Summer Writing: from Bryce (a 6th grader)

On Sunday, my mom asked me to watch a Chinese TV show with her. This show happened in real life about a month ago. The show was about 15 college students from all over the world who came to live with a poor Chinese farmer family for 2 Days. Each of the family has one kid age from 7-11.

In these families, the kids live at home alone or some of them live with their grandparents. Their parents are all working on a temporary job in the city for minimum wage.  From 7 years old those kids start doing everything by themselves: making fire, cooking meals, washing clothes with hands, taking care of siblings, even taking care of old sick grandparents.

Every day they get up at 5:00am, make a fire, and then cook breakfast. At 6:00am they wake up their guests while they’re still sleeping. The family cannot afford a stove so the kids have to make the fire every meal in order to cook food. Their breakfast consists of mostly vegetables and rice; rarely do they have eggs or meat.

During the visit these college students learned so much from these little kids; they learned how to make a fire, how to cook Chinese food, how to hand wash clothes, but most importantly, how to be happy all the time.  They are so surprised to see how much these little kids can do.

After breakfast and the house chores the child has to get ready for school. School starts at 8:00am. They need to leave the house at 7:00am because they have to walk in horrible conditions for an HOUR!!!!!!!! Even the guest said he got tired in the middle of the walk. The walk is like navigating through a forest and a rocky mountain. There’s no road at all.  

The schools in China are not bad. They offer free lunch which also consists of rice and vegetables. However, at recess there isn’t much to do except dance around, play ping pong, and spin little wooden tops. After school they have to walk home for an hour again.

When they get time off, there’s nothing much for them to do. The kids would be lucky to have just one toy. "In the TV show, there was a boy who was very shy. He ignored his guest until the guest gave him a soccer ball, then they became best friends.  All of the kids are thankful that they get a toy.

The college students learned so much from these little kids for only two days. The kids were thankful to have the company and to have fun. They were thankful for every little thing they got. That’s the reason they are always happy, because they don’t expect much.

I learned so much after watching that TV show. These kids have nearly nothing but they’re happy all the time. People in America have so much, yet they are not happy. These kids are role models for everyone including me.

Summer Writing : Shreyas -- from India, a 7th grader

Hi Mrs. Lin,

  I have done this week's ELA work and scored 8/10 in the June 2004 regents exam. I got numbers 9 and 16 wrong, but I now understand why they are incorrect. At first I was very unsure of interpreting the diagram for number 16, but then after I tried the second attempt, I understood that I had to read the symbols in each of the 4 areas (Brazil, Nigeria, U.S., Mexico) and see which one applies to respiratory diseases caused by global warming. 

     Over summer vacation, I have been having a blast, going to new places and eating the diverse food there! Recently, I went to Singapore for a whole week and stayed at the Swissotel in Stamford. There, the national fruit is Durian. I was very eager to try it so I went to a street vendor and tried a little piece. It had a hard, prickly outer shell, similar to a pineapple, but it was a bit smaller and it was green. I dug into the fruit with a smile on my face, but it was immediately turned upside down by the fruit's taste. It was an indescribable notion... The fruit was neither bitter, nor sweet, but it was pretty much neutral. The fruit's inside had a slimy soft texture as of the inside of a banana and an avocado. This texture does not suit my taste, and often results in my dislike for the fruit. Even though bananas are very sweet and tasty, it does not suit me, and often makes me cough violently. Even so, it was really fun trying something new. Singapore was a very nice place, with lots of taxis and great public transportation.

