Last week, I went to Mr Dad’s shop. We had very special guests from Lithuania eating in at the shop. I decided to help out by serving food and cleaning the tables. Since I was working hard (maybe…), one of the guests gave me my first £5 tip. After I received that tip, I thought to myself “If I put it in my piggybank, it’s going to stay there forever and it won’t grow! So, if I was to use it to build the foundation of my very own business, it would have been used for a good cause!’
After a short period of brainstorming, Mrs Mom and I finally found the perfect thing to do. It was my PawsomePreneur Project, it was…Pawsome Crisps! With a little help from my PAWSOME family, I managed to put all the little pieces together and finally launch my product! And only three days after launching day, I have already sold nearly twenty packets of crisps, thanks to the support of the localists!
My Pawsome Crisps are Peri Peri flavoured and they are simply irresistible! They’re crunchy, tempting and they’ve got quite a kick! The peri peri spices sprinkled over them give them a burnt orange colour and they smell PAWSOME! Even if you’re not a big fan of spicy food, you will surely fall in love with these delicious bites!
If any of you would like to try a pack of Pawsome Crisps, they are in store at Tip Top Bearwood, only £1 each! They are also available to order via Instagram, Facebook or Twitter and they will be delivered to you. I will also be running my own booth at the Shireland Hall Summer Fair which will be selling Pawsome Crisps too. Always keep a sharp eye out for Pawsome Crisps!
Last but not least, I think that you should purchase my product because part of the profit that I earn from the crisps will be used for my own charity project. I will use it to buy food and distribute it to homeless people who are out on the streets. Most of us just pass by the people sitting on the sidewalk and don’t even notice them or feel pity for them. Well, my charity project will make sure that they feel wanted in this world and provide them with enough food. I’m not just saying that you all should buy it for no reason, I’m saying it so that TOGETHER WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD!
I hope you will all support me and try my Pawsome Crisps. I would really appreciate it if you would. Till we meet again!
p/s: Please kindly follow my Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for regular updates on my latest charity project! 😉
As most of you know, the school year is coming to end and the summer holidays are slowly approaching. Everyone’s waving goodbye to their teachers and classes and are anxiously waiting to meet their new class teachers when the three weeks of ‘transition’ come. Transition is a period of time when children can get to know their new teachers and classes.
It’s time to bid farewell to Hazel and greet my new Year 5 class which is Oak! My new teacher will be Miss Parker and the LSP (teaching assistant) is Mr Johnson. Miss Parker will be our teacher for the three weeks of transition only as a new teacher will be appointed in September. I can’t wait to meet her/him! Hopefully they’re just like Miss Javed!
Wednesday was Parent’s Day at SHP, the day everyone received their yearly reports. As usual, everyone was nervous about the grades that they would get-especially me! There was a tense atmosphere when my family and I entered the classroom. We were all waiting for the moment when Miss Javed handed over my report for the year…
Then, the results were revealed! My report was…OUTSTANDING!!!! WAHEY!! My grades in Literacy, Maths, Science, R.E (Religious Education), Learning Together and P.E were superlative! I really need to thank God that everything in my report was great! This achievement is not mine to claim! It belongs to everyone, my family, friends, teachers and all you PAWSOME peeps because everyone has been supporting me all along and helped me to gain this achievement!
Of course, my report wouldn’t have been outstanding without the hard work of all the PAWSOME people in my life! I would like to thank each and every one of them!
Thank you God for making this possible!
Thank you Mrs Mom and Mr Dad for supporting me throughout my journey from Moseley (old school) to SHP!
Thank you Little Miss Diva and Baby A for being the cutest brother and sister in the whole wide world!
Thank you Dr Auntie for motivating me to do my best!
Thank you Mr OCD Uncle for being such an inspirational uncle to me!
Thank you Dadajee and Khun Yai Thi Rak Khong Phom for always building up my ideas!
Thank you Miss Javed and Miss Hussain for being the greatest teachers I have ever met!
Thank you Hazel class for always standing by my side!
Thank you SHP for building me up from who I was in Moseley to who I am today!
Last but not least, I would like to thank all of my family and friends, my blog readers, all of my supporters on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for always supporting and encouraging me!
I am not sharing my results so I can brag about it or anything like that, I am sharing them because I am hoping that I can inspire more people and show them that hard work really does pay off and if we work as one, TOGETHER WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD! And don’t just do it for yourself:
Do it for God, who gave you a life, because He wants you to make a good use out of this precious dowry.
