Header by Isabelle Preston

Edition 91 Team B

th

December 12 2015

Founded by Ben Owen 2011

The Best Night of the Year!

Editorial

by Tabitha Huby

Ho! Ho! Ho! And welcome to another issue

of Totally Tockington, the paper written BY
students FOR students! Its nearly Christmas
and I am so excited, are you? Im sure you
are! Advent calendars and Christmas trees,
are you getting into the Christmas spirit yet?

One clear night,

Christmas Eve in fact,
The moon shone bright,
And I waved to the man.

Anyway, in this paper we have loads of

Christmassy things including: Harry Bs
AMAZING handmade Christmas tree, Tobys
reindeer facts, Lilys festive pets, Harry Hs
candy canes and much more!

The children asleep,

Dreaming of gifts,
Hoping and hoping,
That their stockings arent missed.

Enjoy!

And here I am,

About to fly,
With a sleigh full of presents,
I wave goodbye.

Tabitha Huby
Editor Team B

I fly over England,

Italy and Spain,
And I keep on flying,
Whether in wind, snow or rain.
Beginning with the west,
Working towards the east,
All these mince pies,
It feels like a feast.
Finally its over,
Lets all give a cheer,
To the brilliant Santa,
On the best night of the year!

This sculpture was installed in Melbourne, Australia

in 2004. See how warm and sunny it is! Miss Roberts
will be returning to Australia this Christmas. We all
hope she has a safe journey and we thank her for all
the friendship, warmth and songs she brought to us!
1

Festive Outfits for your Pet!

by Lily Edwards
Want to dress your animals up this Christmas? Well, hopefully this will give you an idea of some
festive outfits for your pet. Personally I think that it is a bit mean to dress up your pets because I dont
think they like it very much but of course you might think that that isnt true and your pet might love it!
Ive taken some photos of some of my animals (who dont mind it VERY much) with some festive hats
on for a great competition below. And Ive also taken some photos of other clothes that Ive seen in
some shops. This might give you some inspiration!

However you dress your pet this Christmas, I think the only outfit they need is a big cuddle from you
and some extra turkey on Christmas day! All of my animals will certainly get that plus some clean
hay and a lot of extra treats! I wish all animals everywhere, wherever or whatever they might be, a
very happy Christmas free from pain and cruelty and with a lot of love.
I also have a GREAT competition for you! See if you can do a caption for each photo. Then hand it in
to Me or Ms Case and you might win some SWEETS!!!!
My name is:
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2

How Different Countries

Celebrate Christmas

Editor-in-Chiefs Comment

This weeks theme is Christmas, so I am to talk to

you about how different countries celebrate this
special time of year.

Everyone loves presents, right? Who doesnt?

We wake up super early then go down to the
glowing Christmas tree, riding on a wave of
presents. Presents are great and we really
enjoy them but just think about something for a
moment. In some parts of the world, children
and adults dont get anything for Christmas, and
surely Christmas should be shared with
everyone around the world? Yes, they may
have the Christmas feeling, but they dont
receive any gifts at all.

Christmas

United Kingdom
We all know this one; we put out our Christmas
trees and leave out our stockings, waiting for
Santa to fill them.
Japan
Instead of having the traditional Christmas dinner,
these guys go to KFC to get their dinner!!

So, whilst you open your presents this

Christmas, make sure to think about how lucky
you are.

Venezuela
Strangely, in the capital city, Caracas, they
celebrate Christmas by closing down all streets in
the city so people can go to church - on rollerskates.

Have a great Christmas, everyone!

Alex Jacobi

Adoration of the Shepherds by Gerard

van Honthorst

Australia
In Australia, they celebrate Christmas in the
summer, so no wonder they have BBQs and
Kangaroos in their Christmas traditions.
Apparently, the Aussies believe Santa has 6
White Boomers (Or Kangaroos!) and rides on a
surfboard.
Spain
In Spain, humour carries on, as children believe in
Caga Tio which means Pooping Log!. So the
Spanish children feed the log in hope that it will
grow bigger. Then on Christmas Day, they sing
around it to help it defecate presents.

