Complete List of Participants - CreativeWritingContest

Transcription

TOMPKINS-SENECA-TIOGA BOCES
2010 – 2011
CREATIVE WRITING CONTEST
Participating Schools
Belle Sherman Elementary School
BOCES-Smith
Boynton Middle School
Candor Elementary, Middle & High Schools
Caroline Elementary School
Cayuga Heights Elementary School
DeWitt Middle School
Dryden Middle & High Schools
Enfield Elementary School
George Jr. Republic
Groton Elementary, Middle & High Schools
Ithaca High School
Lansing Elementary, Middle and High Schools
Lehman Alternative Community School
Newfield Middle & High Schools
South Seneca Elementary, Middle & High Schools
Trumansburg Elementary, Middle & High Schools
Congratulations to everyone who participated in our 2010-2011 Creative Writing Contest! This
is an exciting year for us as we strived to meet some goals we set: an increase in the number of
student entries, teacher participants and participating schools; having teachers enthusiastic and
comfortable with technology upgrades; letting students feel empowered to enter the contest
from home or their local library; giving the TST BOCES regional school community a 21st Century
online resource website that enhances literacy and writing skills through a digital model; new
categories; stronger school-community-home collaborations; going green!
We know we accomplished the first, as the number of entries jumped from 800 to over 1,100!
Teachers were more enthusiastic, as they could view their student work online to help with
editing. Teachers, students and families accessed the TST BOCES Creative Writing Contest Wiki,
http://creativewritingcontest-tstboces.wikispaces.com/, which was frequently updated with
contest information as well as writing tips, fun promotion ideas and Staff Development
opportunities. We added a new category “Photo Reflection” and several Art teachers had
students enter photography, integrating Writing and Visual Art.
As for going green, our judges went paperless--- they read the entries digitally, wrote and
submitted comments on the winning pieces all online. Most significant for our going green
initiative, our High School Winning Entries Booklet will be widely available free to anyone who
wants to download it from our Creative Writing Contest Wiki! We will not be printing it on paper
this year but participants have the option to print out a full or partial copy. Next year, we expect
to go completely paperless! Elementary and Middle School Booklets have been distributed in
paper but we offer a digital PDF version on our Creative Writing Contest Wiki site as well.
The Contest only happens because of the fine work of many people. We wish to thank:
Dan Parker- BOCES Micro Computer Specialist, Kathy Crane, and the T-S-T BOCES Print Shop;
Brian O’Donnell of A & B Awards and Engraving; Judges: Katharyn Howd Machan (..who just
completed her last year as a judge! Thank you for many years of services!), Pat Gaines, and
Maryterese Pasquale-Bowen.
Special thanks to Dr. Heather Sheridan-Thomas, TST BOCES Asst. Superintendent, and
Dr. Ellen O’Donnell, TST BOCES District Superintendent, for the support and guidance they
continue to give.
Best Wishes to all our participants and teachers! Please keep writing and enjoying the CWC Wiki
year round for new ideas in reading, writing and enrichment. Remember to bookmark the site
at http://creativewritingcontest-tstboces.wikispaces.com/ !
Holly Kazarinoff, Director of Enrichment Services
June 14, 2011
Kim Evanoski, Project Support to Enrichment Services
June 14, 2011
T-S-T BOCES Creative Writing Contest 2011 - Winners List
Prize
Name
Title
School
Teacher
Grade 04-05
Story
Ewan Todt-Tutchener
The Princess Who Could Not Find a Fro Cayuga Heights ES
g Prince
Flo
Cayuga Heights ES
Erin Sweeney
Third Prize
Marilyn Pereboom
The Horrible Disaster
Belle Sherman ES
William Van Slyke
Very Honorable Mention
Lucy Wang
An Adventure
Cayuga Heights ES
Kathyleen DeLucia
Maria Massi
The Bunnies Tale
Lansing ES
Lisa Kledzik
Christian Brooks
The Painter Theodore
Cayuga Heights ES
Kathyleen DeLucia
Julius Stroock
The Horrible Cake
Cayuga Heights ES
Pam Merola
Erin Magnus
Pam Merola
Ari Kirshner
Raincalf to Rainstorm: A Dolphin's Jour Cayuga Heights ES
ney
The Last Game of the Season
Belle Sherman ES
Fields Jonathan
Michael Zhao
The Pyramid Trap
Cayuga Heights ES
Kathyleen DeLucia
Margot Stern
Teeth Extractions
Cayuga Heights ES
Erin Sweeney
Shannon Loehr
Music Notes
Cayuga Heights ES
Erin Sweeney
Keegan Moore
Science Savior
Trumansburg MS
Kathleen Burton
Jordan Lu
Journey to the Heart
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Eva Milstein-Touesnard
The Day I Won $1000
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Logan Bonn
Billy Bob and Joe Save Planet Earth
Trumansburg ES
Michael Naylor
Ijeyi Onah
Syracuse
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Isabelle Danforth
It
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Sean Vaysburd
The Contest
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
First Prize
Rachel Eginton
Second Prize
Erin Sweeney
Essay
First Prize
Mari Bothner
Seven Billion... and Counting
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Second Prize
Justin Tan
Catastrophe in Japan
Cayuga Heights ES
Pam Merola
Third Prize
Justin Cramer
My Opinion About Math
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Regular Poetry
First Prize
Arjun Sweet
Burj
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Second Prize
Nicholas Supron
The Mountain
Cayuga Heights ES
Connie Patterson
Third Prize
Alex Mueller
Chicks in Danger
Cayuga Heights ES
Pam Merola
Charles Gal
24 Seconds to Shoot
Cayuga Heights ES
Kathyleen DeLucia
Ana Maria Arroyo
Heron
Cayuga Heights ES
Kathyleen DeLucia
Structured Poetry
First Prize
Donavan Lehto
Turkey Hunting
Enfield ES
Judith Blood
Second Prize
Delaney Fatcheric
Seasons
Candor ES
Christine Stephens
Third Prize
Katie Sofko-Hussey
A Set of Three Haiku Poems
Cayuga Heights ES
Pam Merola
Page 1 of 7
Prize
Name
Title
School
Teacher
Joey Brutnell
Snakes
Cayuga Heights ES
Erin Sweeney
Jack Duthie
Being A Brother
Cayuga Heights ES
Pam Merola
Rylie Ackley
Grass
Candor ES
Christine Stephens
Amy Wang
Reading
Cayuga Heights ES
Erin Sweeney
Book Review
First Prize
Luke Monaghan
Second Prize
Christopher Kiely
A Book Review about The Series of Unf Cayuga Heights ES
ortunate Events
Book Review of the Lemonade War
Cayuga Heights ES
Pam Merola
Erin Sweeney
Photo Reflection
Ivan Ristow
Fun and War
Cayuga Heights ES
Pam Merola
Grade 06-08
Story
First Prize
Jessie Liu
Festival Frenzy
Dewitt MS
Robin Rosoff
Second Prize
Lindsay Yuan
A Perfect World
Dewitt MS
Robin Rosoff
Third Prize
Jack Myers
Hideously Tragic
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Elijah Trim
Billy
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
William Lewis
Number 12
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Tally Johnson
Memories of Sweet Sand
Dewitt MS
Lee Kaltman
Lindsey Chung
When I Met My First Dog, Munchkin
Dewitt MS
Robin Rosoff
Michael Gazzo
Section 12
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Conner Borden
Miniature
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Mara Beth Myers
Adam Lambert, The Sexy Glampire
BOCES-Smith
Sharon Berzolla
James Park
Servel and the Stone of Light
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Marcus Gonzalez
The Break Out
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Mariah Schloupt
A Girls Dream
Newfield MS
Sarah Grandner
Devin Westlake
Nit-Bit
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
David Van Wijk
The Swimming Contest
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Sterling Williams-Ceci
The Talking of the Dead
Boynton MS
Gina Amici
Kara Van Valen
Bullied
Trumansburg MS
Juliet Allen
Olivia Murray
Cockiness
Trumansburg MS
Juliet Allen
Samuel Drake
Dinner at Grandmas House
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Savanna Hilker
The Day I Babysat a Monkey
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Kayla Clink
23 Stitches
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Olivia Moreland
Black Dog
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Brad Chrisman
Paul
Newfield MS
Betsy Edwards
Alyssa Witchey
The Paper Crane
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Page 2 of 7
Prize
Name
Title
School
Teacher
Leigha Hoaglin
Just Plain Comfortable
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Boynton MS
Paula Berman
Essay
First Prize
Saily Deshpande
Community Service
Second Prize
John Losurdo
Third Prize
Lilly Wick
Do the Benefits of Electric Cars Outwei Lansing MS
gh the Drawbacks?
ALS—Lou Gehrig's Disease
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Carlyn Matheny
Euthanasia: Should It Be Legalized?
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Pedro Ribas
My Life in the United States
Dewitt MS
Robin Rosoff
Jami Alexander
Dear Fellow Citizens
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Gwendolyn Gallagher
Seasons
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Anneleise Hess
Do Athletes Make too Much Money?
Groton MS
Barb Bassette
Veronica Cator-Szymanski
My Opinion On Global Warming
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Keri Lawson
A Bullied Life
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Max Jordan
What are the Benefits and Drawbacks o Lansing MS
f Using Geothermal Energy?
Regular Poetry
Todd Howell
First Prize
Meeta Shrivastava
The One, and Only
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Second Prize
Cassidy Towner
I'd Rather Give
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Third Prize
Taylor Mikula
Revenge Through Tea
Lansing MS
Stacie Kropp
Marie Griswold
The Way Things Are
Trumansburg MS
Juliet Allen
Sophia Pitti
Life
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Nicholas Cancalosi-Dean
A Dream Sets Me On My Path
Dewitt MS
Robin Rosoff
Skylar Ponton
This Poem
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Melina Katsiroumba
Treehouse
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Alyssa Gowe
The Cardinal
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Ally Mirin
A Poem of Colors
Dewitt MS
Robin Rosoff
Aaron Greenberg
The Garden of Life
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Terrapin Fowler
The Amazon
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Olajuwon Prescott
The Language of the Love-Struck
LACS
Danielle Bell
Coco Hill-James
Whirling on Ice
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Leanne Russo
Freedom's Way
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Kayla Matos
My Sister Liana
Boynton MS
Paula Berman
Lachlan Berger
Ski Jump
LACS
Danielle Bell
Abbi Troy
Bonfires at Midnight
Newfield MS
Jen Carlson
Eli Ford
Pen-cil
Newfield MS
Jen Carlson
Lena Weiss
Poppy-My Dog
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
MacKenzie Kenyon
Basketball
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Todd Howell
Page 3 of 7
Prize
Name
Title
School
Teacher
Lincoln McCarter-Nyberg
Chain of All Chains
Lansing MS
Stacie Kropp
Edward H. Kiefer
I am From
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Daniel Xu
Martin Luther King Poem
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Anna Kirkwood
The Bright Red Balloon
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Erin Hilgartner
Spring
Boynton MS
Gina Amici
Leyla Dietrich
Blissful
LACS
Danielle Bell
Rory Simpson
Borne Away
Boynton MS
Paula Berman
Katrina Twardokus
Moonlight's Path
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Lizzy Drake
Girl in Front
Lansing MS
Stacie Kropp
Adele Ferris
Fall
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Jennica Jolles
Steps
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Harman Benipal
Martin Luther King Jr. Poem
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Kylie McKenna
Pollution
Lansing MS
Todd Howell
Jordan Jacobs
Spring Time
Newfield MS
Betsy Edwards
Structured Poetry
First Prize
Max Mollenkamp
Snow Day
Boynton MS
Paula Berman
Second Prize
Ryan Shields
Trampoline
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Third Prize
Katie Heath
Three Limericks: Play on Words
Newfield MS
Betsy Edwards
Madeline Crooker
Pemaquid
Boynton MS
Paula Berman
Logan Simpson
European Eel
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Connor Austin
School to Camping
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Liam Hall
My Favorite Seasons
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Sean Mcdaniel
Futbol
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Sahana Simonetti
Feelings
LACS
Danielle Bell
Tahlya Champion
My Sweetie Pie
Boynton MS
Paula Berman
Lucas Huff
Thunderstorm
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Cheli Austin
Love
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Dewitt MS
Kathryn Cernera
Book Review
First Prize
Eleanor Pereboom
Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City
Second Prize
Danny Horne
Third Prize
Xavier LaVigne
The 13th Reality: The Hunt for Dark Inf Lansing MS
inity
Dragon Heir
Lansing MS
Chloe Austin
Book Review of Flatfoot Fox and the Ca Newfield MS
se of the Missing Eye
Photo Reflection
Sarah Grandner
First Prize
Brianna Stafford
The True Meaning of Friendship
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Second Prize
Hannah Piger
New York City
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Todd Howell
Todd Howell
Page 4 of 7
Prize
Name
Title
School
Teacher
Third Prize
Ana Goloboradko
Bike
Boynton MS
Valerie Evans
Dylan Clark
My Quad
Dryden MS
Rebecca White
Laura Wyckoff
The Sunset
South Seneca MS
Patricia Parsons
Grade 09-11
Story
First Prize
Sophie Potter
A Letter to Italy
LACS
Jon Raimon
Second Prize
Gwen Ober
Back to Atlantis
Ithaca High School
Shirley Kennedy
Third Prize
Haerin Lee
The Glass Bottle of Truth
Ithaca High School
Ross Creagan
Alexandra Stagliano
How Roses Got their Thorns
Ithaca High School
Lauren McKown
Rose Pinnisi
Sanatorium
LACS
Jon Raimon
Laurel Wolfe
It's a Man's Man's World
LACS
Chris Sperry
Siena Schickel
Keeping in Time
Ithaca High School
Lauren McKown
Ravin Ruocco
Night
Newfield HS
Betty Powell
Ina V Joo
Our Waltz
Ithaca High School
Ross Creagan
Very, Very Brief Story
First Prize
Michael Wexler
Taking Iwo Jima
Ithaca High School
William Asklar
Second Prize
Joey Augustine
Riding Home
Ithaca High School
William Asklar
Third Prize
September F. Johnson
Swishh
Ithaca High School
William Asklar
Alex Y. Clark
For Whom The Bell Tones
Ithaca High School
William Asklar
Rachel Levine
These Modern Day Aesthetics
Ithaca High School
William Asklar
Simon Bohn
Expanse
Ithaca High School
William Asklar
Essay
First Prize
Medeea Popescu
Unlikely Heroes In A Tale of Two Cities Ithaca High School
William Asklar
Second Prize
Ally VanValen
The Burning Truth
Ithaca High School
Ross Creagan
Third Prize
Sarah Griggs
Poe and Goya
Newfield HS
Betty Powell
Dakota Rumsey
"Video Games"
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
John Schafer
A Winter Haven
Lansing HS
June Martin
Brianna Hulbert
My Father.
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Samantha Berry
Memory and High School
Newfield HS
Betty Powell
Zachary Hunter
"I Believe in Good People"
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
James Stoyell
Lennie Did Not Need to Die
Lansing HS
June Martin
Mariah Crawford
"This I Believe"
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Jordan Wrisley
I Believe in Ghost
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
LACS
Chris Sperry
Regular Poetry
First Prize
Amanda Coate
Almost
Page 5 of 7
Prize
Name
Title
School
Teacher
Second Prize
Eileen Sochia
The Chaos Theory
Ithaca High School
Lauren McKown
Third Prize
Etienne Grenier
Right/Wrong - Vrai/Faux
LACS
Danielle Bell
Meredith Czymmek
Baptized
Lansing HS
June Martin
Sarah Brewer
Annelise Raymond
Brianna Zichettella
Can I See That Paper Bag For A Minute South Seneca HS
?
Where Will Santa Go When the North P Ithaca High School
ole Melts?
"Obfuscation"
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Bridget Schmidt
High Enough
Dryden HS
Tiffany Wincek
Elizabeth Karpinski
Silent Symphonies Somewhere
Ithaca High School
Lauren McKown
Elena Parkins
Abused
Lansing HS
June Martin
Alyssa Babcock
"About Me"
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Corina Miner
Looking at It
Trumansburg HS
Lorian Dickerson
Vincent Schoedel
Kim Scholl
Structured Poetry
First Prize
Lauren Cain
My Christmas Socks
Newfield HS
Betty Powell
Second Prize
Andy Parkes
Music
Lansing HS
June Martin
Third Prize
Connor O Neill
Falling Magic
Lansing HS
June Martin
Asia Myles
Daybreak
Lansing HS
June Martin
Dwayne Falbru
The Growing Flower
South Seneca HS
Vincent Schoedel
Mia Avramis
Death Do Us Part
Lansing HS
June Martin
Melissa Sprole
Volcano
Lansing HS
June Martin
Isabelle Corgel
Firefly
Lansing HS
June Martin
Newfield HS
Peter Pfarrer
Book Review
First Prize
Pete Hoskins
Review of "Lamb to the Slaughter"
Photo Reflection
First Prize
Huijun (Lucy) Duan
Simply Jellyfish
Ithaca High School
Richard Anderson
Second Prize
Julie Pesaresi
Living My Dream
Ithaca High School
Shirley Kennedy
Lansing HS
Shannon Maxson
Ithaca High School
Ross Creagan
Lansing HS
Shannon Maxson
Ithaca High School
Shirley Kennedy
Found Poetry
First Prize
Jacob Palladino
Second Prize
Rachel Pollak
Third Prize
Jason Yahn
Darius Longmire
"My Dream" after Of Mice and Men by J
ohn Steinbeck
"The Truth Is after Cold Mountain by C
harles Frazier"
Future after Of Mice and Men by John
Steinbeck
Vampires after "Vampyrrhic" By Simon
Clark
Grade 12
Story
First Prize
Avalon Bunge
Sea Change
Ithaca High School
Rebecca Gergely
Second Prize
Anna Forsythe
Christopher
Dryden HS
Tiffany Wincek
Third Prize
Phillip Ryan
War Daddy
Newfield HS
Peter Pfarrer
Page 6 of 7
Prize
Name
Title
School
Teacher
Daniel Gray
The Creation of Video Games
Dryden HS
Margaret Grace
Maxine Fallon-Goodwin
The Wait
Trumansburg HS
Nick Johnston
James Eaglesham
Ellie
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Marcel Gremaud
Sermon On The Couch
Ithaca High School
Rebecca Gergely
Reanna Enslow
The Oath I made to a Shadow
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Emily Conlon
The Lonely Life of a Cashier
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Essay
First Prize
Julia Ridley
The Notebook
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Second Prize
Matthew McGill
The Thrill of a Lifetime
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Third Prize
Madison Waters
My Table is Your Table
Dryden HS
Tiffany Wincek
Hannah McKinney
Not Just Another Community Service
Lansing HS
June Martin
Kelly Martin
What's the Difference?
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Douglas Moore
The Rescue
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Regular Poetry
First Prize
Sean Soules
ADD
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Second Prize
Bridie Crandall
Ada's Letter
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Third Prize
Ja-Toni Telfair
Guardian
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Audrey Enzian
My Open Road
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
David Petrosky
"Racism"
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Brittany Potter
"Compilation of the Corps"
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Structured Poetry
First Prize
Tiffany Van Etten
She's The Devil
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Second Prize
Jeffrey Tokman
Direction
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Third Prize
Christina Sanseverino
“A Beautiful Night”
Newfield HS
Jana Leyden
Photo Reflection
First Prize
Nina Luise Lindberg
Breaking Point
Lansing HS
Andrea Huskie
Eli Robinson
Night
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Found Poetry
Tara Miller
"To Entrust is Sometimes to Abandon a Lansing HS
fter Les Misérables by Victor Hugo"
Grade Art
June Martin
Cover Art
First Prize
Josh H
The Writer
George Jr. Republic
Jessica Wall
Eunju Lee
Cover Book Tree
Ithaca High School
Shirley Kennedy
Hyosang Lee
The Universe of Literature
Ithaca High School
Alexis Lord
Page 7 of 7
Rachel E
First Place
Story
Cayuga Height ES
Grade 4-5
The Princess Who Could Not Find a Frog Prince
Once upon a time in a land far, far away, there was a princess named Marge who had no prince.
This made the princess feel like a loser. Her friend, Esmeralda, who already had gorgeous blonde
ringlets and a closet full of silk dresses, told Marge the story of how she got her prince. One day,
Esmeralda was sitting next to a pond, where she met a frog. She kissed him and poof, the frog
turned into a prince. Ever since then, Esmeralda bragged about how great her life had become,
and that she was going to live happily ever after. This made Marge feel even more loser-ish.
Until, one day, she got mad and decided, “Well, I bet if Esmeralda can find a frog prince, then so
can I!” Filled with determination, Marge went to the pond and found many frogs. She kissed lots
of them, but none of them seemed to turn into princes. Finally, after kissing allthe frogs in the
pond, some of them maybe even twice, she plopped on the ground, wiped away the slime and
moped. “I’m never going to find a prince,” she whined. Meanwhile, she secretly hoped a prince
would come along, see what was the matter, fall on his knees and ask her to marry him right
then and there. But, that didn’t happen.
Then she got an idea! Maybe it doesn’t just work with frogs. Maybe it works with other creatures,
too. “I know! I should go check out the ocean,” Marge thought to herself. So she walked over to
the ocean and looked for a creature. She looked up and down the beach; she dug through sand
and seaweed, and strolled into the water, until she saw a blob floating in the waves. She reached
her hand into the cold water and pulled out a squid! She looked at it to see if there was any sign
of it being a prince. But there was no sign whatsoever. “Well you never can tell!” she puckered
up her lips and kissed the slimy squid. Then all of a sudden, out popped the paparazzi and
started taking pictures! “Oh no! How embarrassing!” Marge groaned. Then the squid squirted her
with ink!
Marge ran home. She washed off the ink, turned on the computer, and there they were
ALREADY!!! The pictures were on the internet. They were on Yahoo, TV talk shows, magazines
and newspapers. The headlines said: “Princess Marge Caught in the Many Arms of a Squid” and
“Puckering Princess Squeezes Squid”. As the week went on, they turned into “Did Princess Marge
Dump the Squid for a Shark?”and “Squid Caught Cheating with His Six Other Arms Around Three
Other Princesses!”To make things even worse, Esmeralda’s perfect wedding pictures were also in
the news. Marge felt horrible. She never wanted to leave the castle again.
The castle chef, Chef Ronald, felt sorry for the princess. He tried to help her by making delicious
treats like a 2-foot tall ice cream sundae and double-trouble chocolate cookies; but, Marge would
not eat anything. Finally, Chef Ronald had an idea. One day, he invited the princess into the
kitchen. Slowly, Marge dragged herself there. She was so depressed. She plopped down at the
table, closed her eyes and sighed. When she opened them, a BIG plate of fried squid with a
delicious sweet and sour dipping sauce was in front of her! Chef Ronald bowed and said, “Your
Majesty.” Marge smiled and invited Chef Ronald to eat them with her. Fried squid became her
favorite meal, Chef Ronald became her new best friend, and Marge began to feel sorry for
Esmeralda because she had to spend every holiday at the swamp visiting her husbands’ relatives.
Fantastic sense of humor. It was a pleasure to read your story. What an imagination you have.
The original tale has been retold in many ways, yours is just delightful. Keep on writing!
Ewan T
Second Place
Story
Cayuga Height ES
Grade 4-5
Flo
It was a frightening day in Amsterdam. It was two days after Allied forces were defeated by the
Germans in Arnhem in 1944. However, sometimes news doesn’t travel as quickly as it should.
The news didn’t get to Flo’s owner.
Flo was a black and cream Keeshond and liked her little toy Ted. Many of her breed
lived on barges on the canals, but she lived in a house that over looked a courtyard in the middle
of Amsterdam.
That day, Flo’s owner went shopping in the market and to her surprise, there was no
one there. Again, the news hadn’t reached Flo’s owner. Also on that day, the Dutch people saw
the first signs of German planes.
One plan flew overhead. Two planes flew overhead. The third plane did the same. But
the fourth plane was dropping something from its aircraft bay door. Flo was on the roof deck of
her house and saw something coming down from the sky. Flow was afraid and knew something
terrible was about to happen. She ran all the way downstairs to the empty kitchen and went out
the door to the garden. Then she remembered about Ted. She ran back in and grabbed Ted
from her bed near the kitchen fireplace. She ran back into the garden.
She heard a loud whistling noise. BOOM! Part of her house was gone. Flo was in shock
and dropped her toy. Then she looked into the courtyard. People were running into the nearby
bank because the bank had an air raid shelter.
She saw a little boy sitting in the courtyard crying. She ran over and licked him. He said
to her sobbing, “Hi little dog, I am Nickolas.” Flo licked him again. Then, still sobbing, he said,
“I don’t know where my family is. I think they went into the bomb shelter without me. And, I
lost my favorite toy.”
Flo looked at the people going into the bank’s bomb shelter. She knew somehow that
they should follow them. Instead, she ran back toward the courtyard and started looking for the
boy’s toy. She looked behind trees and in bushes. Then she found it. It looked like her Ted and
carrying it in her mouth, she ran back toward Nickolas. Nickolas looked up. “You found it!” he
said.
With a wag of her tail, Flo started running toward the bank.
“Wait,” Nickolas said. He started running to Flo. Flo followed the last of the people into
the bank. Nickolas was still running after Flo. Then he realized they were going into a bomb
shelter. The bomb shelter was crowded and dark. Some children were crying. People looked
worried.
Soon, someone said that German cars, tanks, and soldiers were on the street where the
bank was located, the Vijzelstraat. Nickolas wanted to know why everybody was in the bomb
shelter. A man said, “We think there are going to be more bombings.” They waited an hour or
so and then went outside. People came out of the bomb shelter and were in shock because of
the bombing in the courtyard. One whole side of the courtyard was in rubble, including Flo’s
house.
Nickolas looked at Fo and saw that she had a nametag. “Flo,” he said. “That is a nice
name, Flo.”
Nickolas knew he had to try to find his family. “You can come with me and help me find
my family, Flo,” Nickolas said. Wagging her tail, she barked happily. Flo and Nickolas set off in
search of his family.
Later that week, one German General said that the bombing in Amsterdam was an
accident. But most people living around Flo’s courtyard didn’t believe it was an accident.
Very well organized story. The reader really wants to know what happens next. You used
dialogue well to make the characters come alive. The variety is sentence length helps to move
the story along really well also.
Marilyn P
Third Place
Story
Belle Sherman ES
Grade 4-5
The Horrible Disaster
The tremors were so bad no one could stay on their feet, unless they were holding on to
something that wasn’t swaying wildly or threatening to come down. All the skyscrapers in Tokyo
were swaying! At the initial shock of the earthquake, my parents and I ran out of the house
wanting to reach our small emergency shelter before the aftershocks started. The next thing I
knew I was lying on the street, stunned by falling debris. When I got up every part of my body
ached; I looked around, the street was deserted. A bubble of panic rose inside me, swelling until
I just curled up into a ball and cried. When I got up again I decided to find my parents. I looked
around, and I was amazed; what used to be houses were piles of rubble. My parents might be at
the emergency shelter, I thought. I started running and would have kept running until I got to
the shelter if the aftershocks hadn’t started. When the ground started shaking I felt like I was
standing on a really fast moving conveyer belt, except worse. My knees flung out from under me,
and I couldn’t get up. I just lay there until it stopped. After what seemed like hours, but was only
a few minutes, I started walking again. I knew where the shelter was because in school we
practiced what would happen if we were in a real disaster. We did this to be prepared, since we
live in Tokyo, which is near the ring of fire, but I never imagined it would be like this.
As I ran through collapsed buildings I kept stumbling over falling debris. Suddenly I tripped over
something that sent me flying. Then I heard a small muffled grunt of pain. I ran back to the spot
where I had tripped and gasped: under a small pile of debris was a boy about my age.
“Are you OK?” I asked and shoved the pile of rubble off him. He nodded even though he was
pretty sore. “Do you know where your parents are?” I asked. He shook his head. “You can come
with me,” I said. He nodded and snuggled up close to me. I was glad for the company. The next
aftershock didn’t seem so bad with him there. We just hugged each other and waited till it was
over. By the time we got to the shelter it seemed like we had known each other for years. “Come
on,” I said. We walked in and there my parents were. Their faces were wet with tears. When I
walked in, they threw their arms around me until all three of us were crying. I finally pulled
away. I motioned to the boy “This is…” I trailed off realizing I had never asked him his name.
“Akio,” he filled in for me.
“He’s trying to find his parents,” I said.
“Actually I’m an orphan. I lived at the orphanage before the earthquake,” Akio said quietly.
“In that case,” my mom said “Welcome to the family!” I couldn’t believe it; Akio was going to live
with us!
The next morning I looked outside and was amazed everyone was helping each other; people
were helping to pick up the debris in the road; people were being nice in the huge lines for food
and clean water; people were even sharing the little they had. It was a terrible disaster, but it
had really brought out the best in people.
Such energy and a kind of excitement flows from your story. It makes the reader feel like they
are really there with you in the earthquake. Your use of dialogue makes the story come alive.
Your use of language and descriptions give the reader strong images of what is happening.
Wonderful writing.
Lucy W
Story
Belle Sherman ES
Grade 4-5
An Adventure
11 year-old Sarah Smith quietly stalked a butterfly, each step taking her closer to it. Just as she was about to grab the
butterfly, she heard...
“Look what I found!” Sarah looked over to see her best friend, Lizzie Robertson, running towards her.
Lizzie’s parents went to visit her grandparents, so Lizzie was staying at Sarah’s house.
“Follow me, I think I found something!” Lizzie exclaimed.
“Lizzie!!!!” Sarah exclaimed (annoyed). Although Lizzie was Sarah’s best friend, sometimes she got on Sarah’s nerves.
“Come on!” called Lizzie, gesturing for Sarah to follow her.
Sarah followed Lizzie into her backyard.
“Tada!” Lizzie said proudly.
“What is it?” Sarah asked, “All I can see are bushes!”
“Well, we aren’t there YET, we just have to climb under the bushes!” Lizzie said excitedly. Sarah then noticed that Lizzie’s
usual blonde hair was specked with dirt.
“You mean I have to climb under those bushes??” Sarah exclaimed.
“Yeah... Please!!” Lizzie pleaded.
“Fine…” Sarah said, her voice already full of regret. Lizzie was always getting herself, and more importantly, Sarah, into
trouble.
The thick bushes tore the girls’ clothes, and scratched their bodies, as they picked their way through the plants.
After what seemed like ages, Lizzie exclaimed, “We’re here!”
Sarah looked around. The bushes were slowly fading away, and Sarah could see a flicker of sunlight through the branches.
Unbelievingly, she saw a tree, “With a door?” Stunned, Sarah pinched herself to make sure that she wasn’t dreaming.
“Yep.” Lizzie replied, not as shocked to see the towering oak tree standing before her, although she was a little afraid that it
was all just a dream.
After a moment of silence, Sarah asked, “Are we going to open the door?” Without waiting for an answer, Sarah
reached to open it.
“It’s locked!” Sarah exclaimed, as she yanked the handle.
“That’s what I thought, I have the key,” Lizzie explained.
“How? Where did you find it?” asked Sarah.
“Under one of the bushes. See, it has a picture of this tree on it.” Lizzie said showing it to Sarah.
“Wow! What’s inside the door?” Sarah asked.
“I was waiting for you so we could find out together.” Lizzie said with a smile.
“Well, what are you waiting for?” asked Sarah with a grin. “Here I am!”
“Ok!” said Lizzie inserting the key into the door.
Lizzie felt a wave of panic sweeping through her, would the key work? She stuck the key into the door and turned it, but it
didn’t even budge! She tried a couple more times, but still not a budge! “Let me try!” Sarah said hopefully. Lizzie handed
the key to Sarah. The first two tries didn’t work, but on the third try, voila!
The door opened to reveal a staircase spiraling upward. Both girls looked at each other in awe, then began their ascent. The
staircase went on forever. Just as they were about to give up, the last step came to view. On top of it is a machine, which
looked like a phone booth. A piece of paper was taped by the “phone booth”. It said:
Speak into the speaker and say your will.
Lizzie and Sarah looked at each other and seemed to read each other’s minds.
Lizzie gestured to Sarah and pleaded, “You say it.”
“Are you sure?” Sarah asked, feeling a little nervous. “What if I’m not thinking what Lizzie is thinking?” Sarah pushed that
thought out. “We’ve been dreaming of this all our lives!” she said assuring herself. “Ok!” Slowly and bravely, Sarah spoke
into the speaker,
“We’re going on an adventure!”
Great use of language, suspense, and dialogue. The opening sentence draws the reader in to
the story without giving anything away. The ending is really just another beginning .... perfect
for this story.
Maria M
Story
Lansing ES
Grade 4-5
The Bunnies Tale
A mother bunny poked her head out of her den. One of the bunnies kicked her. "Huh" she
sighed. She turned around to look at her bunnies. There were three; Topple, Nopple, and little
Lopple nicknamed "the Opples". They all squirmed around and made squeaking noises. There
eyes had just opened yesterday. Cockle, the mother, lay right next to her babies. All the babies
settled down next to their mother. The sun had just set. Stars dotted the sky and soon they were
fast asleep. A fox came out of her den and walked onto the ski mountain Cockle was living on.
The snow was coming down hard. The fox reached her paw into the rabbits' den. The fox's paw
wrapped around Lopple the littlest rabbit. The fox pulled out her paw. Her claws were in the
rabbit's middle. By this time Lopple was awake. "Squeak," Lopple cried. Cockle woke up, ran out
of her den and kicked the fox with her thumpers. Again and again she kicked. The fox ripped
open Cockle's chest. The fox fell down in the snow. The fox's claws had released Lopple. The fox
and Cockle lay lifeless in the snow. Topple and Nopple pulled Lopple into the den.
It was about noon the next morning. "Look, Daddy and Mommy, a bunny hole," said Katie who
was seven. Her mom and dad skied over. "One is hurt really bad Katie" said her father. "But
there's no mother" said Katie's mother. "We will keep the bunnies until..." Katie broke in, "Oh
thank you Daddy." "Let's get the wounded one over to the vet" said Katie's Mother. Katie picked
up Topple, Nopple, and Lopple. They drove down to the vet. "This bunny is bleeding very badly,
we need an appointment... NOW!" shouted Katie's father. The nurse took all the bunnies into the
back room. Inside, Dr. Cal checked all around Lopple's wound. Dr. Cal called in Katie's family.
"Could be internal bleeding, she has two broken ribs," said Dr. Cal. "We will have to operate."
Katie's family left the room. Dr. Cal put Lopple to sleep. Topple and Nopple were in a cage
watching the whole time. Dr. Cal cut a slit in Lopple's side. He repaired one of the ribs and put a
metal piece in to hold the bone together. Then he did the same with the other rib. Then Dr. Cal
put in ten sutures. Then wrapped it up in a surgical bandage. Dr. Cal returned Lopple to her
sisters. For two weeks Dr. Cal took off Lopple's bandages and cleaned the wound, then rewrapped Lopple with new bandages. Katie and her family received good news that they could
take the bunnies home. Katie's family ran to the store and bought a cage, three food bowls, a
water bowl, some food and some wood to chew on. The next day they took the bunnies home
and they explored all day.
A year has passed. Lopple has made a full recovery and is hip hopping every day. Katie has
proved herself a wonderful pet owner and takes good care of them every day. Katie's father is
still getting used to the bunnies but her mother loves them. Despite the bunnies sad beginning
they are now in the good hands of Katie.