Do it for your mother, who carried you in her womb for nine months and brought you into this world, so you can make her proud.
Do it for your father, who works hard every day to ensure that you live a good life, so you can return the favour.
Do it for your teachers, who get through the headaches to make sure you have a high-level education, so you can thank them sincerely.
Do it for your brothers and sisters, who look up to you all the time, so you can become a perfect role model.
Do it for your friends, who stick with you in times of sorrow, so you can all succeed together.
Do it for the unfortunate people in this world, who manage to live in hunger and pain, so they can have a brighter future.
Do it for everyone, so TOGETHER WE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD!
To end this emotional (😪) post, I would like to write a goodbye poem dedicated to Miss Javed and Miss Hussain!
A Sad Adios…
By The Pawsome Lion
You guided us through right from the start,
You loved us all with all your heart
You told us not to work for naught,
You taught us things that meant a lot
You never left us all alone
You made sure we didn’t break our bones
And though we’ve had our smiles and frowns,
We’ve turned the frowns upside down
That’s why I’m saying a sad adios
To two of my favourite amigos!
p/s: Adios Miss Javed and Miss Hussain! I wish you all the best for next year!
Wagwan pawsome peeps! Hope you’re doing well! As you all know, the Easter holidays have come to an end and it’s the start of a new school term. Since I haven’t written about school for quite a while now, I have decided to write a quick update about what’s going on at school.
As usual, I couldn’t wait to meet my PAWSOME Hazel class again on the first day back. Everyone was in a cheerful mood, especially the ROARSOME duo, Miss Javed and Miss Hussain!
Since it was the start of a new term, we would be starting a new topic. Our topic for this term is all about Natural Disasters. This topic is jam-packed with lots of fun things to learn such as why earthquakes happen, what makes volcanos erupt, how tsunamis form and much more. And, we made great, enormous volcanos out of ordinary plastic bottles that were put on display. Some children also drew life-like pictures of natural disasters. From what I have seen, I guarantee that everyone will enjoy learning about this topic!
Then, on Thursday, something special happened at school. It was…Arts Day! Arts Day is a day that is dedicated to art and design. Each Arts Day has a different theme each year. The theme for this Arts Day was portraits! As usual, there was task for us to complete. We had to create a portrait, collage or sculpture of someone who inspires us the most. Being the typical me, I’m always ready to take on the challenge! So, I made piece of artwork with both me and Mr Dad in it. As part of the artwork, I also created a quote related to father and son. It was:
“My father is the greatest father anyone could have. He gives me love, guidance and he always believes in me.
But the best gift he gave me was teaching me how to spread my wings and fly!”
By: The Pawsome Lion
Thursday 21st April 2016
I presented my artwork in a HUGE frame that looked like a film strip. And like I always say, even if I don’t win, I still tried my best! As a treat, a graffiti artist came visited us and explained to us what graffiti is! He also wrote the school’s initials in graffiti style writing and showed us some of the techniques that are used in graffiti art. The finishing product looked AA-mazing! The graffiti art was going to be in the middle of our arts display once the portraits that we made at school were finished.
Each year group was also asked to wear a certain colour on that day. This was all part of a school arts piece that we made. Year 4 was asked to wear a blue shirt or dress. Miss Javed and Miss Hussain were both wearing blue tops, blue trousers and even blue hair extensions! For once, they actually looked like twins! When all of the year groups were sitting together, the colours of our clothes made a magnificent rainbow if it was seen from above. Some of the teachers took photos of us and we all can’t wait to see them!
Me and Nimat have also started our very own Handwriting Club! Our aim is to help children develop their handwriting so they have a better chance of earning a pen licence in the future. There are currently 5 children attending the club. From time to time, we also ask some other children to help us run the Handwriting Club because these children can be a handful (if you know what I mean)! At the moment, the club is for Year 2 children and is held three times a week. The club has been going on for more than two months now. We are also hoping to open up to other year groups over time.
There is also some other news that I would like to share with you guys. I have finally got a place in Drama Club! As the name states, this is a club where we act out plays and movies. It is run by Mr Ball, a class teacher in Year 5. The play that we are currently practising is called A Midsummer Night’s Dream written by the well-known William Shakespeare. Surprisingly, I got the lead male role called Lysander! As a coincidence, Nimat is also in Drama Club! She plays the role of the Fairy. Rehearsals are held every Monday after school and Thursday at lunchtime. The actual play will be held in June and we are all very excited about it.