Adoration of the Shepherds by Gerard van

Honthorst what a beautiful painting look at
how the light shines from the baby Jesus onto
Marys face and see how happy everyone
looks! We hope your Christmas is as happy!

So I hope you learned about how five different

countries celebrate that very special time of year.
Which tradition would you like to celebrate?

From the Totally Tockington Teams.

The Different Colours of Santa

All about Candy Canes

by Henry Packham

by Harry Huby

When I think of Santa Claus, I always think of

him as a jolly old fellow in a red suit, but Ive also
seen pictures of him in different coloured clothes
and this got me thinking about why this might be.
So I decided to find out!

This week I am doing a very exciting article.

You will learn what ingredients go into candy
canes; how many are made every year; what
colours they come in; and how big the biggest
candy cane is.

Santas red clothes probably come from the

story of Saint Nicholas, who often wore red
robes. He was a very kind man who gave
presents to children and the poor. I like to think
Santa copied him!

What ingredients go into candy canes:

Usually candy canes are peppermint flavour
and decorated with red stripes. They are
stretched and curved to look like a walking
stick.

Some people think that the picture of Santa in a

red and white suit and hat was because of a
Coca Cola advert. Red and white are Coca
Colas colours and Santa was used in their
adverts for a very long time from the 1930s.

How many are made every year:

Over 1.76 billion candy canes are made each
year.
What colours candy canes come in:

The Normans brought Santa to Britain, but there

was a much earlier British story of King Winter or
King Frost who wore a long green robe with holly
or mistletoe and who brought happiness during
the winter. So this might be why some Santas
are shown wearing green clothes.

They are normally red and white but sometimes

red, white and green.
Biggest candy cane:
The biggest candy cane ever made was 51 feet
long. Wow that is long, I wonder how long it
took them to eat it!

The Vikings also had a legend of Jul who was a

form of the God Odin. He had a white beard and
blue robes and rode on an eight-legged
horse. He gave presents to the good and
punished the bad.

Thank you very much for reading I have really

enjoyed learning all about candy canes and I
hope you have as well.

If you have been good, you might get a chance

to see him on Christmas Eve so you will be able
to see what colour his clothes are for yourself!

Drawn by Isabelle Preston

What do you like about Christmas?

Name

Favourite thing about

Christmas?

What dont you like about

Christmas?

Jacob

Presents

Sister annoying me

William

Toys

Getting other people presents

Jai

Eating mince pies

Ryan

Mince pies and sugar mice

Having my birthday so close to

Christmas
Buying Christmas presents

Mr Spencer

Christmas Dinner

Weather

Mrs Pritchard

The build up to Christmas

Lots to do

Mr Symonds

Tidy house

Decorations

Miss Fox

Everything

Nothing

Logan

Spending time with my

family

Nothing

The Countdown to Christmas

by Jenna Saluja

Tick tock. Tick tock,

Went the old grand clock.
Christmas is coming,
But its only 3 oclock!

Presents
by William Sheppard
For this issue of Totally Tockington I thought
I would interview a few people to find out
what their favourite Christmas presents are.
Here are a variety of people I spoke to.

As the girl stood,

In her sparkly blue dress,
She hoped for it to snow,
But this wasnt addressed.

Tabitha Huby year 7 - ipad

Carmen Rey-Jones year 6 - ipad mini

Tick tock. Tick tock,

Went the old grand clock;
Christmas is coming,
But its only 6 oclock!

Jonathan Baguley year 7- scooter

Ellie Parker year 8- hamster
Ceredig Jones year 7- ipad mini

As the day got colder,

The girl walked to the shops;
She wore her red woollen mittens
And her red, copper top.

