Ref. 75657-14TSUNAMI APPEAL: SCHOOLCHILDREN have been putting pen to paper, and writing about their feelings on the Asian tsunami disaster.

More than 20 Year 5 children at Chiseldon Primary School wrote ballads on their own thoughts and feelings about the dramatic events in the Indian Ocean as inspiration.

Chris Dinsdale, 39, a Canadian exchange teacher at the school said: "Writing ballads recently came up as part of the curriculum, and I thought it would be a great idea to challenge the children to pen out a ballad about the tragedy, and I was quite surprised at the results."

"I was amazed at how much raw emotion the children used when describing how they felt about what has been going on. It shows how much imagination the children really have."

"It was really tough to choose just three to send to the newspaper.

"I remember reading out a few in front of the school last week, and finding them so hard to read because they so emotional."

The school also recently raised £328 through a bake a toy sale for the victims.

Anthony Osborne