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14 March 2026

Posted by Frankie

Junior & Young Writers Week 8: Magpies

A quick note to say sorry for the delay with the blog. For anyone who’s been looking out for it and not finding it, the lurgies got me good.

Going back in time to week 8, we ventured into the world of magpies - the shiny-loving tricksters of the trees.

Before we began our writing exercises, William shared his short story for the Gold Writing Competition, PC Puff and the Great Train Robbery. His story sparked plenty of laughter and had a wholesome ending, not an easy feat for such a tight word limit. Well done, William.

For our first exercise, the groups created their own numbered list poems, inspired by the popular rhyme. As a collection, we ended up with:

One for strength
Two for happiness
Three for chaos
Four for love
Five for a duck that ruins your love
Six for a raspberry turning redder and redder
Seven for holding onto all that is lost
Eight for being refused tea and biscuits
Nine for a broken pen
Ten for a frying pan
Eleven for laughter
Twelve for strength
Thirteen for a banana that slips you up again and again


Claire then read the Swedish folktale Salt on a Magpie’s Tail, and the Junior group used it as inspiration for their own writing.

Some standout ideas included using paprika on a magpie’s head to grant a wish, and a rather unfortunate Peter, who throws salt on a dragon, only to be torn apart.

Sonny also kindly brought in some beautifully illustrated story prompt cards. Using these, the Young Writers crafted their own mythical tales, including:

*A cursed kingdom that falls beneath the earth, until one day a door appears, unleashing zombies from below

*A timekeeper punished to an eternity of watching the spindle of time unravel with his “one rotten eye”

Magpies and story cards sparked plenty of unique and imaginative ideas this week. As always, I’m amazed by both groups’ originality and skill.


- Frankie :)

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