The Beatles at New Hinksey

Today we had "Singing" at school, which is what they say instead of going to "Music" (like we do with Ms. Hashley.  We worked on a Beatles song to help us learn how to work out problems with our friends.  My mum and I just found the song and video on youtube if you want to see what the Beatles looked like & sound like.  They were really famous and from England.  We like this video because they are laughing a lot, especially Paul McCartney (my mum told me his name), the cute one.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59NNupminV8 

Do you fancy Naya?

In England at my school if somebody has a crush on you they call it 'a fancy' instead of 'a crush.'  So, yesterday when I walked into school there were about five boys singing, "Connor fancies Naya!  Connor fancies Naya!"  I am a little embarrassed to write this for all of you, but it is very cute when your friend says to you in his British accent when we were doing art, "Naya, do you fancy Connor?"  Even though I really do like Connor and think he's smart and nice (and cute) I didn't want them to sing songs about me so I said, "No, I don't fancy Connor."  But I do.  And I'll just be nice to him and be his friend and hope that they stop teasing soon.

Now, I'm going to watch an episode of Charlie & Lola before school because I woke up way too early today since my mom was up reading with the light on in our room.

Bye,
Naya

Going to build a telescope in the History of Science Museum today

I get to go learn about Galileo today in a big, fancy museum that has some of Einstein's work in it, and many other scientists.  We are going to build our own telescope during a Saturday workshop for 9 year olds.  My mum and I just looked up Galileo and found this:

Galileo was born in Italy in 1564 and helped the world understand and finally believe that the earth moved around the sun and not the other way around (Copernicus' theory) with his own telescopes that let him see Venus, and also Jupiter's moons.

This is the building I'll be in.  It is right next to the Bodleian library, and also next to our favorite bookstore in Oxford, Blackwell's, that has a winding staircase and goes up four floors.  The children's section is on the ground floor and has lots of books that the Whitefish bookstore has and lots of books that it doesn't.  We'll probably get some cocoa there and an almond croissant after my workshop.

This is a picture of Einstein's blackboard from a lecture he gave in Oxford in 1931.

I hope you have a fun Saturday too.

Love, Naya

Some things that are different in England

Mrs. Argabright asked me what words are different in England and since we got here my mom and I have been trying to keep a list of words that are different than in the US.  These are some of them:

US                                           England

hot lunch                               school dinner
garbage                                 rubbish
sled                                       sledge
my dear, honey, sweetie       my love
sweets or treats                     sweeties
snowplow/sand truck           gritters
erasers                                  rubbers
tennis shoes/sneakers           trainers
head to toe                            top to toe
trash can                               bin
bye                                       cheers
jello                                      jelly
jelly/jam                               jam
cream/half & half          clotted cream
mom, mommy                     mum
roundtrip ticket                    return trip
one way ticket                     single trip


I also have a weekly spelling test every Tuesday and have to spell things differently like

color    is    colour
favorite is   favourite
analyze is   analyse

And here they use feet and inches, but they also sometimes use the metric system like meters, cm, mm.  They use miles/hour though and not km/hour.  They use centigrade instead of fahrenheit for temperature.

And they drive on the opposite side of the road.  And the driver sits where our front passenger sits.

We went swimming yesterday and got to drive there in a really fancy bus.  I had to do a test to show how I swim and I got put in the higher level.  Which was hard because I had to learn to swim with my face in the water and then just lift my face to take a breath.  And I got to wear my new pink swim cap, but not my goggles, since they don't allow that.

Last night I joined a drama club and guess what!?  We get to study/practice our play each week at Magdalen College (the fancy college of Oxford University that I want to go to).  We are going to put on Shakespeare's As You Like It in ten weeks of practice.  Last night I got to be Rosaline and had to pretend I was in love with this ten year old boy.  It was embarrassing and fun.  I'm the only one with an American accent.

I'll try to think of more things that are different, and when I get a new camera I'll take more pictures again and put them on my blog.

Have a great week!