There you have it, the fantastic story of Topple, Nopple and little Lopple - the Opple's!
Sweet story of the heroic rescue of the bunny family. Enough detail and description to keep the
reader moving through the story to find out what happens to the bunnies. Do you have a pet
bunny of your own?
Christian B
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
The Painter Theodore
One bright summer day, a young man named Theodore went to get his bike so he could drop
off his painting for the national art contest. He was a local house painter and had never been to
college. He had very little experience in life. He was participating in the art contest because he
loved to paint and wanted to show his skills to the world. He secured his painting to his bike, and
set off.
Theodore was riding merrily along when all of a sudden his wheel hit a rock and the bike
went off the road, and into a ditch. “Oh NO!” shrieked Theodore, as the painting sunk under the
water. He quickly jumped in after it. He scrambled back out of the ditch and looked at the
damage. The painting was a complete mess! The colors were all splattered and dripping
everywhere. In panic, he quickly jumped up and sprinted to the contest building with the painting
snuggly tucked under his arm
‘Why am I bothering?’ thought Theodore, as he went into the building. He realized that he
had no other choice but to use this painting. All the paintings had to be turned in that day. “Can I
help you?” said a man. “Look at my painting, it’s ruined!” said Theodore, as he showed the man
his art. “There seems to be nothing wrong with it, it looks quite good. One of those modern
paintings.” Theodore looked at it again. It looked quite good all of a sudden. He could see what
the man meant now that the paint had dried. “I’ll take it, and put it with the others,” said the
man. Theodore nodded and the man took the painting through a door. Theodore looked around
at other people’s art. What he saw suddenly looked dull, as if the paintings were without
imagination. The man came back and showed Theodore to the door. “Thank you so much!” said
Theodore, as he walked out of the building. “You’re welcome, but remember this: things that
look ruined to you may look like a beautiful work of art to someone else.” Theodore smiled and
gave his thanks again.
After waiting nervously for one week, Theodore went back to find out the results. He
arrived at exactly 12:00pm, feeling very scared because his painting was on display with his
name on it! He quickly walked away from it in embarrassment. As he stood there, people came
over and congratulated him for his amazing art. Soon the judges came out and talked about how
close the contest was this year, and how everyone deserved to win! But they mentioned one
special talent that had appeared.
The third place prize was the first to be awarded. There was a complete silence among the
crowd. Then the judges announced, “Frank Moss!” The crowd erupted into applause, and a man
stepped onto the stage with a big smile. They gave him his prize of $100,000. Then the judges
announced the second place winner, “Kate Walter.” The crowed went ballistic, and a woman
received her prize of $300,000! Then the crowed was so silent you could’ve heard a pin
drop…”Theodore Duggery!” The crowd gasped! He was only a local house painter! Theodore
slowly walked on stage and almost could not believe what was happening! One of the judges
said, “We name Theodore the King of Art, and give him a prize of $500,000!” The judges handed
him a check. This was the beginning of a new life for him, but the best prize was he had found a
new way of looking at art.
The reader can sympathize with Theodore as he tries to get his painting to the art show. We
have a sense of the kind of person Theodore is and hope that he is successful. The language
you use and the judicious use of dialogue make the story work really well.
Christian B
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
The Horrible Cake
Crash! Eric just fell from the counter after having successfully obtained the cook book.
Eric was a good-natured 9 year old boy with brown hair, blue eyes, and a big bump now
growing on his forehead. As usual, Eric was alone. His parents worked a lot and Eric
spent most afternoons in their spotless clean apartment with nothing to do, not to mention
that his mother was a clean freak. Today was a special day though, it was his mother’s
birthday and he had decided to make her a home-made chocolate cake.
Eric flipped through the cook book and found what he thought was the perfect cake: “the
triple-decker decadent fudge chocolate cake.” The recipe called for chocolate, sugar,
flour, baking soda, baking powder, butter and eggs, but Eric could not find any flour in
the pantry and there was no butter left in the fridge. Instead, Eric used oatmeal and olive
oil to replace the missing ingredients.
Another problem was that the recipe was written in grams and Eric was the worst in his
4th grade class in math. He looked at the measuring cup in despair and finally decided to
empty into the mixing bowl all the cans, jars and boxes of ingredients that he had
gathered on the counter. He tried to mix them together but the spoon got stuck to the
icky substance, so he added water to dilute it and turned it into a lumpy liquid. He
poured it into one of his mother’s brand new silicone mold, the kind that prevents cakes
from sticking. He opened the oven and stuck the cake in. The recipe said 45 minutes at
350F, but he thought it was too long so he set the thermometer at 450F and the timer at
25 minutes. By that time the kitchen was a mess and he knew that his mother would be
furious.
Then, he left the kitchen to play Wii in the living-room. He played for about 30 minutes
and did not even hear the timer ringing. He only noticed that something was wrong when
the fire alarm went on. The fire alarms in Eric’s building were connected to the fire
house. Eric rocketed toward the oven door to reveal a smoldering cake surrounded by a
melting mold. “Strange,” he thought, “silicone is not supposed to melt!” Then he
remembered he had found the mold in the plastic container drawer. Suddenly the door
flew open and five fire fighters burst into the room followed closely by his parents.
Eric’s parents had a look of terror on their faces. When his mother saw him she went into
a temper! She was storming at him when she saw the cake, then she asked “What’s that?”
“Oh this?” said Eric, who was still trembling from head to toe. “It’s a cake I was trying to
make for your birthday.” Suddenly his mother stopped. “You tried to make me a birthday
cake?” asked his mother. “Yes” said Eric. Then his mother hugged him and said, “Thank
you Eric!” And that is the end of the horrible cake.
This story is really fun to read. Many can relate to trying to make something special with the end
results coming out as a surprise! Nice job.
Erin M
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Raincalf to Rainstorm: A Dolphin's Journey
“It is time for a meeting!”
The leader’s call rang through the pod. Raincalf and her littermate Saltcalf swam around the
other dolphins in the pod; they were two moons old and could be apprentices any day now!
“Raincalf and Saltcalf! You are now going to be called -until you earn your warrior namesRAINFIN AND SALTFIN!” called the leader, Pandora.
“Rainfin, Saltfin!” chanted the other dolphins. Pandora silenced them with a flick of her tail.
“And your mentors will be Curenttail and Coralstem.” Rainfin and Saltfin happily swam to their
mentors and touched tails.
Silverstream their mother swam to them, “Make me proud.” Rainfin chirped softly back “I
will.”
Every day the dolphins practiced hunting and went on small patrols to look for sharks.
Rainfin did whatever she could to make her mother proud like she promised.
One day there was a shark attack! Rainfin, Saltfin, Coralstem, and Silverstream were called
to fight the sharks. Rainfin was nervous and excited - her first battle!
It was a huge Tiger shark that looked like it had eighty rows of teeth. She knew from her
training that it only had three. “Those jaws could hold all of the dolphins in the world!” Rainfin
thought.
Rainfin found it was hard to fight against the shark. It was so big it seemed like nothing
would ever beat it! She rammed into the shark’s delicate gills over and over again, and with the
help of Saltfin, Coralstem, and Silverstream sent the shark spiraling away into ocean depths.
Rainfin heard a cry and realized it was herself as pain shot like lightning through her body and
she began to sink to the bottom of the sea. The shark had hit her fin and she couldn’t swim.
Rainfin felt something pick her up and carry her back to the pod. She heard Silverstream
and Saltfin quietly chirping. She opened her eyes and saw Icefall the pod healer looking at her.
Silverstream was holding her up.
“My fin feels like it fell off,” Rainfin complained. “It is only badly bruised,” said Icefall.
Rainfin felt sad and proud. This was her first battle scar. She would need at least a moon to
heal. Saltfin might become a warrior before she did! As if reading her mind, Saltfin chirped “I
asked the leader to make me a warrior at the same time as you!” Rainfin felt a wave of relief
wash over her. She and her brother Saltfin had a special bond that kept them together. Just
then Icefall made Silverstream and Saltfin swim away so she could rest.
During the next moon Rainfin swam with her injured fin. She grew stronger and pretty soon
she was better. She resumed her warrior training, hunting and patrolling with the pod.
One day Pandora again called the pod to gather for a meeting. “We have two dolphins who
shall become warriors. They have shown great loyalty and courage to the pod. Rainfin, do you
promise to defend your pod, even at the cost of your life?”
“I do,” whistled Rainfin excitedly.
“Then I pronounce you as a full member of the pod. From this day forward you shall be
called Rainstorm! Saltfin, do you promise to do the same?”
“Yes, I do,” chirped her brother.
“I also pronounce you as a full warrior of the pod. From this day forward you shall be known
as Saltpool!” Pandora announced. The pod cheered and chanted “Rainstorm, Saltpool!
Rainstorm, Saltpool!”
Rainstorm leaped with happiness above the sparkling waves into the sunset.
The reader could feel the bond between the two characters as you moved the story to
completion. Good job.
Ari K
Story
Belle Sherman ES
Grade 4-5
The Last Game of the Season
I am Dillon and I’m on the Panthers, just about the worst fifth grade basketball team
ever to play. We were on a four game losing streak. The streak had started at the
beginning of the season, so we were still winless. This game was our first competitive
one and it was against the best team too, but we were still losing.
The score was fifty eight to fifty four in the last four minutes of the game. I got
switched into the game from the bench. Then my team made our comeback. We scored
a bunch of times until the score was in our favor, sixty four to sixty. Next, one of their
players got up to the three-point line and made a shot from there. He made it, making it
a one point game. I inbounded the ball to our point guard and ran back to the position I
was playing’s spot. The point guard bounced it up to the half court line and the ball was
immediately stolen from him by his defender. The defender rushed up the court and
made a perfect lay-up. It was our ball and we were losing sixty five to sixty four. This
time when the point guard took it up he was more careful and nimbly dodged aside
when the defender tried to steal the ball. “I’m open,” I yelled to him. He passed to me
and I took a shot but while I was letting go of the ball a player on their team slammed
into me so the ball fell short.
The ref blew his whistle and called a foul on the other team. I would get foul shots.
I stepped up to the line, perspiration streaming down my face and raining off my chin. I
knew that I had to make both shots or else my team would almost definitely lose. I took
the first shot. It bounced off the rim and fell in. It was a tie game. I took the shot which
I hoped would be the last shot taken in the game. The world suddenly felt as if it were
in slow motion and all sound, all the cheering, died away. The ball silently flew off the
backboard and hit the floor in front of me, but my hands weren’t there in time to stop it
or catch it. The ball bounced painfully right off the top of my nose. It bounced once
more on the floor and then I caught it and took a shot of pure desperation.
It made it in.
Before the sound came back the first thing I saw was the disappointed and surprised
looks on the other team’s faces and then I heard a sound that almost made me jump for
joy. It was the buzzer going off and announcing that the game was over.
I went over to our team’s bench and sat down. My coach who usually doesn’t give
compliments gave me one. “You did a great job,” he told me and I could tell he meant it
and by the looks of my teammates they meant it too. Now we weren’t a horrible team,
we were just a not very good team who enjoyed their time playing basketball.
You must be a basketball player who really knows how it feels to play a team sport. I especially
liked the sentence about perspiration streaming down your face and raining off your chin. The
way you laid out the lines/paragraphed, made it really easy to read.
Michael Z
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
The Pyramid Trap
{1}
You are walking towards your bus with your class on a field trip to the museum of
ancient Egypt. The bus starts to move. “ Dave what are you going to look at when we get to the
museum?” asked Zack.
(If you say the antiques continue on to section 4.)
(If you say I don’t know, continue to section 2.)
{2}
“I don’t know,” Dave, answered. You get off the bus and enter the museum. Your
teacher tells everyone to start looking around and to make sure to return in 1 hour. Zack
suggests going to the History section.
(If you go to the History section, continue to section 3.)
If you decide to just look around, continue to section 5.)
{3}
As you touch the piece of paper in front of you, a cart pushes towards you and you
were pushed into the glass. In seconds you are teleported to Egypt.
(If you to decide to try to get out, continue to section 6.)
(If you decide to go in and look around, go to section 7.)
{4}
You and Zack get off the bus and head on to the antiques section and have a
completely normal day.
The End.
{5}
You look around and find a painting. You suddenly fall asleep and have a dream
about being trapped in a pyramid in Egypt. And you wake up in about 50 min. Your teacher calls
you back and does a 2 h. lesson. Later you get back on the bus and leave.
{6}
You continue you way through the pyramid. You eventually get trapped in a
chamber with an icy floor and walls that are shooting arrows at you. You duck and run through.
When you thought you made it, unfortunately you fall in a pit. Then you feel nothing.
The
End.
{7}
You manage to find your way up though you almost failed many times. You find a
small village and get a job as a guard for the village head.
The End.
Interesting format, fun to try out the different possibilities. Keep writing!
Margot S
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Teeth Extractions
One day in November I learned something no one EVER wants to hear. I learned that I had to
have 5 teeth extracted. Dr.Cacciotti said, “You have to have 5teeth extracted.” At first I didn’t
know what this meant. When I did learn, I burst into tears right in the middle of the
orthodontist’s office. I had to have my upper and lower incisors pulled and my upper left canine.
I went to Finger Lakes Oral Surgery (FLOS!) to have my teeth pulled.
The doctor’s name was Dr. Bonniwell. He had two assistants, one named Jamie and one
named Jenny. When I first went in, they gave me something to clip onto my finger that takes my
pulse. After that they gave me a plastic syringe that had red medicine in it. It tasted like sour
cherries. Jenny tried to put in my I.V. while Jamie held my hand. My I.V. didn’t go very well.
They had to try to insert it in 4 different places: in both inner elbows, the left hand, and the inner
right elbow AGAIN. “Margot,” said Jenny, “you are an angel. I’m sorry about this, but your veins
are NOT cooperating.” Then I had to hold a mask over my mouth and nose. The mask looked
like a pig’s snout! Nitrous oxide (laughing gas) flowed through the mask. Then I had to bite on a
little black rubber cube to keep my mouth open. That’s all I remember.
Next thing I knew, the nurse was shaking me, and Jenny was saying, “You were great! It’s all
over now; you can go home.” I stumbled to the car. As my mom turned out of the driveway and
onto the street, I asked her, “Do I have a swollen bottom lip?” She said no, but it sure felt like I
did!!!
The people at FLOS were so nice. If I EVER need to have teeth extracted again (and I sure
hope I don’t), I will DEFINITELY go to Finger Lakes Oral Surgery!!!
Engaging account of your extractions. You used dialogue effectively and described the
experience very clearly. Keep writing!
Shannon L
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Music Notes
“Lina!” yelled Mom. “You’re going to be late!”
“Coming,” I grumbled. I got out of bed and trudged down stairs.
“Were you up late?” mom asked. “Was it about your flute?”
“Yes, and yes” I answered.
She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Well hurry up, you’re keeping Serena waiting.”
“Alright, I’m going.” I grabbed a piece of toast and my backpack and headed out the door. I hurried down the
street to find my friend Serena waiting.
“What kept you so long, Lina?” She asked.
“Sorry,” I said. “Slept late.”
“Because…”
“Flute. Ms. Limer gave me this assignment. It’s kind of hard.”
“What’s the assignment?”
“I have to compose a piece.”
“That’s hard?” Serena asked. I didn’t answer.
“Hey, we’re going to be late.” We broke into a run.
The school day went by in a hurry. The only thing I could think about was composing my piece. When the school
day ended I said a quick good-bye to Serena, and headed home.
I dumped my backpack in the front hall and went straight to my room. I took out my flute and started playing one
of my favorite songs: Beethoven 9th symphony. After I played that I started playing random notes, but nothing
sounded good. I kept fiddling around until my mom called me down for dinner. After dinner I had to do
homework. I didn’t want to but I had to. Once I finished my homework my mom made me go straight to bed so I
didn’t have any time to play more flute.
The next day I woke up early. Before going to school I had a nice breakfast. I met Serena and we took our time
on the way to school. When we got to school we went our separate ways. I went to science and she went to
math. The school day was just as boring as always. In all my classes I thought about composing. Then in the
middle of math, during a very boring lecture on exponents, a tune hit me.
Ba dada da da, de dada de da, daaaa da!
Quickly, before I could forget, I scribbled it down in my math notes. The rest of math seemed to go by
quickly. When the bell rang I gathered my stuff and rushed out the door. I met Serena and told her the great
news.
“Serena!” I said. “I thought of a tune!”
“Really?” Serena asked. I nodded, and showed her my math notes.
“That’s great!”
“Thanks. You’re the best!” I yelled as I took off running.
When I got home I grabbed my math notes and ran upstairs. I got out my flute and played what I had written in
my math notes. It sounded great. I added on to that until I had made a beautiful piece. I went to bed feeling
very satisfied.
The next day was Saturday. I could hardly wait for my private lesson that afternoon. When I got to Ms. Limer’s
house, I excitedly told her the great news.
“Ms. Limer!” I said, “I composed a piece!”
“That’s great, Lina. Let’s hear it.”
She listened very carefully as I played. She gave me a few tips and I played it again. Our whole lesson was spent
composing. At the very end of my lesson, Ms. Limer said “What an amazing piece! It needs a title.”
I thought hard about the time I had spent composing the piece. “I’d like to name it ‘Keep Going,’” I said.
Very believable story, it sounds like something that really happened to you. You used dialogue
very well to make the story lively. It would be great if there was the actual music playing in the
background as one reads the story.
Keegan M
Story
Trumansburg MS
Grade 4-5
Science Savior
“Uggggggh!”, I was going to be late for school. 100 yards. 50 yards. 25 yards! RRRIIINNNGGG!!! “Darn!” I
walked into the hallway. “You’re late again, Dan” said Mrs. Hanett. “I know, I know.” I said with attitude. “Get to
your classroom!” she said.
“Dan, that’s the fifth time in a row you’ve been late to class.” Mr. Victan said. “Did you at least get your science
assignment done?” “No”, I said slowly. “Dan, you get another zero, and if your grade doesn’t go up, I’m afraid
you’ll be held back.” “NNOOOOOOOOOOOO!” I yelled, and everyone looked up from their books and someone
giggled. “I mean… I’ll get my grade up, I promise.” “Hmmmm,” he said as he looked down at me, ”Why don’t
you enter the Science Fair?” “Wow, sounds like fun!” I said with sarcasm in his voice. “Well, if you think it’s fun,
why don’t you start by filling out the entry form in detention.” he asked as I cringed and heard someone in the
back of the room giggle again.
THE NEXT DAY
“I finished my science homework!”, I said to Mr. Victan with false excitement. “Good, but I looked at your grades,
and if you don’t get an A on your next test …you will fail.” “NOOOOOOOOOO!” I yelled “Sorry, but that’s how it
works”, he said. “It’s not possible”, I thought, “the test is today.” “Yes,” he said, “so you’d better get studying.”
ONE DAY LATER
“I got a B+!!!” “That’s good, but it’s not enough,” sighed Mr. Victan. “I’ve been thinking, and if you win the
Science Fair, I’ll pass you.” “Yessssss!” I yelled. “But, what should I make?” I asked in a weird tone. “Hmmmm,
why don’t you… “ he paused. “Do what?” I asked quickly. “Why don’t you make a model of life under the sea?”,
he suggested. “You’d better get going, though, because the Science Fair is in two days.” “There is no possible
way I can do this in just two days,” I thought, as Mr.Victan walked out of the room.
Mr. Victan caught up to me after lunch. “I emailed your parents letting them know about our arrangement.” “Ok, ”
I said as I headed to the one place nobody cool goes, where nothing fun ever happens - the library!!! I opened
the door and I felt the librarian’s eyes pierce my back. I opened a book titled “Science Masterpieces” to a random
page. “Turbines? Hmmm, ok, I can do this!” I said as I walked out the door. This would be better than life under
the sea!
At home, I ran upstairs and started reading. I kept thinking, and thinking, and then thinking some more. DING!!!
I had it! I would make a turbine that would charge a remote controlled car!I worked for hours and then, finally, I
got it to work!
The next day was the Science Fair. I tested my project again just to make sure it still worked, and with no time to
spare, I ran to the School. I was just finishing setting up as Mr.Victan came over. “Well, it looks like you showed
up with something that works!” “It does!”, I exclaimed while trying not to sound too proud. “Well, I’m willing to
pass you even if you don’t win because you clearly worked hard on this and finally put effort into something. It
takes courage to do that.” “Thanks, Mr.Victan, “ I said.
Later that day I learned I had won second prize!!! “Well Dan,” Mr Victan said, “I have something to say…YOU
PASSED!”
The reader sympathizes with Dan even though he had not been a very dedicated student. You
used dialogue and language well. Your descriptions made it possible for the reader to picture
what was happening in the story.
Jordan L
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Journey to the Heart
UGG! Why? Why do I have such a horrible family? Why do I have such a rotten life? Why!
Someone tell me why! I tried to push the thoughts out of my mind. The thought of my parents
fighting was as painful as a knife splitting my heart in half. I could hear the yelling from across
the house. “I’d rather die, than listen to this crap!” I thought. “Oh well. It’s another fight I
guess.” But deep down, I knew this time was different.
“Honey?” my mom says. I had a hopeful thought, but it sunk as I saw the anger in her eyes. I
knew what was going to come out of her mouth but before she could say it, I ran. I ran past
Lucy’s. I ran all the way to the park. There I was, crying myself into pieces.
A sudden rush of guilt crept over me. My mom must be going through a lot, I thought, and
now I just made it worse. I took a deep breath and walked home but this time, I took the long
way, thinking about what to say. Five minutes later, I was in the living room talking to my mom.
There was still some anger in her eyes, but now most of it was sadness. I told her she could let
it out. We sat there hugging each other crying. She let it all out. She told me about how she
knows I’m having trouble accepting that she and my dad were going their separate ways, but
she thinks it’s the best for our family. She told me my father would be moving out next week.
She told me everything.
So I guess I had to deal with the fact that my parents would probably never see each other
again. But I still kept hope. I still kept hope that someday my parents would come back together,
and love each other like the first ten years of my life. But I knew it would take more than luck for
my parents to come back together.
Five months later, my dad has moved out and my mom and I have started to get the hang of
things again. Tomorrow’s my birthday! I think. Nothing can ruin it, because it’s my time to shine.
“Shoot, my dad’s coming,” I mumbled. I know I should be happy but it’s hard to be happy
when your parents fight every time they lay eyes on each other.
Ding Dong.
“What? It can’t be your dad! It’s just too early!” My mom shouts at me.
As I open the door, I see my dad for the first time in ages. The first thing that comes out of
his mouth is “Where is your mother?” My heart sinks. I was hoping we could avoid this, but no
such luck.
I go to bed early that night to avoid that fight, but awkwardly enough, no fight comes out of
the living room. Instead, I hear my parents talking quietly. Relief crawls through my body.
The next morning, I wake up to the smell of Starbuck’s, hazelnut coffee. My parents are sitting
at the breakfast table smiling.
“Great news honey!” my mom says happily, “We’re going to get back together!”
“What!” I cry as a smile reaches my face. But I knew exactly what was happening. I’m going
to have a family again! There I was, smiling so big I felt like my face could break. I had to go
through a lot, but in the end, it brought us closer together.
Your use of dialogue makes the difficult family situation seem quite real to the reader. There are
many very clear images created by your choices of descriptive language.
Eva M
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
The Day I Won $1000
It was the sunniest day ever, and the best day too.
My stomach was going inside out. I felt like had won one million dollars, but I had only won
$1000. I could barely walk the four blocks to school because my legs were so shaky. If someone
saw me, they might have thought I was being electrocuted.
On the second block, I met my best friend Ilana.
“What’s up?” she happily asked.
“Everything!” I exclaimed, trembling with happiness. “I got a letter last night, and it…”
“Wait! Let me guess, you won 1 million dollars”
“So close! Well, almost. I won $1000. I got the letter yesterday!”
We were at the school now.
“You… won… the art contest??!! She gasped, barely able to speak. But she said it, and she
said it a little too loudly, because about 10 ft. away was the school bully, and my neighbor, Emily
Smith.
The next thing I knew, I was on the ground. My ankle felt like it was tearing apart. I looked
at it, It looked like a giant marshmallow. I could feel a tear running down my cheek.
I felt a shadow being cast over me. I managed to open my eyes, only to see Emily.
“So I heard you won the art contest. And, you won $1000. Well, we’ll see about that. You
want to know my plan?” She bragged. “When they tell everyone on the loud speakers that you
won the prize, I’ll say to Mrs. Kelly, “I’m her neighbor. I can get the prize for her and give it to
her tonight.” So goodbye and I won’t be seeing you again.”
Then she ran away just like that. I’m not sure where to, but she ran.
Ilana went straight into the building to get someone for help.
From then, until I got to the hospital, I didn’t really pay attention. The ambulance came, I
rode in it, and I ended up in a hospital room with a doctor. I was still worried about my prize.
“ You broke your ankle,” my mom announced. “By the way, how’d you break it?”
“ I… I don’t know,” I admitted. “I think I just fell.”
The next day Ilana ran up to me and said, “Emily tripped you. I told principal Stewart
everything. He talked to Emily and she admitted everything. She’s been suspended for a week!”
We had an assembly, and during the assembly they gave me the prize. It was the best
moment ever!
The theme of your story is clear and there is a definite beginning, middle and ending. It is easy
for the reader to picture what is happening throughout the story. Your use of dialogue helps to
make the action more lively.
Logan B
Story
Trumansburg ES
Grade 4-5
Billy Bob and Joe Save Planet Earth
It was a dark night with stars looking like white glistening dots in the sky. Billy Bob and Joe were
driving on route 66. Billy Bob and Joe were friends and they both had a special gift, they could
communicate with aliens! They had been diagnosed with it one day when they were babies,
nobody knew how it had happened. Billy Bob was a brown haired, blue eyed man who was very
fat and was about 35 years old. Joe was super skinny, brown eyed, red haired man who was
very cocky and about 35 too.
It was about nine o’clock and dark out. Joe turned on the radio to the news channel
when all of the sudden the radio went crazy! Then, a huge thing came flying out of the sky with
fire furiously coming out of it. It crashed with a huge Boom! Billy Bob sped up the car to see
what it was.
Meanwhile, they watched in amazement as nothing moved .Then all of a Sudden a huge
screen popped up, and there he was, the King of Space! He said “I would like to buy Earth, but
first must get the number of McDonalds on the planet”. So they told the truth. “There are about
200,000 McDonalds on the Earth” Billy Bob said in alien. So the King responded, “I demand I
buy Earth while it’s on Sale but if I can`t please tell me at MarsDonalds. Then the screen came
down and the thing went back into the night sky. Billy Bob and Joe didn’t believe what they had
just witnessed. Luckily Joe got it on tape on his cell phone.
Years later when everyone finally believed what they discovered, Billy Bob and Joe were
in a top secret meeting deciding what they should do so the king wouldn't buy earth. It had
already been decided Billy Bob and Joe would somehow tell the King of Space, since they were
the only ones who could speak alien. Finally they decided that Billy Bob and Joe would fly to Mars
(where the king lives) to tell him.
It was the morning of takeoff and Billy Bob and Joe had to sleep in to be ready. When they
finally awoke, there were reporters everywhere! They got up, then got in the spaceship. It was
time for takeoff and The Guy From NASA was just about to do the Countdown ,“10. 9. 8. 7. 6. 5.
4. 3. 2. 1. takeoff, and with a huge boom Billy Bob and Joe flew up into the bright blue glistening
sky!
When they were finally on Mars they asked where MarsDonalds was to a pedestrian.
When they found out where it was, they went to find MarsDonalds. When they got there they
found it was basically McDonald’s. No one let them in so they said the King had wanted to see
them about buying Earth. Finally they let them in. When they told the king it wasn't for sale he
got furious but let it go. When they told the news to the Guy From NASA everybody cheered and
The Guy from NASA told them to come back home to earth for a very big surprise, so that’s what
they did!
Later Billy Bob and Joe were in a field lying on the ground in tiredness, soon they heard
people running and yelling. Minutes later there were all kinds of reporters and people from
NASA. When The Guy from NASA got to the front of the crowd he said, “Big surprise isn’t it”.
“What surprise” Joe and Billy Bob said at the same time. “Well this one” he said, “you’re famous”.
This is a charming science fiction story where you integrated interesting details about current life
and culture on earth with what life might like on Mars. Keep Writing!
Ijeyi O
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Syracuse
“We’re going to Syracuse!” I exclaimed after Mrs. Lori finally gave us the news. I
was so scared, because the Syracuse Charger’s track team is fast and I mean
really, REALLY fast! When we got to the track we started with some exercises,
some knee touches, elbow stretches, and leg pullers. Then the most dreadful
words were said: “The races will begin in two minutes!” It was a good thing that
my race was not first, because, whoa! I would of passed out right on the spot.
The first event for me was the long jump, my favorite!
As I stepped onto the track, I jumped up and down to test my spikes! I took a
deep breath, and then placed my knees on the rubber for a strong racing start.
Running hard, I jumped. As I landed onto the sand, I thought, “Did I jump far?
Did I do it?”
The judge opened his mouth and said, “You jumped 11 feet and 1 inch!
Then a voice boomed over the microphone, “If you are in the 400 m race (which
is one lap around the whole track) come to the lanes right away!”
As I stepped onto the track and took my place on the number 2, a person yelled,
“Runners on your mark, get set…BOOM! Running as fast as I can a few more
seconds I can see the finish line! BOO-YAA! 2nd place!
Here comes my track coach. “ Good job,” she says. Then I run a second race,
Lori just said to do my best. So I decided I would not be happy if I lost this race.
I lined up on my spot, breathing hard with my nerves pricking and a nauseous
feeling in my tummy. Then the judge finally raised his gun and said, “Runners on
your mark, get set…BOOM!” I went fast, dashing toward the finish line, leaving
all the others behind! But wait! Someone is neck-and-neck with me! We both
battle for the end. Then, out of the blue, I stick my head across the finish line
and I win! Finally, this summer I made my promise into a reality.
So kids, remember, if you work hard, you too, can succeed just like me.
There is great action reporting. The story is exciting. The reader really wants to know what
happens at the race.
Isabelle D
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
It
The clock ticked as the scientist worked on the project. It was 1:55 am. At midnight
the clock rang. It was speckled with blood.
In the laboratory It stood and looked over the city of New York as the cars passed.
Its black lifeless eyes dripped of blood and its gaping black hole of a mouth dribbled
green acid; Its breath was toxic fume. The door flew open and a man came in. “The
machine is ready for action”.
“Good, good.” Whispered the ghastly figure. “ Do you have the specimen?” “Yes sir.”
“Excellent.”
In the room, It regarded the terrified human as he was put into a special holographic
case that made the worst of things appear in a hologram. It asked what the human’s
greatest fear was. “Ch, chupa, chupacabra” The man whispered.
“ Ah… The ghoulish little creatures that crawl around swamps?”
“ Y, yes.” It nodded.
“ Well, we can fix that. When I’m done you shall be nothing,” The man gasped. It
loved the air of terror and death around, whenever somebody was in his presence. All
he need do now, was to press the button and the human would be nothing, other than a
corpse, rid of any soul. It gently brushed the small red circle. Even a gentle push had
been enough to start the terrorizing process. There was a small flash of pure darkness,
the man sat completely still, although now, he was not really a man. He was a sort of
ghost of the most horrible kind: empty sockets, skeletal hands, bloody neck, and green
skin, with long hairy, arms. He was a chupacabra.
In the room, Saya spied on the creature. She could not decide what it was that had
made that terrible laughter. All she knew was that it was a very dangerous creature. She
had been experimenting with a little toxic acid she had found on a control panel,
overlooking the city. A frightening scream and a malicious laugh had reached her. She
had followed the sound and nearly been found by that sort of sinister personage. Right
now she was skulking in an air vent above the scene of the black figure. Now she knew
to whom the acid belonged. As the figure moved out of the room, Saya slipped down
from the vent and onto the floor. However, she had gotten down way too soon. The
creature was not down the hall yet. Hearing her, It turned around and stared at her.
Suddenly, he asked Saya a question. “What do you fear?“
“I fear huge spiders, but I don’t fear you!”
“ You soon will.”
“ And why is that?”
“ Because I am Fear itself.”
I enjoyed reading this story as it made you feel you were right in the room with the scary
creature! Keep writing!
Sean V
Story
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
The Contest
One day, a short while ago in the little town of Hangleton, an ad appeared. It said “Let the
bravest come to the house of Smith, then journey to the Amazon rainforest. There, they will
each try to find a pure gold egg before the others, and the one to do so will win a prize of one
billion dollars.
Only three people arrived. They were Lula, Bradley, and Papu. Lula and Bradley were both
rich, but Papu was desperate. The other two were mean, and said that they didn’t care if he
died from hunger or from not having enough money. Smith came up to them, wheezing. It was
clear he was about to die soon. He was old and rich. His body was thin, shrunken, and
shriveled, with all gold teeth. “Come,” he said. “Let us go to the plane. It is waiting.
“Don’t we get a backpack with items?” asked Lula, greedily.
“Oh, Yes, you do.” Then he gave each of them a backpack. After that, they went aboard the
plane. After seven hours, they arrived. “I must leave you now,” wheezed Smith. And together,
the three competitors entered the rainforest.
Lula
First, Lula opened her pack. She found a rope in there. That gave her an idea. “I will make
a loop in this rope and lasso another competitor. Then I will tie them up so they can’t move.
That way, there will only be two people in the running to win.”
So she hid behind a tree, and waited. After an hour or so, she saw Bradley. She lassoed, but
missed. She tried again. She did it! Lula pulled Bradley in, and wound the rope around him
three times. After that, she tied a knot. “Ha-ha-ha!” she laughed. Then she raced off in search
of the egg.
Bradley
“Ok,” thought Bradley. “I am the strongest, so I can move the fastest, and rest the least. So
I think I’ll win the contest without any plan or strategy. All I have to do is search.” So he ran
off, searching. After an hour, he heard a sound. He didn’t see anything, so he kept walking. All
of a sudden, he felt himself bound tight in a rope. He saw Lula laughing. He tried desperately to
get free, using all of his strength. But it was no use. He watched, horrified, as Lula bounded
away.
Papu
Papu decided to check his pack. The only things that interested him, however, were balloons,
string, and a fan. He had a great idea. He calculated he needed eighty balloons to lift him up a
yard every half hour. To make him go up faster, he waved the fan. He tied the balloons
together. Then tied his hand to the balloons. When he was up five hundred feet, he cut away
ten balloons. He stopped rising. But he didn’t start falling. He waved the fan behind him, so
that he moved forward. Then, he started looking for a glint of gold. Nine hours later, he finally
saw it. He positioned himself on top of the egg, then quickly cut thirty balloons, so he started
going down, but slowly. When he was on the ground, he picked up the golden egg. He got so
happy, he cried. He had done it. He had won the contest.
The theme of your story is clear. The individual sections for each character help the reader
picture just what is happening in the story. I wonder what happens to Papu. How does he get
back home with his golden egg to collect the billion dollars?
Mari B
First Place
Essay
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Seven Billion... and Counting
With every billion we increase, our existence, as we know it, decreases.
By the end of 2011, there will be over seven billion people living on earth. That’s
seven billion jobs, bodies to care for, and mouths to feed.
