boring. However, towards the end we had to admit
it was fantastic!
Q5) In one word describe your day and the experience. A5)
Amazing!
Interview compiled and conducted by Jaskirat Kaur
and Rupinder Kaur Class 6A
Year 5 Visit The National Space Centre in LeicesterAs part of
their NICER Challenge Pack Year 5 travelled to Leicester to visit
the National Space Centre. Sonia Gill and Lecharn Heath from Class
5E told us what they got up to
Teacher Interview Mrs Dhesi - Life as a Headteacher Mrs Dhesi
took over the headship of VPPA in September 2014. Her first
academic year in charge of our school has almost come to an end -
lets see how she has enjoyed her new role
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GOODBYE YEAR 6S!To end this issue we say a sad goodbye to our
brilliant Year 6s. Here is
a selections of their best, worst and funniest moments from
their time at
VPA. Good luck in the future Year 6, we will miss you!
I dont really have a worst memory of school, but if I had to
choose one it would have to be, when I had to stay off school for
around 6 weeks as I needed to have a life-saving operation. It was
a scary time to say the least, it was also a time when I
encountered a lot of pain. When I
eventually returned to school, surprisingly, I was actually glad
to be back!
During my primary school life, I have had many funny memories. I
cant really think of one off of the top of my head because there
are often times when we always say and do silly things that make us
laugh for ages-sometimes making us cry with laughter!
Its hard to choose one best memory, as again, I have several
best memories. I suppose, thinking about it, my best memory is that
of my friends; including all the hilarious times we have had
together! My friends have played a vital part in my life so far. I
am SURE I will NEVER forget them!
To all of my friends, I wish you all the best while you are at
Secondary School and for all the years to come.
By Nicole Eccles Class 6F
My best moments are when I am able to play with my friends and
have fun I have made some fantastic friends while Ive been at VPA
and I will never forget my time here!My funniest moment has to be
when I was in Reception Class and I had really convinced myself
that I could perform magic!My worst moment was when I broke my foot
as I was in a lot of pain and I had to have some time off
school.
By Sara Saeed Class 6F
My best moment at VPA was when I became a member of VP Zine; as
I had wanted to be a part of the team for a
long, long time! I had desperately wanted to be a member of,
what seemed, an amazing team. To be able to contribute
to the whole magazine by writing articles and illustrating
texts. Once Mrs Peart and Miss Akhtar had offered me a
place, I became so excited and I was not disappointed as I have
loved being a part of this fabulous team!
My worst moment is hard to think of as I have had a splendid
time at this school! I guess, thinking about it, Ive been most sad
when my best friend has become upset. On the few occasions this has
happened, Ive been upset too.
My funniest moment in this school would be when my friend was
competing against someone else in a number
bonds challenge. It was towards the end of the school day and
her opponent answered the question much more
quickly than shed anticipated. My friend just stood there in
shock and answered Uh, YEAH! and then quickly walked
to her seat in a very embarrassed state!
By Rupinder Kaur Class 6A
I remember when we had the Bogdans come crashing into our
school, when a witch came out of a blue door with a moon on it in
the playground. Its things like that which are all GREAT memories
that I will keep safe! Being with all these fantastic, hard-working
teachers throughout all my years of being here is definitely one of
the best moments ever. They are, quite honestly, the best teachers
alive!
My worst moments have been when I go in to clumsy mode and hit
and trip over EVERYTHING! Ive had some real bad knocks - Ive
grazed my knees, hit my arm and so many other injuries! Im
grateful to the dinner staff and the first aiders for helping
and
looking after me.
My funniest moment. Well, there have been so many one that
sticks in my mind is one that makes me really laugh and I know Ill
look
back on it when Im older. Its the time when Jamie from 6A jumped
on my back and literally made me trip over and fall. To add insult
to injury it was on my birthday! It was so funny that I will never
forget
it. I remember laughing hysterically after it had happened!
Im so happy that I came to this school and that Ive been able to
meet all these wonderful teachers and that Ive made some
fantastic
friends throughout my primary school years.
By Jaskirat Kaur Class 6A
While at Victoria Park Academy I have had many memorable
moments; my worst memory was when I got into trouble in year 4 at
dinnertime. I was
screaming and laughing at the dinner lady; I was then told to
stand by the wall for time out for the first time ever!
My best moment was when I found out that I had got Mrs Peart
teaching us in Year 6 and when I met Miss Fowler for the first
time.
My funniest moment was when I was in Year 1 A girl named Polade
(who has sadly left now) chased everyone in the playground with her
shoe in her
hand, this was for no reason at all!
By Armaan Ashfaq Class 6F
For extra articles, artwork and more go to
vpzinextra.wordpress.com