Love, Naya

Thinking about college

(I didn't take this one--this is a picture of Magdalen College of Oxford University)

I was thinking about which college I want to go to again today when I was walking past Christ Church.  So, I decided again that I really want to come here for college.  I've seen some other colleges and they seem a little junky compared to Oxford.  I really want some of my friends to come to Oxford too because the buildings are like fairy castles and because we could probably get a job anywhere in the world after and because you get to eat in fancy dining halls every night, not in a cafeteria, and because people come here from all different places of the world, and because we'd get really smart.  You might think I'm a little cuckoo in the head because I'm only 9 but I've made up my mind, I'm going to Oxford one day and I want to know who else is going to come with me?  P.S.  Maybe we should try to get into other colleges too but Oxford is going to be first choice for me.

Kisses across the ocean,
Naya

Broken camera...pause in my photo documentary until further notice

My day of independence

self-portrait

(w/ added effect)

My day was like none before as I was very brave and on my own in Oxford.  I awoke to a bit of a sore throat and so we opted that I should take a day off since the kids were going to the pool for swim class and getting wet and cold seemed ill-advised.  However, my mum had some key meetings that she couldn't miss...so I had to decide to go with her or stay at home all alone.  I chose to stay home because that meant pajamas, warm blankets, and unlimited computer time.  My mum showed me how to Skype her cell phone, and off she went for an hour.  Meanwhile I played on the kids' BBC, took pictures of myself on the laptop, and called my mum two times.

By lunchtime my throat felt better, my mum was home again, and we ate lunch together.  Then she went again for an hour to an orientation to the Oxford Union Society and I got to talk to my Oma (grandma) on video Skype and I called my mum twice.  Then she was back again.  Then my mum had to go to a fancy dinner wearing a ball gown and so I went over to my friend Freya's &, lucky me, was invited to spend the night.  So there I sleep top-to-toe (as they say) in Freya's bed next to her (even though it's a school night), while my mum kicks off her heels and types about my day on this blog.

England is brilliant!

My new swimcap

Part of the Bodleian library behind me (they have 11 million books on 117 miles of shelving).  My mom gets her membership to "the Bod" this Wednesday!

My news for the day:  Yesterday I got a new pink swimcap because I get to go swimming with my class every Monday and we have to wear caps but we can't wear goggles without a doctor's permission.  The swimcap at first smelled really bad like plastic but I washed it off and then I wore it while I was reading a book.  Today I found a toystore and it has what we call Calico Critters in it but they have way more than we do and they call them Sylvanian Families.  They have penguins, wolves, persian cats, scottie dogs, cows, panda bears...  I played with Freya again, this time at her house and she has a hundred Sylvanian Families.  Freya has a big sister named Lula.

I'm going to bed now, but you are just done eating lunch...have a good day!

Theatre & the sunset in Oxford

Freya & Naya, 10am

walking to the bus stop--the X3 or X13 to town centre, return

going to the theatre & lunch

after, walking down Abingdon Rd. to our house--naya's photo of the day

walking down Sunningwell Rd. toward Wytham St.--Naya's second photo of the day

4:44 sunset--Naya's third photo for today

sorry, forgot to take a picture today, so here's one I took the other day on our 3 mile walk

My Friday:  School was a go today!  I had a great day and am becoming good friends with Freya.  I asked her if she'd go to the theatre with me tomorrow to Jack & the Beanstalk and she said yes.  I have an extra ticket to go from my Opa.  Then she ran home after school before my mom could get her number.  But she and her mom showed up at our door a few minutes later (they live one block away) & we get to take Freya with us on the bus and to the play.  Everyone is so nice here.  I miss my friends at home but I don't feel homesick.  I wish you all could just come  here.

(Note from the mum:  And afterschool while Naya was getting her things together in the cloak room, the majority of the children either tapped Naya on the back and said, "Bye, have a good weekend." or called out "Bye Naya!"  They are very very nice here, and the manners are grand even among 8 and 9 year olds.  It seems they are all friends in a large cohesive group and not nearly so into pairing off.  I'm liking it so much for Naya.  Everything about Oxford so far has been a pleasant surprise.)