Space doesn't matter. Seven billion people, standing shoulder-to-shoulder could
fit within the city limits of Los Angeles. But resources do matter. We've had
trouble feeding, clothing, and paying for six billion. We’re slowly killing our
planet, and with that our future. And the population isn't getting any smaller.
Almost every second, five are born, two die. That means our population
increases by three per second, 180 per minute, 10,800 per hour, and 259,200
per day. By 2045, the world population could be nine billion.
With so many people on earth, you'd expect us to disperse food, electricity, and
other resources somewhat fairly. But that's not how it evened out; the U.S.
population is about 5% of the planet's, but uses 24% of its energy. Also,
Americans eat around 815 billion calories each day - 200 billion more than
required - enough to feed about 80 million people. The U.S. throws out about
200,000 tons of food every day, yet 10 million die each year of hunger. America
is living the good, easy life while others struggle to survive. That is anything but
fair.
With seven billion people living on the planet, life needs to become more and
more "fair". It can't stay this way. Not if we want to survive. Things need to
change. Things will change, for better, or for worse. How will this affect the
world? No one knows, really. Only time can tell. In the mean time, there's still
seven billion people... and counting.
Passionate point of view. Details to back up your thesis. Keep writing!
Justin T
Second Place
Essay
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Catastrophe in Japan
On March 11, 2011, a terrible earthquake and tsunami struck the east coast
of Japan. The earthquake had a magnitude of 8.9, which was very strong, and
caused a tsunami. Tsunamis are formed by underwater earthquakes. The
earthquake makes the sea level rise. As the seawater travels, it gets higher and
higher, thus forming a tsunami. In this incident, the tsunami caused the death of
at least 8,000 people so far and destroyed many buildings. In Fukushima, the
nuclear power plants were severely damaged and people had to evacuate. The
food near the power plants became contaminated with radiation in them, making
them dangerous to eat.
I feel sorry for the Japanese people because of this catastrophe. I can
imagine me in their place with no home, a shortage of food, water, clothes and
not knowing what happened to some of their family members. There was also a
shortage of electricity so it would be dark and cold.
We should help the Japanese victims by donating money and supplies. Even
the smallest amount can make a difference, like fundraising in schools. Here at
CHES, the fifth graders held a bake sale to raise money for Japan. I was happy
to buy some sweets using the money I saved to contribute to Japan.
In case another tsunami happens, Japan should build stronger buildings and
defenses such as walls. Japan should monitor the waves around their country
more precisely. Japan’s nuclear power plants should either have more security or
Japan should switch to wind power, solar power, or hydropower. The wind
turbines in Japan did not get damaged during the earthquake, so I think wind
power would be a good alternative energy source for Japan. Our community can
work together to help Japan.
You make a strong case for helping the Japanese people. From reading your essay, the
reader knows what happened and what should and could be done to help.
Justin C
Third Place
Essay
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
My Opinion About Math
Math is boring. I have always been good at math, but there’s simpler
ways to do things. I understand math, but what I don’t understand is the point
of being a human calculator. Math just draws you into doing it.
Math doesn’t make sense. I mean that sequence, 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13,
21 and so on has no point. I mean, really? So what if 1+1=2? What kind of
sequence is that? The people that make up these things need to be updated to
the 21st century. Well, maybe not Mr. Fibonacci, I think he was born in the
1800s.
But what confuses me more than me more than that is fractions! What’s up
with all the pies? Stupid circles on a piece of paper! If you ask me, we should
figure out all that pizza business ourselves.
Don’t start thinking that I just don’t see things. I see plenty. I see that
people have to come along and invent all those fancy gadgets. So here’s my
plan: 20% of the population will expert in math. That means 80% of the people
will be able to skip math class.
Another one of my famous ideas is that a group of great inventors will get
together and create something called, “Justin Math Method” in the year 2021. I
will be 22 then, and I will be one of those famous inventors. This devise will be
a little computer placed in your brain using binary. Binary’s made up of 1’s and
0’s. It was originally a way to count.. Pretty, good plan, right?
Now remember, I’m not some greedy 11 year old that only thinks of
himself, I’m concerned about other people too. This is my opinion, not yours.
Vote to use my method at, www.JustinMathMethod.com.
You clearly show your opinion about math. I am not sure just how the Justin Math
Method would work for the average person at the grocery store, but maybe that will not
be known for 11 years.
Arjun S
First Place
Regular Poetry
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Burj
A needle of glass and metal stands tall and proud in the sky.
It strokes the clouds and waves to the stars.
So high that your ears pop like kettle corn.
A house looks like a crumb of cake.
A blanket of glass panes stretches across the structure,
An observation deck looms over nearby buildings.
People look like grains of sand.
Cars are just blobs of color scooting along.
The ocean is a blue meadow extending in the horizon.
A palm tree island floats on the sea.
A cloud of black smoke looms in the distance.
A desert of sand seems to bend along the curve of the earth.
A life size double decker airplane seems like a toy.
Wind rushes through your hair.
You have never felt better,
Like the king of the world.
Your blood surges through your veins,
Pulsing through your heart,
Streaming through your body.
As you gaze at the crowning tower of Dubai.
Your imagery helps the reader see just what you are describing and want to be there
with you.
Nicholas S
Second Place
Regular Poetry
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
The Mountain
The cracking of the rocks,
Reverberating in the air.
As I dangle by an arm.
While the wind tries to tear me from my goal.
I crawl up the mountain,
Hands rubbed thin and bare,
Clothes plastered to my skin,
Feet crammed in my shoes.
As I crawl up the mountain.
The wind tearing at my hair.
I rest on the summit,
The ruler of the sky.
Then start down the mountain,
With peace in my heart,
And success, in the air,
And success, in the air.
Precise action words are woven together to tell the story very successfully.
Alex M
Third Place
Regular Poetry
Chicks in Danger
Chicks peep
when they sense
the stalking
of a cat.
Chicks weep
when they are cold.
Chicks screech
when they are
hungry and thirsty.
Chicks beep
annoyingly for
their mother.
Chicks sleep
in little huddles
and all is good.
Imagery, both visual and auditory works well.
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Charles G
Regular Poetry
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
24 Seconds to Shoot
Tic, tic, tic, tic
Coach is counting on him
They need a shot
19, 18, 17
The point guards mind racing
Pass, shoot, drive
D pressing hard
Tic, tic, 15, 14
Time to do something
13, 12
Quick decisions win games coach says
11, 10
Fake right
Throw it on the left side
Beat my man
Get the pass
Lay it up
And
SCORES!
The End
Your minimal use of words matches the minimal number of seconds to play. Excitement builds
as your eyes race down the page.
Ana M
Regular Poetry
Heron
She steps through the clear water,
Mist swirls over her head,
She holds her beak,
With royal feel,
And ruffles her feathers,
Beneath the dawn glow.
Very beautiful imagery. Keep on writing poetry!
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Donavan L
First Place
Structured Poetry
Enfield ES
Grade 4-5
Turkey Hunting
I hear turkeys gobbling
I feel turkey feathers tickling my nose
I smell turkey roasting
I taste delicious turkey meat
I see turkeys!
You have included all the senses beautifully! Great job!
Delaney F
Second Place
Structured Poetry
Seasons
Spring to summer sun
winter winds bring fall leaves close
seasons shine with glee.
It is difficult to bring all the seasons together in three lines. Good work!
Candor ES
Grade 4-5
Katie S
Third Place
Structured Poetry
A Set of Three Haikus Poems
Japan
A beautiful place
This small Pacific island
Has lots of people.
Tsunami
Two earth plates collide
The giant wave rolls to land
Many people die.
Helping
We can help Japan
Schools, friends and stores raise money
To help stop their loss.
A very good topic and lots of good ideas. Keep on writing!
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Joey B
Structured Poetry
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Snakes
Smell.
No.
Aching, it
Knows when to
Eat and
Swallow.
Terrific! You drew a picture with your words.
Jack D
Structured Poetry
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Being A Brother
Born with a sister three years older
Excited to have a younger sister also
I'm in the middle
Now I'm not the youngest
Giving up on having a brother
Always begging them to play sports
Being always bossed around
Rarely ever have time alone
On the job every day
Two girls against one boy
Hearing their Justin Bieber music
Every day and every night
Really lucky anyways
This was very clever. Keep on writing!
Rylie A
Structured Poetry
Candor ES
Grade 4-5
Grass
Smell of dew
shining bright green
tall like weeds
Very descriptive. Keep writing!
Amy W
Structured Poetry
Reading
R eading is entertaining!
E veryone enjoys reading.
A good book is worth sharing.
D o a good job on your reading!
I nteresting books urge readers onward.
N o life is boring with reading.
G o on with your reading!
A good poem and a good topic. Please keep writing!
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Luke M
First Place
Book Review
Cayuga Height ES
Grade 4-5
A Book Review about The Series of Unfortunate Events
In The Series of Unfortunate Events the main characters are Violet, Klaus, and
Sunny Baudelaire. Violet is around 14. Klaus is about 12, and Sunny, their little
sister, is around 2. Throughout the series, they have to see and hear about many
deaths, but none more horrible than the deaths of their loving parents.
The Baudelaires have to live with Count Olaf, the man who killed their parents.
But all the adults in the books think he is creepy, not a serial killer. The
Baudelaires find out later about how awful Count Olaf really is. Then they have
to see their uncle’s dead body, watch their aunt Josephine be devoured by
leeches, watch someone fall on a giant saw, and lots more.
The Austere Academy is one of my favorite books in the series. In this book the
Baudelaires spend a long time at Proofrock Prep. They are forced to live in the
Orphan Shack by Vice Principle Nero. Crabs and fungus infest the shack.
They endure taunts from a girl named Carmelita Spats who calls them cake
sniffers. As usual, Count Olaf appears in this book disguised as Coach Genghis.
He makes the Baudalaires suffer through nights of misery.
Lemony Snicket is a very funny writer. The books all have his dry humor. I would
not suggest these books for anyone under seven. I really like these books
because they are really interesting and really funny. This book is written from the
perspective of the Baudelaires. The stories always go from bad to worse. There
is never any hope and the Baudelaires almost always come close to death at the
hands of Count Olaf. It is surprising how funny and cool these 12 books really
are.
You give enough of a flavor of the book to interest others in reading it, enough detail without
giving the plot away. It is odd and surprising that all the horrible things that happen to the
children make for a very humorous story.
Christopher K
Second Place
Book Review
Cayuga Height ES
Grade 4-5
The Lemonade War
In the book The Lemonade War, a boy named Evan and his little sister Jessie are
good friends. But there is one thing Evan is worried about. Jessie is skipping a
grade and will be in the same class as Evan the next school year. Evan is afraid
people might think Jessie is better than him and his friends may even think he’s
a jerk. Evan is so upset that he calls his sister a baby. Jessie retaliates back and
says “I’m sure I could make more money selling lemonade than you can.” “I
don’t think so,” said Evan. The bet is on and the winner takes all!
Evan’s friends help him try to win the contest by giving him lemonade mix.
Jessie, who does not have as many friends as Evan, convinces a girl named
Megan to help her. It turns out that Megan has a crush on Evan so Jessie won’t
tell Megan it’s a war!
My favorite part of the book is when a boy named Scott, who was helping Evan
win the bet, secretly steals Jessie’s money. I was very surprised by this and was
curious as to whether Jessie would find out the money was missing.
I really liked The Lemonade War. I have younger brothers and a sister so I can
understand how Evan feels. We sometimes get very competitive. I think the
author must really like lemonade to have written this story. I also really like
lemonade. We have lemonade stands in the summer but we never had a
lemonade war. It would probably be fun. Maybe this summer we will. I bet I
could beat my brothers.
If you’re wondering who won The Lemonade War, I suggest you read the book.
It’s really good!
The personal connections you make between your own life and the book show how much you
liked it. Using dialogue gives the reader of the review a good sense of the competitive
interaction between the siblings.
Ivan R
Photo Reflection
Cayuga Heights ES
Grade 4-5
Fun and War
This picture is about war. Most of the time people start wars because they want
resources. Right now the United States is at war in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya.
The problem with wars is that both sides think that they’re the right side. Wars
are very violent.
A lot of kids play war games, while others like to make weapons. I like to play
Risk, Nerf, and computer games. I also like to whittle spears, swords, and bows.
Real war is different than war games. War games are fun, War is not.
Plastic figures on real lawn convey well the spirit of the words about the difference between
playing soldier and being soldier. Please continue with your creative writing!
Jessie L
First Place
Story
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
Festival Frenzy
“I can’t do it,” I worried to myself. The dusty chandelier shed a dull light above me as I waited in the lobby
of the old stone church for the judge. I tried to remember all the aspects of the pieces I was going to play
for her, but soon I was fretting over everything. I sighed, then worried about how everything had gone
downhill from yesterday.
Sitting down at my piano yesterday, I had put the finishing touches on the pieces I was playing. I
had put a little attitude into them, like my piano teacher had instructed. After months of hard work and
frustration, sitting at the piano and playing fervently, criticism and compliments from my teacher, I felt all
my practice had paid off. I felt my pieces were ready for tomorrow, the day where I was to play my two
pieces for a judge. My goal was to get the highest score possible.
The first piece on my repertoire was a slow, eerily chilling piece, Inverno. I placed my fingers on
the smooth white ivories, and played the lone first note. A series of arpeggios rolled into the melody, a dark,
dreary movement following, a finger tangling part where the left hand played on top of the right, a loud and
abrupt chord soon after, ghostly echoing and fading away. Satisfied and a little chilled by the piece, I
started the second, a snazzy rag with a swinging beat.
“No problem, tomorrow will be fine,” I assured myself.
The next morning, I woke up with a sick feeling in my stomach. Festival.
I tried to calm myself down with some music, but I could only hear the chant
“festivaltodayfestivaltoday” over and over again. Soon I couldn’t stand it anymore and slid onto the bench in
front of the piano. I placed my fingers on the keys and started my first piece. The first note…-plunk- too
loud, then too soft, now…better. The arpeggios were grotesque and uneven, the melody obnoxious and
tinkly, the minor section loud, and the part where the left hand played over the right actually tangled my
fingers.
“What happened?” I thought. “Just yesterday it was fine!”
I flexed my fingers and tried again. The piece sounded strange and cacophonic, and many a wrong
note wormed its way into the music. I desperately clawed at the keys as the music swam before me, the
notes now undecipherable black dots littering the page. As I pounded out the notes the chant unburied
itself, making its way into the piece. The shrill whistle of the teakettle on the stove had joined the
dissonance. Frustrated, I stopped and gritted my teeth. I had known I could play this well! The rag was no
better, the notes sounding bland and artificially cheerful. I played both over and over again until the notes
began to resemble a piece. After playing through until it sounded acceptable, I had reclined on the couch
and occupied myself with Alice in Wonderland, sometimes leaping up to play a piece over again.
And here I was now, anxiously staring at the large wooden doors, where the girl before me was
playing. Jaw set, I ignored all my worries and concentrated on one thought, “I can do it.” There was a slow
groan as the wooden doors were opened, and I smiled wanly at the girl coming out. My teacher ushered me
in, and I walked through the rows of pews onto the stage.
I sat down at the piano, and watched the judge gulp down some water. She peered over her wirerimmed spectacles and said, “Go ahead, dear.”
I warmed up a bit, playing some scales and a snippet of each piece before starting.
There was the first note, a bit on the plunky side but there was no going back now. The arpeggios
rolled into the melody, eerie and spooky. I began to feel more comfortable, and momentarily forgot about
the judge, the looming pews and the stage. I was back at home, practicing for the big day. I got to the
finger-tangling part, and voila, piece ended. The judge clapped approvingly and gave me a smile. I thought,
“Now, that wasn’t too bad.”
I started the rag off with a wrong note, and quickly fixed it. I watched out of the corner of my eye
as the judge scribbled on her notepad. Soon I was back in the swing of things, and ended with a grand
chord.
“Phew,” I sighed, and shook the judge’s hand. I left the church satisfied, but continued to replay
the beginning of the rag over and over again in my head. Could that have gotten me a lower grade? I shook
that thought off weakly. I had done it. I had finished.
I was just glad it was over.
This was a wonderful piece. You did a great job of depicting the emotional roller-coaster the
pianist traveled. Keep writing!
Lindsay Y
Second Place
Story
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
A Perfect World
She was leaving; she could feel the warm feeling flowing over her. As she drifted
off into her perfect world, the smell of peaches brushed past her, encasing her in
a sweet bubble. When she arrived, the simple bright colors of her world brought
tears to her eyes. Never had she ever seen a leaf so green, or the core of a daisy
so yellow. She lay down in the field of wildflowers, simply to look at the sky. The
clouds formed detailed shapes of the creatures she loved. They moved in the
atmosphere, swimming, flying, running, waddling. To her surprise, the clouds
removed themselves from the sky, diving head first into field, bursting into a
countless number of sparkles. When the sparkles fell on her, she closed her eyes
slowly, letting the particles caress her eyelashes. When she opened her eyes
again, the petals on the flowers surrounding her began falling off, becoming
butterflies of every shape, size, and color imaginable. She danced with them,
twirling, jumping, and running with them, till they flew away, leaving her tired
and ecstatic. When she turned to look at the field again, her peals of laughter
showed how happy she was. The field was loosing its brightness, its colorfulness,
turning slowly into a subtle shade of grayish blue. When she awoke, she found
herself back underneath a royal blue comforter, lying in a white bunk bed. She
quickly got up, opened the door in her bedroom, and walked out, back into
reality.
You use beautiful imagery to create a lovely world. You do create a "perfect world".
Jack M
Third Place
Story
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Hideously Tragic
My name is Nick Zesty, and my story started out with skateboarding. I thought that I was good
enough to get sponsored, so I was going to buy a video camera to upload some of my skills onto
the Internet. If only I had known what was going to happen.
It was just a regular old day in Carlsbad, California, and I was skating with my friend
David. David worked at his dad’s restaurant until he had enough money to buy a camera for me.
We didn’t have anything to do, so we chugged on over to Best Buy, and we looked around. We
were blown away by how much the cameras were, until we found one for 30 bucks. We brought
it back to my house and opened it up.
“Wow, this is awesome” said David
The camera didn’t have any battery, so David went home while it charged it. I sat
anxiously watching T.V. in my living room. A few hours later, the light on the camera switched
from red to green, and I turned it on. There was a screen that popped up and said MARKS,
followed by some catchy organ music. When the music stopped, I was surprised to see a clip pop
up. It was titled “July 25, 2008”. I didn’t know what it meant. July 25, 2008 was exactly one year
from then. I clicked on it. A chill went down my spine as I watched it. David was in the left side
of the frame, and I was handling the camera.
David was looking back at me saying, “I never thought I would say this, but I think were
doomed.”
The frame started to shake, and David pointed to the sky. There was the slightest view
of something round and gleaming, and then the frame turned bright orange. The clip was over. I
turned and looked out the window, speechless.
I don’t know how my life could have gone from “Oh, happy day, I finally might get paid
to do something I like.” to “What is going to happen to me!” It was like being really excited
about eating a chocolate bar, biting into it, only to find out that you are allergic to chocolate and
your throat closes up. I woke up the next morning paranoid as can be. I even read the
newspaper, which I never do! I read an article on how Dr. Wendell Lipniki was coming to town to
sign autographs for his new book; “The Days of the World”. It was supposed to be about
paranormal activity.
I went down to my living room, and cautiously picked up the camera. I was going to go
down to down to the mall and ask Dr. Lipniki what his thoughts were on the video. I rode my
bike down to the Chestnut Mall, and wasn’t surprised to see the empty parking lot. Nobody would
go to the hot, smelly, old mall on a nice summer day, to see a guy who is potentially insane. I
personally thought I was insane, but I needed to know the meaning of the video.
I trudged through the doors with my size 15 loafers, and went to the table where Dr.
Lipniki was sleeping. Before I woke him up, I looked around to make sure that nobody was
watching me. When I looked back, Dr. Lipniki was awake, and staring effervescently at me.
“Hello!” he yelled.
He had a brittle voice and wispy red hair that was pathetically trying to cover up a bald
spot the size of dinner platter. At the moment, I had to bite my lip and show him the video.
“Hi, I’m nick.” I said “I just bought this video camera yesterday, and there is a clip of me
and my friend titled; ‘July 25, 2008’.”
I showed him the clip, and all of a sudden he looked all serious, and made this eerie humming
noise out of his nose.
“This is very interesting” he said, making the humming noise at the same time.
“Vaughn Marks was a famous chronologist who studied theories of time travel, but he died long
before cameras were invented.”
This didn’t make any sense to me. I mean how could this chronologist, whatever that is,
make my camera if he died 150 years ago? Now I see why it was 30 bucks.
“What do you think it means?” I said. The humming noise stopped.
“Young man, your camera is the gateway to a new world of science and technology!”
Whoa. That was a shock. The only technological things that I am into are computers,
and cameras, and those turned out real great for me. Now I suddenly hold the future of
mankind, while Dr. Lipniki exquisitely chewed on a pencil until it broke in half.
“So what am I supposed to do about it?” I asked in confusion.
“Well the only thing you can do is hand it over to NASA, and see what they think about
the video.” said Dr. Lipniki. “Go now.”
I trucked back out the door, and sprinted to my bike completely forgetting to even put
up the kickstand (which eventually caused problems in the construction zones). When I got home
I ran inside to my computer, and immediately hooked up the camera. I was going to send the
video to NASA. I was feeling kind of guilty. I mean David was being really nice by buying me that
camera, and I completely kept all this information away from him. So I decided to invite him
over.
“What do you mean it predicts the future?” said David.
“The camera had a clip titled ‘July 25, 2008’ and it showed what is going to happen to us
this time next year.” I said. We sat for a while, and suddenly, the video was done uploading. I
put it on to my email, and sent it to the NASA homepage. The tension in the room was almost
making it humid.
Instead of waiting inside for the reply from NASA, we stuck to our motto, and did what
we do best. It was a hot day, which made it almost impossible to do anything skateboarding
related.
“Why did you keep this from me all this time?” said David.
“I didn’t want you to get nervous.” I said.
At that moment, I heard a small tune coming from inside the house. David and I looked
at each other, and bolted inside. YOU GOT MAIL! I scrambled for the mouse, and clicked on the
screen. It was from NASA. The letter said; GREETINGS FROM NASA! WE HAVE RECEIVED YOUR
VIDEO AND WOULD LIKE YOU TO SEND US THIS VIDEO CAMERA IMMEDIATELY.
This only meant one thing: FedEx.
The Postmaster thought we were crazy, but they responded to all orders.
2 grueling weeks later, we received an e-mail from NASA saying that they were thankful
for the use of our camera, and we never heard from them again.
Here we are, loafing on a couch. Oh wait, I got an email, it’s from the owner of
Backylson skateboards. He is thinking about a sponsorship for me starting July 25, 2008.
Nice dialogue. Good suspense. I enjoyed reading this. Keep writing!
Elijah T
Story
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
Billy
Billy was a small boy. He was 11 years old but he was still small. Every kid at school
picked on him. Especially by Mike Gorlen. Mike was the biggest kid at school. Mike also
got Detention every day. He was always taking kids lunch money, betting up kids, and
not doing work. He was also the leader of the gang known as the Wolves. The Wolves
were a gang that occasionally stole stuff from groceries stores.
On this day Billy was walking to school when he bumped into Mike.
“Where do you think you are going dweeb?” asked Mike.
“To school” answered Billy.
“I don’t think so dweeb. Mark come here and teach this dweeb a lesson.”
Mark was the second biggest kid in school. He was also second in command of the
Wolves.
“Ok” said Mark. He picked Billy up and shook him upside down till his lunch money fell
out of his pockets.
“I’ll take that said Mike as he picked up Billy’s lunch money.
“Leave me alone” shouted Billy.
“Toss him into the nearest garbage can Mark” said Mike.
“Ok” said Mark.
“Help me.” shouted Billy. Mark carried Billy to the nearest garbage can and
tossed him into it.
“If you were wise you would stay in there” said Mark.
“Ouch” said Billy. After Mark left Billy got out of the garbage can and headed
to school. When he got there he headed to Mrs. Hamlet’s room. When he got there no
body was there. Then all of the sudden he heard footsteps heading towards the room.
Billy peaked out into the hallway and saw the Wolves coming down the hall towards the
room. Billy ran to the closet in the room and closed the door just as the Wolves entered
the room.
“Ok Mike so what are we robbing tomorrow” said a boy named Matt.
“Were going to rob a store right Mike?” said Mark.
“No” said Mike.
“Then what are we going to rob?” asked a boy named Tim.
“The bank” answered Mike.
“Yeah” said Mark. “It’s about time we rob a bank.” The Wolves went running
out of the room in a good mood.
After they left Billy ran to the phone in the room and called the police.
“Hello how may I help you today?” asked the Police man on the phone. Soon
Billy told him everything that went on in the room. The next day the police men caught
the Wolves as they robbed the bank and arrested them and Billy got on the front page
of the news paper. The headline read “Boy helps foil bank robbery”. No one ever picked
on Billy ever again.
Good dialogue and good moral to the story. Excellent dialogue. Keep writing!
William L
Story
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Number 12
Blackness. It consumes everything. Obscures all matter. I am an ineffectual
twig floating in a river of shadow, no mind, no body, and no purpose. There’s a click in
the darkness and a buzz. The black turns orange, then fades away as light streams in
from overhead. I open my eyes, disoriented. Where am I? Sterile white walls surround
me on all sides. Who am I? My eyes search the room, looking for some symbol of
identity. I can see clearly now. I’m in a white room of some kind, lying on the floor.
The walls, floor and ceiling are all blank. I feel empty inside. It’s a strange feeling,
knowing I’m missing something, but not knowing what it is. Past. The word comes to
me without warning. What of my past? I struggle to remember something, anything,
about myself. My head throbs. I rub my hands across my forehead, then jerk them
back. Something cold and smooth is covering the right side of my face. A metal device
of some sort is clamped over where my right eye should be. I touch it again, and notice
it is vibrating slightly, emitting a sound like a cello being tuned. I can feel bolts running
in a circle that encompasses my nose, forehead and right ear. The place where my eye
itself should be is covered by a single, flat lens. The lens rotates beneath my fingers
and clicks. Something stirs within me.
A doctor approaches me as I lay in a bed. “You’re lucky you survived the
explosion,” he whispers. “You were one of only a few miners who weren’t killed by the
cave-in. As it is, we’ve had to replace several parts of your body with prosthetics.”
Where did that come from? I feel that this memory belongs to me, but why?
Explosion? Miners? A doctor? I recall nothing, not even my own name. I look down at
myself. A white suit covers my body. On the arm there is stitched the number 12 in
black thread. That’s who I am, I suppose. Number Twelve. Twelve out of what?
“The Mark XII,” the doctor breathes.
Mark XII. Mark Twelve. Number Twelve. Me. These memories…sudden and
confusing. If only my head would stop throbbing! Mark XII. Mark XII. Please,
remember something I can understand. My name…
“The Mark XII,” continues the doctor, “is a medical breakthrough.” Fog clouds
my mind. “…recently invented…an electronic…had to program it with…thinking,
rejection…autonomic functions…most efficiently.”
Think? If only I could! What is this Mark XII thing that resides within me?
What of my memories? What of my name?! The walls seem to taunt me. They reveal
nothing. The ceiling, so far away, seems to be but an illusion. I try to reach for it. My
hand twists upward, the white sleeve shining in a bright light that seems to come
from…everywhere. I suddenly realize that the walls, floor, and ceiling are all emanating
a soft glow. The shine would be beautiful, if it had something to reflect off of other
than my sorry self. Me and my Mark XII. Alone in this glowing cube.
“It’s main objectives…your survival…maximum efficiency.”
So, this XII is trying to keep me alive. Why? It must be some part of my body,
those prosthetics the doctor mentioned. Thinking…autonomic functions…what’s
responsible for those?
The answer comes to me, and I can feel the hair on the back of my neck prickle
and stand up straight. The brain. The Mark XII is part of my brain. Another realization
strikes me and I shiver. My memories. That’s where they went. How many times has a
human made a dangerous decision based on what they remember? The Mark XII only
wants to protect my life…with maximum efficiency. Humans make good choices based
on their pasts, as well, but is was more efficient for the Mark XII to just wipe out all of
them that it had access to. So that’s it, then. My parents, my friends, myself, gone. All
gone. I only have the recent memories and knowledge that was kept where the Mark
XII couldn’t reach. But where am I?
Suddenly, I hear something. A muttering, mumbling noise is coming from
behind one of the walls. I press my left ear to the wall, straining to hear. A soft voice
seems to be coming from the other side.
“Inmate 6024,” the voice mutters. “Checking status.” There is a click, and the
walls flash an intense, bright white for a second, making spots dance in front of my
eyes. “Status: normal.” The voice continues. “Check.” The voice falls silent, and I hear
footsteps softly clicking away, becoming softer and softer until they disappear.
I slide away from the wall, disturbed. An inmate… it all makes sense now. My
location? I’ve been committed. I sigh. This is my life. No friends, no family. No
visitors. I wouldn’t remember them, anyway. A tear, alone and cold, slides down my
cheek. Not even a past to look back on and smile. I would be better off just ending it
here. I sit up and remove my shirt. With some effort, I tear off a strip of cloth. I’ll
strangle myself. Maybe I’ll go to a better place where I can know my past. My hands
reach for my neck, wrapping the cloth around it, tying a knot. I start to tighten it. My
hands suddenly fall limply to my sides. I try to lift them again, my fingers don’t even
twitch. I fall backwards, not able to stop myself. What’s going on? A single thought,
calm and detached, enters my mind. Your survival will be much easier if you are not
here to hinder it. Against my will, my eyes slowly slide closed and I fall, once again, into
blackness.
I like the way this story keeps shifting. What is really going on here? The reader needs to read
between the lines. Nice job.
Tally J
Story
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
Memories of Sweet Sand
I remember waking from my light sleep during the seven hour car ride and
seeing the bright sun, lots of sand, and wild horses. The horses were the thing that
caught my eye. I, as a six year old, was mesmerized by these wild horses, their sleek
skin glistening in the sun. I though I was in heaven. We pulled into the parking lot and I
leaped out of the car. Then the smell hit me. That wonderful smell of water, rotting
seaweed, and the combination of sea salt and sand. I immediately ran towards the
sparkling blue Atlantic Ocean. The beautiful smell got stronger and I could feel the mist
of the salty sea water on my face.
The wooden boardwalk covered in sand was rough on my feet. It felt like I was running
through pine needles-soft, but prickly at the same time. When I reached the top of the
massive sand dunes, I just stared. I could hear my mom’s voice in the distance telling
me to come back, but her voice was nothing over the ocean’s crashing waves, wild
horses, warm sand, and that wonderful smell.
I ran back to the camp site where my sister, mom, and dad were. By that time
the sun was just about ready to set. My sister and my mom cooked dinner while my dad
and I put up the tent. That was the first time I ever put up a tent. I played with the
poles and swung them around like I was a ninja. By the time we had set up the tent,
and eaten a dinner of fire cooked shrimp, the sun was setting. I sat on the sand dunes
and watched the huge sun set in beautiful shades of pink, and purple, slowly sinking
under the sparkling blue ocean.
The next morning I awoke to the loud calls of seagulls and pelicans. My parents were
already up and breakfast was ready. After breakfast my sister and I sprinted over the
dunes to get to the ocean. We started playing tag with the ocean, and running away
from each other. When I finally got the courage to wade into the Atlantic Ocean in my
Navy blue and yellow life preserver I realized that I wanted to spend the rest of my life
on this beach, with that beautiful smell.
You paint a beautiful picture with words. Keep Writing!
Lindsey C
Story
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
When I Met My First Dog, Munchkin
“Woof! Woof!”
“Munchkin! Be quiet! I told you I will take you out for a walk soon!” I shouted
across the hall to my dog, Munchkin. Munchkin is a purebred maltese with big, shiny,
round, black eyes that stand out against his snow white fur. He just turned three last
month on December 3rd. I’ve had him since March of 2007.
Usually people would say stuff like, “…it seemed like just yesterday that…” but
for me, getting Munchkin seems so far back in my life. But I can remember the day I got
him very clearly. But before I start about Munchkin, I just want to let everyone know, I
almost would have never gotten Munchkin because of this one incident.
My neighbor told me that someone she knows has six new shitzu puppies, and
offered me one. I asked my parents, buy they said no. I kept begging them and it
seemed like no use. I spent the whole day begging them. I didn’t understand why they
wouldn’t let me just get the dog! So finally, at the end of the day, I was tired and gave
it one last try with my dad. I used the, “but daddy! I really want this dog, and you know
I’ve always wanted a dog!” card, and brought out the tears. AND IT WORKED!
But by the time I got back to my neighbor, the last dog already went to someone
else. And one of them went to a girl I know that I used to be friends with. She took the
dog, but didn’t take good care of him, so within one or two months, they gave the poor
dog back to the breeder. Although, if I had the shitzu, I would’ve taken so much better
care for him. But because I didn’t get the shitzu, we decided we would get another dog.
I really wanted a dog from the shelter, so we went to the shelter. We went to the
Bergen County Animal Shelter, but we didn’t see any small enough dogs. We needed to
get a small dog because we lived in an apartment. I really wanted this husky, but my
dad said the husky was too big, so we had to just leave. So a couple of days later, we
went to a dog shop, and looked at dogs. Then, I saw Munchkin! He had the most
beautiful eyes! I knew I just had to get him. So I told my dad that I wanted Munchkin,
and we brought him home that day. That day was one of the most happiest days of my
life J.
So we are currently happily living with our new family member. And although, he
sometimes annoys me and always keeps me on my toes, just like a little brother, I love
him. The rest of my family loves him, but most of all, he makes us all happy and always
laughing. He just a bundle of joy and always a ball of energy!
You have written a thoughtful story which brings the dog and the family to life.
Michael G
Story
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Section 12
“HEY! JACK! Did you finish those blue prints yet?” yelled George
“Yeah, I finished them yesterday boss. I just have to get to the bank and
transfer them and then get paid.” replied Jack
“Hey have you seen Amy around here?”Questioned George
“No, I haven’t. “Said Jack
(Classic music on stereo)
”No, sweetie but I’ll get you a cat soon; I just have to get paid. “Groaned Jack
(Inside the bank)
“I would like to get my blueprints handed in and then get paid please. “Said
Jack (Static on radio) “NOW, GET HIM! What’s happening? I can’t see, I have to
get out of here. Whoa that was really crazy.”(I have to get home)
”Sweetie, are you home. “Said Jack
”Yeah I’m home why?”Replied Jazzline
”We are going to bed now ok.” Demanded Jack “Ok” whined jazzline
(10 hours later)
”let’s go get ice cream sweetie, ok.” Asked Jack
”Fine” said Jazzline
“Dad when are you going to go on a date?
I mean seriously you are lonely and single.” Said Jazzline
”I know sweetie.” Said Jack
”Yesterday this man tried to rob the first bank of section 12, everyone in the
bank is dead and we all suspect that he is the one who killed them.”
”What now I killed 20 innocent people and I’m a federal criminal.” Yelled Jack
“Great just great.” Sighed Jack
”Honey ice-cream is canceled. I’m a criminal now. Sweetie I have to go. The
cops are outside; tell them that you’re going to the adoption center and that I’m
gone.(Boop boop beep boop beep boop boop)”Yo Frank ya home I need to talk
to you, NOW. Ok so Frank you did work for the government right?” Questioned
Jack
”Ya.” Said Frank
”Could you maybe get me into the government’s database?” asked Jack
”Ya, I could do that.” Said Frank
”Good.” Smirked Jack
You write excellent dialogue and I can see this story as a screenplay. The characters are
interesting.