Last but not least, I would like to welcome a new student that has recently joined us. His name is Furqan! It has been around two weeks since he started at our school and has settled in really well. Welcome to Shireland Hall Primary Academy, Furqan! I hope you enjoy your time with us!
I’m afraid that I’ll have to end the post here, guys. But, keep your eyes peeled for the next update about another special day that I’ll be writing shortly! Till we meet again, ciao everybody!
P/S: I’m feeling a bit under the weather so it looks like no school for The Pawsome Lion tomorrow, which is like the end of the world for me!
Hey pawsome peeps! I know that I said that I won’t be posting anything for a few days but I just realised that it’s already been a month since I have started blogging (Whew, time goes so fast, doesn’t it?).
I can still remember sitting down with Mrs Mom brainstorming the identity for my new project as if it was only yesterday! After that, we both went through the registration for my own email account, this blog, my own Facebook page, Twitter and also Instagram. I know it’s only been a month but my schedule has changed a lot since I started blogging. To be fair, not only mine, but also Mrs Mom’s, Little Miss Diva’s and Baby A’s too! The level of commitment was so high but I didn’t mind it at all because I’ve witnessed how much time Mrs Mom had sacrificed for me. Mr Dad has also contributed a lot to help make this happen! Thinking of all those sacrifices that were made, I promise myself that I will work harder to drive my blog along the road to success!
So far, I’ve written 26 posts since 2nd November. Wow!!! That’s a lot for 29 days. I should give myself a pat on my back. 🙂 I hope that I can always maintain this level of commitment. Up until now, there were 788 visitors and 2,700 views on my blog. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I checked the statistics on my blog last night! I found out that there are visitors from 15 different countries which have visited my blog till date. They are from:
United Kingdom
Malaysia
Poland
Singapore
United States
Qatar
Bulgaria
Hong Kong SAR China
Indonesia
Australia
Netherlands
Japan
Thailand
Italy
Germany
SONY DSC
Thank you note with smiley face , isolated on white
Now, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have visited my blog and read my pieces of work. I might not know all of you but I can assure you that I am so grateful and honoured to know that people from different parts of the world have spared their precious time to read my humble blog. It’s the greatest feeling that anyone can have!
I would especially like to thank Mr Dad for always believing in me and also to Mrs Mom for all her continuous support and hard work juggling around the house to help make my dreams come true! And how could I ever forget my biggest fans, Little Miss Diva and Baby A! They have been loyal readers of my blog. Every morning, Mrs Mom has to read out my blog to both of them while they sit quietly listening to the posts until she finishes. Little Miss Diva also enjoys looking at all those pictures. It was definitely worth every single bit of effort that I’ve made.
Lots of thank you’s also go to my mentor, Dr. Auntie, who has given me lots of feedback on my writing. Another thank you to Mr OCD Uncle who has always motivated me to do more in life! And of course my next thank you goes to my best buddy, Dadajee (my grandpa)! No one could have supported me the way you did, Dada!! The next people in the line would be Khun Yai Thi Rak Khong Phom (my beloved grandma), my Auntie Kawaii and family, plus my Uncle Pawsome and family for the greatest support ever!!!
Not to forget all the support from Mr Dad’s side of the family too! Thank you Atuk (my paternal grandpa), Anek (my paternal grandma), my uncles, aunties and cousins for your kind support. I really appreciate it!
This next special thank you is dedicated to someone close to my heart, Unclejee. Thank you for all those time you spared to read my writing. Thank you for all those comments you’ve made.Thank you for all the encouragement, positive feedback, text messages and a gazillion other things. Words can’t express how much I appreciate it. Even though we’ve never met, it seems like we’ve got a very strong connection with each other.
Last but not least, I would like to thank my siblings in Hazel. You have been so supportive and also loyal readers of my blog. I could never have done it without all your support. Special thanks to Miss Javed and Miss Hussain. You are both AMAZING!!! 😀
And of course my next thank you would be to all my pawsome teachers and friends in Shireland who have been supporting me as I go along the path to success. Thank you Mr Shephard for all the recognition. I really appreciate it! Thank you Miss Prince for all the appreciation. Thank you Mrs Hussain for being a fan of my story. Thank you my best friend Nimah for being my loyal reader.