Me year 7- Xbox
Ms.Case- wellington boots
James Allen year 7- Bike

Tick tock. Tick tock,

Went the old grand clock.
Christmas is coming,
But its only 11 oclock!

Georgina Loring year 7- iPod

Anya C year 7- Harry Potter stuff
Harry Mather year 5- Wii console

In the morning
The girl jumped up in relief,
She rushed to her mum
And smiled at her in disbelief.

Mr Symonds- Bike
Poppy Sheppard year 2- Kindle fire HD 7
My mum (age - she wont tell me) - cabbage
patch doll

Tick tock. Tick tock,

Went the old grand clock.
Christmas is here,
A nd now we stop the clock!

Mrs Pritchard - the Christmas tree smell, the

first mince pie and the first Christmas song.
My Nan A pair of Levi Jeans
Do you notice how many modern day
children put electrical devices like ipads? If
these questions were asked a few years ago
a lot of the answers would probably be very
different.

Why do we eat Turkey for

Christmas?

What a Christmas is like for a

Dog

by Jai Patel

by Talia Curtis

Turkeys have been around for 10 million years and

there are fossils to prove it. They originate from
Mexico, and not Turkey.

Everyone enjoys Christmas, even dogs.

Some dogs even have Christmas jumpers
and Christmas hats and lots more props.

American Indians hunted wild Turkey as early as

1000 AD for food and used their feathers for arrows
and ceremonial dress.
The spurs on the Turkey legs were used to make
the arrowheads.

Some dogs are well behaved with Christmas

trees but some are not! Some dogs are very
naughty and chew or bite the tree, which
does not end up well for either the tree or
the dog.

Turkeys were first brought to England in 1526 by

William Strickland, a Yorkshireman, who sold them
in Bristol for two pence ! These Turkeys had bronze
feathers but since 1957, they have all been bred to
have white feathers.
Henry VIII was the first King to enjoy eating Turkey,
but it was Edward VII who made it popular to eat it
at Christmas. Before this time the Royal Family
used to eat Goose or Peacock.
Turkeys were expensive and in 1930 it cost a
weeks wage to buy one. Until 1950 they could only
be afforded by wealthy people. Today it costs about
two hours of work!
Did you know that female Turkeys are called hens,
male Turkeys are stags, and baby Turkeys are
called poults until they are five weeks old?

I think every dog enjoys Christmas because

they get so see lots of people and get lots of
attention. But bones and chocolate and lots
of other things are bad for them and can
make them seriously unwell. Thats why
people need to be careful.
7

Reindeer
by Toby Gaulton
Everyone knows about Santas reindeer-Rudolf, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and
Blitzen but do you know the real side of reindeer?

The History of Reindeer

You, the reader, would think that reindeer were first from the Arctic (Alaska, Greenland and Canada) but
actually theyre not. They actually originated from Europe. So in fact, the first reindeer lived quite close to where
we live.

A Eurasian reindeer

Reindeer Hunting
Reindeer hunting in Greenland is a big sport. People hunt reindeer in Greenland for food, clothing from their big
coats, and people use their antlers in medicine and they can make weapons from their bone and antlers.
It makes me really sad that people hunt these lovely animals but people dont think reindeer are going to die out
soon.

Reindeer hunting strategies

People have been hunting reindeer for centuries but over time reindeer hunting strategies have changed. The
only one that used to work was this.
People used to use bows and arrows or crossbows and used to circle a reindeer and give it only one route to
escape- down in to a pit. Normally the reindeer would just escape but if they got the reindeer down in the pit
they would shoot it.

Reindeer today
Reindeer get hunted by animals too and these are the animals they get hunted by: Golden Eagles. They prey on
calves. Wolverines prey on calves, birthing cows or sick adults. Brown bear and Polar bear hunt reindeer of all
ages but try to take down weaker reindeer. Healthy reindeer can easily outpace a bear. The grey wolf is the
most effective hunter. They can take down fully-grown adults. The grey wolf takes more reindeer down in winter
than any other reindeer- hunting animal all year round.