Corner B
Story
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Miniature
It was a wonderful Sunday morning when a boy woke up to a bright sunlight. He walked
down stairs and in front of him a beautiful breakfast awaited. “Well look who’s finally up,” his
father yawned. “UuuuGGGhhhh,” he replied. Young Elliot Abernathy was not like any other
ordinary boy. He had a strange sickness that disabled his growth. To fight this disease, he took a
pill every day that would boost his growth.
“Remember! Only one pill exactly,” his mother said as she rushed out the door to work.
He slowly reached the cupboard that held his pills. The bottle was almost finished and empty, so
he swigged what was left…3 pills.
That day he was on his chair playing games when he felt uneasiness in his stomach. He
viewed it as if he were hungry and went to get a snack. As he approached the cupboard he
realized that he was too small to reach the pantry handle! This was strange; he had been able to
reach that since he was three! He walked back to his chair and tried to pick up his controller
which was too big for his hands!” What is happening?” he thought to himself. He reached
forward trying to get up when suddenly; he fell off his chair, which was beginning to look like a
cliff.”NOOoooooooooooo,” he said as he kept
falling.
Soon enough he was as small as the tiny bits of chips on the floor that he had eaten. He
sat stunned and looked at the giant game station in front of him. “Ohhhh, mom is not going to
like this!” he murmured. His dog Humphrey came wandering around near the living room where
he was. He held his breath to not get noticed, but Humphrey caught sight of him in two seconds
flat. “Good boy, good boy now,” he quivered. Humphrey was pretty confused. He turned his head
and sniffled, but then he went wild and started chasing Elliot through the kitchen and out the
back door. “Oh man! I have to get back inside!” he worried. He thought about what to do but he
didn’t really pay attention to the huge fire ant army behind him. “Whoa,” he said as he looked at
the rampaging ants.
He ran towards the back door of his house, but the ants gained on him fast. He jumped on
the towering green stem of his mom’s flower and leaped on to the first step. Next, he grabbed
the metal door and yanked himself to freedom and sanctity in the house. He looked for
something he could get around faster on and noticed the little toy remote control car he had
gotten from his grandmother. He quickly grabbed the controller and hopped in.
He zoomed around the house and found his dad at his desk working. He flipped the
controller over and opened the battery cover. He pulled the batteries out, and twisted one of the
springs holding the batteries. It popped out easy and he set it on the ground. Lastly, he sat on
top of it, and pulled the carpet bunching up the spring. He aimed, let go, and he went soaring
through the air and landed on the desk. His dad noticed him and called the doctor and in ten
minutes the doctor was there.
“It looks like the overdose of pills has had a parallel effect on your dear boy. A slight shot
should get him back to normal.” he
prescribed.
In the end, his mother never found out about this, but remember never overdose.
The overdose had unexpected consequences and this added a lot of interest to your story.
You do very well with dialogue.
Mara Beth M
Story
BOCES-Smith MS
Grade 6-8
Adam Lambert, The Sexy Glampire
There once was a young man named Adam Lambert who loved to sing especially
gothic glam. Adam came in 2nd on the hit show American Idol where he met
his heroes from the legendary band Kiss . Kiss loved Adam so much they told him
about the Global Glampire Competition in Transylvania on All Hallows Eve. Adam
decided to ask his friends to form a band so they could compete; their names were
Monty, Tommy and Danny. They named themselves The Kings of the Gothic Glampires.
Monty played the guitar, Tommy played the bass, Danny played the drums and out front
singing was Adam.
Adam and his band mates practiced and practiced, soon they were ready to go to the
Global Glampire Competition in Transylvania. They were excited when they learned from
Kiss that the competition was going to be held at Count Dracula’s castle.
Meanwhile in Transylvania Count Dracula was happy his favorite band Kiss was coming
to his castle to be in the Global Glampire Competition. The band came early to visit with
the count. They told him all about Adam and the Kings of the Gothic Glampires. Count
Dracula became worried; he wanted his favorite band to win not Adam’s band.
Nervous, the Count hatched a plan to kidnap Adam before the competition. He didn’t
want to hurt Adam just stop him from competing so that Kiss would win.
Count Dracula decided to invite Adam early on the day of the competition to lure him
away from his band mates. He’d heard about him thru Kiss and wanted to show him his
collection of Gothic jewelry and clothes.
Adam was very excited and said “yes” immediately hoping to borrow some of the
count’s collection. The Count said to come to the castle in the afternoon on the day of
the competition, ALONE!
Adam showed up at the castle right on time. Dracula was waiting for him with a special
blend of hot chocolate. The count invited him upstairs to see his collection while Adam
drank his chocolate treat. As they were going upstairs Adam began to feel sleepy,
Dracula continued to talk about his collection as he led Adam deeper into the castle.
Adam’s eyelids started to feel heavy, his head was swimming, soon the room was
spinning and then everything went dark.
Later that evening when the kings of Gothic Glampires arrived at the castle for the
concert, they were worried and looking for Adam. They found Kiss and asked if they
seen Adam? Adam’s band mates told Kiss he came early to see the count. He told us to
meet him here and now we can’t find him!
Kiss agreed to help Adam and went looking for Count Dracula. When they found him he
said Adam left earlier but he would help them look for him. Count Dracula made sure to
lead Adam’s friends as far from Adam as possible.
Meanwhile, Adam woke up in a very cramped and dark place, wondering where he was
and how he got there. The last thing he remembered was following the count around
his castle and then nothing! He tried to remain calm and figure out how to get out of
this predicament. Adam realized he was trapped in a coffin. He had no idea for how long
or if he had missed the competition. What was he going to do?
Adam started feeling around the sides and to his surprise he found hinges on the inside
of the coffin. He thought hard about what he could do to get out of the pitch black box.
Feeling frustrated Adam was trying to fit his long finger nails in the slot of the screw
head, when there was a loud click. Adam found himself flung out of the coffin like a
giant jack in the box.
Adam knew he had only a little time to get to the competition. He opened the window,
climbed out and down the side of the castle, then down the side of the mountain. At
the bottom he found the road leading back to Count Dracula’s castle, it looked so far
away. Adam was in despair when he started running down the road towards the castle.
Just when Adam was giving up hope he came upon a group of gypsies. When they saw
him all the young gypsy girls squealed like they were at a concert and started to scream
, his name. They recognized him from American Idol which they watched on their
computers with WI-FI.
Adam told them what Count Dracula had done to him and they told him the contest was
still going. The gypsies, who have always worked for Dracula, insisted on getting him to
the castle as fast as they could. Adam jumped into their van and the whole caravan
escorted him to the count’s front door, where his band, Kiss and the TV crew were
waiting.
Adam made it to the castle just in time, and then Dracula, who was hosting the event,
saw Adam. Not knowing what else to do, he made it sound like Adam and he had
planned the whole thing. They introduced The Kings of the Gothic Glampires with half
hearted enthusiasm.
The crowd went WILD as Adam and his band rocked the castle, the country and the
world. They truly were The Kings of the Gothic Glampires.
After the competition, Adam went to Count Dracula and asked,” What was up with that,
it was just darn cruel!”
Kiss agreed with Adam and said, “How could you Count?”
Count Dracula hung his head, couldn’t look them in the eye and said “I couldn’t help
myself. Kiss is the best band ever and I was afraid Adam’s band would take their title.”
Kiss replied, “That’s just so rude Count. There can only be one Kiss but Adam and The
Kings of the Gothic Glampires are the future. Besides we’re not even competing!”
“I am very sorry Adam but how did you get out of my old coffin?” Count Dracula
asked.”
“I used my fingernail and hit a switch that dumped me out on the floor.” Adam stated
crossly.”
“Oh that’s right, that’s the coffin I quit using. The switch was touchy and it would throw
me out all the time right onto the floor!” Count Dracula said. “I really am sorry if Kiss
feels you are worthy of the title then I agree.”
Adam and The Kings of the Gothic Glampires won the competition! They rocked with
Kiss, Count Dracula and the rest of the world!
Great story line. Had me at the edge of my seat! There are a few grammar glitches, but there is
a lot of variety in writing. Good job!
James P
Story
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Servel and the Stone of Light
Once, in an ancient land, there was a precious artifact known as the Stone of Light. This stone
gave off a brilliant light, and could lighten up an entire continent. For many decades, the Stone
shone brightly from the highest mountain, giving light to the Earth.
One day, however, the Stone was stolen, engulfing the world in darkness. Many people
became afraid, for they had never seen darkness like this before. Covering everything with a
black blanket, crops withered, and the only light were flickering fires that barely penetrated the
eternal night.
For a year, this lasted, and soon famine and despair settled in deeply. Wondering if the Stone
would ever be found, people shivered and hid in their homes.
At last, one person could bear it no longer. This man was named Servel, and he was known to
be strong and clever, though he was impatient. Stepping outside his home, he stood and yelled,
“I shall go on a quest, a quest to find the Stone of Light!”
At this, many people shook their heads sadly, for they had given up all hope of ever finding the
Stone. Several muttered darkly and retreated into their homes.
Undaunted, Servel rushed back inside his house to begin packing. He knew that the quest may
be tricky, but he felt that it would be worth it, once he found the Stone.
An hour later, Servel set off, feeling confident and prepared. Many people stared at him as he
went past, though most had pity or distaste on their faces. Ignoring them, he marched on.
Soon, he had passed most of the houses, and reached the main gate. This gate was the line
which separated humanity from the huge, dense forests.
“Who is it?” Demanded a guard posted near the gate. “Ah, only a mere peasant. What is it that
you want?
“I wish to pass this gate,” replied Servel.
Even through the dim light, Servel could sense the man’s shock. “You-you don’t mean this
gate, do you?” he sputtered.
“What other gates are here other than this one?” Servel asked.
“Humph.” The man recovered his dignity, and glared at Servel. “Well, to pass, you’ve got to
have a good reason. I suppose you have one?”
Servel explained his quest to the guard, who snorted in disbelief.
“That’s the craziest idea ever! Do you even know where the Stone is? It’ll take years of
searching! There’s no hope.
“Please, sir. May I just try?”
“Go away!”
Servel was now quite annoyed. “Sir, give me a chance. I know that I can succeed.”
“Ha! I won’t be convinced by a peasant. Now, don’t-”
The guard was cut off as a fist impacted on his face, sending him sprawling. Servel then
quickly ran to the gate and began to open it.
The guard continued to speak in a whisper. “You little… I’ll get you, I will… you won’t come
back alive…”
Servel hurriedly finished opening the gate and ran into the dark, mysterious forest, the guard’s
words ringing in his ears.
Exhausted, Servel slumped down and decided to take a rest.
It seemed like it had been several months, but Servel knew that it hadn’t been more than a
week since he had escaped from his town. Ever since then, he had tried to navigate out of the
dark, creepy forest, with no luck. Without any paths, and the only light being his torch, he knew
he could be trapped in here forever.
After a quick nap, Servel continued to search for a way out. He hadn’t gone more than a few
steps when he heard rustling. Startled, he jumped behind some bushes.
Servel tried not to move as the rustling grew louder. If it was the guards, he wouldn’t stand a
chance. He shivered, and held his breath.
All of a sudden, the rustling stopped. Servel heard nothing for a couple of minutes, and he
peeked over the bushes.
Two people were looking around, seeming to observe the trees around them. The first man
was tall and thin, holding a cane. The other seemed about average-sized, leaning against a tree.
Because it was so dark, Servel couldn’t make out any other details. They didn’t seem to be
guards, however.
“Been a while since we came into the forest, hasn’t it, Horus?” the tall one said, poking some
bushes with a cane.
“Well, it sure is weird to see the world this dark,” remarked the other. “I can’t even sleep in the
cave, it’s so bright.”
Servel wondered what he meant. If the cities and towns were pitch black, how could a cave be
that bright?
“Well, you can blame the Stone for that,” chuckled the tall one. “But then again, without it we
wouldn’t be able to see our own hands.”
A stone? thought Servel. Could it possibly be… the Stone of Light?
“We should get back to the cave,” said Horus. “Don’t want to get locked out again…”
As they headed back, Servel quietly snuck out of the bushes and followed them.
After a bit more walking, the two men (and Servel) arrived at a huge cliff. In front of it was a
rather large boulder, which Horus pushed away. Instantly, bright, shining light poured out of the
entrance.
Servel gasped as the light shone into his eyes. After a year of darkness, the light seemed like
heaven, a dream come true.
He waited until the two men had gone through, and then ran up to the cliff. The boulder had
been pushed back into place, but Servel was strong and easily rolled it out of the way.
As soon as he entered the cave, he felt pure warmth close around his body. He wanted to just
lie down and relax, but he knew he had to retrieve the Stone.
As he wound through the tunnels, he saw many other people, each going to their different
destinations. They seemed bright and happy, not scared and desperate.
Finally, Servel arrived at a gigantic room. There, he saw the most beautiful stone he had ever
seen, and he knew this was the Stone of Light. It glittered and shone, looking like it was made of
pure gold.
As soon as he approached the stone, however, several guards jumped out, holding spears.
“Who dares to approach the sacred light?” shouted one guard. “Identify yourself!”
“Uh-oh,” muttered Servel.
Quick as lightning, he snatched the stone and bolted out of the room. Behind him, he heard
shouts, but continued to run.
Soon, he reached the entrance, and he began to push the boulder away. A spear bounced off
the boulder, but he ignored it.
Just as he leaped out into the forest, an arrow impaled him in the spine, killing him instantly.
The Stone flew out of his hand and cracked open as it hit a tree.
The guards watched in astonishment and terror as a strange, glowing light rose from the
broken remains. Pulsing once, it shot into the sky, and stayed there.
All across the land, people stared in awe at the light in the sky, shining just like the Stone.
Then slowly, they began to cheer, as light once again shone on Earth.
Servel is very brave and you make the reader like him. This is a good myth.
Marcus G
Story
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
The Break Out
Chapter 1
Life in Jail
2025, Ultimate Security Prison in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
SPLAT! ” Who threw their potatoes at me?” asked Mason,” Tell me now!”
“It was me, you have a problem with that!?”exclaimed Jon.
“As a matter a fact, I do! Now you’re going to get it! I’m going to pulverize
you!”threatened Mason.
“If you say so. Come and get some you fat, worthless, piece of crap,”insulted Jon.
“You two need to cool down or I’m calling security!”yelled the guard over the
commotion.
Mason walked over to the guard and punched him in the gut, then gave him an
uppercut. The guard was on the ground and wasn’t moving.
Mike went over to the guard to see if he was still alive after getting the beat down. The guard
was alive but injured badly, he managed to call security.
Two minutes later, the guards came, but by then Mason had killed the guard. The other
security guards took Mason to a more secure area, took the guard out of the cafeteria, and
ordered a new guard to the scene.
Chapter 2
The Escape Plan
At a table all the way across the cafeteria, Derek and Zero were eating and talking about a way
to get out of the jail. So far they had planned to take out the guards when they were getting out
in the morning, take their guns, and run for the exit. Next, they would secure the guard station
and free the other prisoners.
They were working on the rest.
“After we free the other prisoners, we’ll go up the elevator. Then go to the coal carts to get to
the other side of the courtyard without getting shot. We’ll move through the halls and steal a
transport and find an escape route.”
They thought they would need more people for the job to work.
Chapter 3
The Gathering
When Derek and Zero went to the courtyard, they told some people about their plan.
So far no one thought their plan would work. The next person they talked to was
Mike, he liked the idea.”I’ll do it, but I don’t want to hurting anyone,” Mike said.
The trio walked over to Jon and asked him.”I’m in!” he agreed right away.
The four of them were walking and saw Mason coming into the courtyard. They raced over to ask
him if he would join,” Is Jon coming too, because if he is I’m not coming.”
“Yes, he is, but you need to settle your differences or no one’s going to get out! So, are you with
me?”exclaimed Derek.
“I’m in,” agreed Mason
“I’ll make a temporary peace treaty with Jon until we get far away from here,” Mason dealed.
“Tonight is the night we get out,” Derek said after explaining the plan to everyone.
Chapter 4
Phase 1
Later that day, when the guards were taking all the prisoners to their cells, Derek, Jon Zero,
Mason and Mike were getting ready for phase 1.
Uppercut, jab. Mason took the guards gun and baton just before he was going to be pushed into
his cage. The others did the same. The other guards hadn’t noticed the missing guards yet. They
threw the guards each in different cages. They were on their way to the guard station when the
other prisoners threatened to alert the guards if they didn’t free them. The group said they would
free them, but they couldn’t get through to free them, so they left the prisoners in their cages to
free them from inside the guard station.
Chapter 5
Freedom to all Prisoners [Phase 2]
On the way to the guard station they ran into more guards. Bang! Bang! Bang! All
threeguardswere on the ground.
“What are you doing, Mason, someone will here you?!?!” shouted Mike.
“The more the merrier!” shouted Mason.
Bang! “Mike! No!”Jon shouted as he drew his gun and shot the sniper who had killed
Mike.
“He was a good man.”Derek said softly.”We must keep moving through.”
The four of them advanced on the guard station. Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! The sound of gun
shots blared to life, killing all the guards in the Prison Room.
Inside the guard station was an armory and computer. “Zero and I will take the entrance to the
armory.” said Derek,” The rest of you free the rest of the prisoners.”
Mason hit the ‘open all cells’ button. All the cell doors opened.
Meanwhile, Derek and Zero were working on the armory door. “There, got it! Now let me talk to
the prisoners on the loud speakers.”Mason hands the microphone to Derek. ”Come my brothers!
We shall be free! Go to the guard station to get a weapon!”
Every prisoner came and was given a weapon.
Chapter 6
Advance [Phase 3]
As the prisoners advanced toward the exit gate, they had one more challenge awaiting them.
The next challenge is why the prison was called The Ultimate Security Prison. Before the exit
gate was a castle like structure.
They were close to the security station. “Attack!”shouted Mason.
Then of the sudden bang! Bang! Bang! The sound of more snipers.”Zero! Why!”shouted Derek.
Another bang! Derek was down for the count. Jon took a sniper rifle and shot the snipers.”Nice
shot advance!”Mason screamed. They advanced and killed all the guards. They were in front of
the security station when Jon yelled in pain. “Go, I’m as good as gone,” mumbled Jon weakly.
Jon died on the scene right in front of their eyes.
Chapter 7
The Escape [faze 4]
Mason and Derek searched the security station for the gate switch. They found it in the control
room. They opened the gate and they found some prison transports and successfully escaped the
jail with some other prisoners.
This is a dark subject, but you did a nice job with the dialogue and with giving the characters a
personality. You also had interesting titles for your chapters.
Mariah S
Story
Newfield MS
Grade 6-8
A Girls Dream
There once was a girl. Her name is Zoe. Zoe has a sister. Her name is Ashley. She has two
parents. The dads name is John. The moms name is Kathy. The family lives in Newfield New
York.
Zoe is in 6th grade. She has a lot of friends. There is only one person that is her best friend.
That person’s name is Devin. Which is her boyfriend? Her boyfriend is like the only person she
can talk to.
After like ten years of her being born her parents keep fighting. Her parents didn’t tell her that
they were fighting. They were acting like they loved each other. Zoe knew they were not getting
along.
When Zoe and her sister Ashley got home they had to go to their Aunt Kelly’s house. They
spent the night with her. Zoe asked if her friend Lauren can come over. So she had to call
Lauren’s mom and ask. Her mom didn’t care. Zoe was so happy that Lauren could come over.
So while she waited for her to get there she ate dinner. She had hamburgers and French fries.
Right after she finished her dinner her friend came through the door. Zoe and her went to the
play room and started to play with the toys.
After two hours of playing with the toys they were ready for bed. It was about ten o’clock when
they got done playing with the toys.
The next morning they woke up at eight in the morning. They didn’t want to wake up anyone
else so they played. Once they started playing Ashley woke up. She woke up because they were
being too loud.
There Aunt walked through the door and said “Are you guys hungry?” Zoe and Lauren came out
saying yes very loud.”What do u guys want for breakfast?”asked Kelly. They wanted French
toast.”I’ll ask your uncle to cook it for you” said Kelly.
After five minutes she comes back.”Your uncle is going to cook French toast for breakfast, so
why don’t you girls get dressed” said Kelly.
So Zoe and Lauren got dressed. Then, they brushed their hair. When they were done then they
ate and ate.
After they ate breakfast they watched a movie. They watched the Game Plan. Zoe and Lauren
are like in love with that movie.
After the movie was over it was 12 o’clock. They were hungry. So they had ramen noodles.
Ramen noodles are Zoe’s favorite food.
When they were done they played in the play room. Then Lauren’s mom came. Lauren got her
stuff and said “I’ll see you next time.”
So when Lauren left Zoe helped her Aunt clean. When there was no more cleaning to do, she
watched TV. While she was watching TV her sister asked her if she wanted to watch a movie.
They Kelly said “Your mom is going to be coming in 10 minutes.”
Then Zoey and Ashely just sat there until their mom got there. They just wanted to go home. It
was about nine o’clock when their mom got there. They just wanted to go home. It was about
nine o’clock when their mom got there. Zoe and her sister were very tired.
Kathy told them to go in the car. While the girls were in the car she asked if they were good for
her. Kelly said “yeah they were very good!” Kathy talked to her about other thing to.
Finally after 20 minutes of them talking she comes outside
She starts the car and pulls out of the drive way. After for driving for 5 minutes they hit a red
light.
While they were there she asked if they wanted something to drink. Zoe and Ashley both said
’yes’ at the same time. So Kathy pulled in the parking lot and went in the store.
When she came out she had three drinks, she had two sodas and one water in her hands. The
water was for Zoe and the sodas were for Kathy and Ashley. So Kathy started the car and
headed down the road.
So as they were heading home Kathy was texting John. Zoe can tell that they were fighting.
She can tell by the look on her moms face. Then Ashely and Zoey were talking Kathy started to
cry.
Zoe asked her mom why she was crying. After 5 minutes she finally stopped crying she told
them. She said “Your dad is moving out, he texted me this I can’t take it anymore I’m moving
out!” Kathy and Ashley started to cry.
Zoe was trying not to cry because she hates to cry. She couldn’t hold it in so she started to cry.
Ashley asked ‘When is he moving out?”
Kathy said “I don’t know I’ll ask him.” The rest of the way home everyone was quite. Until John
texted back. He said “I’m moving out tomorrow!” they started to cry even harder! They didn’t
even know what to think at that point in time.
When they got home Kathy called John and asked all these questions. After they were done
talking Kathy called her mom and told her everything. Later that night Kathy sat Zoë and Ashley
down for a talk.
She told them that they are going to his apartment tomorrow. “Then how are we getting to
school on Monday?” said Zoe. “He is going to bring you to school on Monday” said Kathy.
When Kathy saw Ashley and Zoe crying she started to cry. So Kathy went into her room and
called her mom. Ashley went in her room and cried. Then after 2 minutes Zoe went into her
room and cried. Zoe and Ashley both cried themselves to sleep that night.
The next morning Kathy told Zoey and Ashley to get showers. Zoe got in the shower then
Ashley. Next they got there cloths ready for Monday. Around one o’clock their dad picked them
up.
When they got in the car and asked a whole bunch of questions. “Are you and mommy splitting
up?” said Ashley. John responded “I don’t know.”
A few months later it was June. Zoe saw shooting stars and closed her eyes and wished. Ashe
wished that her parents would get back together. A couple of days later before Zoe’s birthday
she saw another one.
This time she wished for something different. She wished that her family will become one big
family again. Her wish never came true.
One weekend the girls were at their dad’s house. There mom Kathy and her friend went out to
a bar. There mom was sitting at the bar drinking water. She turns her head and sees a hot guy.
She asks her friend “Who is that guy?” She says “That is Sean Miller.” “I’m going to talk to him
I’ll be right back” said Kathy.
They start to get to know each other. Kathy knew him for about 1 mouth before she showed to
Zoe and Ashley. She asked them if her friend Sean could come to the park with them. They said
“Sure.”
Once they got to know him Ashley liked him and Zoë didn’t. After that day they lived happy
together.
This story was very genuine. Keep writing.
Devin W
Story
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
Nit-Bit
Prologue
The lab was lit up with lightning the wolfs where howling and a story starts. The
world’s most unsuccessful Dr. is working on an experiment that will change the
world.
Chapter 1
The thing rises
“Rise RISE” said Dr.Groe “Yes its working” He said. Whatever it was it rising and
fast. It tried to speak but he could not. “Now can you hear me?” Said Dr.Groe. It
nodded.
Chapter 2
The tool and the name
Now the thing and Dr.Groe was living together for months But then everything
changed when Dr.Groe introduced a tool and said “Now you name is Nitbit. Do
you understand?” It nodded. “Well then this tool will help you speak IF you find
something called an OraOrb put it in the top then close it you must Keep a hold
of this or else this will not work. Understand?” It was a lot to take in to Nitbit but
he nodded.
Chapter 3
The tool gone too far away
Nitbit left the lair secretly and head out into the world then Nitbit found an orb
and left the city living his own life
The End
Great story and great structure with excellent chapter headings.
David VW
Story
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
The Swimming Contest
Dolphina and Sharkus were very arrogant. From a young age, the brother
and sister were excellent swimmers. They were the best in all of Greece and
unwisely said they were even better than the gods. Poseidon, Being god of the
sea, was extremely offended and furious. Wanting revenge, he cleverly disguised
himself as an old man and went forth to the house of Dolphina and Sharkus.
When they opened the door, Dolphina and Sharkus were talking about how the
gods were too cowardly to arrive at their door step. Poseidon was angry and
changed into his true form. At first Dolphina and Sharkus were afraid, but they
soon regained their pompous composure. “so you finally arrived” said Sharkus
daringly. “You should watch your language foolish, miniscule, unimportant
mortal” said Poseidon sharply. “Let's get this race started” said Sharkus. “How
about across the Aegean sea.” “As you wish mortal” said Poseidon coldly. The
news spread as quickly as wild fire and soon people stood on the side of the
Aegean sea to watch the race. Even the gods made themselves comfortable and
looked down upon the Aegean sea. A few nymphs stood around the start of the
race. Poseidon stood, crouched, muscles twitching. Dolphina, powerful legs and
arms ready. Sharkus, crouched in a diving position, a smirk on his face. “ready,
set, go!” All of the swimmers jumped in with a “splash”. Sharkus took the lead,
Dolphina in the middle and surprisingly, Poseidon in the back. The gods were
impressed at the speed of Dolphina and Sharkus. They were also a bit irritated
about the fact that row mere mortals were beating their accomplished brother.
Poseidon was working very hard and, like I said before, he was the god
of the sea so a whirlpool was forming around him to help him keep up. Dolphina
glanced back and saw Poseidon in the middle of a whirlpool. You must know that
Dolphina was not educated in the nature of the Greek gods. Most of her life had
been spent swimming so she did not go to school. She thought gods were only
kings and queens, but nothing else. Assuming this, she wanted to save her king.
She pivoted around in the blue sea and and shot into the whirlpool. She grabbed
the hand of Poseidon and pulled him out, all the way across the Aegean sea.
Back on shore, Poseidon looked in her thoughts and saw that her act
was an act of nobleness and wanted to reward her. All she wanted most was to
swim gracefully forever, so Poseidon gave her smooth gray skin, flippers, a fin,
beauty, flexibility and a new name, Dolphin. However, Poseidon did not forget
about arrogant Sharkus. He went and found Sharkus and made him Rough skin,
jagged flippers, Ugliness, aggressiveness, Disgusting teeth and also a new name,
Shark. The reason shark hates dolphin is because he envies Dolphin for the
beauty and gracefulness she possesses.
This is a great creation myth. You capture the personalities of all the main characters very well.
Sterling W-C
Story
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
The Talking of the Dead
Laura was always considered strange at her school. For one thing, she liked to sit and read at
recess while all the other kids played. She’d stay nice and dry in the rain when other people
would get soaked, and she was always hot when it was cold out and cold when it was hot out.
Laura knew just like everyone else did that she was considered strange. But little did she know
that these mysterious things would soon add up to something extraordinary. Laura would soon be
able to hear dead people speak.
It was just an ordinary day at school that seemed like any other, when Laura felt a very odd
sensation. It felt like there was a psssss sound going on inside her head. It was almost as if
something was whispering to her. But what?
“Do you hear something?” Laura asked Jaden, who sat next to her. Jaden was a rather stuck-up
girl who was mean to everyone, but especially Laura. “Oh, so you’re trying to show off those
special powers of yours again, huh? Well guess what--I don’t care! If you knew what was best for
you, you’d shut up, because nobody here cares!” Jaden’s answers were always harsher than Laura
expected, but this one just blew her away. “No, really, Jaden. I really hear something. Don’t you-” Laura was cut off, for her teacher had come over to tell Jaden and Laura to stop talking during
class.
“You jerk, you got us in trouble!” Jaden whispered. But Laura chose to ignore Jaden this time, for
she was starting to hear the sound again. “Pssssss….” “ Laurrrra……come to ussss……” There
was someone in need of something, and Laura knew it. She just didn’t know what.
Laura survived the school day with the mysterious noise droning on inside her head, and when
she was riding home on the bus, she decided that she wouldn’t tell her parents or anyone else
about the new phenomenon that had taken place inside her head. She didn’t want anyone
worrying about her--after all, she was used to not having anyone on her side. Her mother and
father never seemed to notice her anyway.
But that night, when Laura was supposed to be asleep, but was reading instead, something
unimaginable happened. The voice inside her head ceased for 7 seconds. And then a bunch of
screeching human voices recited: “Some day you’ll be just like us--ferociously digging ahead.
We warn you, please, just go to bed. Or else you shall hear the talking of the dead!”
Laura bolted upright in her bed. This was bad--very bad. Was this message trying to tell her that
if she didn’t go to bed soon, she’d be able to hear the dead people speak FOREVER?!
“Relax,” Laura thought. “Just…just go to bed. “Okay,” Laura said out loud. Laura lay down and
tried to think nice thoughts, so she wouldn’t be disturbed in the middle of the night. And before
she knew it, Laura was sound asleep.
»»»
The next morning was a Saturday, so there was no school. It was one of those beautiful Saturdays
with the sun shining and little kids riding around on tricycles, Saturdays only found in the month
of May. But Laura had much more important things to worry about than kids and her
neighborhood--including the whispering voices, which had happened to come back that morning.
Laura wasn’t quite sure, but she was starting to think the voices she was hearing really were the
talking of the dead. Or at least they sounded like it.
“Laurrraaaa…..come…to…ussss…………come save usssss……” The voices were telling Laura
to save them. But how? “I have something to tell you…Come to the cemetery….at…9:00 tonight.
And bring…a……shovel….” And with that, the voice disappeared. “Okay” Laura said, even
though inside she felt quite afraid. “I’ll do it.”
So that night, at precisely 9:00, Laura slipped out of her house and walked to the local cemetery
three blocks away, armed with a shovel and a flashlight. When she got there, all she could see
were the silhouetted gravestones sticking out of the ground in the darkness. Then the voices
started up again, but this time warm and soothing instead of cold and frightful: “You are here
now, so don’t be afraid. Please, start digging, where our bodies are laid. Please, oh please, just
do as you’re told. Hurry, hurry¾we’re getting cold!” But where was she supposed to dig? And
what would she find?
After lots of hard thinking, Laura decided to just dig next to the gravestone closest to her¾which
happened to be the one where her Grandfather was buried. So Laura walked over and started
digging. But Laura had gone no deeper than half a meter down into the ground when her shovel
suddenly hit something with a soft thud. It was a box. Laura picked up the box, brushed away the
dirt, and lifted up the lid to reveal a note that said: “I have a big secret to tell you. I am secretly a
millionaire.”
“LAURA! WAKE UP, YOU’RE GOING TO BE LATE FOR SCHOOL!” Laura heard her
mother’s voice from downstairs. “I’m making your favorite¾eggs and bacon! Hurry up and get
dressed!” Laura didn’t understand¾she thought she was just about to learn where her
Grandfather’s million dollars were kept when she was digging at the graveyard just a minute ago.
And then Laura finally realized¾it had all been a dream.
“Coming!” Laura shouted back downstairs, and started getting dressed for school. Later that day,
her Grandmother came over to Laura’s house for dinner. In the middle of the meal, Laura said,
“Grandma, I have something to ask you.” Then Laura told her Grandmother and the rest of her
family about last night’s dream and the note she found from her Grandfather. “Is this true?”
Laura asked, “was your husband a millionaire?” Her Grandmother and her Mother and Father
were all stunned. Her Grandmother then said, “I admit it, I have kept something from you all
these years. He was a millionare. And when I die, you will inherit all the money!”
Then years later when Laura’s Grandmother died, all the money went to her Mother, Father, and
Laura for all eternity. And Laura, although rich, was still considered strange.
THE END
The last line is terrific! You draw the reader into the story.
Kara VV
Story
Trumansburg MS
Grade 6-8
Bullied
“Brian!” my mom yelled.
“What?” I yelled back. ‘God’ I thought to myself, ‘doesn’t she realize that I am trying to
concentrate?’ I was on the last level of my newest video game, Halo Reach. I bet she
did know that, she just wanted the usual, “get some fresh air”.
“Fiiiiiiiiiine…” I stretched out. I let out a long sigh as I trudged up the stairs from the
basement, around the scratching post, through the living room, and up the fourteen
steps leading to the hallway that my room is in. I searched around thinking to myself
‘jeez my room is a mess! I really should clean it’.
“Yeah! Notice the word should!” I said laughing to myself.
“What?” my mom yelled up to me.
“Nothing!” I yelled back.
Jeez! Sometimes mom just ruins some moments, you know? Oh well. I spotted my
helmet in the left corner of my room. It was covered in the whole volume of NASA AIR
AND SPACE – INSIDE THE MIND OF AN ASTRONAUT. The books must have fallen out of
the box above, on my bookshelf. I pushed them off, grabbing my helmet. I went out of
my room making my way down the hallway towards the stairs. I slid down the big black
railing on my stomach, screeching my hands on it to make me stop.
“I’ll be back in a few,” I yelled.
“Okay sweetie! Have fun!”
I hated it so much when she called me “sweetie”. It was such ababy name! When is
she going to understand that I am almost 13!
I kicked the kick-stand and started down the cracked side walk. Those cracks
brought back bad memories. When I was a little boy, I was going down the sidewalk
trying to avoid the cracks and then I fell off my bike and hit my head on the big apple
tree in front of my house. I was so busy thinking about that little incident, that I was
nearly at the park! Just as I was approaching the speed bump right before the school
(which was where the playground was), I saw a school bully, Rodney.
Rodney and his gang were going down the street on their little black bikes. They
thought that bikes looked cooler if they were small and if they were spray- painted
black. I personally thought that it looked stupid. But that was just me and I would
definitely not tell Rodney! Rodney was the middle school’s biggest threat, and if I told
him that he would kill me. Not kidding. Actually, if I were even to look at Rodney, he
would kill me or at least badly injure me. He thought he was all that, and to tell you the
truth, I thought he was. Rodney was in the on the ground, when I saw ninth grade and
even the eleventh graders were afraid of him! I took a quick glance at him as he passed.