This last thank you is for someone very important. I put her last not because she’s least special but because she’s the reason why I am who I am today. Thank you Mrs Lawrence for all your guidance and appreciation. You have spotted my talent from the very beginning and has always believe that I could do more and more. I may have been 5 years old at that time. But, Mrs Mom would never let me forget all the hard work you’ve put into me. If you are reading this, please know that I will never forget you, ever!!!
Now, hold your horses coz all of you PAWSOME peeps have been so AWESOME and have been leaving MORESOME comments. That makes all of you ROARSOME!!!!! So again, a big fat THANK YOU to everyone for supporting me. Happy 1 Month-aversary!
“We must always appreciate all the support that people have given us at any time. It is just like respect!”
Hey guys…aah…aah…TCHOO!!!!! Oops, sorry! I have a little cold which has been bothering me for the last couple of days. Anyway-cough, cough-today was not a very normal school day and that is because of a lot of things. One, I was sneezing and coughing a lot and two, the lessons weren’t like the lessons that we usually have. I’ll tell you all about it. Oh, sorry, wait a minute please! Aah…aah…TCHOO!!!!!
Ahem, now, the first thing that we did was do the register. Then, we went off to our Maths classes. Maths today had a little twist to it. Our topic for Maths was data. Most people already knew about data. They knew the basics like bar charts, line graphs, pictograms and tally charts. But, as I said, the lesson had a little twist. We were going to…EAT CHOCOLATE!!! Aah…TCHOO!!!!! Sniffle, sniffle-sorry! Still can’t stop sneezing! Back to the point now, although we were tasting chocolate, we still had to do some work. But, the work was just filling out a table. The chocolate flavours were:
Milk chocolate
White chocolate
Milk creations (milk chocolate, jelly beans and popping candy)
Aero (mint)
And the worst of all…dark chocolate! Aah…aah…aah…TCHOO!!!!!
My favourite chocolate was the Milk Creations.
After Maths, we had our Literacy lesson and we were looking at newspapers. We were particularly focusing on articles. Hah, I’ve done about 3 or 4 articles already! Today, we were identifying the features of an article such as the headline, the by-line, the main body and so on. All of us had a little table to fill in. We also had to stick the article on an A3 piece of paper so that we could label it. Then, we went out for a break. Unfortunately, me and another boy called Krish couldn’t go out because we had a cold. That meant that we couldn’t play with our friends and to top that, we couldn’t play football with everyone else! 😦
When everyone came back in, we carried on with our Literacy lesson. Then, it was time for lunch.
For my lunch, I had:
A veggie burger
Peas
Salad
A flapjack
Juice
When lunch was over, we had a Learning Together lesson. In our lesson, we were designing our own Aztec Gods! These gods would then be transformed into masks like the Aztecs would wear except this time, we were going to wear it. Aah…aah…TCHOO!!!!! Ugh, sorry again. As I was saying, the Aztec God that I chose was the God of Fire. His name was Falalcholshcoaly (Fa-lal-col-shkol-lee). He had a Fire crown, a Fire cloth wrapped around his body, a Fire snake in one hand and a fireball in the other. The other Gods and Goddesses were pretty good. Some of them had 4 arms, others had long hair and others with unusual faces. After Learning Together was finished, it was home time.
On Tuesday 24th November, SHP will be celebrating History Day. The aim of the day is for us to understand and celebrate Smethwick’s heritage. To get involved, we have been given homework to interview a family member/member of the community who has lived in Smethwick for a long time. Since I’m a blogger, I thought “What could be a better way to present my findings than to dedicate a whole post to Smethwick?”
We’ve been given 4 sample questions that we could include such as:
Where in Smethwick have you lived?
Where have you worked?
Which school did you go to and what was it like?
How has Smethwick changed?
Based on those sample questions given, I managed to generate 21 of my own questions for the interview.
Because I don’t have any family members in Smethwick, I had to find a member of the community that was willing to share their life in Smethwick with me. So, I went out with Mr. Dad on Saturday and started to approach random people. What I did was introduce myself, gave them one of my name cards and explained to them the purpose of the interview. Now, this part was very challenging because most of the people that I approached either said that they are not from Smethwick or that they are simply too busy to spare their time for me.
The first place that I went to was Thimblemill Library. I asked a few people until I came across the affectionate Mr Noble. I managed to complete the whole interview session with him. However, he was only 29 years old and I would love to find out more about Smethwick back in the older days. So, out on the road, I went to my next destination which was Smethwick library. Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to find anyone but the good thing was that I found more information about Smethwick and some photos too.