My day of boring meetings, 10 years early

So, I fell asleep crying last night because I was going to have to go to the afterschool club for an extra hour while my mom was at orientation for Oxford...but, to my excitement I woke up this morning and found that I had another snow day!  & thus I went with my mom to the boring meeting all day for 8 hours but I loved it because I got to eat in an enormous and fancy dining hall with about seventy Oxford students and when I got really bored my mom let me watch Homer Simpson on her computer with headphones.  I wish I had a picture of the whole thing, but I only have this picture I took out the window at a coffee break & this picture below that my mom took of me eating.  My plan is to come back here in 10 years with my best & smartest friends and for us to do our own orientation & sit for eight hours but to get excited like my mom to get to go to the most beautiful school in the world.

I miss you guys!

Love, Naya

Third day of school--SNOW DAY!

thanks mum for packing the snowpants & downcoat!

my photo of the day--a pretty, old-fashioned, blinking traffic light

sock monkey's first ride in the bike basket

some cool snow art

The best day ever at school

It was the best day ever at school because I made another new friend & she holds my hand & we play really fun games.  One of the games we play is called "Rollercoaster" and a bunch of us hold hands and we run all around the playground without letting go.

I took my first spelling test today and my teacher said that I was the star speller because I got every one right.

(Per the mum:  Naya's so so hungry & eating everything in the house.  She's either growing all of a sudden or traveling/attending a new school makes children ravenous.  Since home from school:  salmon, rice, large bowl of granola with whole milk, four small eclairs, three spring rolls, and just asked for more.)

This photo is of my little calico critters that I have set up all over my mom's desk with their couches, beds, toilets, strollers...

My first day of school at New Hinksey Primary

Out the front gate, take a left, walk two blocks, through a secret gate via St. John's church, one more block & we're there (8:45a-3p day)

a bit nervous--what if they don't like me, what if they think my accent's weird, what if I don't have any friends at recess?

Straight to work on spelling and handwriting & did I mention that now I'm a 4th grader!

& ... 6 hours later, my mom returns to see how it went...through the secret gate,

past the church,

almost there,

& here it is, with me somewhere inside getting my coat on to come home

through another little gate where all the parents are standing talking...no drive up service like Muldown...here everyone seems to be on foot and to live in the neighborhood beside the school...

&I made it!  Yay!  It was the best day at school.  I made a friend named Freya & a friend named Maple & we played ponies at break.  Their accents are so fun.  I am ahead of everyone in math and reading.  They are a little ahead of me in spelling and geography lessons.  My teacher is very nice.  I don't feel nervous to go back tomorrow!

Cocoa with Mum before theatre

Today was a great day.  Me and my mum went to a very fancy restaurant and the building was tipping and it looked like we were going to fall out but we didn't.  And we sat in very fancy couches.  And I laid down for a little bit.  After that we went to the theatre and we saw "Jack & the Beanstalk" and it was very funny and they let my mom help with one of the parts on stage (insert from the mum:  they made me help).

I've been practicing my accent pretty much all day & I'm good at saying almost every kind of word.  I even sang along at the play with a British accent:  "How many legs does daddy longlegs got?  How many legs does daddy longlegs got?  I've got two, the cow's got four, a worm's got none & a shrimp's got more..."

My mom looking out at the backyard at our new house

My favorite thing of the day was going shopping in stores that have different things than we do, like really fancy coats, candies that I've never seen before in the candy aisle, and banana yogurt that comes with cocoa flakes--yumm!

The sidewalks are very bumpy if you are on a scooter.  And the cobblestones are all different shapes as you ride along.

Today I told my mom I didn't want to leave Oxford and that she'd have to go back and get Ladybug and bring her here, while I wait for her.  I want to stay because the accents are so pretty & I'm practicing my accent, and because my school is so cute & my mom's school is enormous and very pretty like a church.  I really want to go to college at Oxford when I grow up, especially Christchurch.

One last thing, the scones are really little here with powdered sugar on top and jam and you get to eat them with afternoon tea & it's all really good.

Around our new house

the light switch in the bathroom

artwork in our bedroom

Still sorting out how to download my camera but here are some pics my mom took of me with her camera our first day in London

In "the Tube."

Green grass, trees with leaves, and flowers blooming on December 31st!