I knew that I shouldn’t have, but for some reason I couldn’t resist. I looked back down
again after our eyes met. His eyes looked like they were saying, “You know it’s a
mistake for you to look at me! Don’t let me catch you doing it again, OR ELSE…” I felt
like a helpless puppy dog for some reason. I just felt like it because I looked at him and
quickly looked away, back and forth and back and forth, squeezing in short glances. Or
at least that’s what I thought I seemed like. That’s what my dog looks like.
Rodney passed for what seemed like forever. It seemed like it was like in the movies
when a person passes another person and it last like a billion hours, but in actually it
only lasts like 10 seconds. I pulled up to the playground and chained up my bike to the
bike rack and started walking towards the playground. I know it isn’t really necessary for
me to chain it up, but with Rodney and his gang riding around, you never know. I was
walking down the path towards the playground, when right in front of me I saw a little
piece of paper. I walked closer, seeing that the paper had writing and a picture on it. I
had a feeling what it was. I thought it was money, but I had a feeling it was ten, maybe
even twenty bucks… boy was I in for a surprise. I walked closer, picking up the money
and I couldn’t believe my eyes! 100 dollars!!!! I held it up to the sky in disbelief.
Then I finally blurted out, “One hundred dollars!”
I finally went back to reality and saw Rodney walking towards me… mad. He was
walking pretty fast too. He then started speed-walking at me. He then started yelling at
me,
“I don’t know what is wrong in your head if you think that you can steal from me! That’s
dangerous boy! Real dangerous!”
“What? I didn’t steal your money!” I said at him, trying not to yell at him. After all, I
didn’t want him to get madder at me for whatever it was he was mad about.
“Oh really!? What’s that in your hand then?” Rodney said pointing his hand and jerking
his head towards the money I was holding in my palm.
“What, this? I just found this on the ground!” Still… trying not to yell.
“Oh really? Then why did I have my money and then after I saw you, it was gone. You
obviously snuck it somehow. I don’t know how, but somehow you did.” He said to me.
“I didn’t steal your money!” I was yelling now.
“Oh! So now you are going to lie to me!?! You are really pushing it!”
“I found this on the ground! I am serious! Stop being such an ass hole!”
“Ass hole? You little punk!” He said coming closer “Let me handle this one.” Rodney said
to me coming even closer and then pushing me back.
“Stop it man!” I told him.
He pushed me back again, but even harder that time. And then when he tried to a third
time, I dodged it. That made him mad. Rodney then picked me up by my shirt, and said
in my face “That was a mistake boy!” He then shoved me down onto the ground and
that was when things really went wrong. I felt something hit my head. Hard. I then felt
the back of my head and looked at my hand and after I saw the blood that was when I
started to see doubles. Rodney turned fuzzy and soon after that, everything went fuzzy.
Rodney took the money out of my hand and started to run. One of his friends came
running to me, trying to help but Rodney pulled him away. The last thing I saw was
Rodney taking the money that I found and running off onto his bike, zooming away.
That was when I completely went into darkness.
You really capture the home life section. Keep writing!
Olivia M
Story
Trumansburg MS
Grade 6-8
Cockiness
To get into the basket a three foot ladder was placed in front of me. Even then I had to swing
my leg over the ledge and fall to the bottom. It was just the first step into a grand adventure.
For about the next three weeks my crew and I would be traveling to an unreached island in the
south pacific. Why aren’t we traveling by boat or plane? Because it’s seemed more daring,
adventurous, and quicker to travel by balloon. We have four balloons all together. Red is the
medical, gear, and supply craft. Manning red is Norma West and Sarah Megiveren. Norma and I
studied together at Nebraska Flight School, I asked her to join me on this trip because there’s no
one I trust more. Sarah, at age seventeen, is the youngest of us. She is indeed a remarkable girl.
After all, she did graduate high school and is now studying science at Harvard, earlier than
anybody I’ve met. On Pet, (the name is a story I will not tell), is Jacob Chrinch (Dusty), a man in
his mid-thirties. With the most flying experience of us, he will lead the way to the unknown land.
I will accompany him in Pet. Bree is simply for the rest of the crew and Yankee for anything
brought back.
I stood up in the basket and hollered to Dusty, “How are we coming?”
“Well why you don’t come down here and see.” he yelled back,“ The sooner you help
the sooner we leave.”
True. I climbed back down and jogged across the field where Sarah was taking inventory.
“Sarah, need any help? You seem fidgety.”
“Thank you, I’ve got it under control.”
She was nervous, I could tell. The clip board she was holding was shakier than sails on a
boat.
Norma was packing and repacking the food in the boxes. Jacob was checking the
mechanics of the balloons. As for the rest of the crew, they were scattered about doing various
things. It seemed as if there was nothing for me to do. I went over to the weather station and
checked all the readings to make sure we weren’t expecting any storms. Everything was perfectly
fine.
For such an exciting event, I couldn’t have been more bored! A young man named Andrew
was by the maps. “Andrew, are all the landing arrangements set?”
“All set…… wait.” he typed frantically on the lap top. “Mr. Brass, we have touchdown issues in
Hawaii.”
No. Not a problem already. “What kind of problem?”
“Well unless you want to land on Kaho’olawe, which isn’t much of a target.”
“Um, any other landing options?”
“No Sir, All the other islands either refuse request or are booked on all landing sites.”
I felt somewhat choked up. This was important, really important. Something I always wanted
to do. Were my dreams about to be demolished by the people of Hawaii?
“Sir?”
I shifted back to reality. “Are you sure there’s no other island that will let us land?”
“No I’ve checked and checked again. I couldn’t reach anyone else in the Polynesian triangle
either.” He sighed, “What now, is the trip postponed?”
“No, no way, no how is this trip ruined by a little landing problem!”
“But there’s nowhere for us to land.”
Obviously Andrew had not known me long enough to know that I don’t give up that fast. A
devious grin crawled across my face. “If Hawaii won’t let us land on their runways, we’ll just land
on a different area.”
“Uh, I’m not sure that…”
I was in no mood for his worries. “We sail at the planned time tomorrow morning!”
And with leap in my step I sauntered off again to peruse the progress, leaving Andrew with a
confused look on his face. I walked with pride knowing that no obstacle was too hard for Samuel
Brass to conquer.
Everything going as planned, I felt good going to sleep that night. Excitement raced
through my body. Every limb was tingling with joy.
In the middle of the night I awoke with qualms of guilt. Something was not right.
And I had a feeling it was because of my cockiness to go against the law in order to succeed. I
got up and called Norma. It being one o’ three in the morning I didn’t expect her to answer. But
of course dear Norma answered on the second ring. She checked the weather in all the locations
and even called Jacob, who went to the field and checked all the equipment.
Oh well. Maybe it was just guilt. I tried to fall back asleep but with less easiness.
The next morning at the field was nerve racking, at least for me anyway. We
continued on preparing. It was six thirty, one and a half hours till take off. I heard my name
called. Rosie Martians, our meteorologist was looking rather flushed and seemed as if she might
start hyperventilating.
“What’s the matter?”
Between short breaths she told me, “Look at the sky!”
I gazed up, “Hmmm… yes it is rather….”
“Gray. Its Gray,” she was nuts, “We can’t fly in a sky as gray as steel; can we
Mr. Brass?” I stayed silent. “And look at this,” she pointed up to the orange wind net, that was
currently being torn rapidly through the wind. “My weather analysis just completed, look.” She
handed me a three page summary. I flipped through it pretending to know what all the graphs
and big paragraphs were trying to tell me. “Oh, yes, I see. Hmm…. very interesting Rosie.”
“So you’ll understand when I say that we have to postpone the trip till further
notice.”
“What, no! No, no, no, no. We can’t. All the work! All the reservations.”
“We don’t have a choice. Going up into those clouds could spell certain death.”
I hesitated to respond. I let out a sigh, “I know.”
I grabbed the loud speaker from my belt. With the press of a little green button,
my voice blared on. “Ladies and gentlemen, if I could have your attention.” I waited a moment
for everybody to stop and stare. “I know how much work and planning has gone into this
expedition, but I have bad news. Due to weather the trip is postponed till further notice.” Cries
came from all over the crowd. “I know it’s disappointing but we can’t control the weather. Thank
you, that is all.” I clicked off the speaker.
We did not sail that day, that week even. But in time we were ready to go. We
even found a landing location in Maui. I guess all’s well that ends well. But I learned my lesson,
and I would wait and be patient from now on.
The trip was a total success. We found twelve new animal species and two more
plant species. We are now working on a medicine based on one of the new plants.
The crew and I plan to visit the island again, but for now I can tell this story, and
pass on the life lesson I learned. Good things come to those who wait.
Your story really gives the reader a sense of Mr. Brass. Good work!
Samuel D
Story
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Dinner at Grandmas House
One time when I had to go to my grandma’s house because my mom and dad
had to go to a wedding or something so they just dropped my off. Then when it
got around dinner time my grandma went to make dinner and I was not worried
because she is usually a good cook but I guess she was off o her cooking that
night. I could tell when she said she had meatloaf made for me because the rule
about meatloaf is you don’t eat it unless it is your own mothers. So right after
that I could tell it was not going to be a good night for my stomach. When she
brought it out it looked like it was well not meatloaf. When she set it down you
could see it jiggle because of the vibrations that went through the solidified fat
so well. The first thing I saw the fatty blob when she set it down was the little
pieces of white fat floating through out it. The little things were like what you
get when you cook burgers and you are left with the greasy fat substance that is
absolutely disgusting when it solidifies. When I took my first bite I absolutely
gagged and the only thing that kept me from not spitting it out and yelling an
hurting her feeling it’s just that I did not want to hurt me grandmas feelings so I
suffered through twenty five more minutes of pure anguish.. But I think she
could tell that I did not like the meatloaf very much because about five minutes
after I was done I had to run to the bathroom to throw up my dinner. But on
the bright side I felt much better after that.
So if you can picture the nastiest food and then have to eat it that is what is was
like. The thing that was even worse was that her house was a really typical
grandma house you see in the movies. It had it all right down to the really old
clocks and dust on just about everything. Her house was just kind of gross but I
guess if you look at it and you have to live in her house for a couple days then it
not so bad. But after the food incident the next day could not have been worse
and it wasn’t. In fact the next day we went to the mall and I had a pretty good
time to tell you the truth. So that’s me lesson to you about eating meatloaf.
Your descriptions are terrific! Keep writing!
Savanna H
Story
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
The Day I Babysat a Monkey
Today I’m babysitting for the Gorges down the street. He is not like most of the kids I
babysit. He is a monkey, short and hairy. His name is Tom; I call him Tommy. At least I
get to babysit him at my house and not his (because it is messy!). When I got there, it
was about two o’ clock and his parents were just leaving. I have never seen anything
more strange-Two adult monkeys dressed up in their best clothes with makeup and
jewelry. His parents said, “Don’t let him get in any trouble.
As soon as his parents drove away in their pink and yellow clown car, Tommy
started to run around because he was happy his parents left. “Yes!”he said. “They’re
finally gone! “In an excited voice.”
As he was running, around he knocked over his mom’s antique vase. I started to
clean it up, when I was done, he was gone! I looked everywhere , I looked out the
window with big eyes to see that the emergency car was gone! I called his cell phone
and ……….. no answer I saw a flyer outside when I was looking “State Fair Tonight see
the circus!“in red and yellow letters, with a picture of lions, and clowns, and the ring
leader. I knew he would be there, I grabbed my coat and his red and green bike that
was three sizes too small and had training wheels. I peddled as fast as I could but the
circus was still five miles away!
I don’t know how he can drive because he is only five years old!
One mile away from the circus, and I passed a lot of people looking at me like I was
insane, but I did not care. I wanted my money and if Tommy left to join the circus I
don’t think I would get my money.
Finally, I got to the circus. I did not know what tent he was in. They all looked the
same, so I guessed he was the one with the big word “CIRCUS IS HERE” with a big red
arrow pointing to the door. So, I went in there was no people there but the big cast of
the circus so I asked if they saw a big, brown, monkey in a red t-shirt and blue jeans,
and they looked at me like I was insane. (But, I did not know why?)
I saw him, Finally. He was playing the dunk tank. he had lots of money I don’t know
how he got it. I jumped off the bicycle with training wheels and ran to him. He ran as
fast as he could away from me, but I was faster. I caught him. I told him if he ran away
one more time I was going to tell his parents what he did that day.
Finally, I got home. The house was clean, and Tommy was in the house sleeping,
and life was good, then his parents got there, gave me my money, and I left. All and all,
it was a good day. I never knew how much trouble a monkey could be….. Now I know,
and they want me to babysit next week. So I guess I will because they pay a lot. 100
dollars for the each night, and I could use it. So I can deal for another week or two.
This was a cute story even if the reader has to suspend his/her disbelief! Keep writing.
Kayla Clink
Story
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
23 Stitches
It was the 4th of July and my family, consisting of at least thirty people, was enjoying the
warm, summer day. It was the perfect day for a cookout. Pool games, four wheeling, water gun
shooting, food eating contests, and my favorite, kids vs. adults football. Of course I couldn’t do
all of those things back then, because I was only three. But, you better believe it when I say, I
am definitely the champion of them all now. How could the day get any better? All of the cousins
were goofing off, the adults were chatting in lawn chairs and the yummy smell of hamburgers
cooking on the grill filled the air. Now picture this, mini me running all around, giggling and
screaming…. just enjoying my three year old self. Pretty cute right? Yeah…I know. Well as much
fun as I was having, I was in for a big surprise. The party was held at my aunt and uncle’s house
and it was finally time to eat. I went into the house with a couple of my aunts and we went
straight to the kitchen. In the kitchen, was my uncle’s dog. His name was Scotty. Scotty was a
big labor doodle with short, curly hair. He was a very white dog, almost snow white and he stood
eye level to me back then. Let’s just say…Scotty isn’t the nicest dog around. In the corner of the
kitchen, sat a big bowl of dog food. I watched as Scotty took big mouthfuls of the little, brown
chunks from across the room and made a crunching noise with each bite. Next, something
unusual happened. Scotty, not finished with his food, turned around and glared at me with
piercing eyes. His pupils shot right through me and my heart started pounding like a young boy
with a drum. What happened after that, was totally unexpected. I found myself staring face to
face with a giant, white beast that then charged toward me and sunk his teeth into my face. It
sent chills up my spine and tears came instantly. When Scotty released, I heard screams from my
aunts and myself. I was in shock and in pain. My aunt Carol scooped me up and ran out the door
to my parents as the others punished the dog. There was blood everywhere.
On the way to the ER, I sat in my car seat with a very sore face. Scotty had bitten only
the right side of my face. There were three tooth marks on my right cheek and a cut on my
bottom lip. They felt like they were on fire! When we got to the hospital I was taken straight to a
room where the doctor examined me and prepared me for stitches. Considering I was only three,
I was really scared of what they were going to do. A nurse came in and cleaned my face off.
When the doctor laid me on the table where there was a huge light over my head blinding me, I
got defensive. I started kicking and screaming at everyone who touched me. My parents had to
practically lie on top of me so the doctor could stitch me up. But, I was too hard to hold down. I
was then wrapped up in a sheet so I couldn’t move my arms or legs and when the doctor was
finished, I left with 14 stitches.
As luck would have it, four months after the incident, I was bitten again in the face by a
dog. But, this time, it was my brother’s Dalmatian, Dotty. Dotty was not mean like Scotty though,
because that time it had been my fault. I accidently hurt her by pulling on her ears when we
were playing around, and she acted in self defense. She gave me a warning nip on my left cheek
and the corner of my left eye. I then had 9 more stitches and 4 more scars on my face. (a total
of 8) But, I won’t get into too much detail because that is a whole different story.
You created a wonderful painting in words with your first paragraph and I liked the way you
ended on a note of a second chapter.
Olivia M
Story
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Black Dog
Chapter One – Stray
Henry had always wanted a dog. His parents, however, were against the idea, so
Henry was a boy who just had to live without man’s best friend.
After school, Henry walked to his house alone, as he usually did. As Henry walked
into the driveway, he noticed an old black dog leaning against the side of their neighbor’s house.
Henry tilted his head as the large, shaggy mutt put his front paws against the side of the house
and began whining, his scraggly paws pounding against the boards.
Henry called to the dog, “Hey, mutt. What are you doing here?” Henry fished around
in his backpack for something to feed the stray. Henry found a cheesy bagel wrapped in foil.
“Perfect!” Henry exclaimed. He brought out a pinch of the cold bagel and set it down
on the gravel. Henry backed up and the dog ran up and gulped down the bagel. Henry did this
until the dog would eat it right out of his hand. Henry felt bad about leaving the dog all alone, so
he asked his dad if they could keep it.
Unfortunately, Henry’s dad was not too keen about the idea of keeping the dog.
Instead of having them keep the dog, Henry’s Aunt Petunia would care for the mutt until
somebody claimed the dog.
Every day, Henry would visit the mutt after school. Henry would bang open that old
screen door, and the black dog would rest his paws on Henry’s chest and lick his face all over.
Aunt Petunia would tell the black dog to stop, but Henry didn’t really mind the slobbering. Henry
called the dog “Mutt”, and soon the name stuck.
The favorite part of Henry’s days was seeing Mutt, but it couldn’t last forever.
Chapter Two – Mutt
One day, when Henry went to Aunt Petunia’s house, Mutt wasn’t at the screen
door. Henry could feel a lump in the back of his throat. Where was Mutt? Mutt was always at
the door when Henry visited.
Aunt Petunia told Henry that the owner was obviously not going to claim Mutt, so
they had sold Mutt. Henry was so sad and angry that for a whole week, he wouldn’t speak to
anybody, not even in school. He cried a lot and he hardly got any sleep.
One day, Henry got out of school and found Mutt waiting by the door of the school.
“How did you escape, Mutt?” Henry asked, rustling Mutt’s fur. “How did you get all
the way out here, boy? Oh, it doesn’t matter, does it? We are together now, and you are not
leaving again.”
It was hard for Henry to do, but after that, Henry hid Mutt in the bushes. He played
games with him and fed and watered him, but Mutt was still hidden away, forced to sleep outside
on a rainy day.
Each day, Henry visited Mutt after school, but one day Mutt was not outside. Henry
bewildered, searched around for a while but he could not find Mutt. When he went inside, his
parents were sitting on the couch with Mutt in between them.
“Sit.” They pointed to the chair across from the couch. Nervously, Henry sat down.
His parents looked him in the eye and said, “Tell us exactly what happened.” Henry told the
whole story exactly how it had been. At the end he added breathlessly, “Mom, Dad, please can
we keep him? Mutt loved me so much that he ran away from the SPCA to find me!”
Henry’s parent’s exchanged glances, “We’re sorry Henry,” his mom said. “It just
wouldn’t work out with our schedule.” Before dinner, Mutt was in the SPCA.
One day, Aunt Petunia sat in her yard all alone. She felt very lonely and she wished
ever so much that Henry would visit. Suddenly, she thought of something. She would buy
herself a dog. Mutt was probably long gone from the SPCA, but a dog would be nice for
company.
Aunt Petunia bought a dog who she named Napoleon. As Aunt Petunia returned from
the SPCA, she found Mutt sitting in her driveway.
Henry’s parents were astounded by the dog’s loyalty to its owner and they bought
Mutt. Henry was very happy and often took Mutt and Napoleon on walks together.
Chapter Three – Unlikely
One day, Henry woke up to find Mutt howling and limping all over his room. His
parents found, as they looked through his fur, no awful, horrible rashes or fleas. Mutt lied down,
panting on the floor, almost sweating. Mutt let out another yowl.
Immediately, Mutt was brought to the vet. Henry and his parents waited in the
waiting room, desperate for a signal telling them anything about Mutt. Then, a vet came out.
“Mr. and Mrs. Green, I am happy to announce that your dog is having pups.”He
said.
“Mutt is having pups!” Henry’s Mom screamed. “We can’t have … we can’t take care
of … and besides, Mutt is a boy dog!”
“Ma’am,” the vet said, his expression amused. “I did not realize that you did not know
that.”
“I always assumed…” Henry’s mom exclaimed.
Henry was just standing there, giggling. He had never even considered that
possibility. Mutt had such a boy-like look to him… her.
With a start, Henry realized something.
“Mom, dad, the puppies’ dad is Napoleon!”Henry exclaimed.
The puppies came a few weeks later.
Chapter Four – Pups
The pups were beauties. Marco and Polo belonged to Aunt Petunia, and Speckle
belonged to Henry.
Once the puppies came, they were tiny wriggly little rodents of things, so
warm and so blind. Henry felt oddly proud. Napoleon saw the puppies as soon as Aunt Petunia
got him over. Napoleon kept on licking Mutt, and Henry’s mom sighed and said that it was a
truly a doggie romance.
Soon, the “puppies” were all grown up. Marco was very talented and
could stand on his head. Polo was a total extrovert. She had never met a dog that she hadn’t
sniffed. Speckle was tame but funny.
One day, the dogs were playing across the street from Aunt Petunia’s house, when
Aunt Petunia called for Marco and Polo, saying that it was time for supper. Polo dashed across
the street, there was a car coming her way.
Mutt saw the car first. Mutt, in a panic, dashed into the road, getting Polo out just in
time.
Suddenly, it was only Henry screaming, his eyes shut, his mouth open, the world
blank, Mutt gone. Mutt was never going to be there again, and there was no use in living.
Henry didn’t remember exactly what happened next. Barking filled the air. Marco, Polo, Speckle,
and Napoleon barked, but Henry could hardly hear it. Mutt was gone. They brought Mutt home
and buried her in the backyard.
Henry never got over the loss of Mutt completely, but he did come to realize that
sometimes one dog- like Mutt- can change lives in unexpected ways, and that when Mutt died, it
didn’t mean Mutt was gone. Mutt did fabulous things, and her marks were still left on the earth,
affecting us in small ways.
This is a heartwarming story and you develop a lot of different emotions - humor, sadness, love.
Good job.
Brad C
Story
Newfield MS
Grade 6-8
Paul
One dark and stormy night a boy named Paul was walking in the woods alone. He was
very cold and wet, so he decided to make shelter. He made his shelter out of mud, sticks and
leaves. It wasn’t perfect, but he would be fine for the night.
The next morning, Paul was hungry, so he hiked around and found a river. Then Paul
made a fishing pole of sticks and string that he found in his pocket. Paul caught a catfish and a
bass, went back to his shelter, built a fire, and ate his fish. Then he went to sleep in his shelter.
The next morning, he took a bath in the river, and then suddenly, the water started
moving. He tried to swim forward, but the current was too strong. He kept going and going.
Then Paul realized that the river led to a waterfall. He thought that he was going to die. He was
getting closer and closer to falling off the edge. Then, an Indian pulled him out of the water. The
Indian’s name was Sagacious.
Sagacious was a wise Indian. He was from the Cherokee tribe. Sagacious took Paul back
to his tribe. “This is my tribe,” Sagacious said. Paul was so scared of all the Indians staring at
him. Sagacious took Paul to see the head Indian.
The head Indian didn’t like Paul since the first time that he laid eyes on him. He told the
guards to take him away and get rid of him for good. The guards took him to where they keep
the prisoners. They hung him by his hands and ran away. Paul didn’t know why they ran away.
Suddenly, a weird looking door opened and a giant, ugly looking dog jumped out and ate him.
Then a few years later, Paul was spit back up by the ugly looking dog and he was still
alive! He took a spear he found on the ground and killed the beast. Unexpectedly, a bunch of
Indians appeared and tried to attack Paul.
Then, everyone heard a gunshot and turned around and saw a guy on a horse. The guy
kind of looked like Indiana Jones. He had a whip, a gun, and a hat that looked exactly the same
as Indiana Jones. The guy helped Paul up on the horse, and then the guy said that his name was
Samuel Adams.
Sam took Paul to a train station and told him to go home but he didn’t want to go home,
he wanted to stay with Sam. Then Sam said that if Paul didn’t get on the train he would blow his
brains out. Paul got so scared that he jumped on the train and headed home.
On the way home, the train was hijacked and Paul tried to attack one of the hijackers but
he was too weak and got beaten up. They tied him up in the back of the train. Then all of a
sudden, Paul heard a big boom and the train shook. Then Paul heard something hit the floor and
he found a knife. Paul scooted the chair over to the knife and tipped the chair and picked up the
knife and cut himself loose. Then Paul found a gun with bullets still inside.
Paul snuck out of his room and found a silencer for the gun. Then he killed one of the
guards that was holding a hostage. When he got rid of all of the guards, he went to the driver’s
cabin and the leader of the bad guys was holding his gun to the captain’s head and getting ready
to shoot. Then Paul shot the guy in the hand and tackled him to the floor. When he got up the
guy was dead, and then Paul untied the captain. Then the captain drove Paul home and all of a
sudden, Paul heard a bell and he woke up in his bed. He said, “I need to stop eating cookies
before bed!”
This sounds like a good movie. I like the ending. You are clever using a name like Sagacious for
the Indian. Try to stay away from cliches like a "dark and stormy night".
Alyssa W
Story
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
The Paper Crane
I sat eating lunch. I went to grab the salt and when I came back there was a
note that read:
Hello my love, I miss your secrets and
Your lies and above all I miss your drama
If you can find me we can be together at last
-T
Who left this here and who is T I thought to myself. I finished my lunch and
drove home to find another note in my room but I had locked the door. After
wondering why someone broke into my house, didn’t take anything and just left
a note I decided to read it:
Hellos again, have you found me?
My name begins with T
What could it be?
Can you find me now?
-R
R? But it begins with T this is starting to scare me I thought. Just then a black
van pulled up to my house two big men came up to my door. I ran to my room
hide just in time when they came in and said “we know you’re in here!” oh no
what do I do!
I opened my window and a piece of paper flew into my room. I grabbed the
paper and jumped out when I realized I left my car keys in my room. I reached
in my window, my wrist touching the window sill, I felt my keys by the tip of my
finger as I heard the two men coming I jumped up and grabbed my keys just in
time. I ran to my car and tripped and fell “she’s getting away!” one of the men
called, I got up and ran to my car and drove away.
Chapter 2
I parked my car behind an abandon building so I could read the note maybe that
would help me understand what was happening. The note read:
T is R and R is T
Who is R and who is T
T+R
-E
If R is T then who is E? T+R maybe there the two men but that leaves E. I
decided it was unsafe to stay here any longer so I drove to the police station.
I told the officer about the two men and their van but not the notes, he told me
I should get some rest so I drove across the street to the ATM and then drove to
the nearest hotel. I paid the clerk and told her that I didn’t want ANY visitors. I
went to my room and stared out the window and at the corner of my eye I
noticed a black van pull in.
Before the men came in I ran to the emergency stairs which came out in the
room behind the clerks desk I looked through the tiny opening in the door “hello
were looking for are ah… friend, yes that’s right our friend” one of the men said
“ok what’s her name?” the clerk asked the two men stumbled and unraveled a
piece of paper and showed it to the clerk “I’m sorry she can’t have any visitors
right now” the two men didn’t like that, they pulled out guns “tell us what room
she’s in! NOW!” the clerk was trembling when she pushed a small red button
under her desk just in time
BANG
“Too late”
I almost screamed but I knew that if I did I would share the same fate as the
clerk, so I ran up to my room to grab my stuff as the two men tried to find my
room on the computer. I went back down the emergency stairs, out the back
door and drove, I didn’t know were but I just drove.
Chapter 3
I parked my car at a local park, “T, R, E” I whispered to myself “what if I wrote it
out?” I grabbed one of the notes and wrote on the back TRE, I put the note back
with the others when I noticed I had put it next to the one from E so it read
TRE-E or TREE “tree!” I announced, luckily nobody was there, I looked in, over,
on every tree till only one was left. I started climbing and realized this tree was
shaped so all the branches formed a small hollow spot where a tiny paper crane
sat.
To be continued
This is so full of suspense that the reader cannot wait for the next chapter. Keep writing!
Leigha H
Story
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Just Plain Comfortable
Some people say they are rich, some people say they are poor, but like my dad says
“we are in the middle…we are just plain comfortable”
Hi! My name is Maleah Jane Dibble. I live in Danby, Ithaca (New York). At my house I
have a barn for my four horses (Whinny, Midnight, Cody, and my favorite, Star Light).
You may be wondering why my favorite is Star Light, so I will tell you.
I have had Star Light for 8 ½ years I got her when I was three. She was my first so I
didn’t really know how to take care of her. By the time I was seven I had won nineteen
trophies with her and spent every minute I could trail riding. I liked trail riding the best
because I can be alone and think things through.
One night I was coming back from a trail ride and I heard a rustling in the bushes. I
got nervous but Star Light stayed clam. I left it alone until I heard the strange rustling
again. Star Light started getting nervous so I tried to sooth her by rubbing her neck but
it didn’t work.
Star Light was flicking her ears back and forth to listen to any cues I might give her. I
was so scared that I froze in the saddle. Again the bushes rustled.
Instead of flicking her ears back and forth, Star Light reared up out of fright. I tried to
hold on to her mane but my hands were sweaty and they slipped right through.
I remember seeing something jump out of the bushes and attack Star Light, but
because of my fall I passed out.
“MAAAAALLLLEEEEEEAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!...”
“MMMMMAAAAALLLLEEEAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!...”
“WHERE ARRREE YOUUUUU?!?!?!”
I tried to yell out to whoever was calling me but I couldn’t.
When I sat up I saw that Star Light was a few feet away but covered in blood.
“Star Light!?!?!?”
I stumbled over to her, thankfully she was alive but just barely. I looked around for
something to show me that I was near my ranch but could find nothing.
As the minutes passed, I had no service on my phone, Star Light was getting worse, and
worst of all… it was getting dark. I often thought about going to find the tree house
(that I often saw when coming home from trail rides,) but shook the thought away. I
couldn’t imagen what would happen if I lost Star Light so I kept thinking the positives,
but in the back of my mind the thought lingered.
As the day went on I ripped off some of my shirt to dab off some of the blood. Some
went away but lots still stayed on. I decided to rip more of my shirt and make a
bandage to put on the wounds.
Around 9:45 p.m. I heard noises around me, and familiar voices. A few minutes after, I
saw flashes from flashlights.
I was so excited because I heard my mom and dads voices, but I stayed by Star Light
because I didn’t want her to be forgotten.
“MOM!!, DAD!!” I yelled
“MALEAH!”
“hi mom”
“oh we have been so worried about you”
As soon as I realized that my mom and dad finally found me, that I wouldn’t have to
spend a night alone in the woods I felt a sigh of relief. I looked over at Star Light and
pointed. Thankfully my mom and dad both, are veterinarians they immediately knew
how to fix her.
When we got back home I could barely keep my eyelids open.
I looked over at the clock and it read 12:56. I couldn’t believe it was already midnight!
As I stared at my ceiling I worried about Star Lights health.
ONE YEAR LATER
“Come on Star Light” I whispered into her ear
“we can take him”
I looked back to see were my dad was but saw him no where
“YES!!!!!”
we are in the lead. It felt good to be riding again because I hadn't ridden sents the
accident. But now that Star Light is better
I can ride all I want again. When the black bear attacked Star Light, I didn’t think that
she would make it. Thankfully my mom and dad knew exactly what happened and got
there when they did because if they got there even five minutes later I wouldn’t have
her right now.
Riding makes me happy. Its not material position that makes people rich, it’s how they
appreciate it. No, we do not have all of the money in the world but we do have every
thing that matters, each other. We are not rich, we are not poor we are just plain
comfortable.
The symmetry of the beginning and end is a nice touch. Keep writing.
Saily D
First Place
Essay
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Community Service
Community service is a way to help our community become a better place by putting in hours of
work without any pay. Community service benefits yourself, others, and your local area. Most
students, (according to a recent survey) do community service because they can get high school
credits for a chance to go to a better college, or if they are in college, they do it to be an intern
so they can complete a certain course. Only 10% of people who do community service, do it so
it will look good on their conscience.
I’m too young to get credits so I guess I’m one of the 10%. Most people my age don’t do
community service because they think it’s a “waste of time” or its just “not worth it” or they have
something better to do with their time. If you take a look at an recent survey a child watches an
average of 2 hours of TV a day. Think about how much difference it would make if we cut down
an hour and change that other hour into community service. I volunteer at an local senior home
in Ithaca, If I look at it from a teenager’s view it’s boring with a whole bunch of sleeping seniors
or seniors in a vegetative state or seniors who blabber about things teenager’s don’t care about.
Of course I would not enjoy it if I kept that mindset. That is the problem with people around my
age, they can’t adjust their mindset.
Once I adjust my mindset to a more mature person, the seniors have a lot to offer. Besides their
age difference, they are like most of us. They like to talk, sing, dance to their favorite song and
boast about their achievements in life. I enjoy doing community service and I’ve been doing this
since last October and plan to continue until this October. I still plan to do community service
but just I’ll work with people on the other end of the spectrum of life. I’m one of the people who
like hearing about the ups and downs of another person’s life and serving them. Some of the
staff members that I see at the senior home have an attitude with the elders, talk crap about the
seniors, and are not enthusiastic about their job and it seems like their doing it just for the
money. All of the recreation leaders are pretty nice though.
When I came to the senior home for the first time to volunteer I was scared, nervous and the
place was dead-silent, not like how I remember it. I heard about this senior home in community
service camp that I went to and I had tons of fun when we visited partly because we did fitness
with the seniors and the adrenalin was pumping. It wasn’t very fun the first day I visited
because I was expecting it to be different but one I’ve got the feel of this place I started to take
more pride with the smallest things in life, like a giggle, a hug, or a smile. This place seems
more alive because I have affected other people’s attitude and the seniors.
I think community service is a great thing to do and you should do whatever interests you. It’s a
better use of your free time and good for your school, conscience and your reputation of not only
your future but of the present. I think everyone should do community service because every
hour makes a difference.
This is an esay with heart and soul and I would encourage you to submit it to your
school newspaper after you rework it a bit. I would, for instance, talk about your
changing attitude from your earliest times to the present.
John L
Second Place
Essay
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Do the Benefits of Electric Cars Outweigh the Drawbacks?
The first electric cars were built over 100 years ago, but oil run cars quickly took over. By
using electric cars we won’t use as many fossil fuels and there will be less pollution. Problems with
the electric car include that it is not as fast and is very expensive to maintain. However, scientists say
that in the near future electric cars will be more efficient and less expensive. Society needs to accept
that electric cars must be used in the future to save our planet and that the drawbacks of electric cars
can be overcome.
There are many benefits to using electric cars. Electric cars run easily on the road and are
easy to operate. Instead of going to the gas station to fill up, you can recharge your car at home.
While the electric car is on, it is very quiet and has reduced its sound over the years. More
importantly, “…the operation of the car produces no exhaust” (“Electric Car” 496). They use batteries
so they don’t waste petroleum. The car has strong batteries that power the entire car. These
batteries now hold more energy than the older ones. The electric car also stores a fuel cell which has
a great amount of backup electric energy. These fuel cells are the future of electric cars. One of the
biggest benefits of electric cars is they use less fossil fuels which results in a lot less pollution on our
planet.
