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FAITH

I Love Sewing

What really goes into a name?

A person’s name can say a lot about them as a person.
Every parent struggles on deciding what they should
name their child. My parents had a hard time picking my
name for sure. They wanted something that would slide
off of the tongue easily while sounding pretty at the same
exact time. One day when my dad was in the shower it
just hit him like a ton of bricks.

I have always wondered what my name signifies.
Kristen Nicole was the name that I was given. Kristen
means outgoing, while Nicole means creative. So my
name means outgoing and creative. Both of these words
describe me perfectly. I guess my dad picked the right
name to go with my personality.

Outgoing describes me becaus11e as a young child I
was never able to sit still. I would always be running around
and had boundless energy. My parents struggled to control
me when I was young because I was such a bundle of energy
who could be found bouncing around on the trampoline for
fun.

Creative is perfect for me because I am always
marching to the beat of my own drum. Every student in the
class could be doing one thing and I would probably be
doing the same exact task in a completely different way. My
creative juices help me express myself as a unique
individual. I always enjoyed doing crafts as a child. Every craft
was used to describe what was going on.

In school people always messed up my name, and would
call me many different names other than Kristen. Examples
included Christian, Kirsten, Kristine, and Kristina. Lots of people
made fun of me because my first name ends with the same letter
that my middle name begins with. Fellow students would tell me
that my name was not creative at all.

50 Word Essay

Sarah wished for a puppy. Her
parents questioned their daughter’s
responsibility level. To show
responsibility, Sarah started doing
chores around the house without
being asked. After much discussion
they adopted a puppy. They picked
an outgoing Samoa with gorgeous
white fur. Sarah had so much fun
bonding with her puppy.

On Wednesday I decided to add more descriptive words. Originally I had “Sadly her parents
said no”, but changed it to “Shockingly her parents said no”. Little changes like this made it
easier for the reader to connect with Sarah (the girl in the story). I’m sure every kid has
asked their parents for an animal of some sort and were turned down for various reasons.

After reading the article I decided to get rid of some details that were not needed and add
some details about what the puppy looked like. I took out the part where I listed various
chores that Sarah did to prove herself because it was not adding to the story. I also added
some shorter sentences so I had more space down at the bottom to add a better conclusion.
My original just stopped with them getting the puppy and left the reader asking many
questions.

ACROSTIC POEM Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio
Potentially
One CINQUAIN POEM
Long That bear
Inhumane
Obstacle Was so unique
It meant a lot to me
Why does it need to be burned?

Bye Bye

HAIKU POEM DIAMANTE POEM
My heart is broken Roommates
No one should have to live like that
Iron Lungs are scary Compassionate, Funny
Healing, Motivating, Encouraging
Keeping me company, Girls my own age

Laughing, Singing, Eating
Kind, Loud
Friends

Kristen Clady

Should Junie B. Jones Be Banned?

Elementary school students often nervous dread reading chapter books. Many
teachers make the mistake of forcing students to read selected chapter books. Doing this just
makes the problem worse. Teachers need to let students pick out their own reading material
so that they are motivated to read, “When you give a child the choice to read what they
desire, they will want to read more.” (Cox) A lot of students who are just starting to read
chapter books loose interest in the books, “The best way to get students to read more is to
help them find one book in a series that they love, then they will want to continue to read
each and every book in the series.” (Cox) Chapter books should be explained as a way to go
on a long journey with character.

Young girls struggle to find characters that they can relate to. Lots of times they feel
like they have nothing in common with the characters. Luckily, the Junie B. Jones series
follows a young girl named and details the adventures she goes through. Author Beverly
Clay did a great job adding humor in the story, while making it relatable to the intended
audience. Junie B. Jones is a young girl with lots of personality. She is an ordinary girl who
goes to school and plays with her friends.

Recently the Junie B. has made her way on the list of banned books. Many parents
and teachers feel that Junie B. is immature and have an issue with her bad grammar, “The
spunky kindergartener (first grader in the most recent volumes) is prone to troublemaking,
…Her adverbs lack the suffix “ly”; subject and object pronouns give her problems, as do
possessives, she usually isn’t able to conjugate irregular past tense verbs; and words like
funnest and beautifuller are the mainstays of her vocabulary.” (Grossman) If young readers
look up to Junie B. Jones as a role model they will feel that it is okay to copy her bad ways.
Before we know it all of the students in our classrooms will behave badly and use bad
grammar.

Young readers do not care about grammar. They are most likely to use the same
exact grammar that Junie B. Jones does. When they read the series they will be able to
understand her grammar, because she speaks just like them, “Children, however, are not
strict grammarians. And it’s rare to find a child who isn’t seduced by these silly, often
slapstick stories.” (Grossman) If a character were to use perfect grammar and act like an
angel at all times young readers will not be able to understand what the character is saying at
all.

Small Moment
Last summer I decided to adopt a cat, it was a decision that would
change my life forever. I visited all the local animal shelters until I
found the perfect cat. I picked a silver tabby cat named Princess because
she seemed to like me. I made the right decision because Princess is the
sweetest little thing. She just loves to sit with me on the same couch every night.
She recognizes watching full house as part of her nighttime routine. I will never
forget the time that she was playing around upstairs and ran down to cuddle with
me. She heard the Full House theme song and got super excited because her favorite
time of the day had finally arrived. She now gets to calm down and bond with mommy.
Every night she jumps up in my lap and purrs loudly while I pet her. She occasionally
Gives me kisses during commercials. About an hour in she falls asleep on my chest.
When it’s time for bed I carry her upstairs and tuck her in under the sheets. The next
night Princess follows the exact same routine. Having her right next to me at the end
of every day just warms my heart. Regardless of whether it was a good day or bad day
she is always right there by my side. Princess loves me unconditionally. She accepts
me for the person I am. Given the choice of who to cuddle with Princess always picks
me over anyone else.

My name is Princess and I am the
sweetest cat around. Ever since
my mommy adopted me last
summer I have just been loving
life with my new family. Noting
makes me happier than bonding
with my mommy.

SOFT