After that, I went back to where I started, Bearwood Road. I visited the butchers but apparently, he was too busy. Fair enough, though, because it’s Saturday. As I stepped out of the butchers, I was feeling down. Little did I know, a miracle was about to happen. When I looked up, ‘Maureens Florist‘ sat in front of me. I entered the shop and there stood my heaven-sent Mrs Collier! She said “Yes” straight away and the interview session went smoothly. I enjoyed every single bit of her story.
Who is Smethwick?
Did you know how Smethwick got it’s name? According to the Smethwick Heritage Centre, it was suggested that the name Smethwick meant “smiths’ place of work”, but a more modern interpretation has implied the name in fact means, “The settlement on the smooth land”. Smethwick was recorded in the Domesday book as Smedeuuich.
As I was doing my research, I found out that there are many notable residents that have lived in Smethwick. Most of these people were born in Smethwick. Some of them are:
I. Sir Charles Douglas Fox (1840 – 1921) He was an English Civil Engineer who was born in Smethwick. Amongst other things, Sir Charles had designed The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park.
II. Sydney Francis Barnes (1873 – 1967) He was an English professional cricketer who is generally regarded as one of the greatest ever bowlers.
III. Ken Wharton (1916 – 1957) He was a British racing driver. In 1957, Wharton was fatally injured when his Ferrari Monza crashed in a sports car race at the Ardmore Circuit in New Zealand.
And many more…
Out of all those notable residents, there was one person that really caught my attention. Personally, I adore her work very much. Remember the 89 individually sculptured owls which have been displayed all over Birmingham? Well, they were sculpted by the one and only Caroline Jariwala! She is a painter, visiting lecturer, exhibitions organiser and community artist. Her experience covers a wide range of art forms, such as illustration, batik, mural and mosaic.
“There is also something magically about mosaic-making with broken, chipped, discarded, rejected and second-hand crockery. Using the unwanted and making it desirable; transforming ‘ugly’ into a thing of ‘beauty’.” -Caroline Jariwala
Not only these, but, there are lots of other great things that make Smethwick a unique place to live in. For example, Smethwick is also famous for it’s architecture, political history, transport history, and many other things. Smethwick is a wonderful place with sensational smells, tastes and sights. But how was it like in the past? Well, you are just about to find out. There were strict teachers that hit children with the cane, it was busy almost every day and there was a smell coming out of the famous Brewery that filled the air. Still, Smethwick was a great place to live in. But lots of things have changed about Smethwick. The teachers are less strict, the Brewery doesn’t exist anymore and we get less homework. But imagine if you could experience how Smethwick was in the 1990‘s or even further back to the 1970’s. Me and the people that I interviewed can help you with that. Here they are!
My Heaven-sent Mrs Collier
Have you ever been to Maureens Florist in Bearwood? If yes, you might have met Mrs Collier. She has been a florist all her life. If you put her and flowers together, you will not be able to break them apart! This is her pawsome Smethwick:
“Hello! My name is Lynn Collier and I am 54 years old. I am married and I have two sons. My family have lived in Smethwick for approximately 60 years now. I am currently working as a florist and have worked as a florist in Northfield, Harborne and Quinton in the past. But, I am proud to be working at Maureens Florist because they have been serving the community of Smethwick for more than 40 years. I have lived in Bearwood, Gladys Road and Galton Road.”
“My primary school was called St Mary’s Primary School and my high school was called Dame Elizabeth Cadbury Senior School. I can still remember how lovely both of them were as if I was there yesterday. When I was 9 years old, the streets of Smethwick were busy almost everyday. And how could I forget the smells of the Brewery at Cape Hill that filled the air. In those days, going to school was really nice. It was safe and we had no worries. The teachers were very strict and there was lots of homework too. Naughty children got the cane but strictness is a good way to help them evolve into well-behaved children. Our uniform was brown and cream coloured with a touch of blue. My favourite subject was art because I love colour! I also liked pottery and history because I like to know about the good old days. One of the best teachers that I can remember is called Mrs Bared. I am actually still in touch with her until today. She was a lovely lady and a great teacher. I couldn’t possibly forget about the school lunch which was absolutely divine. My favourite pudding was called Chocolate Concrete.”
