Mr Bambuckle's Remarkables by Tim Harris arrived on the book scene last year and has been a huge success. Mr Bambuckle is not your usual teacher. (I think there might be a bit of Tim in Mr Bambuckle!) Imagine being in Room 12B and arriving at your classroom at Blue Valley School to find a new teacher balancing on a unicycle on top of his desk, with mischievous green eyes, wearing a dazzling blue suit and who can flick a frypan from his sleeve and whip up bacon and eggs for the class for breakfast!
Mr Bambuckle's way of teaching is not traditional and Mr Sternblast the principal desperately wants to get rid of him. The students however, thrive with Mr Bambuckle who has a way of knowing just what each of his students need. He encourages them to be creative, solve problems and become independent and brave. The Apps his students create can be a great spark for creativity in everyday classrooms. Mr Bambuckle is the only one who isn't afraid of Canteen Carol and their conversation about buying a bar of chocolate is lots of fun to read aloud! Some of the student's personal stories are revealed throughout the book and as readers we won't be looking at our washing machines in the same way, some might like the idea of Parental Rental and for others, drone flying will definitely on the To Do list.
Mr Bambuckle and the Remarkables Fight Back
In the second book, Mr Bambuckle is replaced by the nasty Miss Frost who 'makes Canteen Carol look like a teddy bear'. Miss Frost says that discipline is the new order. She gives detention at the drop of a hat, rips up perfectionist Victoria's handwriting sheets into tiny shreds and tosses the stickers and stamps the students designed into the bin. Thanks to Scarlett's magic fingers, she finds a creative way with PhotoCrop to get rid of Miss Frost so Mr Bambuckle can return to 12B.
The students in 12B have lots of adventures in this book. Many students will be relieved they don't have a buddy like Albert's buddy, Buster. Sammy's dad's mistake will get you thinking about whether 8 year olds should have the same rights as 18 year olds while some readers might like to take up Mr Bambuckle's challenge and have fun acting out imaginative ways to enter their classroom!
Unfortunately it's not the last of Miss Frost. Will Dodger be able to save the day? Find out in book three in September.
Happy reading!