On the other hand, there are also some drawbacks to electric cars. The electric car can only
get up to 80 miles per hour in speed. This is generally slower than fossil fuel run cars. Also the car
can’t travel more than 100 miles before it has to stop to recharge. Electric cars are quite hard to use
in cities because you could run out of energy and it would be hard to find a spot to recharge. Electric
cars are much more expensive than fossil fuel run cars. The batteries for these cars are very
expensive and may have to be replaced in the cars lifetime. Many people argue that, “these new
batteries are nickel-metal hybrid batteries that hold more energy”, but this quote does not say that
these batteries can still only go for 60-70 miles at a time (Duffy, par. 2). People also argue that
electric cars actually cause more pollution because coal consumption in the United States is 91.9% for
producing electricity and burning coal is a big cause of pollution (“Coal Energy” 37).
Through all of my research I have found that there are more benefits to electric cars than
there are drawbacks. Scientists say that in the near future electric cars will improve to be much better
than fossil fuel run cars. Scientists have been improving electric cars ever since they were first made
over 100 years ago. The batteries and the motors have improved over the years. Also, fuel cell
research will be important in the future and “in 2003 U.S. President George W. Bush announced $1.2
billion in hydrogen fuel initiatives to accelerate the making of fuel-cell technology” (Duffy, par. 7).
This has increased fuel-cell research in the United States. Scientific research has made electric cars a
great option.
Additionally, protecting our environment has made electric cars a great option. The air could
become difficult to breathe unless we stop using so many fossil fuels that pollute the environment. If
we don’t stop using so much oil, when we are adults with our own kids it will be a terrible and
unhealthy environment to live in. We do not want to pass on a polluted environment to our kids.
Also, if we don’t start using electric cars and using less fossil fuels, we may run out of fossil fuels and
oil for our kids. We do not want to do this to our kids. We can avoid doing this if we start to use
electric cars right now. If everyone started to use electric cars right now electric car manufacturers
would have more money for research. With more money for research, scientists could make more
improvements to the electric car. If this happens we could have a really good electric car to use
before we run out of fossil fuels and before our environment is too polluted for our kids.
In conclusion, we need to start using electric cars right now. One reason is that we do not
want to run out of oil. Also, we want to improve the electric car quicker so we can have a really great
one sooner. Lastly, we want to save the planet from pollution. When I buy my first car it will be an
electric car because the benefits definitely outweigh the drawbacks.
Great ideas. Try to separate the good aspects from the bad and then draw your
conclusions. You seem to go back and forth between the advantages and the
disadvantages. Nice work!
Lilly W
Third Place
Essay
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
ALS—LOU GEHRIG'S DISEASE
What is ALS you ask? Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also called Lou Gehrig's disease,
named after Lou Gehrig a hall-of -fame baseball player for the New York Yankees who was
diagnosed in the 1930's with the disease. ALS damages the motor neurons in the brain and
spinal cord. Motor neurons are nerve cells that control muscle movement. Upper motor neurons
send messages from the brain to the spinal cord, and the lower motor neurons send messages
from the spinal cord to the muscles. Over time, ALS causes these motor neurons in the brain
and spinal cord to shrink and disappear, so that the muscles no longer receive signals to move.
Gradually the body becomes paralyzed, which means that the muscles no longer work. The mind
is not affected. From my point of view, it is one of the saddest experiences for the person
affected and their loved ones.
ALS can strike anyone, but it is extremely rare in kids. Statistics from the ALS Association
show that most people who develop the disease are adults between the ages of 40 and 70. You
cannot catch the disease from the individual who has it. ALS cases in the United States show
that 5 to 10% of cases are hereditary, which means it runs in certain families. This is called
familial ALS. At least 90% of cases are sporadic, which means it just shows up. ALS has been
seen in many of the Gulf War Veterans. The veterans were exposed to many pesticides and
chemicals, which is known to bring the disease on. Our government has given these veterans
full benefits.
The disease is different for every person. Muscle weakness in the arms and legs, difficulty
speaking, choking, tripping and falling, and dropping things are some early symptoms of ALS.
The person affected is often misdiagnosed with a stroke or Parkinson's disease because of the
similarity of these early symptoms. A number of tests will be performed such as an
electromyogram, which will show that the muscles are not working because of damaged nerves
and is a painful procedure because it shoots electrical currents into your muscles to test the
reaction of the muscles. X-rays, a spinal tap, biopsies of nerve or muscles, and blood and urine
tests are some of the other tests used to test for the presence of the disease.
There is no way to prevent or cure ALS. There is a drug called Rilutek which is shown to
extend your life by a few months, and without medical insurance can cost close to $1,000.00 for
a month's supply. Some clinical trials are going on to try and find a cure. Special equiptment is
available to assist the person with ALS live with some of the side affects, such as power wheel
chairs, ventilators to assist with breathing, communication devices (because the disease robs
you of your speech), suction machines for clearing mucus, and feeding tubes because of the
difficulty in swallowing. Eventually, the individual with ALS relies on the caregiver, the person
taking care of them, to survive. The life expectancy can be any where from 18 months to 5
years.
ALS is a very heart breaking disease. I should know, it broke my heart to watch my Father
suffer from this ugly disease. He recently died from ALS on March 16, 2011. My Dad only
survived for 19 months, after finding out his diagnosis. The onset of his disease showed up after
he was spraying his hay fields for weeds with an herbicide. I was one of his caregivers and I
miss him so much and will always love him. My Dad is the greatest man ever!
This is a heartfelt essay. It is great to share the information with others. Consider
publishing this in your school newspaper.
Carlyn M
Essay
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Euthanasia: Should It Be Legalized?
In 1998, 52 year old Thomas Youk was in the final fatal stages of Lou Gehrig’s disease.
He requested that Dr. Jack Kevorkian, or Dr. Death to the media, use his suicide machine to end
his life. Dr. Kevorkian obliged and videotaped his role in the physician assisted suicide. The tape
was later played on CBS’s “60 Minutes.”
Euthanasia is illegal in almost all of the U.S and many want it to stay that way, yet some
want it legalized. Euthanasia is the practice of intentionally ending the life of a person who has
an incurable medical condition. It’s performed as a lethal injection, called mercy killing.
Euthanasia should be legal under strict circumstances! Any person who suffers from an incurable
disease has every right as a functioning human being to decide their fate. That person should
decide with their family and go through a background check of their medical condition.
Active euthanasia involves deliberate actions by a physician who administers a lethal
dose of a drug to end a person’s life. Passive euthanasia is the termination of a life sustaining
treatment, which is legal in the U.S. By removing the device that’s keeping a person alive in some
way. Physician assisted suicide occurs when a physician provides medication to help a patient
commit suicide, this controversial practice differs from active euthanasia because the patient is
the one to take the final steps to end their own life.
One of the most famous advocates for legalizing euthanasia is Dr. Jack Kevorkian. Jack Kevorkian
worked as a pathologist, but later devoted his time to the medical and philosophical issues
involving death. That was when he came to believe that almost every patient who requests a
physician’s aid in dying was entitled to that assistance. In 1990, Kevorkian started helping people
end their lives through euthanasia, soon after Kevorkian was ordered to stop assisting suicides.
He ignored this order and had his medical license revoked. He was tried multiple times prior to
1998 for his role in assisted suicides but never convicted. After videotaping his role in the
assisted suicide of Thomas Youk, Kevorkian was charged with first degree murder for directly
administering the drugs. In 1999 Kevorkian was convicted of second degree murder and illegal
delivery of a controlled substance. The judge ordered him to serve thirteen to thirty two years in
prison. Kevorkian was released in 2007 after serving less than eight years of his prison sentence.
Euthanasia has spurred many outcries about the legalization of it. The American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU) stated “… terminally ill person has a protected liberty interest in choosing
to end intolerable suffering by bringing about his or her own death.” Every person has their
rights to choose their death. The American Medical Association (AMA) in their later article stated
that “…However, permitting physician’s to engage in euthanasia would ultimately cause more
harm than good…and would pose serious societal risks.” It should not pose a risk in society
when it only pertains to the family of the euthanized. It has also been said that euthanasia
should be legalized as a last, resort option for a patient facing hard death. This is true because
other options are available, but if the patient wants this, it’s a legitimate option, not a last resort.
Many more are against the legalization of euthanasia. Daniel Callahan, PhD, stated in his 2004
book The Case Against Assisted Suicide: For the Right to End-of-Life Care: “physician assisted
suicide… threatens to add still another sad chapter to an already sorry human history of giving
one person the liberty to take the life of another.” It wouldn’t add to the history of “murder”, but,
to the history of medicine and helping people.
Euthanasia should be legalized in the U.S. under strict circumstances including,
background checks, counseling and physician consultation. After all, we are humans with rights,
and euthanasia is just another one of them.
You have great information. Could you rework you organization to separate the various
types of euthanasia you describe. This has great potential.
Pedro R
Essay
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
My Life in the United States
Since I came to Ithaca a lot in my life has changed. First of all, I learned English.
Second of all, I have got better grades at school. Finally, I learned the many
different cultures around the world. My life will never be the same if I haven’t
come to Ithaca. I can’t believe that I did not want come to Ithaca at the first
time I heard the news. I stayed some nights awake only thinking about this
adventure.
When I came, I was scared of this new adventure I was going to have. My
feelings were mixed up, with both excitement and insecurity I didn’t know what
to do and say. I was scared of being rejected by others or never learn English.
On my first day I have been in Ithaca I tried to keep the best mood I could be.
Even though I liked that day I couldn’t take that strong feeling of sadness when I
left my home.
My first day at school was challenging, I couldn’t understand nothing and do
nothing. I felt like a dummy, and wanted to go back and forget everything. If it
wasn’t for my ESL teachers I would have given up but time has passed and like
my schoolmates I have learned English. In the two months I have lived In
Ithaca my English was broken. When I tried to say something I would stammer.
When I write I would use incorrect punctuation. Today I also do it , but I think I
am better.
During those few school days I have experience a different way of life and
culture. I have seen many place and people and experienced a new world.
My parents are happier than ever since I came to Ithaca, Mainly because I am
happy. I should had never had judged these adventure I am having. I would
have never survived this time I am having in Ithaca without my parents,
teachers and friends. Every day when I come to my house here in Ithaca I
wonder what would happen if I stayed in Brazil. I will never forget my live here.
It is difficult to leave your home. You are very courageous. This is an essay you might
want to share with other people who have come to this country recently.
Jami A
Dear Fellow Citizens,
Essay
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
Dear Fellow Citizens
I am thirteen years old and I am writing this letter to raise needed awareness. I am
trying to raise this awareness about our impact on our precious environment. You’re probably
thinking “Oh, no … Here we go again…”. That’s how I was when my teacher first introduced me
to these articles and movies. But now I am glad she did because I really enjoyed them. They had
me realize what my impact on our planet is. There were so eye opening and very interesting
straight forward facts. I will start by mentioning facts I read in the article “Living on a New Earth”
by Jonathan Foley, as published in the magazine Scientific American. Nitrogen and phosphorous
is mainly found in fertilizer and we use 133 million tons of nitrogen and 10 million tons of
phosphorous a year, mainly due to agricultural fertilizers. Nitrogen and phosphorous seem
invisible but it doesn’t seem that way to the fish in the Gulf of Mexico. When it runs down the
Mississippi River, to the Gulf of Mexico, it creates “dead zones”. “Dead zones” are places in the
Gulf of Mexico where the nitrogen and phosphorous crush the delicate food chains. Have you
ever wondered why people might be telling you to switch to organic? A part of it is because
organic farmers do not utilize chemical fertilizers, which means they are not contributing to
nitrogen and phosphorous pollution. Other reasons to go organic are because of the pesticides in
non-organic foods and the treatment of caged animals on non-organic farms. The EPA has listed
pesticides as ‘probable’ cancer causing chemicals while other scientists at the University of
Missouri-Columbia found pesticides are related to obesity. Additionally, the probability of having a
baby with a birth defect is raised when pregnant mothers live within ¼ mile of an agricultural
crop field. Caging animals is cruel and not healthy for them whereas free range, grass fed,
organic animals taste better and it’s nice to think that they had a healthy life. In the movie
“Human Impact” by National Geographic, it was mentioned that fruits and vegetables can also be
stored in a warehouse for up to a year and they still have the right to call it fresh. Organic fruits
and vegetables are actually fresh and they have vitamins and nutrients that can support your
immune system.
Another thing that can help our environment is using canteens or BPA free water bottles.
Americans throw away 694 plastic bottles per second, but if we all try to help and use a reusable
water bottle that rate would lower. It is unknown how long it will take plastic to decompose in a
landfill; estimates are that it will take over 500 years. Beyond solid waste, water usage and
pollution are also a big problem. Every day actions that we don’t even think of, such as washing
your hands or face result in polluting of water. Showers are a huge part of water usage. A 20
minute shower every day uses 532 gallons of water. A shower every other day for 10 minutes
used 108 gallons. If everyone could do this technique, then we could reduce our water usage
greatly. This is important because even though water is renewable, not everybody has access to
fresh clean drinking water and if we keep polluting it, nobody will.
I hope you do try some of these small but massive solutions because if you do we are one
person less from millions that don’t understand our earth’s conditions. Thank you.
Sincerely,
A concerned young citizen
Great ideas and great passion. Work a little on organizing this with one idea per
paragraph.
Gwendolyn G
Essay
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Seasons
Everyone loves the seasons, right? Anyway I do, I love how in the fall the colors fall from the
tree. Flowing colors make whirlwinds all about and around you.
The thing about winter that I like is the snow like whip cream falling from the sky. It makes me
feel warm inside to think of winter, sitting next to the roaring fire.
I like spring. The daisies blooming in the meadows, the warmth of the sun beating down upon us
as we lay beneath the crisp warm sun. I love seeing those first little green buds spring up from
the ground. I love spring when the flowers bloom. The flowers are so beautiful. I thought that’s
why they called it spring.
I always I love summer because schools out and I can go travel to different places, go to the
beach, and go outside to go swimming beneath the beating sun. When I go swimming it feels
like warm is touching cold. Summer’s great. I love all seasons especially summer. I love going to
camp playing with friends even family. At summer camp we play on the playground all day long,
make crafts, and watch movies. That’s what summer is all about, playing, going places, and
relaxing! Sometimes seasons can be miserable like when it rains in the summer we have to go
inside right away at summer camp because it might be a thunder storm. I just saw some buds
growing in the gallant garden. My garden has ravishing flowers in the summer. In the fall they
slowly fade away. The pink flowers turn dark purple, the yellow turn golden, and the purple turn
in to an eerie black. Especially for Halloween. People think we have fake flowers or that we dye
them. But I guess if I’m talking about Halloween I should say die them.
But I sometimes like them that way.
I like going fishing at the edge of a rolling brook or at a waterfall. I’ve never caught a fish but
I’ve come very close when I went to the Adirondacks with my family. I love the Adirondacks it’s a
quiet and peaceful place with lakes, rivers, and mountains, beautiful mountains. I love the rolling
hills and the beaches.
I love skiing at Greek Peek. I love going down Elysian Fields and Castor. On Karyatis way there’s
a huge turn and when you pass by it the wind is cold on my face, the cool night breeze whips
against my face, and my hands are as numb as polar bears toes in the arctic tundra. I’d like to
see a polar bear one day. Their bright white fur blending with the glowing snow. I hate when
they run out of hand warmers at the desk at Greek Peek. I like going down the secret trail called
Epricus way no one hardly knows about it. I love Greek Peek and skiing so much!
Oh but fall brings back those childhood memories, jumping into leaf piles, going to get fresh citer
from the citer mill. I can taste that fresh, warm, golden citer now. The best time to have apple
pie is in the fall. The apples taste much fresher and better in the fall. Oh how I love apple, apple
pie, and citer. The sensation of being cold in the fall breeze and then taking a sip. When the citer
touches your tongue it sets mine on fire. It burns my soul.
I love the seasons how it’s nippy to your nose and how the breeze whips against your face. Its
wonderfull, to me…. To be continued…
You have wonderful descriptions. You simply need to work on organization. Use one
paragraph per season and have a strong topic sentence.
Anneleise H
Essay
Groton MS
Grade 6-8
Do Athletes Make too Much Money?
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to make millions of dollars a year for playing a
professional sport? For most people, this would be a dream come true. So, I
ask the question, do professional athletes make too much money for what they
contribute to society?
An individual’s salary should be based on the overall value they bring to our
society. Teachers have one of the most important jobs of all, and their salary is
much less than a professional athlete. Teachers provide the foundation for us to
become contributors to our society. It does not seem fair that Alex Rodriquez of
the NY Yankees is paid $33 million dollars a year when the average salary of a
high school teacher is approximately $45,000 a year. Professional athletes do
provide enjoyment to fans all over the world, but they are not providing the
knowledge that is going to benefit future generations.
The argument can be made that athletes should be paid big salaries because of
their unique abilities. However, these athletes have an obligation to perform
both on and off the field. There are a number of athletes who think their only
responsibility is to perform on the field. This type of thinking has lead to a
number of professional athletes getting involved in illegal and immoral activities.
These athletes believe they are invincible because of the amount of money they
make. When teens see this type of behavior, they think money is power.
While I do understand the tremendous amount of training it takes to be a
professional athlete, I believe the salaries are disproportionate with the value
they offer society. Professions such as doctors, teachers, scientists, and police
officers also require a significant amount of training. These occupations
contribute immensely to make the world a better place. They also come with the
responsibility to be a good role model. The system simply is not fair.
Unfortunately, I don’t see society changing to reward people based on their
impact to the community.
Your passion for the subject is very apparent. Good logical development.
Veronica CS
Essay
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
My Opinion On Global Warming
Global Warming has captured the attention of many people (myself included).
Some think it is a hoax. Others think it is a real issue. Some don’t know what to think
and push it out of their lives. But no matter what you decide to do about it, there will
always be some argument. It will never go away. No matter how much you push it out
of your life, it will still be there. So, I choose to face the problem and develop my own
opinion. I believe that global warming does not exist. I have many reasons for this
belief, but I have narrowed it down to three reasons.
Number one, e-mails were released between the scientists that “created”
global warming that clearly stated that they were lying about global warming. They even
admitted that they were lying. Now, some people would ask why they would lie about
something like that. What could they possibly get out of that? I can answer that in one
word. Control. If they can manipulate what you use for power and how much you use of
it, they can pretty much do anything because we use power for almost everything we
do. It is that simple.
Next, the world has been going through phases since the beginning of time.
I believe that this is no different. I swear, if we lived in the ice age they would declare
global freezing and find a way to blame it on mankind. The world is getting warmer. So
what? That’s supposed to be our fault? I do not think so. The world will start to get
colder soon enough.
Third, I think its cold enough already. Especially if you live in New York
during January and February, I can’t imagine how it could get any colder. I mean, on
average, it’s probably 0 degrees Fahrenheit (I might be exaggerating a little but you get
the point). If there are polar bears dying and the ice caps are melting, there is nothing
we can do about it now, even if it was our fault. Seriously, what are we supposed to do
about it? Move them somewhere else? Where?
However, while I don’t believe in global warming, I do believe in preserving
the environment. I think we should do whatever we can without backtracking to the
caveman days. It is as easy as putting trash in the garbage can instead of on the
ground. But we have not messed up the earth that bad. We have tried to fix many of
the problems with pollution and are doing a good job.
In conclusion, my opinion is that global warming does not exist. However, I
think we should try our best (without going overboard) to not pollute the planet. If we
can just do that, I think we will have a pretty good future. Also, I think people should
not believe everything they read or hear from others. I think they should look at the
facts before jumping to conclusions. I hope you take into account what I have said.
You have great ideas. This sounds a little like a first draft and you should eliminate
words like "well" in the final draft. You have potential as a politician!
Keri L
Essay
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
A Bullied Life
Have you ever been bullied? Well if you haven’t then you are lucky because
you don’t know what it is like to be hurt inside and out. If you have been bullied
then you know how it feels to be punished for no real reason. For me I have
been bullied lots of times so I know what it feels like. It can hurt from some won
says you have a pimple on your face and teases you or from someone calling
you fat and trust me that hurts a lot. You could also get hurt on the outside well
I have never got hurt on the outside except when my sister hits me and she has
a lot of fists for a 9 year old. My mom always if says if a bully eggs you on just
ignore the bully he will go away. If a bully is bulling someone else don’t join the
bully go get a teacher or adult to help take care of it. Hopefully if you aren’t
bullied you learned to not join the bully and if you are bullied ignore the bully. Be
nice to others!
This is a very powerful essay. Keep on writing!
Max J
Essay
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
What are the benefits and drawbacks of using Geothermal
Energy?
Geothermal Energy is energy that comes from within the Earth. Water is
heated up by the Earth and turned into steam. The steam is then used to power
a generator. I think using geothermal energy is a good idea.
There are many benefits of using geothermal energy. First, it is a
renewable energy source! In “Geothermal energy,” Alan Wachtel says, “The
water can be replaced by rainfall so therefore it is a renewable energy
source”(6). Second, it can be used to heat and cool homes and buildings.
Geothermal energy is great for schools because it uses a lot less energy then
other types of heating and cooling. For these reasons, people think it will be very
important in the future.
Geothermal energy has some drawbacks too. One big drawback is that it
is expensive to get started. In “Geothermal Energy,” author Alan Wachtel states,
“Drilling a well for a geothermal power plant can cost 1-4 million dollars.
Installing a geothermal heat pump can cost 7,500 dollars”(32). Another big
drawback is that there aren’t many suitable places for a geothermal power plant
to be built. A suitable place has hot rocks and must be east to drill into. The spot
must also not run out of steam. Another drawback is that sometimes along with
the steam, hazardous gases and minerals come up.
Geothermal energy has benefits and drawbacks. It is a renewable
energy source, it can heat and cool homes, it is used to produce electricity, and
it’s great for schools. It is expensive though and it is hard to find a good place
for a power plant to be build. Also, sometimes hazardous gases and minerals
come up with the steam. Even though there are some drawbacks, there are
many benefits, and I think using geothermal energy is a good idea.
Great job of presenting both the good points and the drawbacks. This was clearly
organized and well argued.
Meeta S
First Place
Regular Poetry
The One, and Only
Oh sweet glistening sugar lines your exterior,
And a thin layer of snow on top.
You’re not just a delight- you’re better than that,
For you, my heart simply stops.
You are magnificent to me, a mellow, majestic, mystery,
But even better is your heart,
It’s soft and smooth and filled with warmth,
O’ dearest, with whom I never wish to part.
But too soon you will have to go,
And I will weep with sorrow,
You were the best donut I have ever eaten,
But I’ll have another one of you tomorrow…
This is a delicious poem! Bravo.
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Cassidy T
Second Place
Regular Poetry
I’d Rather Give
I’d rather be smart
Than dumb
I’d rather be loved
Then ignored
I’d rather succeed
Than be left behind
I’d rather be told the whole truth
Than flat out lies
I may want all these things but I also want happiness
Peace, love and family
For me, and all those around me
That is the key, the key to happiness
Is to love those around you
NOT to want and get and receive
I’d rather give.
Both the sentiments and the phrasing are beautiful. Continue to write!
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Taylor M
Third Place
Regular Poetry
Revenge Through Tea
On a Boston night
the nippy air
whispered and whirled
everywhere.
The young men were riding
to Griffin’s Wharf.
The moonlight danced on the sea,
the young men won’t let it be.
Standing up to the British Tea Act.
Independence that they lacked.
Determination stationed at their hearts
like a dart hitting a chart.
The tea was stacked
straight like a gentlemen’s back.
They boarded the ship.
and the tea began to drip
mixing with the water of the sea.
Drops of sweat arose on their faces,
while looking back to watch the cases,
fall with a SPLASH, goodbye.
342 was the number
but boy
did it feel like 900.
Samuel Adams left the sight
Just like the prisoners
asleep on this night.
The sun will soon
break the moon
the British
will be playing a sad tune.
A fabulous way to learn history! Continue to write!
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Marie G
Regular Poetry
Trumansburg MS
Grade 6-8
The Way Things Are
You and I both know that there is a “way”
A way to act
A way to talk
A way to dress
A way to look
Every thing you do has to be
Orchestrated
Planned
Thought out
Every step
Every word
Every movement of the arm or leg
Make one wrong comment
Say one honest thing
Stand up for one person…
And then you’re no longer one of them
One of the popular
One of the cool kids
One of many
All of us want to be one of them
Sit at their lunch tables
Speak their gossip
Is it worth it?
Making fun of people for your own entertainment?
Laughing at kids who refuse to give into the way?
Gossiping about kids who respect themselves?
I’m not one of them,
One of the ones who give into the way
I hope you aren’t either
I may not know much about you
Or much about anything for that matter
But I know that I want to be me
Smart, unique, confident me
I will not change
I will not give into the way
Your format reflects your desire not to give in to the way.
Sophia P
Regular Poetry
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Life
Life is a difficult concept
Or at least it is to me
To me, one should live a happy life
One that is full
And not a sad life
Because sad lives are usually dull
The problem with life is the people don’t know how
To live it
They ponder all day
And most nights
Of how they could possibly make their life right
Well life is not something one could ponder
Life is something one must lead
Life, I am sad to say
Can end as quickly as it can begin
Therefore, life cannot be wasted.
Very mature insights. The line "Life is something one must lead" is a particularly good one.
Nicholas CD
Regular Poetry
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
A Dream Sets Me On My Path
A dream sets me on my path
So I decide to major in math.
In the first week, I realize I can't stand equations
So a dream directs me to live in the bayou with the Cajuns.
After happily trawling shrimp for nearly two years,
It comes to my head I detest the crustacean.
Another dream bounces me to a whole new nation.
On a balmy night at my shack in Morocco
A dream flashes, and I fume at my lack of a taco.
So at a taquerilla in Mexico
The fine smell of fried food wafts to my nose.
The pleasant aroma ignites a stark dream
In which I realize my passion for prose.
So, as the end of my novel is nearing, I dreamed of my adventures in canyoneering.
As I swing and grapple from ledge to ledge,
A curious face peers around the rock's edge.
It says, "What are you doing, fool?
Where are you now, moseying down this crack
In the earth like the indecisive fool you are?
You have so much potential."
I reply, "There's no need to speak of my ventures unwholesomely.
If you allow yourself to dream
The possibilities are exponential."
This poem is optimistic. It was fun to read! I think you DO have potential.
Skylar P
Regular Poetry
This Poem
Welcome to my poem,
Where the crazy and amazing stuff happens.
Where imagination runs.
Welcome to my poem…
Where it could be about.
Birds and animals.
Or fire and other elements.
But it’s not.
This poem is about this poem.
Confusing, huh?
So welcome to my poem.
Where you can imagine.
This poem isn’t real.
You can imagine that.
This poem just ended.
Or you could imagine that.
You’re not reading this at all.
And that you’re asleep.
I am now ending this poem.
But beware.
You could imagine that.
This poem never ended.
Very creative and challenging. Wonderful!
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Melina K
Regular Poetry
Treehouse
Tree houses are where I play
They are my private get-away
But I like mine best of all
Because up there I have a ball!
There I can pretend
Because my imagination has no end!
When I’m in my tree house I’m a secret agent
While I smell the flowers, which are quite fragrant
I can do anything in my tree house
Even dress in a sky blue blouse!
I could be a captain of a ship!
Or a gymnast who can flip!
There are so many things I could do!
Before I come home to my mom’s homemade stew!
I love my tree house so much!
I can’t think of something I love as such!
Wait! Maybe I love something else too…
Nope! I just love tree houses, do you?
Nice rhyme scheme. This makes the reader want to be outside!
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Alyssa G
Regular Poetry
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
The Cardinal
The cardinal is ruby red.
The cardinal also has black around the eye;
Have you ever seen one cry?
You may see one every once in a while.
One of its predators could be a crocodile.
The cardinal comes out in the winter,
if there was a season called swinter it could come out,
and I don’t think they pout.
I am going to tell you now that these aren’t all facts.
In the winter you will leave little tracks.
You’re famous; you are the name of a football team “The Cardinals.”
You are one of my favorites.
Well that’s all I got.
Great rhyme scheme until the very end. This has great potential.
Ally M
Regular Poetry
A Poem of Colors
Red
Strong. Fiery. Passionate. Angry.
A swirling, dramatic color.
Roses. Blood. Fire. Leaves.
Orange
Warm. Cozy. Shiny. Glowing.
An intense, exciting color.
Flowers. Oranges. Pumpkins. The Sun.
Yellow
Bright. Cheery. Joyful. Fun.
A happily darting color.
Light. Lemons. Sunshine. Dandelions. Love
Green
Earthy. Deep. Fresh. Clean.
A magical, natural color.
Grass. Trees. Eyes. Oceans.
Blue/Indigo
Cool. Calm. Sorrowful. Slow.
A lazy, breezy color.
Water. Sky. Blue Jays. Morning Glories.
Violet
Pretty. Delicate. Sweet. Regal.
A romantic, quiet color.
Violets. Amethysts. Grapes. Wisteria.
Rainbows
Fiery. Cozy. Bright. Earthy. Calm. Delicate.
A perfect blend of all the colors.
Hope. Love. Joy. Peace.
This was fun to read and to see!
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
Aaron G
Regular Poetry
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
The Garden of Life
Friends are the flowers in the garden of life
Family is the roots to friends
Family and friends together blossoming with joy
All people are little buds bursting with potential
We all hope to spout to our true purpose
We all want something more
We all want to create something bigger than our own realm
Friends and families are like ivy
Twisting and turning
Friends connect families
Families connect friends
Life is all inter connected
Life is growing into a fully flowered garden
Life is a quest
The quest to be remembered as a legend
The world a community
Of family and friends
Like ivy
Growing at rapidly
Forever
The symbolism is lovely. Keep writing!
Terrapin F
Regular Poetry
The Amazon
The Amazon animals sleep
‘Till dawn, only then will they
Awake.
They hide in trees waiting
They lie in their borrows waiting
For the swift dawn breeze.
When it rains little mice
Scurry,
Birds rush to their nests
In a hurry.
A tiger approaches,
The frogs croak,
The tigers mighty
Roar breaks.
The tiger strikes
A nearby bird,
He hikes back to
His den.
The sun is setting.
The frogs quiet,
The birds set,
It is the end of an
Amazon riot.
The last two lines pull all the ideas together. Good work.
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Olajuwon P
Regular Poetry
LACS
Grade 6-8
The Language of the Love-Struck
Having just pushed myself to the brink of passing out in gym I was already a
little Loopy,
But something happened that day,
Something that would change me forever,
I stopped in awe,
Unable to move,
Barley able to breath,
Baffled by the fact that somebody could be so beautiful,
She flipped her hair that was as bright as the sun as if just for me,
She was the human manifestation of beauty
She said “ What's up?”, my reply I believe was
“hblfg ( translation “hey baby”)”
she giggled and walked away
And at that very moment I realized that I had spoken, the language of the lovestruck...
The whole poem is fun to read, but the last line is absolutely wonderful!
Coco HJ
Regular Poetry
Whirling of Ice
Toe picks cutting ice
Crossover long
Powerful strokes
Turning one foot after the other
Whirling whirling
One blade twirling
Pausing
Backwards strokes
One edge
Blade shining in air
Arms spread like an eagle
Turning one foot after the other
Whirling whirling
One blade twirling
“Shwooo” sliding across the
Bone chilling ice
Turning turning
Feet flying
White flames flickering
Twirling, dizzy-making
Stick it.
You really give the reader a sense of how it feels to skate. Well done.
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Leanne R
Regular Poetry
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Freedom’s Way
The bells are ringing
The children are singing
For we have hiked the day
To freedom’s way
No more beating
Only good treating
Every man is equal
A new life is our sequel
Black or white
Come join the fight
For freedom is here
If you listen very clear
To freedom’s way
For our slavery was cruel
But to this day our masters cannot rule
And we trekked through the Underground Railroad
And our heart’s glowed
With the thought of freedom in our head’s
I am here to spread
For I was led
To freedom’s way
Very effective use of refrains. Good rhyme scheme. Keep writing.
Kayla M
Regular Poetry
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
My Sister Liana
Skin pink like pink lemonade,
her head full of light brown curls,
eyes as big as capital O's,
she's as delicate as a flower,
when she smiles it feels like a ray of sunshine on your face,
when she walks into the room it gets brighter.
STOMP! STOMP! Is the sound her feet makes when she doesn't get her way,
AAHHH! Is what she says when she's mad,
mmm is the sound she makes when she likes food,
when she sleeps she looks like an angle.
Tip tip tap is her way of walking,
making a marvelous miracle is what she does,
giving joy is what she is about,
loving is her concept of life.
When I wiggle it makes her giggle,
when she gets herself in a pickle she loves to get tickled,
when she talks I get flummoxed.
This is a loving portrait and a warm hearted poem.
Lachlan B
Regular Poetry
Ski Jump
and silently
Sliding down a the snowy mountain
Skis cutting through the powder like a knife
Knees bent, head down
Gray-white shadowy image of a ramp in the distance
Guiding the skier toward his target
Gaining speed
Swerving around obstacles
As if there were repelling magnets
Then as he approaches
He squats even lower
And glides up the ramp
Extending his legs at the last minute
For even more distance from the ground
Then time seems to stop
As he floats through the air
Like a spaceship in orbit
Then descends
Into the open welcoming hands of the snow below
Lands,
And continues.
You have a gift for using imagery. Bravo!
LACS
Grade 6-8
Abby T
Regular Poetry
Bonfires at Midnight
In a field
Behind a house,
Perfect things happen.
Crackling wonders of hot
Wood and rocks,
Sweet chocolate
And vanilla honey
Mixed in to a
Gushy sugary
Treat.
The relaxing warmth
Of the fire,
Calms us.
A time for
Friends and family
To catch up,
Share stories
And laugh
Beautifully drawn. A pleasure to read.
Newfield MS
Grade 6-8
Eli F
Regular Poetry
Newfield MS
Grade 6-8
Pen-cil
It swerves and crisscrosses its path like a snake.
Touching the white landscape creating whatever it wants.
Able to make mistakes disappear.
Trailing a path of gray wherever it goes.
It comes in a variety of colors and shades
A shaft of grave golden wood.
The unbelievable pink on the top of the shaft used for re-corrections.
Able to make stories to entertain the human mind.
Almost every famous person has used this item of artistic awesomeness.
This is known as the pencil.
You include some wonderful images. Why the hyphen in the title?
Lena W
Regular Poetry
Poppy-My Dog
Small little Poppy
With ears so floppy
Fur, curly and white
Personality is bright
Wet little nose
Claws on your toes
Pink on your ears
Licking up tears
Whimpering for food
When your bones are all chewed
Small, but rough
Little, but tough
Even when you’re bad
I can’t stay mad
Even when you beg or scratch at my leg
I LOVE YOU
Your love for your animal is very endearing. Keep writing!
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
MacKenzie K
Regular Poetry
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
Basketball
Basketball, Basketball, Basketball
It’s the sport with a bouncing ball.
Trying to think what the next move will be,
Dribble, Dribble, Dribble, the basketball
pass, pass, pass, to the next player
Shout, Shout, Shout, to the basket
It’s the winning shot
The crowd gets up
And goes wild!
I did it, I did it, I won the game.
Basketball, Basketball, Basketball,
the sport with the bouncing ball.
Great use of repetition to mimic the bouncing ball. It was fun to read.
Lincoln MN
Regular Poetry
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Chain of All Chains
In the year of 1778 near the Hudson River, a chain was born.
But it was not a simple chain, it was the chain of all chains.
For days a blacksmith hammered away loudly,
sweating like a horse,
until finally he finished, the chain of all chains.
Wagons then carried the links of the chain.
Horses strained under the weight of the chain.