Reindeer article continued

Some packs of wolf or a single bear will hunt the same herd of reindeer for a whole year. As carrion reindeer
are fed on by foxes, hawks and ravens. Blood sucking insects like the Black fly and mosquito are a plaque to
reindeer. This is worse in summer. An adult reindeer can lose 1 litre of blood every week to blood sucking
insects such as mosquito and black fly.

Diet
Reindeer have four chambered stomachs. That means they can chew their food four times. Reindeer are
mammals. They eat lichens (a slow growing plant with a hard leaf), grass, reindeer moss, sedges,
willow and birch leaves.

Lichens

I hope you have enjoyed my article on reindeer and here are some fun facts
Reindeer can swim at 6.5 kilometres an hour.
They can run at 37-50 miles per hour.
They weigh 160-180 kilograms.
They are 85-150 cm from hoof to shoulder.
Their tail length is 14-20 cm.
Reindeer can live to 10-18 years old.

William Bate
designed this
yummy
Selection Box
what would you
have in a
selection box of
your making?

10

CHRISTMAS IS COMING
By Carmen Rey-Jones
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Find the words on your left in this fiendish

Christmas Wordsearch it will keep you
busy for hours!! If you finish it, why dont
you hand it in to Carmen and she might be
persuaded to give you a prize!

Dont forget to put your name on the

entry!
_________________________________

11

Christmas Facts
by James Packham
There are loads of facts about Christmas, but here are just a few of them

1) The name Christmas comes from the mass of Christ. A mass service where Christians
remember that Jesus died for us and then rose again.
2) We celebrate it on the 25th December to remember the birth of Jesus, but we didnt start
celebrating until the year 440 AD. Thats a lot of birthdays to miss out on!
3) Mince pies should only be eaten between Christmas Eve and the 12 th Night and one should
be eaten every day for good luck.
4) The traditional Christmas meal before turkey was mustard and a pigs head. Yuck!
5) For every Christmas tree harvested, 2-3 seedlings are planted in its place.
6) In 1950 the tallest Christmas tree was placed in Washington Mall, USA. It was 221 feet
high!
7) The worlds biggest snowman was 113 feet high.
8) The Christmas wreath is usually made of holly. The red berries symbolize the blood of
Jesus and the spiky leaves are the crown of thorns that Jesus was made to wear.
9) Santa has different names in different countries. In Germany they call him Kris Kringle; in
Italy they call him Le Befana; in France they call him Pere Noel.
10) Santa has nine reindeer. Can you name them all? The answers are on page 14.

12

Look what Harry Bloomfield made with his dad!! What an amazing
wall decoration. This is what Mr Bloomfield says about this great
Christmas project Harry helped make this Christmas tree, we
LooLoo

collected the sticks (getting them to dry out caused a bit of a

delay). I helped cut them to length. Once we had tied them
Harry chose decorations to hang on it. Great fun little craft
project. Why not try it yourselves? I know I will! Ms Case
13

Pupils Favourite Part of Christmas Dinner

by Jonathan Baguley

Answers to James question about Santas reindeer how many did you get?
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Dunder (also called Donder or Donner), Blixem (also called Blitzen
or Blixen), and last but not least, Rudolph!

14

We wondered what Father

Christmas Toy Factory actually
does look like what do you think?
Drawn by Isabelle Preston

Snow Farm

This is what
Billy will
make, if the
snow starts
to fall at
Christmas.
We printed
this last
week but it
didnt come
out very
well, so
here it is
again! What
will you
make?

Billy Rowe

15

Design a Bauble Competition

By Elizabeth Allan Jones
Example 1

Example 2

Why not have a go at designing a bauble? Ive done some examples but now its time for you to have a go. Dont
forget the winner will get a prize! Put your full name down below and give it to one of the editors. Have fun!
.

16

Can you guess who is in disguise in our Christmas line-up?

By Carmen Rey-Jones

17