Morning :) here's a poem I found on the internet:

Battle of Britain 1940
A tribute to the boys in blue
Who did so much for me and you
They fought the battle of the skies
That we might live and should not die

I was just a little kid
When in the shelter safely hid
I looked up and there did see
The battle being fought for me

Day and night they gave their best
Busy life, they had no rest
No time for sleep, no time for fun
When busy shooting down the hun

Now the battle’s at an end
And pilots both sides now are friends
For those who died, for you and me
Please God a world forever free

This little tribute I now send
To those who gave until the end
You gave your life, l’ll not forget
Your memory lingers with me yet
Dorothy London

You can read this lady's story at this website:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/09/a2641709.shtml
Hope you enjoy:)

I really do miss the days of being so young and carefree. The wonderful thing about being that age is having an astounding ability to take absoloutly any situation and make the best of it. It's great that even though a terrible war is going on and even though children are being taken from their homes to live with strangers they can still put a positive spin on things.

The innocence of a child is a gift. As we grow older we loose that happiness. I almost think that being ignorent of the terrible happenings in the world or rather naive is preferable to being burdoned with responsibility and obligations.

When we are young our parents are our protectors. They keep us safe in their loving arms. How awful must it have been for Willie to have such a distant mother. So far we haven't heard about Willie's father but I think that Tom is becomig a father figure in Willie's life. Willie respects and idolises Tom. It is so great to see how finally the lack of parental support and protection in Willie's life is being fufilled.

I was thinking about how girls walk around in their moms clothes and pretend to go to work or to be a mother ( I don't know what boys do) but why do children do this .My opinion is that it's because they want to grow up and be independant. Now that we have had a taste od independance and responsibility honestly although I do enjoy being independant I do miss being over-protected and having the ability to always be happy. One thing I know is that children are over emotional; one minute the world is ending and the next it's the best day ever. I wish that I could have stayed naive a little longer. Back in the day children our age were treated much differently and people stayed carefree for longer but the desire to grow up steals our youth. I suppose the grass is always greener on the other side.

To bring me back to what I began this post with because of innocence children can make the best of situations much more easily than we can so stay young and don't be in a hurry to grow up because we'll miss the loving Mr Tom's protection when we leave it behind. :)

Evacuees during World War II...

I found the blog page! :)
I found pictures of some of the children who were evacuees from London :). I found it amazing to see how during all the hardships of the war and having to leave your parents that some of the children could still smile on their way to their new homes-in the first picture. Its really a  picture depicting a child's innocence. The second picture, I find, is really sad. It's amazing that some children were REALLY young when they left their families and the look on their faces says it all: fear, confusion and great sadness. I read that many children stayed in danger areas in London, because their parents refused to have them evacuated. As a parent it's probably really hard to let go of your child, but it's a huuuge risk for your child's life. Some groups of children went together with their class and teacher. It's crazy that this all actually took place... -Kayla :) <3     

Definitions of Words

I have definitions on the first 5 chapters, so if you guys are unsure you can check here:

(Just updated: up to and including chapter 9)

Chapter 1

   ~ harassed – tired and anxious because you have too much to do

            ~ flushed – red; with a red face

            ~ adamant – determined not to change your mind or be persuaded

            ~ mackintosh – rain coat

            ~ large black range – fireplace/stove

            ~ alcove – An area in a room that is formed by part of a wall being built

               farther back than the rest of the wall.

            ~ plimsolls – a light simple shoe made of canvas with a rubber sole

            ~ beam – to have a big happy smile on your face

            ~ unperturbed – not worried or anxious; not stressed

            ~ reverberated – echo; repeated several times

            ~ coke – a black substance that is  produced from coal and burnt to

               provide heat

Chapter 2

            ~ bewildering – making you feel confused because there are too many things to

                choose from or because something is difficult to understand

             ~ haversack – a bag that is carried on the back or over the shoulder, especially

                 when walking in the country

             ~ mauve – pale purple in colour

             ~ rapt – interested in one particular thing that you are not aware of anything else

Chapter 3

             ~ seared – to cause someone te feel sudden and great pain

             ~ eave – the lower edge of a roof that stick out over the walls

             ~ voluminous – very large, having a lot of cloth

             ~ weals – sore, red marks on somebody’s skin where they’ve been hit

             ~ impotently – having no power to change things or influence a situation

             ~ sanctuary – a safe place

             ~ ambled – to walk at a slow, relaxed speed

             ~ a line of bushes planted along the edge of a field or road (especially in Britain)

             ~ nag – (old fashioned, informal) way of saying a horse

             ~ peered – to look closely or carefully at something

             ~ gingerly – in a careful way, because you are afraid of being hurt

             ~ lolloped – to walk or run with long, awkward steps

Chapter 4

~ disjointed – not connected

             ~ motley – consisting of many types of people that do not seem to belong together

             ~ jaundiced – a medical condition where the skin and white parts of the eye become

                 yellow.

             ~ drapers – a shop or stor that sells cloth and curtains etc.