So above the sloshing river, a beacon
of hope was the chain of all chains.
When the chain of all chains was put in its place,
word spread like wildfire of this mighty chain.
This mighty chain, the chain of all chains.
The British did not try to challenge this unstoppable chain.
They did not try to go up the Hudson, for they knew as all knew,
that no one could conquer the chain of all chains.
Nice use of the phrase "the chain of all chains". Keep writing!
Edward K
Regular Poetry
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
I Am From
I am from the Red Sox,
From the New England Patriots,
From the Bruins in the chilly air.
I am from the ocean from the clams and oysters slathered with hot butter,
From soft lobster meat,
From the tails and the claws.
I am from the spruce bows bent into snowshoes
From the fluffy snow full of surprises,
From the hot chocolate with marshmallows
I am from the martens , fishers and minks,
From the woods laden with pine needles.
From the trees whistling in the wind.
I am from the waves crashing on the coarse beaches,
From the beaches full of clamshells,
From the seals barking at us to get out of the way
I am from the pastries
From the smell of cooling cookies.
From the melted chocolate chips
I am from Boston.
You drew a wonderful picture of the city complete with sounds and smells. Keep writing!
Daniel X
Regular Poetry
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Martin Luther King Poem
There is only one force
Of such unimaginable might,
It conquers your enemies without bloodshed or tears,
Transforms night into day
It could cleanse the world of all hatred,
Bias, murderous instinct,
Such is the power of this force.
It transforms people with all these faults,
Turns them inside out
It makes them wipe the slate clean, start fresh once more
Such is the power of this force.
It makes the world a better place,
Makes everyone feel wanted,
No matter what skin, features, and other stuff
That any person might have.
This force,
This powerful force,
Has a name.
We call it love.
Your last line is very powerful. This is an inspirational poem.
Anna K
Regular Poetry
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
The Bright Red Balloon
Tears fill the little girl’s eyes,
“come back” she cries.
It floats higher and higher,
never looking back down.
Not looking back on its past,
only looking forward at its future.
“no” the girl shouts,
the balloon doesn’t think of falling,
nothing can bring it down.
Higher and higher it goes,
not bothering to look down,
it keeps going.
Bound to get lost in the stratosphere.
The girl looks at her hands,
waiting for the balloon to return to them.
It no longer has any cares in the world,
up and up it goes.
Destined to be among the stars.
Forgetting to remember what it was once like,
only to float onward to the future.
The last two lines are particularly good. Keep writing!
Erin H
Regular Poetry
Spring
I watch the dark clouds blow away
To reveal blue, no longer gray
Grass peaks through snow more everyday
I watch as winter melts away.
The
The
The
The
sun comes out, no longer shy
light is born, the darkness dies
air is warm, blue is the sky
coat comes off, I smile and sigh.
The flowers sprout, and bloom, and grow
A fawn is with the mother doe
I hear birds chirp, the call of crow
Spring, beautiful spring, I love you so.
Thanks for allowing spring to come to Ithaca.
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Leyla D
Regular Poetry
Blissful
Jumping over the traveling water
Alluring
Diving into a towering wave of unknown
Open your eyes
The sea salt burns
Deep exhale releasing millions of bubbles
The sun shines through the sea down on me
The current pushes you back and forth
Trying to keep your stance on the sand
But it’s impossible
Letting go
Having the sea take over your body
Plunging for air
Sun shines into my eyes
Feet on the ground
Blissful
This does sound blissful. You allow the reader to have a day at the beach.
LACS
Grade 6-8
Rory S
Regular Poetry
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Borne Away
Your cries break the silence like metal grinding against metal,
The midwife holds you up for all to see,
Your parents’ faces portraying their glee,
And you’re borne away to your home,
Borne away.
Then you left home to follow your dreams,
And it seems that you are content,
You experience love, and loss,
Borne away by your dreams,
Borne away from home,
Borne away.
Your face stricken with grief,
As you realize your mothers asleep, forever,
Borne away from you, forever,
Borne away.
Your children leave home,
To follow their dreams,
To experience love, and loss,
Borne away from you,
Borne away by dreams,
Borne away.
And now I bear you away,
To greet your mother, your father
Borne away from your children, your wife,
Come join me,
Your cloaked friend, welcome me,
The black, soothing curtain of death is peaceful, welcome me,
Your cloaked friend,
Your eternal friend,
Borne away.
Nice play on the words born and bourne. Keep writing!
Katrina T
Regular Poetry
Moonlight's Path
Moonlight
Gently creeping through clouds
Quietly seeping through tree leaves
Tickling the grass
With it’s small white feelers
Moonlight
Crawling through my window
Slipping through my blinds
Resting on my pillow,
With a cool white hand
Moonlight
Slowly receding from my room,
Climbing back to the sky
The sun reaches out
It’s fiery tendrils scraping the ground
A new day has begun
Great imagery! Keep writing.
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Lizzy D
Regular Poetry
Girl in Front
Every morning
I lunge onto the bus
sit in the second seat
on the right.
I sit and listen
to what they say.
They ask each other
Who’s that girl in front?
That stupid blond?
I heard she’s pretty smart.
Who’s that weird dressed girl
the one who sits up front?
I never saw her in the hall.
It’s like she barley even exists.
Who’s that girl up front?
that blond way up there?
I heard she kind of nice.
I hear many laughs.
Who’s that girl up front
in the second seat on the right?
The one with the broken glasses?
She must be poorer than a rat.
I heard she’s kind of nice
Yeah, nice and fat.
Stop picking on her.
What, do you like her?
NO! he cried.
They stopped picking on me
the girl in front
and started to sing
you like the girl in front
the blond with broken glasses.
You like a poor girl.
Let them off said the radio.
The kids walk past
Me, the girl in front
and all of them gave me
a mean smirk and
walk off
all but the boy who stood up.
He paused at my seat to let
Me, the girl in front out.
The last line is a surprise. Nice work!
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Adele F
Regular Poetry
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Fall
The crisp, autumn hands of the tree
Wave good-bye to the humble hands of summer
She watches herself change clothes from summer green
To an elegant scarlet dress
faster than she had hoped
She peers at the children as they hop on the bus
When the bus sped away, its perfume draped over her
Like silk wrap for a chilly night
She sighed and remembered the long days when the children played
Climbing her branches and played explorer
Those were the days when cares were risked away
By the wind and bare feet pounded the soft grass
Those days are over
The line imagery of hands waving and dresses changing is wonderful. There is a sadneess in this
poem that is very appealing.
Jennica J
Regular Poetry
Steps
Make your own path
Of foot steps
Don’t fallow other people’s
Don’t be fake
Be real
Be amazing
Make yourself important
To others
Always believe your self
Don’t fail your dreams follow them
Make it come true
So be real
Not fake
These are words to live by. Keep writing!
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Harman B
Regular Poetry
Martin Luther King Jr. Poem
Martin Luther King Jr. was born into the life of segregation,
Which just meant separation,
Martin Luther King Jr. knew he had to change this,
With love and patience,
Working hard through the abuse,
Martin Luther King Jr. did what he did without a single excuse,
“I Have A Dream” that’s what he said,
A dream not from lying in bed,
A dream for the future of us all,
Without Martin Luther King Jr. we would be in segregation,
Which just means separation.
The line "A dream not from lying in bed" is very powerful. Nice work.
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Kylie M
Regular Poetry
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Pollution
The hard packed wet sand beneath my feet,
watching the waves rise up from the sandy bottom in triumph.
Only to fall once again, to the depths of the ocean.
Stepping forward into the foam.
the cold of the water shocking.
Rising and falling never an end to the work.
Looking closer you can see,
the plastic bags,
the metal cans,
the plastic bottles.
Like battle scars.
This starts off as a thing of beauty and ends as a thing of ugliness. Nice work.
Jordon J
Regular Poetry
Spring Time
Clouds in the sky
Bird’s wings fly
The trees sway
The butterflies play
Flowers bud
The cricks flood
Green leaves sprout
Bees all about
It is clear
That Spring is here
You convey the essence of springtime. Keep writing!
Newfield MS
Grade 6-8
Max M
First Place
Structured Poetry
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Snow Day
Supposed to snow a bunch tonight,
Enough to close the schools.
Oh snow, will you come down to me?
To not would be uncool.
Oh Snow Day Gods, please take our gifts,
Of spoon and fork and ice.
To grant us this small miracle,
Would be so very nice.
Thanks for our great day today.
Of play and friends and fun.
We all went sledding down the hills,
Until the day was done.
Your poem made me smile. The sentiments of children and teachers as well, snow days are
great breaks.
Ryan S
Second Place
Structured Poetry
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
Trampoline
Tumbling through the air
Ready to become
Air born at any
Moment, feeling the springs
Push you up
Over and around again and again
Light as a feather
Instantly rebounding,
Naturally full of
Energy
This really expresses the feeling of jumping on a trampoline, action, descriptions that form
images for the reader.
Katie H
Third Place
Structured Poetry
Three Limericks: Play on Words
The Fisher Named Fischer
A quite lively young fisher named Fischer,
Fished for fish from the edge of a fissure.
A big fish with a grin,
Pulled the fisherman in,
Now they’re fishing the fissure for Fischer.
The Canny Canner
A good canner exceedingly canny,
One bright morning remarked to his granny,
“A canner can can
Whatever he can,
But a canner can’t can a can, can he?”
Which Witch is Which?
There once was a lively young witch
Who decided to pull a switch.
Out popped an exact clone,
With a face like her own,
Now they can’t tell which witch is which.
Delightful use of words, great fun to read.
Newfield MS
Grade 6-8
Madeline C
Structured Poetry
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Pemaquid
At last the time has come to say good-bye
I must pack up my clothes and games and books
The car is stuffed with dogs and bags too high
Each dish is washed and all the rugs are shook.
A salty breeze hums through the pines above
And flips the lily pads as if to wave
A whispered farewell from the lake I love.
The pines’ soft needles that I cannot save.
Long days of sunny swimming spent so fun,
At night our campfires have their sparks take flight.
I’ll miss the sailing boats and the card games won
The humming birds and turtles out of sight.
I smile because I’ll come again next year
My special lake – it will always be here.
Sorrowful farewell to a favorite space. Words create lovely images of the time spent in
this space.
Logan S
Structured Poetry
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
European Eel
Extra slim
Unable to live after egg-laying
Really slimy
Oblong creatures of the Sargasso Sea
Provoked easily
European eel
Anguillidae classification
Non-electrical
Elongated shape
Extremely slippery
Large females small males
Excellent description of the physical characteristics of the European eel. Clever word choices.
Connor A
Structured Poetry
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
School to Camping
School
Routine, challenging
Working, progressing, growing
Essays, classes, tents, campfire
Fishing, biking, sleeping
Exciting, enjoyable
Camping
Smooth transition from school to camping. Expresses a positive attitude toward both activities.
Liam H
Structured Poetry
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
My Favorite Seasons
Spring is
Peaceful, ears
Ringing with the sound of songbirds.
Interesting nights as the crickets chirp their little tune, but
Nothing beats the sound of raindrops, as you have a
Good night’s sleep.
Summer is contentment
Under the bright full moon,
Meanwhile, the
Mid summer’s day is
Everlasting fun, as I
Run across the golden fields.
Vivid images, precise words to express feelings!
Sean M
Structured Poetry
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
Futbol
Flying tackle, and he’s off!
Under this roof, there are only two goals
Tied at 1-1
Both teams want the Cup
Over to Dempsey, shoots! Save! Donovan,the rebound goal!
Louder than ever here in Rustenburg, South Africa!
Enthusiasm, excitement and energy in so few words, well done.
Sahana S
Structured Poetry
LACS
Grade 6-8
Feelings
Melancholy is a Sunday afternoon
Eating away at laughter and fun,
Leaving behind gaping holes, like a worm in
An apple, like
Neptune deep in his watery
Cave-I
Hope to rid of this
Oh so gloomy feeling, this
Long-lasting sadness, that has
Yet to go away.
Jubilance is joy, an
Utterly good feeling,
Bursting from
Inside-Happiness is
Loving every moment, of every day
And havingNot a care in the world,
Tickled pink, as my grandmother would say.
Blinded by resentment
I simmer in my
Thoughts of revenge
Traitor-this is the
End of you and me, I am
Rage.
Strong feelings, dramatically expressed!
Tahlya C
Structured Poetry
My Sweetie Pie
She brightens the night with eyes filled with light
A colorless world, a rainbow revealed
When she dances a glowing dove takes flight
In a dark oyster, a pearl is concealed
The artist’s blank canvas unsmudged and clear
A perfect snowfall, no footprints to find
With her angelic laughter hope is near
Loving and lovely, to hate she is blind
Dancing sweetly in her serenity
Gently tiptoeing beyond her brief past
I guess her earliest identity
In my heart, our love will forever last
I see the future, the world in her eyes
My sister Daria, my Sweetie Pie
What a tribute to a young sister. Lovely images.
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Lucus H
Structured Poetry
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
Thunderstorm
Raindrops fall softly
Thunder rumbles in the distance
Lightning strikes close by
Sounds like a thunderstorm to me. Spare, but effective word choices!
Cheli A
Structured Poetry
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
Love
Love
cheers
you up
when you
are feeling
sad. Love is
what keeps us
happy when we
need to be happy. Love is in everyone.
Love is what tells us to try again when
we feel like giving up.Love is what we
need to have to survive every single
second of our lives. Love is what
you give and get to make your
life better. Love is what you
should think of when you
are crying and no one’s
around to comfort
you. Love is a
wonderful
thing to
have
It must be quite challenging to make the heart shape work. Shape and topic work nicely.
Eleanor P
First Place
Book Review
DeWitt MS
Grade 6-8
Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City
Anaka lives a somewhat quiet life, with her brilliant parents and extensive athome library, until she meets Kiki Strike. The Pale Mysterious girl and her band
of strange yet ingenious friends lead Anaka through the darkest places of New
York City, as they discover the secrets of the Shadow city. The Shadow City is a
passageway of rooms and tunnels that was used years ago for criminals to
smuggle goods into NYC. It’s up to Kiki Strike, Anaka and their friends to stop
the outlaws of NYC and discover a few terrible secrets along the way.
Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City, By Kirsten Miller is a really great story.
Although a lot of amazing, seemingly unreal things happen, it still seems
realistic. I never wanted to put it down because it’s so suspenseful and
mysterious. I would recommend this book to someone who likes realistic fiction
with a bit of an adventure/mystery twist to it. You should also read this book if
you like strong female protagonists. If I were to change this book, I would make
it so Anaka didn’t have to lie to her parents so much. They don’t know that her
late night wanderings are of extreme importance, because she’s not allowed to
tell them what she’s doing. She gets grounded a lot and has to limit her secretive
and highly dangerous exploring. Of course this doesn’t stop her from sneaking
out, which only adds to the excitement of the book.
If you haven’t already read this book, you should drop everything and run to
your nearest library or book store to get it. Both this book and its sequel, Kiki
Strike: The Empress’s Tomb were fantastic stories, and you’re definitely missing
out if you don’t read them.
You have written an outstanding book review, one which entices the reader but does not reveal
the whole story. Consider submitting this to your school newspaper or even to Kirsten Miller
herself. I believe you have a great career ahead of you!
Danny H
Second Place
Book Review
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
The 13th Reality: The Hunt for Dark Infinity
This book is a very good book, but there are some things you need to know
before you read it. This book can be very confusing if you haven’t read the first
book The 13th Reality: the journal of curious letters. This series is all about made
up and real science. Ok back to the story, this story is about three kids named
Tick, Sophie, and Paul. All of these kids were chosen to be a part of a group of
“Hero’s” or a group of really smart people who know a lot about science in
another dimension called “Realities”(or A separate and complete version of the
world, there are in infinite number of Realities but the strongest one is Reality
prime[which is really earth]). This group is called the Realitants. They go on
missions to stop the evil beings who want to destroy the realities. So in the
beginning of the story Tick, Sophie, and Paul are all at tick’s house. They have
been there for the whole summer because Sophie made a bet with Tick and who
ever won the bet got to stay at the other person’s house for the whole summer,
and she won. They also allowed Paul join them. They are all best friends and
have been through life and death situations together. Also something you may
want to know is that all the people in Reality Prime there is an alternate version
of themselves
somewhere in one of the realities( Alternates are two
people[one in one of the realities and one in Reality Prime] who look exactly
alike but have opposite personalities) . The mystery starts out with Ticks favorite
teacher Mr.Chu who’s alternate is the most evil man in all the realities. Mr.Chu
was mugged by the evil man’s Hench man and brought to his alternate but they
did not meet. The evil man pretended to be the nice teacher and tricked Tick and
his friends that he was tortured and that he got away, and he put an illegal
device on their arm that only allowed him to wink them to different realities. (Oh
I knew I forgot something, I forgot to tell you about Winking. Winking is the act
of travelling between or within Realities) did the kids get winked? Where did they
go? What happens next? Where can I get a sandwich? All these questions can be
answered by reading this book. Ok maybe not the sandwich one, I’m just
hungry. I suggest this book to all kids who love science.
Your enthusiasm and sense of humor are apparent in this book review. Keep reading and writing.
Xavier L
Third Place
Book Review
Lansing MS
Grade 6-8
Dragon Heir
This book is about Jason who is a character who is there throughout
almost the entire series and it’s also about Madison who was in the series just as
long as Jason. Jason finds a very powerful sefa that could destroy all of the weirs
or magical community. He must decide between helping his friends or trying to
help himself. He then finds out that his best friend Seph is taking a wizard drug
called Mind-Burner, which if he keeps taking it then he will go insane, to keep
everyone safe. Then there was a wizard war that almost destroyed the sanctuary
in Trinity.
I think that this was a very well written book, and I think that the only
thing that could have been better is if there was more action that involved Seph
or Jack. Other than this I think this is a very well written book.
I think that the moral of this story is to never give up and focus on who
you care about more than about yourself. I think this because Jason and
Madison think about how to help other people rather than themselves.
You did a great job with offering suggestions to the author and revealing the moral to the story.
You could use a little more detail on the story itself.
Chloe A
Book Review
Newfield MS
Grade 6-8
Book Review of Flatfoot Fox and the Case of the Missing Eye
book I reviewed was Flatfoot Fox and the Case of the Missing Eye, by Eth
Clifford. The main characters are the Fat Cat, FlatFoot Fox, Secretary Bird, Really
Ridiculous Rabbit, Picky Pig, the Snake in the Grass, and Greedy Goat. The
setting was outside and in the office. The main problem is that the Fat Cat lost
his eye. The Fat Cats eye got lost at a party. The Fat Cat had to take his glass
eye out of his head because he had to sing and he sings out loud. He put it in his
eye cup. The Fat Cat had to put it back in his head so he could see. He went to
his table and looked for his eye and he saw that it was missing. So, he went to
Flatfoot Fox for help. The problem was solved by the Flatfoot Fox. He went to
five people and the last one was the one that took the glass eye. The Snake in
the Grass was lying to Flatfoot Fox. The Snake in the Grass stole the glass
because he could not see behind him. I recommend this story because this book
is funny and it’s a good book. The book was funny because the Fat Cat had a
glass eye. You can learn that you should not lie or take things from people.
There is a good moral to the story. I am glad that you included that in your last line.
Brianna S
First Place
Photo Reflection
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
The True Meaning of Friendship
What does friendship mean to you? What is a true friend? A true friend will never
leave you. They will always believe in you. My true friends are very truthful to me.
A friend will not always need an explanation, for they should always understand.
Next, your friend should always stay with you even if everyone has turned their
backs on you. Friendship isn’t about being inseparable; it’s about being separated
and having nothing changed. In conclusion, your best and true friends should be
there for you to pick you up when you’re down. My photograph represents a
special friendship.
Words and image work beautifully together to express an important life experience--one more
people should have! Composition of both photo and reflection show very good skill.
Hannah P
Second Place
Photo Reflection
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
New York City
Have you ever been to New York City? If you have, you know how amazing it is.
New York City has so many ways to advertise, and several of those ways include
using technology. What is happening in the world relates to my photograph of
New York City, because it is a representation of what is going on in the world.
The photo shows that in many ways, we are constantly creating new technology.
Therefore, New York City shows that with all of the great technology we have
today, there is promise that we will surely have a lot more in the future.
This vivid photo expresses an important aspect of one of our most significant American cities.
The theme of the reflection matches it well.
Ana G
Third Place
Photo Reflection
Bike
Three wheels go, round and round.
I sit on my seat and pedal, pedal, pedal.
My purple bike goes fast fast fast.
The inner-monologue poem adds very appealing depth to the bright, lively photo.
Boyton MS
Grade 6-8
Dylan C
Photo Reflection
Dryden MS
Grade 6-8
My Quad
This quad relates to me because in the summer it is how I spend most of my
free time: racing. My friends and I try to get together a couple of times a week
and race each other. We have a couple of tracks behind my house and on my
uncle’s land. This picture shows me racing on my motocross track.
This action photo provides the reader with the excitement and challenge that quad riders must
feel when they ride. Keep writing and doing your photography!
Laura W
Photo Reflection
South Seneca MS
Grade 6-8
The Sunset
The sky gets dark at night. The lake gets calm. That’s when the sunset comes
out. Is it red? Is it orange? Is it blue? I think it’s all the wonderful colors filling
the sky. That’s when the sky is clear. There are maybe a few clouds, but it’s
beautiful. The rest of the world's shadows. The dock’s shadow is in the lake. The
trees are also in the lake from the shadow. I know I love the sunset, do you? Go
spend your night staring at the sky and after the sunset the stars come out.
The photo gives the reader a chance to remember special moments about being near a lake or
just enjoying nature. Writing questions gives a chance for the reader to be part of the reflection.
Nice Job!
Complete List of Participants
School
Student
Category
Teacher
LACS
Aldridge, Mercedes
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Austern-Aceto, Cody
Story
Raimon, Jon
Belle, Emily
Essay
Raimon, Jon
Berger, Lachlan
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Coate, Amanda
Regular Poetry
Sperry, Chris
Dietrich, Leyla
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Eastwater, Ben
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Fardaoussi, Meriem
Regular Poetry
Raimon, Jon
Feldshuh, Hannah
Story
Raimon, Jon
Gallegos, Anna
Structured Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Grenier, Etienne
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Jackson, Anbraya
Structured Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Lambert, Ben
Regular Poetry
Raimon, Jon
Loveless, Kyeriel
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Merrick, Francesca
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Millar, Alta
Newhart, Taniesha
Regular Poetry
Structured Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Bell, Danielle
Pinnisi, Rose
Story
Raimon, Jon
Potter, Sophie
Story
Raimon, Jon
Prescott, Olajuwon
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Quinn Gray, Jaskin
Structured Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Roman, Rachael
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Simonetti, Sahana
Structured Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Tregaskis, David
Regular Poetry
Raimon, Jon
Umrigar, Kyra
Structured Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Vanek-Johnson, Mira
Wesley, Noa
Structured Poetry
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
Raimon, Jon
Wolfe, Laurel
Story
Sperry, Chris
Wooster, Adrienne
Regular Poetry
Bell, Danielle
BOCES-Smith
Myers, Mara Beth
Story
Berzolla, Sharon
Belle Sherman ES
Brady-McCullough, Ana Luisa
Story
Van Slyke, William
Freitag, Megan
Story
Bowman, Anastasia
Kirshner, Ari
Story
Jonathan, Fields
Parmenter, Brendan
Regular Poetry
Van Slyke, William
Pereboom, Marilyn
Story
Van Slyke, William
Raimon, Rohannah
Avery, Jake
Story
Story
Jonathan, Fields
Evans, Valerie
Barrett, Rebekah
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Bedore, James
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Benipal, Harman
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Blake, Kearra
Structured Poetry
Evans, Valerie
brown, sarah
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Buckler, Edward
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Champion, Tahlya
Structured Poetry
Berman, Paula
Cornell, Tyler
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Crooker, Madeline
Structured Poetry
Berman, Paula
Crossen, Kimberly
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Cruz, Jaden
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Cusack Miller, Rowan
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
DAvis, Lia
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Deshpande, Saily
Essay
Berman, Paula
dibble, mariah
Story
Evans, Valerie
Ellis, Kyle
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Fearon, Declan
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Ferdinando, Eliza
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Fink, Max
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Boynton MS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Boynton MS
Flecker, Alder
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Garcia, Danny
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Goloboradko, Ana
Photo Reflection
Evans, Valerie
Gomes Selman, Jonathan
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
Gordon, Jonathain
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
Greenberg, Aaron
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Grossman, Inbal
Regular Poetry
Amici, Gina
Hamilton, Alexander
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Hilgartner, Erin
Regular Poetry
Amici, Gina
Hill-James, Coco
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Hoaglin, Leigha
Story
Evans, Valerie
Iacovelli, Julian
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Johanson, Murielle
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Jolles, Jennica
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Katz, Abby
Story
Evans, Valerie
Ke, Alison
Kiefer, Edward H.
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Evans, Valerie
Kingsley, Quinn
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Kuplen, Jairus
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
LaBar, Hailey
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Lego, Kai
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Levine, Declan
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Loehr, Kieran
Structured Poetry
Berman, Paula
Luna, Julia
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Matos, Kayla
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
McAllister, Duncan
Meng, Shyee
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Evans, Valerie
Merritt, Taylor
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Miettunen, Juliette
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
miller, Alyssa
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Mohlke, Elsa
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Mollenkamp, Max
Structured Poetry
Berman, Paula
Moore, Jason
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Moravek, Micaela
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Moreland, Olivia
Story
Evans, Valerie
Mosher, Krystofer
Oshoe, Seldoen
Photo Reflection
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Evans, Valerie
Park, James
Story
Evans, Valerie
Patz, Lara
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
Payne, Katlyn
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
pollock, chester
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Randl, Lucy
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Rateb, Alexander
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Reynolds, Jay
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
Ruebel, Lauren
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Samuels, Ruth
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Schickel, Francis
Story
Amici, Gina
Servetto, Alejandro
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
Simpson, Rory
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
slattery, drew
Story
Evans, Valerie
Sofko-Hussey, Hannah
Regular Poetry
Berman, Paula
Sorensen, Noah
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Spears, Lonnie
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Stilwell, Renee
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Stover, Andrew
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Stromswold, Sandra
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Boynton MS
Tau, Jediah
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Tilton, Emily
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Twardokus, Katrina
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Uhl, Garrett
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Van Wijk, David
Story
Evans, Valerie
Waisbrot, Bram
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Walker, Amalia
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
warren, daeveon
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Weiss, Lena
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Wiesner, Lennard
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Wilkie-Tomasik, Ian
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Williams, Charlotte
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Williams-Ceci, Sterling
Story
Amici, Gina
Witchey, Alyssa
Story
Evans, Valerie
Witchey, Joshua
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Wray, Chloe
Xu, Daniel
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Evans, Valerie
Evans, Valerie
Zusman, Cody
Story
Evans, Valerie
Ackley, Rylie
Structured Poetry
Stephens, Christine
Fatcheric, Delaney
Structured Poetry
Stephens, Christine
Hills, Kaleigh
Structured Poetry
Stephens, Christine
Pritchard, Alexis
Structured Poetry
Stephens, Christine
Quick, Abbey
Structured Poetry
Stephens, Christine
Candor MS-HS
Larsen, Kethry
Regular Poetry
Gollmer, Merideth
Caroline ES
Korb, Maren
Story
Bong, Whitney
Cayuga Heights ES
Anderson, Nicholas
Andolina, Callie
Essay
Story
Patterson, Connie
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Archung, Molly
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Arroyo, Ana Maria
Regular Poetry
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Avery, Brett
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Baker, Reed
Book Review
Sweeney, Erin
Barnett-Young, Rosie
Regular Poetry
Sweeney, Erin
Barrett, Darius
Essay
Merola, Pam
Bothner, Mari
Essay
Patterson, Connie
Bowman, George C.
Story
Patterson, Connie
Brooks, Christian
Brutnell, Joey
Story
Structured Poetry
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Sweeney, Erin
Carver, Ben
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Cerione, Chloe
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Cramer, Chloe
Story
Patterson, Connie
Cramer, Justin
Essay
Patterson, Connie
Cruz, Kaya
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Danforth, Isabelle
Story
Patterson, Connie
Decatur, Cid
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Duhan, Asha
Story
Merola, Pam
Duthie, Jack
Structured Poetry
Merola, Pam
Eginton, Rachel
Story
Sweeney, Erin
Eklund, Silja
Story
Patterson, Connie
Ellis, Benjamin
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Enciso Oddy, Andres*
Story
Merola, Pam
Estill, Peter
Book Review
Sweeney, Erin
Frisbie, Kathryn
Story
Sweeney, Erin
Gal, Charles
Regular Poetry
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Ginsparg, Miryam
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Greenberg, Jack
Regular Poetry
Sweeney, Erin
Han, Hannah
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Candor ES
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Cayuga Heights ES
Hang, Curtis
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Hartshorne, Corinne
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Hay, Andrew
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Henry, Kalena
Essay
Patterson, Connie
Herman, Avi
Story
Merola, Pam
Herman, Hava
Story
Patterson, Connie
Inman, Taylor
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Irvin-Sellers, Keyonna
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Kiefer, Aurora
Story
Merola, Pam
Kiely, Christopher
Book Review
Sweeney, Erin
Lacovara, Ben
Regular Poetry
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Lee, Nesiah
Structured Poetry
Merola, Pam
Lennox, Hannah*
Structured Poetry
Merola, Pam
Lin, Laura
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Loehr, Shannon
Story
Sweeney, Erin
Lower, Ron
Lu, Jordan
Story
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Patterson, Connie
Magnus, Erin
Story
Merola, Pam
McBean, Shyanne
Essay
Patterson, Connie
Milstein-Touesnard, Eva
Story
Patterson, Connie
Mitchell, Bryce
Essay
Sweeney, Erin
Monaghan, Luke
Book Review
Merola, Pam
Mueller, Alex
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Nunnink, Garrett
Story
Patterson, Connie
Oh, Hannah
Regular Poetry
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Onah, Ijeyi
Paz, Madison
Story
Structured Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Merola, Pam
Perry, Julian
Story
Merola, Pam
Pikulik, Nika
Essay
Sweeney, Erin
Qian, Sherrie
Story
Sweeney, Erin
Real, Yuuki
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Reddy, Sveta
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Ristow, Ivan
Photo Reflection
Merola, Pam
Russell-Cook, Alexander
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Shealy, Amber
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Sigel, Walter
Sine, David
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Sweeney, Erin
Sofko-Hussey, Katie
Structured Poetry
Merola, Pam
Stern, Margot
Story
Sweeney, Erin
Stetson, Dallas
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Stevens, Anna
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Stewart, Ariella
Story
Sweeney, Erin
Strogatz, Leah
Regular Poetry
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Stroock, Julius
Story
Merola, Pam
Supron, Nicholas
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Sweet, Arjun
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Sweet, Nisha
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Tan, Justin
Essay
Merola, Pam
Tapia, Brianna
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Thomas, Caelia
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Todt-Tutchener, Ewan
Story
Sweeney, Erin
Travis, Jack
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Uhlig, David
Structured Poetry
Merola, Pam
Uhlig, Thomas
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Vaysburd, Sean
Story
Patterson, Connie
Wang, Amy
Structured Poetry
Sweeney, Erin
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Cayuga Heights ES
Wang, Lucy
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Weil, Chris
Book Review
Patterson, Connie
Whittaker, Stella
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Williams, Lucy
Regular Poetry
Merola, Pam
Williams, Mohammed
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Young, Shawntee
Regular Poetry
Patterson, Connie
Zhao, Michael
Story
DeLucia, Kathyleen
Box, Rowan
Story
Rosoff, Robin
Cancalosi-Dean, Nicholas
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Chung, Lindsey
Story
Rosoff, Robin
de Roos, Alexandra*
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Denman, Ainslie
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Dodge, Ava
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Dracup, Dan
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Evanoski, Nick
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Falk, Gabe
Flanders, Wyatt
Story
Story
Rosoff, Robin
Rosoff, Robin
Garbo, Caitlin
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Garg, Akshath
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Halpert, Evvie
Regular Poetry
Oloughlin, Shannon
Hartman, Owen
Structured Poetry
Oloughlin, Shannon
Heath, Leah
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Hoyt, Stephanie
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Jessop, Cameron
Regular Poetry
Kaltman, Lee
Johnson, Tally
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Jordan, Meghan
Karastury, Clara
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Rosoff, Robin
Klabel, Kevin*
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Kucher, Anna
Regular Poetry
Oloughlin, Shannon
Lee, Jeong
Story
Bechert, Anne
Lee, Sangeun
Regular Poetry
Kaltman, Lee
Lee, Soyeong
Story
Oloughlin, Shannon
Li, Jenny
Essay
Rosoff, Robin
Liu, Jessie
Story
Rosoff, Robin
Loden, Tenzin
Essay
Kaltman, Lee
López-crane, Andrés*
Lopinto, Melissa
Story
Regular Poetry
Kaltman, Lee
Rosoff, Robin
Lu, James
Story
Rosoff, Robin
Malcolm, Aaron
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
martin, chris
Structured Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Marube, Claudia
Story
Rosoff, Robin
McCarthy, Liam*
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Milner, Justin
Essay
Rosoff, Robin
Mirin, Ally
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Pereboom, Eleanor
Book Review
Cernera, Kathryn
Place, Elliott
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Porter, Ashley*
Essay
Kaltman, Lee
Ribas, Pedro
Essay
Rosoff, Robin
Roth, Gerry*
Story
Rosoff, Robin
Rudan, James
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Saluja, Neha
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
schickel, avila
Structured Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Sinon, Jean
Story
Rosoff, Robin
Sowe, Samba
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Statema, Lucynda
Structured Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Stewart, Benjamin
Essay
Rosoff, Robin
Dewitt MS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Dewitt MS
Stewart, Dekhari
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Strupp-Levitsky, Sarah
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Thomas, Mrinal*
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Thu, Htet Pai
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Todhunter, Rebel
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Varner, Christian
Story
Kaltman, Lee
Yoon, John
Regular Poetry
Oloughlin, Shannon
Yuan, Jesse
Regular Poetry
Rosoff, Robin
Yuan, Lindsay
Story
Rosoff, Robin
Adams, Tyler
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Allen, Jalysha
Essay
White, Rebecca
Altier, Elizabeth
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Andrews, Wyatt
Essay
White, Rebecca
Ayers, Jasminne
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Bartholomew, Skyler
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Barwell, Iam
Bell, Hannah
Structured Poetry
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Czarnecki, Jill
Bellefleur, Coralyn
Essay
White, Rebecca
Bissen, Drew
Story
White, Rebecca
Booze, Amaris
Regular Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Borden, Conner
Story
White, Rebecca
Bordenet, KD
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Bucko, Sam
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Burvee, Kyle
Story
Czarnecki, Jill
Calale, Sterling
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Carpenter, Justin
Case, Logan
Photo Reflection
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
White, Rebecca
Cator-Szymanski, Veronica
Essay
White, Rebecca
Clark, Dylan
Photo Reflection
White, Rebecca
Conklin, Claire
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Cowen, Jacob
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Dapp, Isaiah
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Dapp, Makaila
Regular Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Darling, Kassie
Essay
White, Rebecca
Davies, Allen
Regular Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Delgado, Cassondra
Dellow, Domonick
Regular Poetry
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
White, Rebecca
Fowler, Terrapin
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Freedline, Huntyr
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Fuller, David
Essay
White, Rebecca
Gallagher, Gwendolyn
Essay
White, Rebecca
Gardner, Trevor
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Gazzo, Michael
Story
White, Rebecca
Gonzalez, Marcus
Story
White, Rebecca
Goodenough, Lindsey
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Gowe, Alyssa
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Greene, Heather
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Gulini, Aleaha
Regular Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Hackett, Megan
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Hall, Liam
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Hammond, Izac
Essay
White, Rebecca
Hammond, Marli
Regular Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Harvey, Kendra
Photo Reflection
White, Rebecca
Heliseva, Jacob
Story
White, Rebecca
Heliseva, Jonathon
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Hilker, Savanna
Story
White, Rebecca
Dryden MS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Dryden MS
Hines, Brittany
Regular Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Hollister, Nick
Essay
White, Rebecca
Hoyte, Makayla
Story
White, Rebecca
Iannello, Bryan
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Katsiroumba, Melina
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
LaPage, Alexis
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Lauretti, Angela
Story
White, Rebecca
Lawson, Keri
Essay
White, Rebecca
LeCuyer, Ryan
Essay
White, Rebecca
Little, Brandon
Essay
Czarnecki, Jill
Lundy, Robert
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Marks, Trevor
Essay
White, Rebecca
Marsh, Gavin
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Mcdaniel, Sean
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Merrill, Billy
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Merrill, Brianna
Montesano, Mark
Story
Essay
White, Rebecca
White, Rebecca
Moran, Tevin
Essay
White, Rebecca
Mungovan, Kaeleigh
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Myers, Krista
Story
White, Rebecca
Neira, Mallory
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Nelepovitz, Nicholas
Story
Czarnecki, Jill
Parker, Blaine
Structured Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Phillips, Jessica
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Piger, Hannah
Photo Reflection
White, Rebecca
Ponton, Skylar
Ramirez, Giovani
Regular Poetry
Essay
White, Rebecca
White, Rebecca
Russo, Leanne
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Schneider, Zoë
Essay
White, Rebecca
Shepard, Nathaniel
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Simpson, Logan
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Smiley, Charles
Essay
White, Rebecca
Sorensen, Robert
Essay
White, Rebecca
Soroka, Laura
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Spaulding, Damian
Essay
White, Rebecca
Spry, Valerie
Stafford, Brianna
Structured Poetry
Photo Reflection
Leonello, Carole
White, Rebecca
Stephenson, Darius
Story
White, Rebecca
Stone, Gabby
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Stuttle, Selena
Story
White, Rebecca
Tabone, Alexis
Essay
White, Rebecca
Thompson, Shaylynn
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Tordel, Marissa
Photo Reflection
White, Rebecca
Tuttle, Heidi
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Tyler, Devon
Story
White, Rebecca
Underwood, Donivan
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Vasquez, Jeidy
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Vestal, Harleigh
Regular Poetry
Czarnecki, Jill
Wandall, Morganne
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Welch, Wesley
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Whitaker, Alex
Essay
White, Rebecca
White, Rachel
Regular Poetry
White, Rebecca
Wienclawski, Justin
Essay
White, Rebecca
Wimer, Jonathan
Structured Poetry
White, Rebecca
Wojcinski, Jayson
Essay
White, Rebecca
Baker, Cheyenne
Story
Grace, Margaret
Dryden HS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Dryden HS
Beardslee, Retta
Story
Grace, Margaret
Ebel, Ashley
Story
Grace, Margaret
Forsythe, Anna
Story
Wincek, Tiffany
Goddard, Troy
Story
Grace, Margaret
Gray, Daniel
Story
Grace, Margaret
Jerram, Kile
Story
Grace, Margaret
Jewell, Shae
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Johnson, Katherine
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Keech, Jerrica
Story
Grace, Margaret
Kent, Cassandra
Essay
Grace, Margaret
Lewis, Ben
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Lutwak, Olivia
Regular Poetry
Russo, Joseph
Mitchell, Rachel
Regular Poetry
Wittman, Jean
Prentice, Julianne
Story
Wincek, Tiffany
Robinson, Kyle
Story
Grace, Margaret
Roman, Maks
Roupp, James
Essay
Story
Wincek, Tiffany
Grace, Margaret
Schmidt, Bridget
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Strickland, Kristy
Story
Grace, Margaret
Thompson, Brooke
Story
Grace, Margaret
Tifft, Chelsa
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Tifft, Samantha
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Waters, Madison
Essay
Wincek, Tiffany
Winder, Mikaela
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Young, Allie
Regular Poetry
Wincek, Tiffany
Alling, Trev
Kastenhuber, Lamont
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Blood, Judith
Blood, Judith
Lehto, Donavan
Structured Poetry
Blood, Judith
Lovelace, Ben
Regular Poetry
Blood, Judith
Groton ES
Perkins, Mackenzie
Regular Poetry
Greiger, Gail
Groton MS
Buckley, Tristen
Regular Poetry
Bassette, Barb
corcoran, mackenzie
Regular Poetry
Bassette, Barb
Edwards, Alan
Regular Poetry
Bassette, Barb
Hess, Anneleise
Essay
Bassette, Barb
Jansen, Courtney
Story
Bassette, Barb
Lumbert, Dillon
Perkins, Michael
Regular Poetry
Essay
Bassette, Barb
Lott, Steve
Groton HS
Perkins, MIkayla
Regular Poetry
Wiech, Paul
Ithaca High School
Albonesi, John
Essay
Lord, Alexis
Andolina, Christopher
Asklar, William
Augustine, Joey
Asklar, William
Basara, Aleksa
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Bevia, Lucia
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Birch, Christiana
Asklar, William
Blanton, Gabriella
Asklar, William
Bohn, Simon
Asklar, William
Boyce, Grace
Asklar, William
Browning, Karinna Mari
Asklar, William
Bunge, Avalon
Story
Gergely, Rebecca
Butler, Joseph
Essay
Lord, Alexis
Caveney, Brennen*
Asklar, William
Chamberlain, Adam
Essay
Lord, Alexis
Chang, Charles
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Chang, Christopher
Story
Tino, Lorraine
Chavez, Chelsea
Essay
Lord, Alexis
Chen, Jonlin
Story
McKown, Lauren
Enfield ES
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Ithaca High School
Chu, Gregory
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Ciaschi, John
Photo Reflection
Kennedy, Shirley
Clark, Alex Y.