     To learn more about Singapore, I took a bus tour around Singapore and learned many interesting facts. One thing that really surprised me is the cost of houses and cars. Most people there live in government buildings(apartments) because single-homes there are far away from public transportation, and is proven inefficient and extremely costly. A middle-class family's house in the U.S., is about 1.5 million dollars in Singapore. The government pushes people to buy apartments. This is so due to Singapore small area. It is a small island in the midst of the ocean and not enough area to support everyone owning single-family-homes. Also, cars are only for the "gentry" crowd. Also due to Singapore scarce area, cars are extremely expensive. The government pushes more towards taxis, bus and trains (other forms of public transportation). The cheapest car in the world, close to $5000 sold in China, is about $85,000 in Singapore. This just shows to what extent cars are frowned upon in Singapore. Even so, the millionaires/billionaires that own cars in Singapore, mostly own famous cars, such as Lamborghinis, McLaren's, etc. So, It was great seeing all these awesome cars, we don't usually see in the suburban areas of New York.

      Also, another thing to know about Singapore is it's climate: humid and hot. It is very humid and sunny in Singapore, which leaves you never leaving home without shades and shorts on. Also, Singapore is known for its unpredictable rains. In New York, when people are warned for a very heavy rain, and told to stay inside, Singaporeans view this as a normal, everyday rainfall. It is very unpredictable, but also is a nice change from the hot weather. 

      Last but not least, the schools in Singapore have to be talked about. The schools in Singapore are very large and tough. I talked to a few kids my age there, and they all said mentioned the abundant amounts of homework given and the massive difficulty of the papers. They also mentioned many important government mandated tests they have to take, which lets the government know which students are thriving, and which one's are having a difficult time. In just 7 days, I have learned so much about Singapore, and home to come back again. If you haven't visited Singapore yet, you really should. There are many great places to eat in Chinatown, Little India, and the many malls. There are also many fun attractions to visit, such as Sentosa Island and the zoos.

    Right now, I am back in India, so due to the time zone difference, I cannot take the classes, but I am still doing all the homework you sent me and am doing self-studies on Khan Academy. I am also in the middle of reading the book "Brown Girl Dreaming" by Jacqueline Woodson. The book itself has many pages, but the pages do not have many words. The book is about a girl who's parents are divorced, and the mother is remarried. The mother has 4 children, who she moves with to New York after being remarried. The book has many internal conflicts dealing with marital troubles, as well as the mother's sister dying. The main character however, is the author herself, who is the 3 child of the mother, who takes a serious interest in religion and is venturing into her likes and dislikes as she grows up. The story takes place after the Civil War and slavery has been abolished. The mother's family is from South Carolina and due to their race, the older generation were slaves. Due to this, the mother sometimes tells of times when there was slavery to Jacqueline.The mother raises her children to solely depend on each other and no one else. So far, the book is very intriguing and keeps me on the edge of my chair. I am almost done with this book, so can you please advise me any adventurous books? 

Thank you. Please write back.

Summer Writing : from Kyla, a 7th grader

My Book Review: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children 

By Kyla 

This book was quite compelling to me at first glance, and like all books, I’d hope it digs right into the action. Or at least give me something to read for, like a mind-blowing plot twist.

My father got this book for me last Christmas. At first, I wasn’t thrilled to read it, but I occasionally would read it, hoping that it would become interesting. The beginning of the book was quite a drag, in my opinion. It consisted of an analysis of the main character’s normal livelihood and how his grandfather who passed away used to tell him stories. (which I am not a fan of) So I put the book down for awhile. Finally, at the end of the school year, I decided to give it one more shot because it was one of the book options for summer reading and itt was quite convenient to pick it back up rather than buying another book.

I was forced to trudge though the humdrum beginning. Then, something marvelous happened! Once I finished the first 3 chapters or so, it got EXTREMELY intriguing.

The main character, Jacob, stumbled into an alternate dimension where one day, March 9th 1940, repeated over and over again in a constant loop. There in that dimension, he found the abode from his grandfather’s fables where a lady named Miss Peregrine (who has the ability to transform into a bird and create loops) would shelter peculiar children. The peculiar children had to fight evil wights, whose only purpose was to kill them and take over all the loops.

Jacob truly wanted to help, but he had his own conundrums. If Jacob settled in the loop, he wouldn’t be able to go back to his time and his parents would be worried sick. But if he returned to his time, his friends in the loop would perish and he, himself, would have more of a chance of passing outside of the loop.

