Over the last few months Children's Express has spoken to more than 60 young people aged eight to 15 on Newcastle's Cowgate estate. We wanted to find out the things they like and don't like and what they think they might be doing when they reach 20. Here's what we found.
| Gravy and chips, fish and chips, pizza and chips, curry and chips... |
Television
Soaps came top of the list in the fave TV viewing stakes, with Eastenders the firm winner by a large margin. Home and Away came second, well in front of Emmerdale.
Among younger children cartoons were clear favourites, with Tom & Jerry and Teletubbies topping the list.
Food
Chips with anything will be fine for most of Cowgate's young people it seems. Gravy and chips, fish and chips, pizza and chips, curry and chips, kebab meat and chips. So just about anything so long as it has chips with it.
Pizza came in second favourite and curry came in third with chicken curly being the most popular variety. Also popular is pasta - lasagne and spaghetti bolognese being most favoured. Other favourite foods are chocolate biscuits, prawn cocktail crisps and cornflakes.
Sport
Football (surprise, surprise) comes in at number one as the most liked sport. It was popular among girls too, but netball was their preferred sport. Swimming was liked across all ages and by both sexes. Running, trampolining and rounders were also popular activities.
Books
Book reading is not a popular activity in Cowgate. with many young people unable to name a single favourite book. Roald Dahl was by far the most popular author however, especially among young children who had his books read to them at school.
Biggest Dream
Travelling abroad easily tops the wish list with young people on Cowgate, - Australia and Spain being two particularly favoured destinations. Winning the Lottery and bungee jumping came in at second and third.
Another airborne adventure, parachuting, was a common ambition, as were being famous and meeting famous people. Going to school on Saturday and Sunday appealed to one child, while seeing every animal in the world was the desire of another.
When I'm 20
Most young people, boys and girls, thought they'd be working when they were 20, although younger girls tended to think they would be looking after their children. A few thought they might be at college or university.
One young person thought she might be in a pop group and another thought he would be "somewhere posh."
Biggest fear
Spiders are by far the biggest fear among Cowgate's children. Ghosts, snakes and rats also figure prominently.
Dying was feared among the teenagers we spoke to. War, being hland being name-called were fear factors, as were scary films. Scream and Nightmare On Elm Street were two that were singled out as being particularly frightening.
About the team
This article was produced by Childrens Express Newcastle: Editors Amy Wood and Steven Boyle, aged 15, and Hayley Sager, aged 14. It was published in The Evening Chronicle.