Asklar, William
Colbert-Vrana, Nick
Asklar, William
Conlon, Emily
Story
Lord, Alexis
Crispell, Charles
Story
Gergely, Rebecca
Cristelli, Ashley
Asklar, William
Cummings-Grady, Mackenzie
Story
Creagan, Ross
Demarest, Mark
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
DeSouza, Savan
Asklar, William
DeVault-Feldman, Sara
Asklar, William
Duan, Huijun (Lucy)
Photo Reflection
Anderson, Richard
Eaglesham, James
Story
Lord, Alexis
Enslow, Reanna
Story
Lord, Alexis
Enzian, Audrey
Regular Poetry
Lord, Alexis
Enzian, Devon K.
Escobedo-Tejada, Sofia
Asklar, William
Asklar, William
Evans-Wilent, Autumn
Asklar, William
Everhart, Angela
Regular Poetry
Lord, Alexis
Gandy, Ashton
Regular Poetry
Lord, Alexis
Gearhart, Wilson
Asklar, William
George, Hannah
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Gil, Leslie
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Gneo, Vinnie
Found Poetry
Lord, Alexis
Gourley, Tyler*
Photo Reflection
Kennedy, Shirley
Gremaud, Marcel
Gunderson, Janina
Story
Regular Poetry
Gergely, Rebecca
McKown, Lauren
Hahn, Lucas
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Harned, Caleb
Regular Poetry
Kennedy, Shirley
Henderson, Tijah
Photo Reflection
Kennedy, Shirley
Hermanson, Max
Asklar, William
Johnson, September F.
Asklar, William
Joo, Ina V
Story
Creagan, Ross
Kan, Audrey*
Story
Kennedy, Shirley
Karpinski, Elizabeth
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Knapp, Sara
Koconis, Louis
Regular Poetry
Essay
Kennedy, Shirley
Lord, Alexis
Lai, Tracy
Story
Creagan, Ross
Lama Nelson, Dikshing
Asklar, William
Law, Tamar
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Lee, Eunju
Cover Art
Kennedy, Shirley
Lee, Haerin
Story
Creagan, Ross
Lee, Hyosang
Cover Art
Lord, Alexis
Levine, Rachel
Asklar, William
Li, Anying
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Liu, Makana
Asklar, William
Longmire, Darius
Found Poetry
Kennedy, Shirley
Mangino, Brendan
Story
Lord, Alexis
Martin, Kelly
Essay
Lord, Alexis
McAlear, Zoe
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
McGill, Matthew
Essay
Lord, Alexis
McLaughlin, Kai
Essay
Lord, Alexis
McLean, Krystal
Story
Kennedy, Shirley
Mitchell, Chyna
Asklar, William
Mollenkamp, Allison
Story
Creagan, Ross
Moore, Douglas
Essay
Lord, Alexis
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Ithaca High School
Morris-Knower, Neill
Tino, Lorraine
Mukherjee, Alok*
Story
Scholl, Kim
Nunn, Eisah
Regular Poetry
Kennedy, Shirley
Ober, Gwen
Story
Kennedy, Shirley
Oberly, Susannah
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
OConnor, Mackenzie
Story
Lord, Alexis
Paolangeli, Michael
Photo Reflection
Kennedy, Shirley
Paris, Rowan
Regular Poetry
Lord, Alexis
Park, Joon
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Pesaresi, Julie
Photo Reflection
Kennedy, Shirley
Pettaway, Brianna
Regular Poetry
Kennedy, Shirley
Pickett, Ariel
Regular Poetry
Scholl, Kim
Pollak, Rachel
Found Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Popescu, Medeea
Essay
Asklar, William
Pritz, Molly
Asklar, William
Raponi, Shelby
Raymond, Annelise
Regular Poetry
Asklar, William
Scholl, Kim
Raymond, Naomi
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Ridley, Julia
Essay
Lord, Alexis
Rieger, Erin
Essay
Anderson, Richard
Rigucci, Monica
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Roberts, Katie
Story
Byrne, Christopher
Robinson, Eli
Photo Reflection
Lord, Alexis
Rosenberg, Rachel
Asklar, William
Sahn, Emma
Asklar, William
Salerno, James
Sampson, Rachel
Found Poetry
Regular Poetry
Kennedy, Shirley
Creagan, Ross
Schickel, Siena
Story
McKown, Lauren
Schwab, Soren
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Seely, Claira
Asklar, William
Seung, Hee
Essay
Byrne, Christopher
Shalloway, Phoebe
Story
Byrne, Christopher
Sherwyn, Kayla
Asklar, William
Sinon, Jose
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Sochia, Eileen
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Soules, Sean
Stagliano, Alexandra
Regular Poetry
Story
Lord, Alexis
McKown, Lauren
Stanion, Rachel
Asklar, William
Telfair, Ja-Toni
Regular Poetry
Lord, Alexis
Tokman, Jeffrey
Structured Poetry
Lord, Alexis
VanValen, Ally
Essay
Creagan, Ross
Verma, Pooja
Regular Poetry
McKown, Lauren
Vohra, Mansi
Story
McKown, Lauren
Volkmann, Anton
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Waddell, Kendra
Structured Poetry
Kennedy, Shirley
Waisbrot, Jesse
Asklar, William
Walters, Drew
Story
McKown, Lauren
Wasyliw, Vika
Story
McKown, Lauren
Webbe, Kimberly
Regular Poetry
Kennedy, Shirley
Wells, Dylan
Regular Poetry
Lord, Alexis
Wexler, Michael
Asklar, William
Wicker, Elena
Regular Poetry
Creagan, Ross
Xu, Handan
Story
McKown, Lauren
Zheng, Tiffany
Essay
McKown, Lauren
Alexander, Patrick
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Armstrong, Elisa
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Lansing MS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Lansing MS
Avramis, Max
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Babuka, Katherine
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Bahar, Alex
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Bandler, Nathan*
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Barber-Spangenberg, Dylan
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Barden, Alec
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Barrett, Julia
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Barrett, Lizzy
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Bashta, Michael
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Carrican, Owen
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Chan, Dillon
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Charnley, Ben
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Clink, Kayla
Story
Howell, Todd
Craig, Jesse
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Czymmek, Maddy
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Davis, Brandon
Davis, Owen
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Howell, Todd
Debbie, John
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Dedrick, Zach
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Dennis, Josh
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Dong, Paul
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Dooley, Alana
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Downing, Morgan
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Drake, Lizzy
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Drake, Nina
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Drake, Samuel
Edwards, Austin
Story
Essay
Howell, Todd
Howell, Todd
Farr, Natalie
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Ferris, Adele
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Fraboni, Sydney
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Frankel, Shamali
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Gagnon, Charlotte
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Galvin, Thomas
Structured Poetry
Howell, Todd
Gill, Brittany
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Gupta, Elena
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Hegelein, Brianne
Horne, Danny
Regular Poetry
Book Review
Kropp, Stacie
Howell, Todd
Hulsebosch, Matt
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Jordan, Max
Essay
Howell, Todd
Kilts, Jason
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Kirkwood, Anna
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Koch, Joe
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Kuramoto, Andrew
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Lange, Jacob
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
LaPar, Brad
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
larkin, Justin
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
LaVigne, Xavier
Book Review
Howell, Todd
Lewis, William
Story
Howell, Todd
Losurdo, John
Essay
Howell, Todd
Marzolf, Lauren
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Matheny, Carlyn
Essay
Howell, Todd
McCarter-Nyberg, Lincoln
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
McCartney, Maura
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
McKenna, Kylie
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
McNeil, Codey
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
McTiernan, Peter
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Lansing MS
Merril, Tyler
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Mikula, Brandon*
Story
Howell, Todd
Mikula, Taylor
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Miller, Kathryn
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Miller, Margot
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Mix, Marissa
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Mix, Nicki
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Moore, Helen
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Moster, Craig
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Myers, Jack
Story
Howell, Todd
Osterman, Logan
Story
Howell, Todd
Overton, Jonathan
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Owens, Miranda
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Paige, Tony
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Pitti, Sophia
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Purdy, Alex
Quest, Dyaln
Essay
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Kropp, Stacie
Rasmussen, Julia
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Reynolds, Kurtis
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Richardson, Skye
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Robinson, Matt
Story
Howell, Todd
Robinson*, Chris
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Rooker, Kailee
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Ruperellia, Neal
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Sanito, Alyssa
Essay
Howell, Todd
Shaffer, Michelle
Shea, Rebekah
Regular Poetry
Structured Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Howell, Todd
Sherman, gabe
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Shrivastava, Meeta
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Stanhope, Bryce
Structured Poetry
Howell, Todd
Steffie, Margaret
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Sterle, Grant
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Swanson, Tori
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Topoleski, Mackenzie
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Towner, Cassidy
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Van, Amanda
Vanostrand, Nikki
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Kropp, Stacie
Wagner, Elizabeth
Regular Poetry
Howell, Todd
Ward, Alex*
Essay
Howell, Todd
Washburn, Allison
Essay
Howell, Todd
Williamson, Scott
Story
Howell, Todd
Zajac, Reilly
Regular Poetry
Kropp, Stacie
Avramis, Mia
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Brock, Rachel
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Candea, Austin
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Conte, Anna
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Corgel, Isabelle
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Craig, Javin
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Czymmek, Meredith
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
DeChellis, Seychelle
Found Poetry
Maxson, Shannon
Dooley, Ellen
Story
Martin, June
Koll, Will
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
LeMaro, Olivia
Story
Martin, June
Lindberg, Nina Luise
Photo Reflection
Huskie, Andrea
Marzolf, Ryan
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Mauser, Charles
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Lansing HS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Lansing HS
McKinney, Hannah
Essay
Martin, June
Miller, Tara
Found Poetry
Martin, June
Murray, Natia
Found Poetry
Maxson, Shannon
Myles, Asia
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Nelson, Clara
Story
Maxson, Shannon
O Brien, Natalie
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
O Neill, Connor
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Palladino, Jacob
Found Poetry
Maxson, Shannon
Parkes, Andy
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Parkins, Elena
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Peter, Cameron
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Phlegar, Lauren
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Presthus, Anders
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Pronti, Rachel
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Rasmussen, Emily
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Roe-Weaver, Sydney
Rourke, Ben
Structured Poetry
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Martin, June
Ruparelia, Allia
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Schafer, John
Essay
Martin, June
Seymour, Melissa
Found Poetry
Maxson, Shannon
Smith, Zach
Found Poetry
Maxson, Shannon
Sprole, Melissa
Structured Poetry
Martin, June
Stoyell, Dan
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Stoyell, James
Essay
Martin, June
Teitelbaum, Kaela
Regular Poetry
Martin, June
Yahn, Jason
Zaloj, Cristian
Found Poetry
Regular Poetry
Maxson, Shannon
Huskie, Andrea
Allen, Eric
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Artibee, Katelyn
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Austen, Devin
Essay
Grandner, Sarah
Austin, Chloe
Book Review
Grandner, Sarah
Banfield, Patrick
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Brown, Rob
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Burns, Christina
Photo Reflection
Grandner, Sarah
Byrd, Mariyah
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Castrechino, Chyanne
Chrisman, Brad
Regular Poetry
Story
Carlson, Jen
Edwards, Betsy
Christensen, Courtney
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Cirulli, Michelle
Story
Edwards, Betsy
dickens, dawn
Book Review
Grandner, Sarah
Fargnoli-Peterson, Marissa
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
Ferris, Mina
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Fine, Elena
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Ford, Eli
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
Hackett, Jaclyn
Regular Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Hartman, Jacob
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Heath, Katie
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Heffron, Thomas
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Hockenberry, Onnie
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Hollenbeck, Myranda
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
Jacobs, Jordan
Regular Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Keagle, Zachary
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
King, Marissa
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Lorer, Jennah
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
McKenna, Jordann
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Miller, Joel
Regular Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Newfield MS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Newfield MS
Miller-Foote, Jaedee
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Millier, Robert
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
Myers, Antoinette
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Rathbun, Tandom
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Riley, Nick
Story
Grandner, Sarah
Russell, Caitlin
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Rynone, Dante
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Sawyer, Jasmine
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Schloupt, Mariah
Story
Grandner, Sarah
Schumacher, Kathryn
Regular Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Sepos, Jessica
Book Review
Grandner, Sarah
Sexton, Sarah
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
Teeter, Abigail
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Teeter, Jessica
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
TenWolde, Zoe
Regular Poetry
Carlson, Jen
Troy, Abbi
Turner, Jarrod
Regular Poetry
Story
Carlson, Jen
Grandner, Sarah
Vanetten, Scott
Essay
Grandner, Sarah
Wells, Tyler
Regular Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Westberry, Mark
Structured Poetry
Edwards, Betsy
Willis, Dylan
Essay
Carlson, Jen
wood, serena
Story
Grandner, Sarah
Wood-Ellis, Abby
Essay
Edwards, Betsy
Wylie, Dylon
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Yaples, Rachel
Story
Edwards, Betsy
Abbey, Alicia
Achilles, Michelle
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Leyden, Jana
Adams, Cody
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Addy, Cal*
Story
Powell, Betty
Allen, Nick
Story
Powell, Betty
Amato, Gabrielle*
Story
Powell, Betty
Apgar, Steven
Story
Leyden, Jana
Babcock, Alyssa
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Bachelor, Kaysee
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Bamforth, Taylor
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Bastian, Sierra.n.
Beach, Mickey
Regular Poetry
Story
Powell, Betty
Pfarrer, Peter
Beeley, Geoffrey
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Berggren, Alec
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Berry, Samantha
Essay
Powell, Betty
Biskup, Dillon
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Blake, Marshall
Story
Powell, Betty
Blanford, Samantha
Structured Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Bleiler, Eric*
Essay
Powell, Betty
Bower, Samantha
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Brazo, Jacob
Story
Leyden, Jana
Brazo, Kaitlyn
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Breese, Jenna
Story
Leyden, Jana
Brown, Alyssa
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Byrd, Chris
Story
Leyden, Jana
Cain, Lauren
Structured Poetry
Powell, Betty
Carlisle, Kaitlyn
Story
Leyden, Jana
Carlyle, Skyler
Story
Leyden, Jana
Carmack, Shelby
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Carter, Zane
Essay
Powell, Betty
Caskey, Lindsey
Structured Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Newfield HS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Newfield HS
Casterline, Cameron
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
christensen, tora
Essay
Powell, Betty
Cirulli, David
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Clark, Naeem
Story
Leyden, Jana
Clay-Adams, Gaelyn
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Cooper, Alex
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Cooper, Skyler
Story
Powell, Betty
Crandall, Bridie
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Crawford, Mariah
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Davis, Marah
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Delfino, Thomas
Powell, Betty
Delgado, Illary
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Demming, Wesley
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Doane, Mark
Story
Leyden, Jana
Doolittle, Brandon
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Doolittle, Matt
Dufresne, Cheyanne
Essay
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Leyden, Jana
Dwyer, Zack
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Edwards, Terry
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
England, Jeffrey*
Story
Powell, Betty
Fargnoli-Peterson, Kelci
Story
Powell, Betty
Ferrara, Angelina
Story
Leyden, Jana
Ferrara, Francesco
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Fields, Dakota
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Friedlander, Adam
Structured Poetry
Powell, Betty
Fuller, Alex
Garcia, Myles
Story
Story
Leyden, Jana
Leyden, Jana
Gehring, Kagan
Story
Leyden, Jana
Gerow, Jackie
Story
Pfarrer, Peter
Goldrick, Kyle
Story
Leyden, Jana
Goodwin, Nicole
Story
Powell, Betty
Gradel, Desirae
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Gray, Jaocb
Story
Powell, Betty
Griggs, Sarah
Essay
Powell, Betty
Gunn, Shane
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Hamilton, Hunter
hamilton, Jessica
Story
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Powell, Betty
Harden, Tiffany
Story
Leyden, Jana
Hawke, Steven
Essay
Powell, Betty
Hayes, Corey
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Heffron, Shea
Story
Powell, Betty
henry, Cale
Cover Art
Powell, Betty
Hillick, Billy *
Essay
Powell, Betty
Hollander, Rachel
Story
Leyden, Jana
Holley, Alexa
Book Review
Pfarrer, Peter
Hoskins, Pete
Book Review
Pfarrer, Peter
Hulbert, Brianna
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Hulbert, Cierra
Story
Powell, Betty
Hunt, Marissa*
Story
Leyden, Jana
Hunter, Zachary
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Hurd, Brandon
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Johnson, Amber
Story
Powell, Betty
Johnston, Alex
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Kamin, Brandon
Story
Powell, Betty
Kopf, Sam
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Lampila, Anthony
Essay
Leyden, Jana
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Newfield HS
Lance, Emma
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Laughiln, Mitchell
Story
Powell, Betty
Mansfield, Mackenzie
Structured Poetry
Leyden, Jana
McCord, Dana
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
McCray, Robert
Essay
Powell, Betty
McEver, Ashley
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
McKee, Kellie
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Meeks, Daymone
Story
Leyden, Jana
Miller, Alex
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Miller, Colin
Story
Pfarrer, Peter
Moore, Adam
Story
Powell, Betty
Moore, Brandon
Story
Leyden, Jana
Moore, Morgan
Story
Pfarrer, Peter
Mott, Andrew
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Moynihan, Asja
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Murray, Alexis
Neff, Amber
Regular Poetry
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Pfarrer, Peter
Neild, Zachary
Story
Powell, Betty
Nembhard-Lackner, Mercedes
Story
Powell, Betty
Noteboom, Autumn
Essay
Pfarrer, Peter
Nunez, Niko
Essay
Powell, Betty
Nye-Smith, Kyle
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
OMeehan, Joellen
Story
Leyden, Jana
ORourke, Kris
Story
Powell, Betty
Pakkala, Leif
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Pangburn, Bryan
Peabody, Dylan
Story
Essay
Powell, Betty
Leyden, Jana
Peabody, Garrett
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Petrosky, David
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
pollio, marissa
Story
Powell, Betty
Porter, Samantha
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Porter, Sean*
Essay
Powell, Betty
Potter, Brittany
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Redman, Katie
Book Review
Powell, Betty
Robbins, Dylan
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Rouleau, Mara
Rumsey, Dakota
Regular Poetry
Essay
Powell, Betty
Leyden, Jana
Ruocco, Ravin
Story
Powell, Betty
Russell, Christopher
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Russell, Cortney
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Ryan, Phillip
Story
Pfarrer, Peter
Sanseverino, Christina
Structured Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Sawyer, Sebastian
Story
Powell, Betty
Schumacher, Lauren
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Sears, Kodie
Book Review
Pfarrer, Peter
Seely, Kayla
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Shipos, Jared
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Sims, Angela
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Small, Nicole
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Smith, Jessie
Story
Powell, Betty
Snyder, Karrie
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Stamp, Cassandra
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Stone, Caleb
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Stranger, Amy
Story
Leyden, Jana
Teeter, Keturah
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
TenWolde, Lizzy
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Newfield HS
Tubbs, Taylor
Story
Pfarrer, Peter
Ulbing, Cythia
Regular Poetry
Pfarrer, Peter
Valentin, Jacqualine*
Story
Powell, Betty
Van Etten, Tiffany
Structured Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Vanburen, Mike
Story
Leyden, Jana
VanOrman, Sam
Story
Powell, Betty
Velez, Christian
Essay
Powell, Betty
walden, jeremy
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Walker, Breeann
Story
Leyden, Jana
Wall, Patricia
Regular Poetry
Powell, Betty
Warren, Ariel
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Weber, Kristen
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Wood, Dillon
Structured Poetry
Powell, Betty
Wood, Liz
Story
Pfarrer, Peter
Wood, Rebecca
Book Review
Pfarrer, Peter
Woods, Meghan
Wright, Heather
Story
Essay
Powell, Betty
Powell, Betty
Wright, Maryah
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Wrisley, Jordan
Essay
Leyden, Jana
Wylie, Travis
Story
Powell, Betty
Youst, Jeramie
Story
Leyden, Jana
Zichettella, Brianna
Regular Poetry
Leyden, Jana
Ackier, Tyler
Story
Diamond, Lynda
adams-compton, cathirine
Story
Diamond, Lynda
artley, sierra
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Bierwiler, Braeden
Bower, Jesse
Regular Poetry
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Diamond, Lynda
carmona, justin
Essay
Diamond, Lynda
Castellaneta, Trinity
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
champion, shawn
Story
Diamond, Lynda
church, mikaela
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Coyle, Shayla
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Cupp, Cameron
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Diamond, Julia
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Eberts, Patrick
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Eck, Marris
Elliott, Jeffery
Structured Poetry
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Diamond, Lynda
Hale-Schrader, Cadi
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Jones, Kazandra
Structured Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Kio, Dominiq*
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Macintosh, Annabelle
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Miglioratti, Ally
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Mills, Haleigh
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
murray, cameron
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Porter, Hannah
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Raburn, Dominique
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Relyea, Amber
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Rosbaugh-Cornish, Ryan
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Rought, Alexandria
Structured Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Shaulis, Skylar
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Stiles, Dylan
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Taylor, Tessa
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
Tompkins, Jeremy
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
wanson, Brandon
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Wright, Brett
Story
Diamond, Lynda
Zajac, John
Regular Poetry
Diamond, Lynda
South Seneca ES
School
Student
Category
Teacher
South Seneca MS
Alexander, Jami
Essay
Parsons, Patricia
Alexander, Jesse*
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Austin, Cheli
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Austin, Connor
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Backman-Lowe, Tria
Photo Reflection
Parsons, Patricia
Backner, Steven
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Badalamenti, Mary-Kate
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Bennett, Mason
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Blanche, Ashley
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Bond, Mariah
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Borden, Timothy
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Bowers, Joseph
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Castellaneta, Felicity
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Coney, Sierra
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Corning, Eli
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Cornwell, Austin
Dawson, Cheyenne
Structured Poetry
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Parsons, Patricia
Dawson, Dakota
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
DeLong, Austin
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
DeMarco, Kiersten
Essay
Parsons, Patricia
Dey, Emily
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Dunivan, Alexander
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Felice, Ariel
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Freese, Jesa
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Frey, Matt
Essay
Parsons, Patricia
Garrison, Skyler
Griffin, Andrew
Regular Poetry
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Parsons, Patricia
Heitmann, Timothy
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Henderson, Robert
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Huff, Lucas
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Jones, Alexis
Photo Reflection
Parsons, Patricia
Jones, Douglas
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Jones, Marlea
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Kenyon, MacKenzie
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Lane, Nicholas
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Lavarnway, Emily
Loftus, Traci
Regular Poetry
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Parsons, Patricia
Lowe, Lincoln
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
MacIntosh, Luke
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Marrella, Cullen
Story
Parsons, Patricia
McGonigal, Morgan
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
McPherson, Claire
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Miller, Michael
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Morgan, Sylvia
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Mott, Logan
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Murray, Caylin
Essay
Parsons, Patricia
Muzzy, Elisabeth
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Nichols, Jared
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Ortega, Rachel
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Panipinto, Elisia
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Patana, Austin
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Phelps, Nicholas
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Porter, Cole
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Reff, Jon
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Reynolds, Tyler
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Riley, Bailey
Story
Parsons, Patricia
School
Student
Category
Teacher
South Seneca MS
Robinson, Brett
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Ruckdeschel, Nga
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Russell, Cassie
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Schrader, Sarah
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Shaulis, Kelsey
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Shields, Ryan
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Smith, Caleb
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Smith, Christopher
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Smith, James
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Smith, Zach
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Straub, Kevin
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Sturdivant, Vicki
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Trim, Elijah
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Vanselow, Cameron
Essay
Parsons, Patricia
Waid, Holden
Book Review
Parsons, Patricia
Welch-Campbell, Mary
Westlake, Devin
Story
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Parsons, Patricia
Wick, Lilly
Essay
Parsons, Patricia
Williams, Annie
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Williamson, Kelly
Essay
Parsons, Patricia
Winkleblack, Katie
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Woodard, Aleisha
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Woodard, Sara
Regular Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Woodard, Sarah
Structured Poetry
Parsons, Patricia
Woodard, Savannah
Story
Parsons, Patricia
Worrell, Emma
Wyckoff, Laura
Regular Poetry
Photo Reflection
Parsons, Patricia
Parsons, Patricia
Brewer, Sarah
Regular Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Dey, Ben
Regular Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Esguerra, Ryan M
Story
Schoedel, Vincent
Falbru, Dwayne
Structured Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Fisher, Madison
Story
Schoedel, Vincent
LeBlanc, Sarah
Regular Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Miller, Tania-lynn
Structured Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Morgan, Brandon
Structured Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Peng, Angela
Phelps, Amanda*
Regular Poetry
Regular Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Schoedel, Vincent
polk, micah
Story
Schoedel, Vincent
Reich, Jessica
Regular Poetry
Schoedel, Vincent
Skelton, Ian
Story
Schoedel, Vincent
Wagner, Hayden
Story
Schoedel, Vincent
Winstead, Rachael
Story
Schoedel, Vincent
Zajac, Tracey
Story
Schoedel, Vincent
Banta, Ashley
Story
Burton, Kathleen
Black, Isaiah
Story
Walburn, DaLaine
Boyce, Ashley
Story
Allen, Juliet
Bradford, Hiedie
Regular Poetry
Ibert, Christine
Bunce, Makayla
Regular Poetry
Compese, Nancy
Covert, Valerie
Regular Poetry
Ibert, Christine
Dallas, Phillip
Essay
Compese, Nancy
Dean, Samantha
Story
Compese, Nancy
DiMarco, Nicholas
Story
Burton, Kathleen
Drew, Cyia
Story
Allen, Juliet
Godbey, Audrey
Story
Allen, Juliet
Griswold, Marie
Regular Poetry
Allen, Juliet
Gurche, Meave
Regular Poetry
Allen, Juliet
South Seneca HS
Trumansburg MS
School
Student
Category
Teacher
Trumansburg MS
Jackson, Emily
Story
Burton, Kathleen
Lelik, Merissa
Story
Burton, Kathleen
Lupo, Hailey
Regular Poetry
Allen, Juliet
McAvoy, Brittany
Essay
Compese, Nancy
McIntyre, Megan
Story
Compese, Nancy
Melvin, Claire
Regular Poetry
Allen, Juliet
Moore, Keegan
Story
Burton, Kathleen
Mosher, Amber
Essay
Ibert, Christine
Murray, Olivia
Story
Allen, Juliet
Park, Destiny
Regular Poetry
Ibert, Christine
Redmond, Anna
Regular Poetry
Ibert, Christine
Romer, Tyler
Story
Allen, Juliet
Sawester, Berkley
Regular Poetry
Allen, Juliet
Shelley, Anna
Essay
Compese, Nancy
Spackman, Baylee
Regular Poetry
Compese, Nancy
Sprague, Shaylee M
thurston, clayton
Story
Essay
Burton, Kathleen
Ibert, Christine
uhmoltz, ryan
Story
Burton, Kathleen
Van Valen, Kara
Story
Allen, Juliet
Walker, Gwenita
Story
Allen, Juliet
Wilson, Brenna
Story
Allen, Juliet
Wintermute, Micaelah
Story
Burton, Kathleen
Bennett, Peggy
Story
Johnston, Nick
Decker, Nicole
Regular Poetry
Johnston, Nick
Durfee, Michael
Story
Johnston, Nick
Fallon-Goodwin, Maxine
Gurche, Blythe*
Story
Story
Johnston, Nick
Vesci, Marc
McComb, Allison
Regular Poetry
Johnston, Nick
Miner, Corina
Regular Poetry
Dickerson, Lorian
Redmond, Elena
Story
Vesci, Marc
Smith, Eliora*
Regular Poetry
Vesci, Marc
begeal, aiden
Story
Naylor, Michael
Benedict, Ryan
Story
Naylor, Michael
Bodine, Sasha
Story
Naylor, Michael
Bonn, Logan
Story
Naylor, Michael
Dallas, Samantha
Golden, Zoe
Story
Story
Naylor, Michael
Naylor, Michael
Houseknecht, Dylan
Story
Naylor, Michael
Kirk II, Tyler
Story
Naylor, Michael
Lincoln, Kameron
Story
Naylor, Michael
Malone II, Quincy
Story
Naylor, Michael
Miller, Jordan*
Story
Naylor, Michael
Murray, Elise
Story
Naylor, Michael
Reynolds, Liam
Story
Naylor, Michael
Rice, Jocelyn
Story
Naylor, Michael
Seafuse, Jena
Story
Naylor, Michael
Stasierowski, Brian
Story
Naylor, Michael
swanson, sarah
Story
Naylor, Michael
Lewis, Anna
Essay
Williams, Sheryl
Massi, Maria
Story
Kledzik, Lisa
Osborne, Bailey
Essay
Williams, Sheryl
H, Josh
Cover Art
Wall, Jessica
M, Daunte
Cover Art
Wall, Jessica
Trumansburg HS
Trumansburg ES
Lansing ES
George Jr. Republic
Creative Writing Contest
2011 Cover Design
Entitled: The Writer
By
Josh H.
George Jr. Republic
Ms. Jessica Wall
Graphic Arts Teacher
BOCES
An Educational Plus
Printing by T-S-T BOCES Print Shop

Complete List of Participants - CreativeWritingContest

Transcription

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