             ~ combinations – a piece of underwear covering the body and legs, worn in the past

             ~ stifling – as if one cannot breathe

             ~ nonsensical – rediculous, with no meaning

             ~ dally – to do something too slowly or to take too much time making a decision

             ~ daze – in a confused state

             ~ slosh – to make liquid move in a noisy way, to use liquid carelessly

             ~ disarray – a state of confusion and lack of orginasation in a situation or place

             ~ cuff – to hit someone quickly and lightly with the hand

             ~ unceasingly – continuing all the time

             ~ tousling – to make someone’s hair untidy

           Chapter 5

~           ~   Grange – Homestead of a lord or wealthy man             ~ panorama – a view of wide area or land             ~ witch hazel – a liquid that is used for treating injuries on the skin             ~ intermittently – stopping and starting over a period of time, but not regularly             ~ dumpy – short and fat             ~ spellbound – with your attention completely held by what you are listening to or                  seeing             ~ riveted – to hold someone’s attention or interest so completely so that they cannot                  look away or think of anything else             ~ consequently – as a result; therefore             ~ lasting a very long time and therefore boring and annoying             ~ brusquely – using very few words and sounding rude             ~ laboriously – attempting something difficult or hard physical work             ~ reticent – unwilling to tell people about things; withdrawn or reserved

           Chapter 6

Words:  ~ penetrate – to go into or through something

             ~ averted – to turn your eyes away from something you don’t want to see

             ~ recluse – a person who lives alone and likes to avoid other people

             ~ exuberant – full of energy, excitement and happiness

             ~ continuation – continuing; something that continues or follows

             ~ inconspicuously – not attracting attention, not easy to notice

             ~ stupor – a state in which you’re unable to think clearly

             ~ cultured – well educated and able to understand and enjoy art, literature etc.

             ~ surveyed – to look carefully at the whole of something to get a general impression

             ~ ridicule – to make someone look silly by laughing at them in an unkind way

             ~ voluble – talking a lot and enthuasiastically about something

             ~ interspersed – to put something in between or among other things

             ~ sagacity –good judgement or understanding

           Chapter 7

Words: ~ nonchalantly – behaving in a calm or relaxed way, like you’re not anxious

             ~ taters – a potato

             ~ queer – strange or unusual

             ~ dekko – to look (at something)

             ~ glutinous – sticky

             ~ squelched – to make a wet, sucking sound

             ~ dingy – dark and dirty

             ~ incoherantly – unable to express yourself clearly

             ~ confided – telling someone information that you don’t want others to know

             ~ delumptious – A mixture of delicious and scrumptious.

             ~ quenched – to drink so that you no longer feel thirsty

             ~ tiddlers – small fish

             ~ disintegrated – to break into small parts or pieces and be destroyed

             ~ rectory – a house where the rector of a church lives (usually Anglican)

             ~ Cor! – An exclamation, like “Wow!”

           Chapter 8

Words:  ~ dilapidated – old and in very bad condition

             ~ horde – a large crowd of people

             ~ humbugs – a hard candy that’s made from boiled suger

             ~ flaxen – a pale yellow

             ~ juncture – a particular point in a series of activities

             ~ anguish – sever pain, mental suffering or unhappiness

             ~ dejected – unhappy or disappointed

             ~ queried – to ask a question, expressing doubt

             ~ daft – silly, often in a way that’s amusing

             ~ enormously – very, very much

             ~ interjected – to interrupt what someone’s saying with your opinion or remark

             ~ perturbed – anxious or worried about

             ~ aghast – filled with horror or surprise

             ~ erupted – to suddenly start happening

             ~ gales – the sound of people laughing very loudly

          Chapter 9

Words:  ~ balaclava – a woollen hat made to cover most of the head, neck and face

             ~ ensuing – to happen as a result of another event

The homework link was uploaded on 27 July, so scroll down until you find it :) It's great to see some new posts! Keep them coming.

The fields near where Mr Tom and Willie stayed?? What do you think? And there's Sammy :D (If he was black...) 

Ideas of what the Graveyard might have looked like...

I don't know about everyone else, but I'm really enjoying visualizing the different places that we, the reader, and Willie are being introduced to. One of my favorite settings so far is Mr. Tom's home and the surrounding area, including the graveyard. I'm imagining lush, green grass and old weathered gravestones. I was looking on google for some pictures that fit my idea of this lot. The closest I seem to find is an old church graveyard setting in Cumbria and another in Watermillock . I have discovered that I usually tend to get very different pictures and ideas to other people from the same text, so I'd like to see what other people think of these pictures. How do my interpretations of the text compare to yours? From Jessica

Homework task (just a reminder): Click on the link in the post below, and read some of the fascinating stories shared. Scroll down - there are many! Then, add a comment of you own, on that post. In it, say something about what surprised you or was interesting in the stories, or perhaps comment on how they have helped you to understand more about 'Goodnight Mr Tom'. Lastly, if you are interested in seeing what others say, you can click on the 'Subscribe' on the bottom right under the comments box, and get copies of all posts by others. I hope this exercise makes England in wartime come to life for you! Mrs Bru xxx

 Primary evidence: What life was really like in London for a child like Willie.

This is the blog where YOU, bloggers from the grade nine class, can 'unblog' - excuse me - unblock your brains about the intriguing lad, Willie, and the rather affectionate Tom. This is the blog on which to unload, the blog where you may ask and answer questions, the blog where you may think aloud about the strange lifestyle of these two rather eccentric but enigmatic characters. HAPPY BLOGGING! Luv, Mrs Bru

Pleeez PROMISE not to watch any of the movie clips on youtube. :/ You might rather like to watch Michelle Magorian explain in brief what the book is about! Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHe3pZwtLZQ (Don't spoil the book by watching the movie first: the film is hugely disappointing and I can almost guarantee you won't like it!)