“In the past, there were lots of shops packed with hundreds of items and a range of houses just in front of the shops but now, there are lots of empty shops and houses scattered here and there. Some of the local shops that I remember visiting are Woolworths and my favourite Edward Toy Shop. In our spare time, me and my friends would play outside in the park. And last but not least, if I could keep one thing about Smethwick for the future generation to see, I would definitely keep Lightwoods Park with the old, big house and clock because that is a part of Smethwick’s heritage that we should all preserve!”
My Affectionate Mr. Noble
That was the interview with Mrs Lynn Collier. Now, moving on, the next person that I interviewed was a man called Mr Noble. He is a librarian at Thimblemill Library in Smethwick. Here is what he said in the interview:
“Hello there! I am Richard Noble and I am 29 years old. My dad is from Birmingham and my mum is from North Yorkshire. They met when they were both studying at the University of Liverpool. I have lived in Smethwick for most of my life. I have lived around Bearwood next to Warley Woods and I love it! I have two jobs: one was as an admin assistant for NHS and the other one is Sandwell MBC Library Service. I am also an artist in my spare time. I have worked all across Sandwell and Birmingham.”
“The first school that I went to was called Abbey Junior and Infants School. Later, I went to Warley High School which is now known as Oldbury Academy. Then, I went to Halesowen College, Bourneville College of Art and also Birmingham City University. Smethwick is a nice area, quite cultural and is ethnically diverse even then. When I was 9 years old, I used to have many friends which I am still in touch with until now but some of them have moved away. Back in my days, the teachers were alright. A few were strict and the others were eccentric. In primary school, we wore blue jumpers or cardigans with the school logo in yellow with sensible trousers and shoes. I liked art because I was always creative and I liked history too. I also enjoyed Maths. One of the best teachers in primary school was called Mrs Brown. She was truly inspiring! School in those days were pretty much the same as it is now. The school lunches were quite like the school lunches we have now. It was either packed lunch or school meals. The only difference is what is on the lunch box.”
“When I was a child, I remember visiting lots of shops in Smethwick but my all time favourite would be none other than Woolworths. They had lots of toys and sweets inside their shop. Some of the businesses have come and gone. Even though Smethwick was already ethnically diverse, more groups from different ethnical backgrounds arrived over time. Whenever me and my friends had nothing to do, we would play sports games, play video games, watch tv and watch videos but we didn’t use YouTube, we used VHS. I bet modern kids have no idea what VHS is! I also loved reading. Books have always been my passion. Finally, if I could keep one thing about Smethwick to be in the future, it would be the parklands because they do so much to enhance local residence lives.”
The Grand Finale
That’s the end of Mr Noble’s interview. These two people have been kind enough to give up some of their time to be interviewed, therefore, I would like to give them a big thank you. I really appreciate their stories of Smethwick that they have shared with me.
Having heard the stories of their pawsome life in Smethwick, I wish that I had the time machine from the movie Back to the Future. Maybe I could be McFly and Mr. Dad could be “Doc” and we both could travel back in time. If I can go back to the 1970’s, I wish that I could smell how the air was like at Cape Hill. I could even sit down with Mrs Collier during lunch time at school and enjoy the taste of divine Chocolate Concrete. Perhaps both me and Mrs Collier could spend time together at her favourite Edward Toy Shop. How pawsome would that be. If I could go back to the 1990’s, I will surely join Mr Noble and his friends watching videos on the VHS! (In my dreams…)
I wish that one day, someone could invent the time machine for real because it would be a great and fun way for children to learn if they could travel back in time. They will not just be looking at photos and reading information, they’ll actually be living it! Oh, and a note to the teachers, think of it as a school trip!
Last but not least, sit back and enjoy a poem written by me which is dedicated to Smethwick.
My Pawsome Smethwick
My pawsome Smethwick,
What would I do without it?
It’s great,
Ain’t it, mate?
It’s a county,
In a city,
In a country,
In the world!
At night, everyone’s snuggled up and curled
And when it’s day,
They’ll put France in a beret!
There’s shops galore on one street,
Some of them sell meat
And if you come and they’re all sold out,
Most of you will start to pout!
And all of this is in…
MY PAWSOME SMETHWICK!!! (#No.1)
by: The Pawsome Lion (Sunday, 22nd November 2015)
Here comes the grand finale! I would like to present a video of my PAWSOME Smethwick shot by Mr. Dad. Here it goes!
p/s: I really enjoyed learning about local history and I hope everyone else did too!
p/p/s: Special thanks to Mr Dad for the Pawsome video and a Roarsome thank you to Mrs Mom for always believing in me!!