At the end, Jacob’s peculiar friends persuaded his father to let Jacob reside in the loop with them. At first, Jacob’s father was hesitant, then he agreed, possibly because the day before, he got drunk and now he believed he was hallucinating. So together, Jacob and his peculiar friends stopped the wights from invading their loop. But during the process, their home was destroyed. So at the end, Jacob and the survivors set out to sea in three small boats, searching for a new home.

My favorite parts of the novel were when Jacob found out that he was in love with his grandfather’s ex, Emma. Since Emma lived in the loop all her life, she practically looked 16, and at the time, so was Jacob’s grandfather. I also like the part where Jacob and Emma were being chased by wights, so both of them hid in a barn. But when Jacob saw the wight trying to break in, he went out and slain the wight and saved Emma by hiding her in a sheep pen.

I loved how the book was filled with heroism, sacrifice, love, tense jump-scare moments, and fantasy. At the end, this book became one of my favorite books I ever read. (maybe in the Top 10) I’m glad I finished this book, and I’m glad I had to read if for school.

Summer Writing : from Michael, a 7th grader

Randall Munroe : Comics that ask "what if ? " from TED Talk 

by Michael 

Have you ever wondered how high a person can throw something, or the effects of having a moneyprinter on the world's economy ? Those sort of questions will be answered by cartoonist Randall Munroe in his popular book "What If?". 

"What If? by Randall Munroe is a book that answers absurd, hypothetical questions with legitimate answers or predictions. 

Randall Munroe answers these strange questions in great detail. Along with a whole lot of research he had to do. He also includes many humorous cartoons that relate to the question being asked. One example of this is on page 125 when he includes a cartoon of two people in a blizzard. One says that they will get frostbite if exposed to cold much longer. The other states that "A fever would cancel that out right ? Good thing I didn't get my flu shot". This cartoon is very funny because the question being asked is "If global warming puts us in danger through temperature rise, and super-volcanoes put us into the danger of global cooling, shouldn't those two dangers balance each other out?". 

The use of humorous and sarcastic cartoons is one of the reasons that I deeply enjoy this book. Those with a curious mind will find "What If?" a very enjoyable read. Personally, this books is one of my favorite books of all time. I highly recommend this book to everyone because of the book's crazy content and hilarious cartoons.

Summer Writing : from Alex, a 7th grader

Fishing Adventure

Essay #5 by Alex

I had gone to Lakeside Park with my dad to catch a trophy bass. During my fishing trip on the day before the Fourth of July, I learned many new fishing tricks such as how to tie knots on a lure. I also learned how to unhook a razor sharp teeth fish known as the pike. The day was very long and hot from sun up to sun down. My dad and I had a ball fishing all day and we were very happy at the end. My mom could not join us, but I still laughed and had fun with dad.

The day had started out a little bad due to all the boat activity at the lake. My dad had gotten peevish about the fact that people were disturbing the fish habitat and causing havoc. Luckily, we were able to find the fishing holes once we rowed to the other side of the lake. There were a multitude of bass in one spot and the fishes were very healthy, except for one that had a small leech inside the mouth. My dad caught many pikes and he was scared to lose his lure because the pikes have razor sharp teeth and the fish tries to bite the lure in half but instead it cuts the fishing line and takes the lure away. Many of the fish that we caught were big, but the pikes were much bigger than the bass. On the other hand, I had learned how to safely release a fish with pliers into the water without hurting the fish. I also showed my dad how to get his lure off a high branch by pulling from side to side to loosen the lure or break the branch off.

This fishing trip was one of the best ones yet this summer, besides the Rockland State Park adventure.  We had tons of fun catching and releasing fish all day and talking to each other about many different topics. My dad caught the biggest bass that we had ever reeled in at lakeside and he was able to take a photo of an ultimate size bass. This fishing trip was magnificent.