Leadership has always caught my interest since I was elected by my fellow classmates to be in the Junior Leadership Team (JLT) last month. Since then, I had been planning to write about leadership for the 4th volume of KAKKOII. So, I had been researching about this since October. I chose this topic because it is interesting and everyone can learn something from it. According to the Oxford Dictionary, leader means someone who leads or commands a group, organisation or country.
Leader vs Manager
The difference between leader and manager is that a leader has followers but a manager has small chances of having any. This is because a manager will say “Do it” and a leader says “Let’s do it”. According to Dr. Auntie in her ‘small lecture’ for me on this topic via FaceTime, if a manager and a leader were both on horses and they walked past a lake, the manager would force the horse to drink the water whereas the leader would inspire the horse to get it to drink the water.
Leaders: Born or Made?
Now, time for a question which people have been debating about for decades: Are leaders born or made? No one has been able to find out the answer to this dilemma. It is just like the chicken and the egg, which one comes first? No one knows! 🙂 On my opinion, I think that a person was made a leader, it is through learning that he/she could ever become a good leader. They need to polish themselves before they can become one.
Leaders of The World
There are thousands of inspirational leaders all around the world, either in the present day or in history. Here are some that I personally think are the best!
One of the great leaders which has caught my attention is Winston Churchill, who used his ‘words as weapons’. Dr. Auntie had shared a very PAWSOME article written by Jessica Talarico. The article was about how Churchill led Britain to victory in the Second World War. According to the article which I’ve read, Churchill’s speeches were the most powerful ones in the world. His words were heroic and human and had humour inserted in them too. They were heard by everyone in Britain and reached out to everyone in the world(http://www.iwm.org.uk). Somehow, I feel connected to Churchill as writing is also my weapon and the same like Churchill, I love to insert humour in my writing too! Well at least, I always think that I’m funny 😀
Another great leader which has really inspired me was Nelson Mandela. He was the one that freed South African people and stopped them from getting racially abused. He was the president of South Africa. He was born in 1918 and died in 2013 at the age of 95 (http://www.history.com). Have any of you watched the movie “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom”? It is a movie about the life of Nelson Mandela and it is really motivational. I really enjoyed watching it with Mr. Dad. If any of you PAWSOME peeps get the chance, do watch it!
You might not know it but Mr. Shephard, our principal, is also a leader. He is the principal of two schools, SHP and George Betts. He is passionate about both of them. He tries hard to keep us happy. He’s always looking out for us no matter how busy he is. I must say that he is the most PAWSOME leader I have ever met!
The last leader that I have picked is Mulan. Remember the movie Mulan which was made in the year of 1998? I wasn’t even born yet. 😀 She may not be real (as some people say) but somehow, I saw her as a great example of a leader! Whenever I think of leader or leadership, Mulan has always came into my mind. From a woman who sat at home weaving away at her loom, she was brave enough to join the army and fight in a war. She even won the war for them. While I was doing my research, I found out that the movie Mulan is related to a woman called Hua Mulan. I don’t know whether it is a coincidence or not but she was the first woman warrior to ever fight in a war (Wikipedia). Mulan is remembered in lots of different ways like songs, poems and plays/movies. Here is a verse out of a peom about her:
The Ballad of Mulan
Click click, and click click click,
By the doorway Mulan weaves.
When all at once the shuttles cease,
A sigh is heard with solemn grief.
“O my daughter who is on your mind?
O my daughter who is in your heart?”
“I have no one on my mind,
I have no one in my heart.
But last night I read the battle roll,
A roll consisting of twelve scrolls.
The Khan is drafting an army of awe,
My father’s name on each beadroll.
Alas Father has no grown son,
Alas Mulan has no elder brother.
But I will buy a saddle and horse
And join the army in place of Father.”
Leadership
The people in Junior Leadership Team (JLT) are also leaders. Well, kind of. These people were elected by their class and are trusted by them. They try hard to think of ideas to make the school a better place. I am one of them and I hope that I will be able to fulfil my duty as a leader. I have also been chosen to represent my school, along with Nimat, at the Student Council Meeting which will be held on Thursday. This meeting is a pupil forum consisting of 2 pupils elected from each of the local schools. We will be discussing local issues and make decisions about how to help improve the local community. Remember when I said earlier that a leader needs to be polished before they can even become an actual leader? Well, this meeting might be my chance to be polished! Just like Mrs. Mom said, all leaders need training. They need to go through different phases of their life before they can become a leader.
Now that I know more about leadership, I personally think that leadership should start from home. If I want to learn, then I need to successfully lead Little Miss Diva first! 😀 Even she has her own building leadership qualities. Because of her character, it is hard for me to lead her. She is very challenging even though she’s not even 2 years old yet. However, I have my own tips that I would like to share with all of you:
When I started my magazine, I let her have one too. I made it look real and even came up with a name for it. Mine was KAKKOII, hers was KAWAIIKIDZ.
Whenever I finish a project, I always present it to Mrs. Mom. Before I start mine, I let her present hers first.
When I started this blog, she kept on chanting “blog, blog, blog”. So what I did is to let her have her own imaginary blog by talking about her blog to her and everybody else all the time.
I’d love to stay up and talk about Little Miss Diva all night long but my bed awaits me. So, I think those examples are enough to show my leadership style.
My responsibility doesn’t stop there as on Mrs. Mom’s side, as the 1st grandson, I need to set a good example not only to my brother and sister but also to my cousins. They always look up on me in everything I do. I wish that one day, I will become an exemplary leader to them and to the world!
p/s: I hope this article has helped you learn a lot more about leaders and leadership. Happy leading!!
Hey everyone! Today was a really busy day filled with exciting news. It all started when I first arrived at school.
We had already done the register and I was putting out some Maths resources on each table. All of a sudden, the fire alarm started to ring. As usual, people were running and shouting as they rushed to the door. Even though it was just to test the fire alarm and everyone knew it, people would still be panicking. Everyone except one person. That was me! I just casually trotted along to join the line and walked outside as if it was playtime. The only thing that got me out of my good mood was the rain. Finally, when the alarm stopped ringing, everyone was back to their normal self and sitting down in the classroom.
That was the busy part of the day. The other part of the day was filled with exciting news. Miss Hussain, the teaching assistant, wrote down the link to my blog on a piece of paper. This was so I could show my blog to Mr. Shephard, the principal of the school. I went to his office and gave him the link but he was busy so he couldn’t look at it yet. He said that after he checked it out, he would come and see me. So I carried on with my day and waited and waited and waited. By this time, I didn’t think that he would get back to me. I then told myself that it’s okay and that I always have tomorrow to see him.
Surprisingly, in the middle of our Literacy lesson, Mr. Shephard came to the door of our classroom and walked inside. He took a quick scan of the room and found me sitting at a table near the corner. He strode over to me, knelt down and whispered in my ear. He said that he had already read the blog and showed it to Miss Chesney, the English Leader, and Mr. Mould, the Computing Leader. Then he said that all three of them, Miss Chesney, Mr. Mould and himself, decided to start a Boys Only Writing Club. They would also be making a blog. And the leader of the club was…ME!!!!! :O
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. A Boys Only Writing Club? Making a blog? And the leader was me? It was too good to be true! He then walked out of the classroom, leaving me in shock. I looked around the classroom and everyone was busy getting on with their work. I felt like I had just killed a lion! (Not The Pawsome Lion though!) 🙂
I had just got back to my work when both Miss Javed and Miss Hussain called me. The moment I turned around, they both screamed with happiness. Then they told me to go to them and asked me what Mr. Shephard was talking to me about. I told them the “PAWSOME” news and they were both so proud. Miss Hussain even hugged me. I can still remember the last word from Miss Javed, “Great Mukhtar, now all you have to do is just say that Miss Javed is amazing!” 😀
I’m so lucky to have two “AWESOME” teachers, a “MORESOME” school with a “PAWSOME” Principal and my fantastic friends! Not to forget, my supportive and enthusiastic Mr. Dad and Mrs. Mom. I feel so grateful and honoured to get this amazing opportunity. A huge thank you to the people who made this possible: Mr. Dad and Mrs. Mom, Little Miss Diva and Baby ‘A’, my grandparents, my uncles and aunties, my cousins, Mr. Shephard, Miss Chesney, Mr. Mould, Miss Javed, Miss Hussain and to all my teachers and friends in Moseley (old school) and SHP!
p/s: Mr. Dad’s big smile + Mrs. Mom’s happy tears = PRICELESS!! 😀
The Pawsome Lion 